Year end right

The end of the year is a great time to look back and finish what you have been wanting to get done.

Check your writing goals, tally how many you've accomplished, and see if you can get any more completed before the ball drops.

Here is something else you can do to help you end the year right: Make sure that you've catalogued your year's progress right.

Are your files in the right folder? Did you name them in a way that will help you find them later? Do you have duplicate documents that confuse you?

There is a lot you can do at the end of the year. Why not make cleaning your files one of them.

What you'll never see

We get used to the smell of our own house. So much so that we sometimes don't even realize that the smell might be unpleasant.

Writing can be very similar.

Sometimes, you've lived in your story so long that you don't see its faults anymore. You don't see the plot holes or that some of the actions come out of nowhere.

You miss a lot when it's something you're too close to. So, get someone else to help and point out what you yourself could never see.

The many reactions to alcohol

Alcohol sure can come in handy sometimes.

In movies, it can get someone to tell the truth. It can get will-they-or-won't-they couples to finally hook up. It can get someone out of the way long enough for other people to do exactly what they want to do, but can't in front of their friend.

Alcohol can have many effects. If you need a little help moving your plot along, maybe a little drink can help your characters. Just make sure that you give your characters a logical reason to be drinking.

How many times over?

You're going to have to do a lot of editing.

You're going to have to read your writing over and over again to make sure that it's exactly what you want it to be.

You're going to have to work on it.

How many times you're going to have to edit depends on how you do it.

If you start by polishing before you've made sure your story flows, you're in trouble.

Start with the parts that are going to change the most text. If you have to add a character or a plot element, those are all new words that you're going to have to edit. If you have to change a paragraph to clarify the sequence of events, you're going to have to check it again for grammar.

Start by changing the big things and then you'll be able to focus on the smaller ones. Otherwise, you'll be checking the details over and over again as you change your story.

The human touch

There are many apps and tools out there to help your writing.

They can offer inspiration. They can edit your words. They can make sure your timeline makes sense.

They can do many things to improve your writing.

What they can't do, however, is give you your voice and make the story yours.

You're going to have to do that.

You're going to have to write with feeling and you're going to have to review with clear eyes.

Technology is great, and by all means, use it to your advantage, but don't forget that only you can write your story. Make sure that you're letting your writing shine through.

Form inspired—Types of poetry

Poetry should flow. It should come from the muses. It should come as naturally as music.

But, like everything else in writing, it will likely take hard work.

As much as we would like poetry to just happen, it requires effort. It needs to be shaped.

Sometimes, you want to write poetry, but the words just arent there.

Find inspiration in the very basics. What form can your poem take? Try something you never have before.

Golden shovel poem. Cascade. Lune. Waka.

There are so many options.

Not sure where to start? Here's a list of options just waiting for you: www.writersdigest.com/write-better-poetry/list-of-50-poetic-forms-for-poets

Change it up—Variety in sentences

No one wants to read the same sentence over and over for two hundred pages.

You don't want just short sentences. You don't want sentences that are a paragraph long. You don't want every sentence to be dialogue with a speech beat. You don't want every sentence to start with "He then…"

You need to change your sentences up to support your plot.

Use short sentences wisely when you want to create a sense of action. Use passive sentences when your character is overwhelmed without any feeling of power. Use dialogue when it helps move the story along.

You might be best at one kind of sentence, but unless you're writing an experimental piece, don't hold yourself to just that. Change it up to support the action of what you're writing.