The basic rule of storytelling is 'show, don't tell. Julianna Baggott More Quotes by Julianna Baggott More Quotes From Julianna Baggott I try not to divide plot and character. I get to know a character by what they want and fear and how those internal forces play out in their lives. Julianna Baggott playtryingcharacter Writers aren't born properly labeled so it is hard to know one when one appears. Julianna Baggott hardbornknows It's not that I bounce ideas off of my children as much as it is that having children has had a profound effect on the way I see the world. They have mined my soul. They've made me a better person and therefore a more empathetic writer. Julianna Baggott profoundchildrenideas The intricacy of plotting a thriller is akin to writing formal poetry. Julianna Baggott intricacythrillerswriting Different genres allow me to not feel so hemmed in by my own voice, tics, style. Julianna Baggott stylevoicedifferent If men are paid/praised more than women for the same work than it always pays to allow the man to have more freedom to pour himself into his work - think of athletes, actors over the age of 28, lawyers, accountants, college deans. Julianna Baggott athletecollegemen When a colleague of mine had a notable New York Times book, I said, turn one of the chapters in the collection into a pitch for a novel and sell it to your publisher. Julianna Baggott notablenew-yorkbook My oldest sister was an actress living in NYC by the time I was ten, and desperately wanted to be the one in charge of the words. Julianna Baggott nycactresseswanted Genres are just bottles for the various boats. The boats matter to me. Julianna Baggott boatbottlesmatter I was born in the era of the novel. I've written many, as well as collections of poetry, and essays for mouthing off. I've written to inches, word-counts, page-counts, even the sonnet and the screenplay (which I call a plot poem). I write narrative. That's it. I just want to tell it. Julianna Baggott plotwantwriting Writing across genres has made me more prolific. When one is fighting me or simply not cutting it, I turn to another. Julianna Baggott cuttingfightingwriting Each genre has something to teach me about the others. Not all the lessons are transferable, but many of the most important ones are. Julianna Baggott genrelessonsimportant I don't have a favorite. I need different genres at different times. Julianna Baggott genredifferentneeds Being cross-genre, you can encounter an image and decide not only how to best express it but what form would express it best. Julianna Baggott encountersformcrosses You learn to exploit genre for the more important things - to my mind - like story, character, image, language. Julianna Baggott importantmindcharacter The lessons learned in journalism also apply. Writing for NPR has taught me to cut a piece in half and then in half again - without losing the essence. Apply that to the swollen prose of a bulky novel and you might reveal a beautiful work. Julianna Baggott cuttingwritingbeautiful The generation of women who came before us did much of our shouting. They laid the groundwork and now we can be calm and constant and steady. Julianna Baggott shoutingcalmgenerations Literature has done great work for feminism - writing and reading are a practice of empathy - and great literature will continue to do so. Julianna Baggott readingpracticewriting I want women writers to write boldly, wildly, deeply. I want them to feel really liberated to tell the brutal truth, however they see that truth and are moved to tell it. Julianna Baggott brutalwantwriting I want to keep looking at ways to stride forward with positivity. Julianna Baggott positivitywantway
