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Writing Advice from R. J. Palacio, Author of Wonder

By Jared Dees

R. J. Palacio, author of the popular book and now movie Wonder, offers two pieces of advice to aspiring writers on her website about page:

1. Write every day. 

I would sum it up with another precept I wrote down when I was a teenager. It was from The Agony and the Ecstasy: “The most perfect guide is nature. Continue without fail to draw something every day.” Substitute the word “write” for the word “draw,” and that would be my advice. Just write. Don’t wait for the perfect moment: there’s usually no such thing.

2. Don’t think about writing a book.

Also, don’t think about writing a book. That can be a little daunting—even just the saying aloud: “I’m writing a book.” Instead, just think in terms of writing a page in a book. That’s all. A page or two every time you sit down to write. Before you know it, you’ve got yourself a chapter. Then a couple of chapters. And you’re on your way to writing a book.

Every author I know gives that first piece of advice, but I really found the second piece of advice extremely helpful.

Writing a book takes many long hours. It is a huge commitment. It takes a lot of excitement and motivation at the beginning of the project to push through the very difficult parts of the process.

So, just write. Write to the point that you can’t stop writing until the story is finished.

March 3, 2018 Filed Under: Author Tips, My Fiction Journey, On Writing

About Jared Dees

Jared Dees is passionate about sharing practical resources to teach faith. He is best known for his website The Religion Teacher and is the author of many books including 31 Days to Becoming a Better Religious Educator, To Heal, Proclaim, and Teach, Praying the Angelus, Christ in the Classroom, and Beatitales: 80 Fables about the Beatitudes for Children.

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Jared Dees is passionate about sharing practical resources to teach faith. He is best known for his website The Religion Teacher and is the author of many books including 31 Days to Becoming a Better Religious Educator, To Heal, Proclaim, and Teach, Praying the Angelus, Christ in the Classroom, and Beatitales: 80 Fables about the Beatitudes for Children. See all of Jared's Books →

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