The Author Guy Blog by Larry B. Gildersleeve

12th April 2024

Hello out there,

Welcome back. We’ve all likely heard the adage it takes at least 10,000 hours of applied effort to master something new. I recall reading Tiger Woods had practiced and played more than 10,000 of golf before he became a teenager.

Well, for me, I long ago passed the 10,000 hours invested in all aspects of fiction writing and I feel as if I’m still in kindergarten. This despite receiving highly-regarded award-winning recognition in three international competitions. For decades I considered myself a very accomplished business writer (I have a degree in journalism), but I simply had no idea the number of moving parts inherent in the craft of fiction writing.

Many authors begin their journey by achieving or attempting a MFA (Master of Fine Arts) degree or attend numerous author-focused seminars, either in-person or online. I’ve done some of that, no doubt far less than I should have, and together with independent study and research I’ve crafted my own MFA course and syllabus that is constantly updated. It is in a word document I’ve labeled Write/Right and it is open on my computer most writing days for ease of reference.

My primary focus, and thus the main subjects, are: Perseverance, Formula, Word Count, Style, Editing and Re-Writing, Basic Plots, Storyline, Tension and Conflict, Show Don’t Tell, Character Development, Setting and Dialogue.

All of this material comes into play before my editors step in when a manuscript is in rough form, and still a valuable touchpoint throughout the editing and re-writing process until a final work product is achieved.

I haven’t encountered any other author who’s gone down this path, but I assume they exist in legions with some form or other of resource compilation. Mine seems to be working fine for me.

Until next week … Vaya con Dios

Larry B. Gildersleeve


Location: Bowling Green, KY, USA

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