how to be a better writer

Take a look at Dylan Landis’ dissection of linked stories, what makes the best collections work and why. She’s not afraid to go back to her book and look at why she didn’t feel it was as good as it could have been. If you want to teach students how to read more deeply, if you want to improve as a writer, if you’re interested in any part of the process, do yourself a favor and head over to her site.

This is the kind of connection between reading and writing that we’re looking for at Annotation Nation. Speaking of which (shameless plug warning), my latest of Douglas Coupland’s ALL FAMILIES ARE PSYCHOTIC is up. I read it when I was looking at comic novels about family dynamics while writing WRESTLING ALLIGATORS (currently out to agents, thanks for asking).