Cut whatever bores you
my 2026 writing rules
My daughter bought a bunch of .10 books at Goodwill and we all (my daughter, son, and husband) cut them up to make zines together this Christmas.
I am not a craft-y person. But it was fun!
She also gave me a blank book as a Christmas present, and after listening to Elizabeth McCracken talk about writing rules (“Every writer has their own rules”), I decided to figure out my rules (at least currently), and set them to pictures.
Here they are. Again, not a craft-y person, but I enjoyed it.
Try to make every sentence interesting, and not overly so.
Bring energy.
Thinking with movement or an activity is more interesting than just thinking.
Cut whatever bores you.
So … I’m curious… to all you creative types reading this (writers, visual artists, etc.), what are YOUR rules?
Writing prompt: Should she make a run for it?
I barely qualify as a creator (hey, I made a Zine, too!). But one thing I have learned from Martha is that creativity is not something that just happens to you. It’s a feedback loop connected to doing the work of creating. Somebody should write a book called The Habit of Creativity.
"Cut whatever bores you," is an excellent one!