When I'm struggling with a technical challenge in writing, I bang my head against the wall, write and rewrite and write again, and seek out books that have mastered said challenge.

To get an informed answer, I decided to query some highly respected magazine editors and readers to see what they had to say on the topic.

The thought of a student asking me this question in a classroom, where I would have to improvise a coherent answer, is enough to make me retire. Story arc?!

Honey, you aren't a contestant on The Bachelor, you're a writer!

I decided to ask some writers I admire what they try to figure out with their first drafts. What, I asked them, do you need to know before you begin? And what do you try to solve as you're working on that first draft?

How does a writer attach one scene to the next without saying "And then..."?

If you decide not to apply to MFA programs, it can't be because you fear getting rejected.