Have a question about editing and style? These online resources can help:

Chicago Style Q & A

APA Style.org

University of Colorado Style Guide

The Good Grammar, Good Style Pages

Have a question about editing and style? These books can help:

New Hart's Rules: The Handbook of Style for Writers and Editors

The Oxford Essential Guide to Critical Writing

Rules for Writers

This much every writer knows is true: You don't get better by working in vacuum. You need feedback, criticism, a good ripping apart of your page every now and again. So where to find this kind of writerly tough love? (Gentle, too!) Author Julie Smith offers an innovative answer -- over the phone. A New Orleans resident and veteran writer, Julie began her career as a newspaper reporter and has won the prestigious Edgar Allan Poe Award for her mystery novels. She now teaches "distance learning" writing courses called WritersTrack, where students across the globe get on a conference call and get writing! We spoke to Julie about how to get the most out of writing instruction.

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I was inspired to write my first novel, Maisie Dobbs, by the character herself, who appeared in my mind's eye as I allowed my imagination to wander while stuck in traffic. I have referred to that spark of creativity as a moment of "artistic grace." It best describes the experience that led me to rush home from work later that day to begin writing, because by the time I started my car to drive home, I had the entire story in my head.

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When I talk to people about how to improve their writing, I often begin by suggesting we go for a metaphorical helicopter ride. We start by walking toward the whirling beast...Whappa, whappa, whappa. Our hair is whipped 'round our faces and we duck to protect our precious necks as we walk under the madly spinning blades. We scramble inside the door, stow our briefcases under the seats and pop on a pair of noise-cancelling headphones. Phew!

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I always knew that someday I would write a novel starring Johnny Carson. I first fell in love with the king of late-night TV in the autumn of 1972. I was six years old and had just started first grade. Because I was now officially a "student," my parents moved me into my own bedroom, complete with a wooden desk and a 13" black-and-white TV set with rabbit-ears antenna and a plastic knob for changing the channels.

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