Jane Smiley on Creating Effective Outlines & The Importance of Being Analytical

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“If you ask any writer, most of what happened to them was a combination of effort and luck. You have to keep trying.” -Jane Smiley

Known to be one of the greatest writers of our time, it’s an absolute honor to feature Jane Smiley on our show! Jane is the Pulitzer Prize winning author of A Thousand Acres, and numerous novels, most recently, The Last Hundred Years trilogy: Some Luck, Early Warning, and Golden Age.

She has written a novel in every literary genre; consciously choosing to change the style, tone, and setting for each one, and is celebrated for transitioning from one novel to the other with ease and grace.

Jane walks us through her earliest memories of how she fell in love with writing, and shares the inspiration behind her first picture book Twenty Yawn. We also explore the ideas of teaching in her series of books for middle-grade readers, The Horses of Oak Valley Ranch.

Jane walks us through how to jot down story ideas, how to write effective outlines for the story, and why it’s crucial to remain organized throughout it all.

We dive into the importance of writing workshops and exactly how it provides you with the support and help you need as a writer, why it’s incredibly important to be analytical versus critical, and how to effectively learn from critiques and feedback about your work.

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“The nature of children’s literature and YA literature is always about teaching.” -Jane Smiley

“You have to do the best to be yourself.” -Jane Smiley

“If someone’s criticizing your work, try to figure out what you can learn from that. Don’t be offended by it.” -Jane Smiley

What You’ll Learn From This Episode:

- How Jane fell in love with writing
- The inspiration behind Jane’s picture book Twenty Yawn
- How Jane explores the ideas of teaching in her series about horses
- Writing tips on how to jot down your story ideas throughout the day
- How to create effective outlines for your story
- Why it’s important to stay organized as you create your story
- How to work with editors while staying true to your story
- How writing workshops provide you the support and help you need as a writer
- Why it’s crucial to be analytical instead of critical as a writer
- How to effectively learn from comments and feedback about your writing
- How to create your own luck in the publishing world through networking

From Pulitzer Prize winner Jane Smiley and Caldecott Honor artist Lauren Castillo.

As her mom reads a bedtime story, Lucy drifts off. But later, she awakens in a dark, still room, and everything looks mysterious. How will she ever get back to sleep?

Pulitzer Prize winner Jane Smiley’s first picture book, illustrated by Caldecott Honor artist Lauren Castillo, evokes the splashy fun of the beach and the quietude of a moonlit night, with twenty yawns sprinkled in for children to discover and count.

Learn More About Jane Smiley

Jane Smiley is the author of numerous novels, including A Thousand Acres, which was awarded the Pulitzer Prize, and most recently, The Last Hundred Years trilogy (Some Luck, Early Warning, and Golden Age). She is also the author of five works of nonfiction and a series of books for young adults. A member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters, she has also received the PEN Center USA Lifetime Achievement Award for Literature. She lives in Northern California.