Writer’s Toolbox

Author Q&A

Here we present our exclusive collection of Q&As with a long list of illustrious authors.

Tosca Lee

Tosca LeeTosca Lee is the bestselling author of supernatural thrillers such as Demon: A Memoir.

What is your method for overcoming writer’s block?

Just keep writing. Even if it's stupid. It probably will be stupid, but it will get you somewhere and you can fix it later. Or it might be brilliant. But it'll probably be stupid, and that won't matter because it will keep you moving forward to somewhere.

What are your favorite or most helpful writing prompts?

I don't use prompts per se... but I often think of writing as crafting some kind of roller coaster ride for my readers—one I would like to take, myself. So I ask myself what I'd really like to read or know in this situation. Or I think of one of my ideal readers, one who "gets" me—in most cases, my sister. I think of how I would tell her the story or experience I want to share.

What is the most valuable advice you received as a young writer?

Without a specific source to name, one thing I've learned in the last few years is that people want to be moved. To laugh. To cry. To wonder. To think. If you want to monetize your writing especially, you must move readers emotionally. And to do that, you must be moved first.