I'll Bet You Think This Story's about You: When People Keep Finding Themselves in Your Fiction It was an honor today to be hosted on The Millions site. In today's post you can read a conversation with my mother. https://themillions.com/2018/11/ill-bet-you-think-this-storys-about-you-the-un-omitted-omissions-and-the-real.html

​Write great flash 

I'm thrilled to share with you that my latest flash piece, "Cutty Sark" has been accepted to the Writer's Bone. This piece is part of a larger manuscript titled Backroad.  

Slow the pace

​Thank you Kathryn Schleich for having me as a guest on your blog. 'Show don't tell' is common advice. It's been unpacked in dozens of blogs. Luckily, this won't be one of them. That's because it's repeated so often, it crowds out other important writing errors such as, pace. Pace is all about rhythm and speed in a story. Think: how much time has e...

I was thrilled this morning to find myself at the top of the Book Club Reader Recommended list on the Jewish Women's Archive site.  Thank you JWA!

Today's question comes from Naomi in Beit Shemesh. Thanks for emailing me. Naomi asks, what is the difference between essay writing and writing a non-fiction flash piece?  

Imaginative truth and non-fiction

Today's question is one of two questions from Naomi in Beit Shemesh. Thanks for writing. Please email me any additional questions and I'll try to answer them in a one-minute vlog. Naomi asks if her non-fiction piece has some imaginative truth, does that make her piece flash fiction? 

​What do you need in a writing partner? 

Passport Control by Gila Green is an amazing book with lots of plot twists and mystery. It tells the story of a Canadian Jew, Miriam Gil, who comes to Haifa University to study. She gets involved with many unexpected people and events. Passport Control is fiction, but to be honest, it's clear that everything Green writes about is a real possibility...

The autumn issue of The Fiddlehead is out and I'm honored my piece "Winnipeg 1987" is part of it.  Thank you to editor, Alicia Elliott. I enjoyed your editorial so much, I repost it here. So many of you ask me for a definition of non-fiction, I recommend you read below.  Whatever We Need It To BePosted on November 12, 2018 Late last year ...

Today's vlog answers the question: do I need a villain in my story? 

 I'm always excited to share author Q&A articles with you. I'm thrilled to have another Israel-based writer joining me on my blog. I virtually met Diana after I published my first novel King of the Class and I've been following her blossoming publishing career ever since. I still hope to make it up North to meet Diana in person or to catch...

​THE TRIBALISM THAT REIGNED IN BEIT SHEMESH FOR A DECADE IS OVER BY GILA GREEN I live in Beit Shemesh, the city that made global headlines when a Jewish man spat on a young girl (in December 2011). As a writer I was asked to speak out, to write a blog post or article that would distance "us" from "them." But I felt articles created more hatred, wer...

​Are you looking for a place online where you can find writing advice, read author interviews, watch short and useful vlogs and learn about life in Israel at the same time? You're here. I'm Gila Green, a Canadian author from Ottawa living in Israel. I'm excited to have a new writing space online and I would love to hear what you'd like to see ...

Thank you to Writers Write for guest posting this blog.   You can increase your writing productivity by partnering with another writer and critiquing each other's work. But not any good-natured writer will do. If you really want to improve your writing productivity, look for these seven things in your next critique partner: Someone who wr...

Thank you to Writers Helping Writers for Guest Posting this blog.   Book publishing is a tough, competitive business. Still, there's no reason to make the road harder to travel. Enter flash fiction—an excellent way to break into both fiction and nonfiction book publishing. Flash fiction pieces are very short stories that still include the...

Thank you to the Book Designer for guest posting this blog.   We hear it all the time, "How can I possibly market my existing book while writing my next book?"or "I don't like marketing. I just want to write." But the reality is that to be successful as an author, most of us need to continually do both–marketing AND writing new books. The...

This week I was thrilled to be a guest on C.S. Lakin's site LiveWriteThrive. Thank you again."The exploding number of flash publication opportunities as a way to break into novel publishing also offers a break for writers who might be burnt out with a novel or short story. Specifically, you get a break from following those longer manuscript rules, and we all need a break from “the rules” once in a while to recharge." Read the rest.

I am always excited to share author Q&As with you. This time is even more of a pleasure because I took a play-writing class with Atar Hadari 11 years ago and before that I attended some of his classes at Bar Ilan University. So, we go way back.  Moreover, Atar has generously honored me with two of his poems for two of my own novels. I'm always thrilled when Jewish writers can collaborate and together extend their own works.  We connected over our love of writing but also over some of our shared background. Atar is a tenth generation Israeli and my family, too, came to Palestine in the 1880s. I've lived in Israel for 20+ years but have not met many people who share this dual background with me. I'd love to meet more if you're out there! I'm excited about Atar's new book "Lives of the Dead: Collected poems...

An excerpt from my young adult novel, No Entry is out. My novel is now signed with Stormbird Press, Australia for a September 2019 release. I'm working on a sequel right now.What's No Entry about?Teen heroine, Yael Yekutiel, signs on to an elephant conservation program and ends up coming face to face with violence, greed and murder. The story takes place in South Africa’s famous, breathtaking Kruger National Park. Yael vows to devote herself to saving the planet from human greed and is set to learn all she can about ivory poaching when she accidentally encounters a murderous poaching ring taking place below the surface of her newfound paradise. She receives a second blow when she discovers her idol Clara Smith, the prestigious and well-respected program director, profits from blood ivory, while preaching about the sanctity of wildlife. Yael is forced to decide on a new mission: expose this poaching ring to...

You can check out Passport Control and please let me know what you think.My October release turned into an August one! As of today it is on Amazon Canada, too.

Imagine a group of friends and relatives coming together throughout the afternoon over food and drink, staying late into the evening to share stories that engender laughter, tears, empathy and admiration. The profoundly satisfying stories in White Zion are rich in intimate detail, peopled with a cast of heart wrenching characters at once familiar and unique, a gathering of personalities that leaves me reluctant to leave their company and eager to revisit them.Pearl Luke, author Madame Zee

Writing Opportunities In Unexpected Places. Being a student has reminded me that if you write, you are a writer; write and write often; and opportunities to write really are everywhere. When I decided to get a MA in Technical and Professional Communication, I felt that I was betraying my creative writing self.   I repeated, "This doesn't define you. You're still a creative writer.”  Even when my professor said in research class, "to not be mistaken, this is a writing class," I still felt like a cheat. After a couple of writing intensive classes, it surprised me what I learned and relearned:  writing practice comes in many forms and still adheres to basic writing rules.   Honor deadlines  There is always a deadline.  That’s frightening when staring at a blank page. Gather research and focus on your writing goal with your deadline mind.Remember the 5 magic wordsAs I freaked about creating a budget...