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ARE WRITERS AND CREATIVE GENIUSES CRAZY?
Sylvia Plath had clinical depression and committed suicide via carbon monoxide poisoning. She may have had bipolar disorder. And Edvard Munch, the artist who created the famous “The Scream,” a piece of art he created four times (two in pastel and two in paint) so prevalent in postcards, posters, refrigerator magnets and even action figures, suffered from intense personal anxiety, deep depression, and even had a mental breakdown. For me, the question is like the chicken and eg
Cully Perlman
Aug 188 min read
2026 PULITZER PRIZE WINNERS
The winners and nominated finalists of the 2026 Pulitzer Prizes were announced on May 4th. The winners each take home $15,000 dollars and serious bragging rights, not to mention a ticket into a very illustrious club.
The winners and nominated finalists from the arts & letters categories (you know, “our” categories) is below.
Cully Perlman
Jun 23 min read
THE IMPORTANCE OF PUTTING THE WORK INTO YOUR NOVEL
I’m saying you must put the work into your fiction to get it as close to perfect as possible. I’m saying you spend the time and energy, that you have the fire in your gut to do what needs to be done to get your novel as close as you can to where literary agents, acquisitions editors, publishers, or, if you’re self-publishing, YOU can’t kick holes through the damn thing. Is this an easy task? Nope. Will you want to give up? Yep. Or most of us will, anyway.
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May 267 min read
2026 FICTION CONTEST AND LITERARY SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS
And here’s a truism: if you’re going to give yourself the best chance of success with your fiction this year when it comes to submitting it to different outlets, make sure you follow the fiction contest and literary submission requirements to the T. You’ll find these requirements (or submission guidelines) on the contest and entry pages, and if you’re logging into Submittable or Duosuma or Moksha or Subfolio or wherever, the submission requirements should be pretty prominentl
Cully Perlman
Apr 85 min read
READING LITERATURE FROM AROUND THE WORLD TO HELP IMPROVE YOUR OWN WRITING
Murakami writes minimalist prose that is surreal, and often deals with themes of memory, existential longing, alienation, and lonely men living mundane lives but who face metaphysical, magical-realist, and fantastic or strange, surreal journeys. Early in his career Murakami wrote by translating his thoughts from English to Japanese. This process morphs into something slightly different in his later works, but the American influence is there in his pop culture references.
Cully Perlman
Mar 2510 min read
GUEST POST: JOHN DUFRESNE COMES UP WITH NOVEL TITLES
If you’re like me, more often your title will emerge during the writing. Before it does, however, it’s a good idea to have a working title or titles as you go. A working title keeps you focused and on track—until it doesn’t. To this point, E.L. Doctorow wrote, “You’ll find a better title, and it will have a certain excitement for you; it will evoke the book, it will push you along. Eventually, you’ll have to choose another title. When you find the one that doesn’t get used u
John Dufresne
Mar 39 min read
The Role of AI in Nonfiction Versus Fiction Writing
Do we fight it and say, "Well, am I going to handicap myself for the few words I'll throw in there that'll differentiate myself from an AI post," or do I say, "You know what, I can't compete, so I'm going to use AI, make a few changes, and save myself countless hours so I can get back to what's important, because I really can't add much to what Copilot comes up with?" At this point, I'm testing the pros of AI and weighing the cons of it. I'm going to generate a few more posts
Cully Perlman
Oct 5, 20259 min read
The Complexities of Writing Literary Novels
In literary fiction, plot often takes a back seat to character. The focus is on the interior lives of protagonists—their fears, desires, contradictions, and growth. Creating nuanced, believable characters is a complex endeavor. It requires empathy, psychological insight, and a willingness to confront uncomfortable truths. Literary novelists must avoid stereotypes and stock figures, instead drawing on memory, observation, and imagination to breathe life into their creations.
Cully Perlman
Sep 25, 20255 min read
Three Years of Writing About Writing
Writing is a Solitary Venture, But it's One That WE Learn by Reading, Writing, and, Ideally, via Generous Mentors I started Novel Master...
Cully Perlman
Sep 9, 20255 min read
Isn't it Ironic? Maybe Not.
My daughter, who’s much more intelligent than I am, noticed the issue about two seconds in. “That’s not ironic,” she said, which 1) made me proud how quickly she picked up on the error, and 2) made me wonder how the lack of irony in those lines was allowed to make it past whoever was in charge of making sure the examples in the song were, indeed, ironic.
Cully Perlman
Sep 3, 20255 min read
Is the Publishing Industry Rigged?
People buy books. Publishers sell books. Literary agents are the middle people between authors and publishers. And while publishers ask themselves many, many questions, the most important ones are these: Will this author’s novel sell? And Will people buy this author’s book? Agents ask themselves the same questions prior to taking on a new client. The publishing industry is just that—an industry. Publishers are businesses. For profit businesses, for the most part.
Cully Perlman
Aug 27, 20256 min read
Artificial Intelligence Wrote This
I was in business for years, digital marketing and advertising, and so I understand his point of view and the technology behind it. I would never use AI for profit, though I do feel a little guilty having “written” the majority of this post using AI. Yes, I did it to see how AI on MS Word has improved since I first tried it out a couple years ago. This year (2025), Microsoft made further improvements, including Voice (you can execute voice commands, practice different languag
Cully Perlman
Aug 19, 20257 min read
Don’t Waste Time Writing or Reading Novels You Don’t Love
So, what’s the fastest way to not waste your time when it comes to reading books? Don’t read the ones that don’t pull you in after a page or two. Or twenty. Your time is valuable, and there’s no sense in completing a novel if you aren’t enjoying it. Yeah, I know, I get it. Lolita is great! Never finished it, though I’ve started it probably thirty times. You haven’t read Vanity Fair by Thackeray? Nope. Doctor Zhivago? Sorry. The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy? Well, I di
Cully Perlman
Jul 1, 20256 min read
How to Market Your Novel
Marketing your novel, both before and after it’s published, is one of the most crucial (and annoyingly difficult) things that you, the author, must undertake if you plan on selling your books. Marketing is about promotion and it is about attracting readers, the goal being to have readers purchase your book. In order to do so, you have to understand what readers are searching for, and how you, the author, can fulfill that need. This post is about steps you can take to get your
Cully Perlman
Jun 10, 202512 min read
THIS IS AI TELLING YOU HOW TO WRITE A NOVEL
As avid readers and writers, they were not pleased at the misquote by their graduation speaker (I told them to give her a break—it was, after all, after she’d read Hinton’s novel, so that’s what was on her mind). Any kid quoting any book or poem is good in my book, pun intended. But that’s not going to always be the case.
I foresee a future where AI and fiction written by writers is going to be so blurred we’ll no longer know the difference. And it’s depressing.
Cully Perlman
May 27, 20258 min read
Summer Books to Read While You Write
If you’re a writer like me, you have a stack of books on your kitchen table, your kitchen counter, by the fireplace (if you have one), on your nightstand, your dresser, your kids’ bookshelves, in boxes, and everywhere else you can balance a book (sorry, I don’t have books in the bathroom—I don’t trust my guests). I may not get to every book—some I just have around because of the beauty of the language, or as reference books, and so on.
Cully Perlman
May 20, 20257 min read
Good Writers Borrow, Great Writers Steal
She wasn’t saying she had plagiarized the other author’s words, but rather some idea or convention she took and used for her work.
Cully Perlman
Apr 1, 20255 min read
The Key to Proper Etiquette and How to Support Authors Hawking Their Books
If someone wants to buy your book, they’ll buy it. If someone recommends it to them, they’ll buy it. Desperation isn’t what readers need.
Cully Perlman
Jan 7, 20255 min read
Is Your Home Library Where Books go to Die?
I have a lot of books. A lot of books. I've wondered that about other writers: Is your home library where books go to die?
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Dec 10, 20245 min read
Don’t Let the Noise in Publishing Get in the Way of Your Writing
writers write. They take the hits as they come, and they deal with them as best they can. Not everyone is going to be a John Grisham.
Cully Perlman
Aug 26, 20246 min read
Writing is a job. It's fun. It's trying. It's hard. But if you're committed to getting published, you have to put the work in. Come to Novelmasterclass.blog to get tips, read and watch interviews and book reviews, and learn how to write.
THE LOSSES
A novel
"I've just read Cully Perlman's hefty, ambitious, and radiant debut novel, The Losses, and I was flat knocked out. This is much more than a promising first novel by an inordinately gifted writer; it is a dazzling literary achievement. Perlman is an enchanter, casting his spell with lyrical prose, evocative details, and spellbinding characters. He explores familial chaos, reckless behavior, and tragic love with poise, savvy, and tenderness. What talent, what nerve, what a wondrous and spellbinding novel."
--John Dufresne
A RESOURCE FOR WRITERS
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