I don’t know - I have never managed to sell a story, though I have told a few.
But I do know, you need to both base it on what you know, and divorce yourself from it.
And, what else do you do with your time - hang out on FR?
You know what makes a PhD? An original contribution to human knowlege. A book. Write one.
“Sarah looked at the dirt between her toes, dreading school today. It would not go well.”
(egads, shoot me - that was awful)
I am good at bad writing.
So shoot me.
LOL....pretty awful. What do I do with my time? Let me count the ways. I’m a retired pastor for a church of 60 members and all that encompasses ( they call it part-time). I’m a member of local Tourism Committee;Chamber of Commerce; President of the county Performing Arts Council, Directing a production of Hansel & Gretel currently, babysit my grandaugher two days a week, but I’m only 75, so I still have a lot to do.