Politics
Latest
The Ethics of Writing The Inaugural Address
What could be more thrilling or daunting than to write the Inaugural Address? I’m talking about...
Nonfiction
Latest
The Ethics of Writing True Crime
The title itself—The Ethics of Writing True Crime—defines the first ethical norm. The crime you’re...
Journalism
Latest
The Ethics of Writing Political Op-Eds
The first op-eds in the US popped up in 1970.[1] They are neither opinion nor editorial. They are...
Novels
Latest
The Ethics of Writing Novels about True Events
The ethics of writing novels about true events is a subject I’ve touched on in previous blogs.[1]...
Historical Fiction
LatestIs Historical Fiction Ethical? Part Two.
“Your consciousness is your contribution to reality. What you perceive as real becomes real.” Rumi In Part One of this topic, I blogged about historical fiction—that is—fact or fiction. Do historical fiction writers tell the...
Memoir
LatestIs Memoir Writing Truthful or Just Therapy?
“When I was younger I could remember everything, whether it had happened or not.” Mark Twain Given the ethical dilemma inherent in writing memoir, we should consult Mr. Merriam and Madame Webster to define the term rather than...
Humor & Poetry
Latest
Is writing a screed ethical, or just stress-relief?
The word screed has multiple definitions, (a) a lengthy discourse, (b) an informal piece of...
Writing
Latest
The Ethics of Writing While Reading
All writers live by three fundamental rules—show don’t tell—don’t plagiarize—keep reading. The...
Social Media
Latest
Is Retweeting Ethical?
In November 2018, I posted a blog on this site about the ethics of tweeting. The opening paragraph...
Read My Books
Blog Feed
The Ethics of Writing While Reading
All writers live by three fundamental rules—show don’t tell—don’t plagiarize—keep reading. The...
Read MoreThe Ethics of Writing While Thinking
Huh? Don’t all writers think while they are writing? Is there an ethical rule for not thinking...
Read MoreThe Ethics of Writing About Space Hurricanes
Spoiler Alert—This is not just about weather. It’s about the latest thing in weather—space...
Read MoreThe Ethics of Writing Plot Plans
A plot plan is one way to write a novel. It’s not the “plot plan” that architects write to show...
Read MoreThe Ethics of Writing About Trials
In 2018, I wrote a blog titled, “When Truth Isn’t Truth.” It was about the former president’s...
Read MoreThe Ethics of Writing About War
War fascinates, denigrates, and populates. Its core appeal and its turnoff is violence. It is...
Read MoreThe Ethics of Writing in Voice
Fiction writers use the term “voice” differently than journalists, lawyers, physicians, or...
Read MoreIs Trump Our Ex-President or Our Former President?
The prefix “ex” is a preposition and means “out of,” “from,” and hence “utterly,” “thoroughly,”...
Read MoreThe Ethics of Writing Cryptomnesia
Cryptomnesia. That’s a mouthful to say, dicey to write, and virtually unrecognizable in the...
Read MoreThe Ethics of Writing Ambiguously On Purpose
We all do it—writers everywhere, every day. We write ambiguously. Mostly we do it in draft, by...
Read MoreThe Ethics of Writing Revelations
We write for myriad reasons—to inform, explain, enhance, enchant, admit, deny, incite, encourage,...
Read MoreThe Ethics of Writing About the Ten Commandments
Let’s start with the Eleventh Commandant: Thou shall not be so foolish as to question the...
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About Gary L. Stuart
I am an author and a part-time lawyer with a focus on ethics and professional discipline. I teach creative writing and ethics to law students at Arizona State University. Read my bio.
MY BOOKS
My latest novel is Emergence, the sequel to Let’s Disappear. Take a look.
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