DWR Award Flash Fiction Finalist Stacey DuFord

Our Writer Wednesday this week is part-time TV weather forecaster, freelance writer and DWR Award finalist Stacey DuFord from Beverly Hills, Michigan!

Stacey’s children's book, “The Fairy Painting,” was a BookSense Bestseller Pick. Her short stories and essays have appeared in a Lulu Share Your Scare Anthology, Metro Parent and Strut Magazine.

She took 3rd place in the flash fiction category and received an honorable mention for her screenplay at the 2022 DWR Awards! Learn more about her below!

What is your favorite part of the writing process? 

I don’t know how to describe it, but that moment when something clicks. Like when you try a puzzle piece and it fits perfectly. 

What does your writing workspace look like? 

Always messier than I’d like. When my daughter moved out I turned one of the bedrooms into an office, and I love the space and what I’ve done with it but I yearn to walk into a perfectly organized and neat room to work.

Do you prefer screenwriting or flash fiction writing? 

I’m still learning the process of screenwriting, and probably flash fiction too. I really like reading and writing great dialogue.

What is your favorite non-writing hobby? 

I like anything that involves a creative process: cooking, decorating, working on film sets. I paint bad watercolors that my friends pretend are good.

What is your favorite piece of writing advice? 

Kill your darlings. It’s SO hard. But so necessary. 

What writing projects are you currently working on? 

I’m working on a book of short stories, some are made up and some are slightly fictionalized versions of real events. And I accidentally started writing a novel last winter. I enter competitions, especially ones with prompts, because I like the forced “puzzle” aspect of trying to work specific things in.

Follow Stacey on Twitter at @staceyindetroit and Instagram at @staceyduford.