Short Story Writing: 4 High Impact Tips
One of the most important ways to make a big impact in a short story is to write crisp, concise dialogue. Dialogue helps drive the plot and reveal information about the characters.
The Writer’s 3 Step Practice for Improved Health and Creativity
“Many of us walk around dehydrated without realizing it and that can have a significant effect on our health and how we feel,” Dr. King says. Dehydrated bodies trap toxins and encourage water retention – a natural defense against the chronic “drought.”
13 Tips for Writing a Dan Brown Page Turner
Here are 13 applicable observations Ellis Shuman has made, his deduction of the formula required to create a Dan Brown-like thriller that will captivate readers:
Blake Snyder’s Beat Sheet for Novels
Snyder breaks down the three-act structure into manageable sections, each with a specific goal for the overall plot goal.
Write your book title in 10 minutes
We know better than to judge a book by its cover, but a title is our first reader hook. A great story with a ho-hum title may be overlooked and left unread.
Kill Writer’s Block Now: The Fast Track to Creativity Starts Here
Staring at a blank page? No me, my friend; I’m already off and writing this blog post, charmed by the prolific Charles Bukowski, “Writing about writer’s block is better than not writing at all.” (The Last Night of the Earth Poems) Garnering the wisdom of two of my favorite writing instructors, I’m here to solve your […]
Sell More Books: Good Writing vs. Creating Urgency
Writing “well” should be good enough. Good enough to score an agent and a publishing contract. Good enough to entice a potential reader to move past page one, and keep reading, breaking only for food and the uncontrollable urge to refer your book to everyone with an inbox. Author and mighty story expert and deconstructrix […]
Manuscript Rejected After Only 20 Pages? What gives?
A lot of new writers are being told to start right in the action, and this tip needs to be clarified. We need some kind of conflict in the beginning to make us (the reader) choose to side with/like the protagonist. This conflict doesn’t necessarily have to do with the main story problem (directly).
8 Steps for a Focused Writing Plan, Fact and Fiction
Be sure each scene–every detail–relates directly to, or in some way clarifies or develops your theme. Emphasize the most important scenes or points – in other words, emphasize those sections that crystallize your meaning. In a story, develop key scenes or important details or
descriptions. In essays, emphasize, or spend the most time developing, key points. Emphasis provides direction, tells the reader when to pay close attention.
Editing Fiction for Intelligent Readers (No Spoon-feeding Allowed.)
Often I think I’m illuminating my reader, when merely I’ve employed “qualifiers”—See below why qualifying is akin to spoon-feeding the reader.