CALLIHOO Writing Idea Generators: The 37 Dramatic Situations. The Thirty-six (plus one) Dramatic Situations Georges Polti says that all stories boil down to just 36 dramatic situations and takeoffs of those situations.
Somebody else out there added #37. If you're stuck for a situation, try this. A situation appears below randomly (in bold print). If you'd like more information, or want to see the subplots for the situation, click on its link below. (Note: In several cases, specific gender in the original descriptions has been replaced with non-specific gender. Your situation: 29. Still stuck for plot ideas? Cosmic Thoughts | Oblique Strategies | Random Science Fiction Story Ideas.
Kurt Vonnegut’s 8 Rules For Writing Fiction. Put One Word After Another: Neil Gaiman’s Eight Rules of Writing. WritePut one word after another.
Find the right word, put it down.Finish what you’re writing. Whatever you have to do to finish it, finish it.Put it aside. Read it pretending you’ve never read it before. Show it to friends whose opinion you respect and who like the kind of thing that this is.Remember: when people tell you something’s wrong or doesn’t work for them, they are almost always right. When they tell you exactly what they think is wrong and how to fix it, they are almost always wrong.Fix it.
About Neil GaimanNeil Gaiman is an English author of short fiction, novels, comic books, graphic novels, audio theatre and films. His notable works include the comic book series The Sandman and novels Stardust, American Gods, Coraline, and The Graveyard Book. He is the first author to win both the Newbery and the Carnegie medals for the same work, and is listed in the Dictionary of Literary Biography as one of the top ten living post-modern writers.
Fifteen Ways to Write a Novel. Every year I get asked what I think about NaNoWriMo, and I don’t know how to answer, because I don’t want to say, “I think it makes you write a bad novel.”
This is kind of the point. You’re supposed to churn out 50,000 words in one month, and by the end you have a goddamn novel, one you wouldn’t have otherwise. If it’s not Shakespeare, it’s still a goddamn novel. The NaNoWriMo FAQ says: “Aiming low is the best way to succeed,” where “succeed” means “write a goddamn novel.” 25 Ways To Fuck With Your Characters. As storyteller, you are god.
And to be frank, you’re not a particularly nice god — at least, not if you want your story to resonate with readers. A good storyteller is a crass and callous deity who treats the characters under his watchful eye like a series of troubled butt-puppets. From this essential conflict — storyteller versus character — a story is born. (After all, that’s what a plot truly is: a character who strives to get above all the shit the storyteller dumps on his fool head.) How To Write About A Real Location If You Haven't Been There. Many fiction books jump from location to location, and include evocative detail on these settings.
These scene changes help the action move along and set the story in the real world. But how do you write well about these places if you haven’t been there? Thanks to reader Josh B for this great question posted on comments. Creative writing prompts . com ideas for writers. Creative Writing Games. 3 Quick Ways To Improve Your Writing. A good friend of mine once said: “Every day I write is a good day.” And after more than ten years of writing I still agree with this statement. Poem Starters and Creative Writing Ideas. Enter your e-mail to get the e-book for FREE.
We'll also keep you informed about interesting website news. "I have searched the web and used different worksheets, but none have come close to your worksheets and descriptions of (what to do and what not to do). Both courses I have taken have with Creative Writing Now have been amazing. Each time I have learned something new. The one thing I love, you take everything apart and give examples. " - Katlen Skye "As usual - I already love the course on Irresistible Fiction, rewriting a lot and improving greatly even after the first lesson. Keeping a Writers’ Notebook. By Ali Hale.
Creative Writing Exercises. 5 Freewriting Secrets for Being a &Genius&. You've heard of freewriting, certainly. At its most basic, it's about forcing your internal editor to stay away while you splash your most raw and unusual thoughts onto the page. In Accidental Genius: Using Writing to Generate Your Best Ideas, Insights, and Content (2nd edition, revised & updated), Mark Levy tells how he uses freewriting, not only to loosen up his writing muscles, but to solve business problems of all kinds. Levy, author, writing teacher, and marketing strategist, shares a few "secrets" for making freewriting an indispensible tool: 5 Freewriting Tips. A. Victoria Mixon, Editor & Blog Archive & 10 Things To Do To Become a Better Writer in 10 Days. How to Write Better: 7 Instant Fixes.
Does your writing stand out?
Do you worry whether your writing is good enough? I can see you nodding your head. You are not alone. Every writer has doubts about his or her writing. The good thing is that writing is a journey. On this journey, you can either travel the long road – or use shortcuts. Using shortcuts means learning to spot and fix mistakes in order to write better. Here are seven instant fixes that will improve your writing. 105 Writing Tips from Professional Writers. 25 Things Writers Should Stop Doing. I read this cool article last week — “30 Things To Stop Doing To Yourself” — and I thought, hey, heeeey, that’s interesting.
Writers might could use their own version of that. So, I started to cobble one together. And, of course, as most of these writing-related posts become, it ended up that for the most part I’m sitting here in the blog yelling at myself first and foremost. That is, then, how you should read this: me, yelling at me. If you take away something from it, though? Then go forth and kick your writing year in the teeth. Onto the list.
Zadie Smith's 10 Rules of Writing. 8 Writing Techniques to Win You a Pulitzer. Today’s guest post is from writer Joe Bunting, who blogs at The Write Practice.
We all know there are novels and then there are “literary” novels. When you read Margaret Atwood, it just feels different than when you read Tom Clancy. And for some reason, these literary novels are the ones that win all the most prestigious awards like the Pulitzer Prize, the Man Booker Prize, and the Nobel Prize for Literature. Literary authors are known for their unique voices and experimental styles. Ten brutally brutal writing commandments – SLOTHROP. I used to have these ten writing commandments that I typed up once for some discussion, and recently I found the file in an external USB drive. Here, have them, and leave a comment if you happen to disagree, etc. (There’s also a sister-post by Caleb Ross, called Nobody Gives a **** That You Wrote Something) 1.
Temper cruelty with moral uprightness. 50 Things a Writer Shouldn’t Do « Three Guys One Book. DH: A list recently published in The New York Times by a noted restaurateur gave 100 rules for what service staff should not do. I thought a list of 50 things that writers shouldn’t do would give us all a chance to vent. I’m contributing 10 items. Some of these pet peeves have pissed me off for years: Short Stories: 10 Tips for Creative Writers. 7 Habits of Serious Writers. Image credit: aless&ro With thanks to Michael Pollock for the article suggestion and title.
A List of 109 Tips from Top Writers. English 50 Exercises for Story Writers.