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Perfecting Your First Page: 3 Tasks or Exercises. Delacroix, Faust Trying to Seduce Margarete (detail) Over the weekend, I was a speaker at the Missouri Writers Guild conference (a terrific group of people and an impeccably run event). One of my sessions focused on evaluating the first page of your novel or memoir manuscript. Here are 3 of the best exercises or tasks you might undertake when thinking about your first page and how you can improve it before sending it to agents or editors. What is the absolute latest moment in the manuscript you can begin your story, and still not leave out anything that’s critical to the story problem? Most manuscripts I read should really start somewhere between page 5 and page 30. Be ruthless in evaluating your opening—have you dawdled in revealing the story problem? Bonus tip: Highlight every adjective, adverb, and modifying phrase. If you enjoyed this advice, you can check out my basic slide presentation on evaluating your first page.

William Shunn : Manuscript Format : Short Story - StumbleUpon. English 50 Exercises for Story Writers. English 50 – Intro to Creative Writing: Exercises for Story Writers Basic Theory: What is a short story? As soon as someone delivers a definition, some good writer will write a story that proves the theory wrong. About the only thing we can say for sure is that short stories are short and that they are written in what we call prose. Some attributes, however, seem to show up more often than not. Short stories have a narrator; that is, someone tells the story; have at least one character in them; have some action occur (or perhaps fails to occur); take place somewhere; that is, there is a setting for the action; and someone either learns something or fails to learn something (theme).With these five characteristics in mind, we can create an almost endless supply of exercises to help sharpen our techniques of story telling.

Narrative Voice Twenty or so years ago, voice was the "rite of passage" into a successful writing career. If you've written a story in third person, try it in first. Creative Writing For Dummies Cheat Sheet. Rewriting and editing helps to tighten up your work. But it can be difficult – what to chop and when to stop may not be clear, and you may change your mind more than once during the process. Ask yourself whether you need to take out: Unnecessary information and explanation. Passages of dialogue that go on too long. Clunky descriptions that give too much detail. Clumsy images that don’t really work. You may need to add or expand: Something you know but have forgotten to tell the reader; perhaps the age of the main character. You may need to move: Dramatic sections to make a stronger opening. In your final edit: Check for grammar, punctuation and spelling mistakes.

A Simple Novel Outline - 9 questions for 25 chapters & H.E. Roulo - StumbleUpon. Just as every tree is different but still recognizably a tree, every story is different but contains elements that make it a story. By defining those before you begin you clarify the scope of your work, identify your themes, and create the story you meant to write. At Norwescon 2011 I sat in on a session called Outline Your Novel in 90-minutes led by Mark Teppo. I’ll give you the brief, readable, synthesized version. Answer 9 questions and create 25 chapter titles and you’re there. Here are the 9 questions to create a novel: 1.) 2.) 3.) 4.) 5.) 6.) 7.) 8.) 9.)

Now, with those 9 questions answered to your satisfaction, try to fill in a 25 chapter, 75,000 word outline. Chapters 7-18 are the middle of your book. Chapters 19-25 depict the heroic act to victory. Wasn’t that easy? Okay, sure, the work isn’t done yet. Using the idea that there are 25 chapters, I outlined my current work in progress. I hope that was helpful. Tell me what works for you. Related 6 Steps to Masterful Writing Critiques. Themes & Things To Keep In Mind When Writing Fantasy Stories and... - StumbleUpon. This list is far from complete. It’s not even trying to be complete. It knows better than that. It just wants to be helpful and provide some inspiration here and there; you know, offer little suggestions that might lead to bigger ideas. (Especially by using the words offered as Wikipedia searches!)

Feel free to make suggestions in the comments! If I like it, I’ll add it to the list! If I don’t like it, well, hey, maybe someone else will! Weather Natural: sunlight, rain, snow, hail, fog, humidity, moonlight, wind, smoke, clouds, shadows, overcast skies, clear skies, lightning, hurricanes, tornadoes, moon in sky during daytimeFantastic: summoned weather, unnatural coloration (eg. green fog) Terrain Changes Landmarks Natural: stone outcropping, lightening struck trees, large boulders, waterfallsArtificial: lone buildings (eg. towers, houses, barns), statues, signs/markers, border wallsFantastic: large skeletons (eg. dragons, giants) After-Effects of Events Tricks Cultures Mysticism Events Unfolding. General Fiction. Getting Around... Career Essentials Getting Started Queries & Manuscripts Market Research Classes & Conferences Critiquing Crafting Your Work Grammar Guides Research/Interviewing Writing Contests The Writing Business Income & Expenses Selling Reprints Collaboration Pseudonyms Negotiating Contracts Setting Fees/Getting Paid Rights & Copyright Tech Tools The Writing Life The Writing Life Rejection/Writer's Block Health & Safety Time ManagementColumn: Ramblings on the Writing Life Fiction Writing - General General Techniques Characters & Viewpoint Dialogue Setting & DescriptionColumn: Crafting Fabulous Fiction Fiction Writing - Genres Children's Writing Mystery Writing Romance Writing SF, Fantasy & Horror Flash Fiction & More Nonfiction Writing General Freelancing Columns & Syndication Newspapers/Journalism Topical Markets Travel Writing Photography Creative Nonfiction Memoirs/Biography International Freelancing Business/Tech Writing Other Topics Poetry & Greeting Cards Screenwriting.

English 50 Exercises for Story Writers. Table of Contents. Welcome to the Purdue University Online Writing Lab (OWL) Internet Resources - Writers Resources - Writing Links & Writers Links for Writers - Word Stuff.

Unsorted [/writers] James Patrick Kelly - Murder Your Darlings - "When time comes to make that final revision, however, you must harden your heart, sharpen the ax and murder your darlings. " Greda Vaso - Determining the Readability of a Book - includes formulas for Gunning's Fog Index, Flesch Formula, Powers Sumner Kearl L. Kip Wheeler - Literary Terms and Definitions L. Kip Wheeler - Comp - Lit - Poetry - Links - more Style - Grammar - Errors in English [/writers]American Heritage - Book of English Usage - free download Band-Aid AP StylebookPaul Brians - Common Errors in EnglishCJ Cherryh - Writerisms and other Sins The Chicago Manual of Style FAQ Gary N. Curtis - The Fallacy Files - Logical fallacies and bad arguments Prof. Charles Darling [RIP] - Guide to Grammar and Writing The Economist (UK) - Style Guide John Eshleman - Logical Fallacies H.W.

23 Websites that Make Your Writing Stronger - StumbleUpon. We are all apprentices in a craft where no one ever becomes a master. ~Ernest Hemingway How strong is your writing? No matter how good you think it is, there’s always room for improvement. In most cases, plenty of room. Luckily, there are some amazing websites that’ll help you improve your writing, and take it to the next level. (***By the way, have you seen this amazing online creative writing course, “Story Is a State of Mind,” created by Giller finalist Sarah Selecky? Want to strengthen your story, empower your performance, and beef up on the publishing business? Here are 23 sites (in no particular order) I look to for daily inspiration and advice: PS If you find this list useful, please share it on Twitter, Facebook or StumbleUpon – I’d really appreciate it!

4) Query Shark A query critique site you don’t want to miss. 5) Men with Pens Fantastic articles on copywriting and freelancing. 6) Ask Allison Writing and publishing Q&A by novelist Allison Winn Scotch. 50 Free Resources That Will Improve Your Writing Skills - Smashing Magazine. Advertisement Today, too many websites are still inaccessible. In our new book Inclusive Design Patterns, we explore how to craft flexible front-end design patterns and make future-proof and accessible interfaces without extra effort. Hardcover, 312 pages. Get the book now! Effective writing skills are to a writer what petrol is to a car. Of course, effective writing requires a good command of the language in which you write or want to write.

Further Reading on SmashingMag: Link We collected over 50 useful and practical tools and resources that will help you to improve your writing skills. 1. Use English Punctuation Correctly6 A quick and useful crash course in English punctuation. HyperGrammar7 An extensive electronic grammar course at the University of Ottawa’s Writing Centre. Grammar Girl8 Mignon Fogarty’s quick and dirty tips for better writing. English Style Guide – Economist16 This guide is based on the style book which is given to all journalists at The Economist. 2. Dr. 3. 4. 5. 6. How I use OneNote for my Dissertation « ProtoScholar. The question came up recently about how I am using OneNote for my dissertation note taking. Sometimes show is easier than tell.

I have one OneNote notebook called Dissertation. Within it, I have 8 sections: A few things about this: The first 5 sections reflect the 5 chapters required in my dissertation: Introduction, Literature Review, Methods, Findings, ConclusionI have a tab called Media into which I put less scholarly discussion around my topic. I probably won’t use this stuff in my Lit Review but may use it for context in the introduction.Meta is where I put notes on things like how to write a literature review, what constitutes a good one, etc.Old is where I put notes related to things I may not end up using.

Within each section, I am creating multiple tabs with notes on specific sub-areas. Notice that the first tab is labeled structure. Below that, each 1st author has a tab. Within each tab, I take notes on the paper. Key things to notice: the bibliographic reference is at the top. Build bibliographies fast with BibMe - Lifehacker. Kibin Offers Free Editing and Proofreading for Your Papers and Other Writing. Nerd Paradise : How to Write a 20 Page Research Paper in Under a Day - StumbleUpon.

Posted on: 10 Cado 7:0 - 5.27.29 So you've procrastinated again. You told yourself you wouldn't do this 2 months ago when your professor assigned you this. But you procrastinated anyway. Shame on you. It's due in a few hours. What are you going to do? Pick a Topic The more "legally-oriented" your topic is, the better. Make a list ...of every possible outcome that this issue could cause in...the near future...the far future...of every person that this topic affects....of any instances where this topic has come in the news....what you would do about this topic if you had the chance/power/enough-sugar...any little detail you can think ofThe important thing about this is to think of ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING, no matter how silly or far-fetched. Reorder everything Put your most obvious argument first. Then put weird off the wall stuff, regardless of importance. Put the strongest argument for your case next.

Now list the incidents that will help argue for your point. Spaces Now print it out. Write Turn in. Thesis Generator. Researching a Research Paper Quickly and Effectively. During high school and even during undergrad, I don't think I was ever properly taught how to quickly and effectively find research for writing a research paper. I was taught some tips here and there, but it was challenging to find useful research and information for papers. I had a knack for finding all sorts of research and information for stuff that was sorta-kinda related to my papers, but I struggled to find research that really helped me connect all the dots and was the best source to cite for whatever I was writing.

I shudder at all the hours I wasted, and I suspect that my teachers and professors simply took the ability to find research for granted and did not consider it to be a process or a skill or maybe they had wrongly assumed that we had been taught how to do it by a previous teacher. This Instructable shows how to find research and information for writing a paper without wasting time and without struggling to force sorta-kinda-related research into your paper. Overview. Harness the Mental, Creative, and Emotional Benefits of Regular Writing. My journal has without a doubt been a transformational tool in my life. Just taking a bit of time to reflect on how the last week has gone and to renew my intentions for the coming week really keeps me on track, and alerts me early to any negative habits I am developing. It made it painfully clear to me why my NY Resolutions failed in the past. I simply didnt keep thinking about them.

For me personally, having headings according to all the parts i want to keep in check (family, physical health, mental health, etc) works really well because it keeps me focussed on a balanced life. When you get hooked into something its easy to forget that other areas of your life exist. Thats just how the mind seems to go. Having a checklist of areas you want to reflect on means that you dont just focus on the latest loudest thing. I keep it weekly because thats a very useful timescale for goals.

Finally what works for me is handwritten.

Prompts

Character Motivation Goal. Productivity. Grammar.