Technical Writing. A. Victoria Mixon, Editor ? Blog Archive ? 10 Things To Do To Become a Better Writer in 10 Days. E316K -- Bremen. I think that if there is any value in hearing writers talk, it will be in hearing what they can witness to and not what they can theorize about. My own approach to literary problems is very like the one Dr. Johnson's blind housekeeper used when she poured tea–she put her finger inside the cup. These are not times when writers in this country can very well speak for one another. In the twenties there were those at Vanderbilt University who felt enough kinship with each other's ideas to issue a pamphlet called, I'll Take My Stand, and in the thirties there were writers whose social consciousness set them all going in more or less the same direction; but today there are no good writers, bound even loosely together, who would be so bold as to say that they speak for a generation or for each other.
Today each writer speaks for himself, even though he may not be sure that his work is important enough to justify his doing so. And his need, of course, is to be lifted up. 23 Websites that Make Your Writing Stronger. 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. Self-publishing a book: 25 things you need to know | Fully Equipped. Note to readers: I originally published the article back in 2008 and have updated it a few times, most recently on June 13, 2012. This article primarily addresses self-publishing a print book, though many of the tips apply to e-books as well.
For specific information about publishing an e-book, see my companion article, "How to self-publish an ebook. " I know, I know. This is a column about cutting-edge electronics. So, apologies to gadget-heads as I take a brief sojourn into the land of self-publishing, which has become a lot more high-tech than a lot of people realize. A few years ago I wrote a book. Its short history is this: I worked on it for several years, acquired a high-powered agent, had some brushes with major publishers, then, crickets. I could have tried to go for a small publisher, but I was told mine was "a bigger book" with more commercial aspirations and prestigious small publishers were interested in more literary tomes. 1.
Self-publishing a print book is easy. 2. 3. 4. Kurt Vonnegut's Tips for Writing Fiction. 50 Problem Words and Phrases. 6 Ways to Hook Your Readers from the Very First Line. Although I consider myself an avid reader, I must admit I have a short attention span when it comes to getting into books. If you fail to grab my attention in the first few lines, I start spacing out. Most readers are like me. Most people don’t want to spend the first 50 pages trying to get into a book. Here are a few things I find annoying in the first lines of a story: Dialogue. Nice somewhere on the first or second page, but not in the first line. We won’t know who’s speaking or why we should care.Excessive description. The last thing you want to do as a writer is annoy or bore people. (N.B. 1. Put a question in your readers’ minds. “Those old cows knew trouble was coming before we did.” 2.
By starting at an important moment in the story, your reader is more likely to want to continue so he or she can discover what will happen next. “It was dark where she was crouched but the little girl did as she’d been told.” 3. “Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.” 4. 5. 6. Exercises for Fiction Writers - Page 2. Read These Seven Books, and You’ll be a Better Writer. Donald Miller I used to play golf but I wasn’t very good.
I rented a DVD, though, that taught me a better way to swing, and after watching it a few times and spending an hour or so practicing, I knocked ten strokes off my game. I can’t believe how much time I wasted when a simple DVD saved me years of frustration. I’d say something similar is true in my writing career. If you read these books, your writing will improve to the point people who read your work will begin to comment on how well you write. Sometimes the difference between an okay writer and a great writer is simple. I’ve read quite a few books on writing and here is, in my opinion, the collection every writer should have in their library. • The War of Art by Steven Pressfield: This book is aimed at writers, but it’s also applicable to anybody who does creative work. Pressfield leaves out all the mushy romantic talk about the writing life, talk I don’t find helpful. . • On Writing Well by William Zinsser: 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.