How to write an excellent first chapter for your novel - Writing Tips From philosophy to literature to learning a new language, Humanities 360 is a veritable fountain of knowledge on everything you’d like to know about the humanities. Resources for every level of writing Here at Helium Publishing, we pride ourselves on knowing a thing or two about writing. We are, after all, one of the largest online writer communities. So where better to look for all of your writing needs? Feeling writer’s block creeping up? The grand world of poetry and literature There’s nothing quite like opening up a great piece of literature. Journeying across time and history If the old adage is true that history is bound to repeat itself, then find out what’s coming by boning up on what’s already happened. Learning new languages The intricacies of learning a new language can leave you tongue-tied, but in our Languages section, you can find out language learning tips, and discover the origins of new words you encounter.
How to Avoid Plot Cliches: Tips for Writers on Increasing Their Chances of Publication | Suite101.com Nobody ever said plotting was easy. And because it's not easy, an alarming number of writers settle for so-called 'plot cliches'. Although the cliched situations that follow can appear in any story, some are more likely to be seen in a particular genre. For example, romance writer Francesca Hawley's blog has an amusing post on Heroines Too Stupid to Live. Number 3 on her list of plot cliches is "I shall allow a minor misunderstanding to become a major issue, when a simple conversation would have cleared matters up on page 10." While this plot cliche is by no means exclusive to romance novels, it does appear rather a lot! For those who enjoy fantasy (or any writer who just likes a good laugh) Peter Anspach's "The Top 100 Things I'd Do if I Ever Became an Evil Overlord" shows the dumb mistakes that allow the villain to be killed or captured. What is a Plot Cliche? Four Examples of Plot Cliches How Can Writers Avoid Cliched Plots?
Anki - friendly, intelligent flashcards Fantasy: Getting Started By Sandra C. Durham © 2003, Sandra C. Durham his is a newcomer’s guide on how to get started in the genre of fantasy writing, from one newcomer to another. The majority of what is discussed here has come from the Forward Motion community as well as from occasional meanderings on the Web based on pointers given by members of that writers' community. Writing fantasy, whether in the form of short stories or novels, does not necessarily follow a set pattern or formula. Contemporary and Urban Fantasy – Stories taking place in the real world, but with an element of magic or fantasy. The best approach to writing in any genre is to know your field. Once you have your book collection, read them carefully. A next logical step in progressing as a new fantasy writer might be to pick up a few good books on the subject. How to Write Science Fiction and Fantasy by Orson Scott Card The Writer’s Complete Fantasy Reference, from Writers Digest Books. Books referenced :
500 Cliches to Avoid in Your Creative Writing Cliches (properly spelled clichés, with the acute accent) are words and phrases, once interesting, which have lost their original effect from overuse. They are considered trite and should be avoided in writing unless used purposely for effect. We all use them without thinking, sometimes because they fit the bill or are just the ticket (both cliches), but usually because they're metaphors, idiom, or truisms that have become so common we no longer notice them. If we say better late than never or speak of someone being down in the dumps , we likely won't register that we just used a cliche. Speech is filled with shortcuts as we aim to make ourselves understood. Writing that relies heavily on cliches is considered poor or lazy writing. The list of cliches below is not meant to be comprehensive, but should help you catch some of the more common cliches in use. If some cliches slip by you and your editor, it's not the end of the world. Cliche list A-K:
Cliche Finder Have you been searching for just the right cliché to use? Are you searching for a cliché using the word "cat" or "day" but haven't been able to come up with one? Just enter any words in the form below, and this search engine will return any clichés which use that phrase... Over 3,300 clichés indexed! What exactly is a cliche? This is Morgan, creator of the Cliche Finder. Or, you might like my crazy passion project: Spanish for Nerds: Learning Spanish via Etymologies! Back to cliches... if you would like to see some other Web sites about clichés? © S. Special thanks to Damien LeriAnd to Mike Senter Morgan's Web page
Writing Tips for Fiction Writers Why Fiction is So Hard to Write I’ve been blogging for a little over three years. I’ve been writing fiction since … well, pretty much since I could write. My blog posts are read by thousands of people. Only 1% of the fiction I’ve ever written has been published. Fiction is incredibly hard to do well. Lots of people can write decent non-fiction. I’m going to say this, despite being an advocate of great writing: Non-fiction doesn’t have to be especially well-written. Of course, it needs to be competent. Fiction is very, very different. Why do you read novels? I believe we read fiction to escape the world for a little while – to escape the limits of our own experience, our own perspective, our own consciousness. That’s why fiction writers have it so tough. When I’m writing a blog post, I don’t have too much to worry about. When I’m writing a single scene in a novel, I have a heck of a lot to do. And all those scenes need to tie together. With fiction, it’s impossible to get it right on the first pass through. Really hard. But…
creative writing prompts . com ideas for writers Words of Wisdom: 101 Tips from the World’s Most Famous Authors If you've ever wanted to sit down with your favorite writer and ask advice, then you should take a look at these tips from some of the most famous authors in the world. These valuable bits of information provide guidance on strengthening your writing skills, becoming a better fiction writer or poet, learning to tap into your creativity, advice on education and school, and even a few suggestions on success and living a meaningful life. Of course, another excellent way of improving your writing is through traditional or online master’s degrees in creative writing. General Writing Tips Improve any type of writing you do with these solid tips from successful writers themselves. Ernest Hemingway. Tips for Beginning Writers If you are thinking about a career in writing, whether you have a bachelor degree or a master’s degree, or are just starting to write seriously, then use these tips for great suggestions. Stephen King. Fiction Tips Kurt Vonnegut. Poetry Robert Frost. Tips for Creativity Success
Stocking Stuffers: 13 Writing Tips From Chuck Palahniuk *Editor's Note: This column is part of a collection of 36 total essays on the craft of writing by Chuck Palahniuk. They were submitted starting in 2005, so this essay will refer to thinks in the past and therefore be on an older timeline. Twenty years ago, a friend and I walked around downtown Portland at Christmas. The big department stores: Meier and Frank… Fredrick and Nelson… Nordstroms… their big display windows each held a simple, pretty scene: a mannequin wearing clothes or a perfume bottle sitting in fake snow. She said the perfect comment at the perfect moment, and I remember it two decades later because it made me laugh. For this essay, my goal is to put more in. Number One: Two years ago, when I wrote the first of these essays it was about my “egg timer method” of writing. Number Two: Your audience is smarter than you imagine. Number Three: Before you sit down to write a scene, mull it over in your mind and know the purpose of that scene. Number Four: Surprise yourself.
10 Reading Exercises for Fiction Writers I always find it exciting when I discover a book that in some way echoes whatever I happen to be writing at the time. It might share a similarity of style, story, or structure, or any combination of the three. Whatever the similarity, I find it helpful to delve into the writing to see what lessons I can glean. After reading several duds recently, I finally came across such a book–The China Garden by Kristina Olsson. When I find a book like this, there are several things I do while reading it. Analyze the story’s structure. These activities really help me focus on what makes an book outstanding, as opposed to simply reading it and saying, “Ooh, good read.” What books have you found helpful to analyze?
Eight Secrets Which Writers Won’t Tell You Image from Flickr by Lazurite This is not particularly relevant to the post, but I’m getting an awful lot of comments telling me, often a little snarkily, “it’s ‘THAT’ not ‘WHICH’”. The “don’t use which for restrictive clauses” rule comes (as far as I can tell) from Strunk and White. Plenty of authors, including Austen, have used “which” exactly as I use it in the title. It’s very commonly used like this here in England, so I’m guessing my comments are coming from US readers. There was never a period in the history of English when “which” at the beginning of a restrictive relative clause was an error. I thought about putting “that” in the title – but I like the sound of “which” between “secrets” and “writers”. And with that out of the way, enjoy the post! A few years ago, I’d look at published writers and think that they were somehow different from me. They were real writers. I’m going to go through eight secrets. Secret #1: Writing is Hard The truth is, though, that writing is hard.
50 Strategies For Making Yourself Work Written by Jerry Oltion Copyright © 2001 by Jerry Oltion Work avoidance is one of the major paradoxes of the writing profession. Generally, writers want to write (or want to have written), but all too often we find ourselves doing anything else but. We’ll mow lawns, do the dishes, polish silverware–anything to keep from facing the blank page. At the same time we know we eventually have to get to work, so we come up with all sorts of strategies for forcing ourselves to the keyboard. Sometimes a single strategy works beautifully for an entire writer’s career (for instance: for over 40 years Fred Pohl wrote four pages a day no matter what, after which he was free to polish all the silverware he wanted), but in my own case I’ve discovered that any particular strategy only works for a couple of months before I learn to subvert it. Set a quota of pages written per day.