How to Start a Novel Time to confess: I’m a closet novelist. For the last six years, I’ve been sitting on a great plot, but I find the idea of writing a novel daunting. A few days ago, my best friend said to me, “You should write your novel this year. “You remember the story? “Of course I remember! I’m still uncertain whether to start writing the novel or not. What about you? Are you a closet novelist? Maybe you have great ideas but you wonder how to start. To make things easier, I asked five experts how to start a novel. 1. The first step I take after being struck with an idea for a novel will seem like a non-step, but it’s critical—just as important as the second step, which is research, research, research. The first step doesn’t involve any books or paper or pencils. It doesn’t require speaking with another living soul, either. I consider: Does the idea have the legs required to last the length of a novel? So that’s what I wait for: that spark of longing, even lust, for a story. The birth of an obsession. 2. Why?
41 Badass Women Who Changed History Forever Jeanne Manford marches with her gay son during a Pride Parade. [1972] Jeanne went on to found the rights group "Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays." A women's suffrage activist protesting after the "Night of Terror." [1917] Source: reddit.com 33 suffrage activists had been arrested for "obstructing traffic" and were badly beaten by prison guards. Margaret Hamilton, lead software engineer of the Apollo Project, stands next to the code she wrote by hand and that was used to take humanity to the moon. [1969] A Dutch woman refuses to leave her husband, a German soldier, after Allied soldiers capture him. Source: reddit.com Photograph of a samurai warrior. Source: reddit.com Anna Fisher, an American astronaut and "the first mother in space." [1984] Source: reddit.com Some of the first women sworn into the US Marine Corps. Source: pinterest.com Female pilots leaving their B-17, "Pistol Packin' Mama." Source: reddit.com Source: City of Toronto Archives Source: reddit.com Leola N.
102 Resources for Fiction Writing « Here to Create UPDATE 1/10: Dead links removed, new links added, as well as Revision and Tools and Software sections. Are you still stuck for ideas for National Novel Writing Month? Or are you working on a novel at a more leisurely pace? Here are 102 resources on Character, Point of View, Dialogue, Plot, Conflict, Structure, Outlining, Setting, and World Building, plus some links to generate Ideas and Inspiration. 10 Days of Character Building Name Generators Name Playground The Universal Mary Sue Litmus Test Priming the idea pump (A character checklist shamlessly lifted from acting) How to Create a Character Seven Common Character Types Handling a Cast of Thousands – Part I: Getting to Know Your Characters It’s Not What They Say . . . Establishing the Right Point of View: How to Avoid “Stepping Out of Character” How to Start Writing in the Third Person Web Resources for Developing Characters What are the Sixteen Master Archetypes? Building Fictional Characters Fiction Writer’s Character Chart Speaking of Dialogue
What America’s immigrants looked like when they arrived on Ellis Island We hear so often that America is "a nation of immigrants" or a "cultural mixing pot" that the phrase has become kind of a tired cliche. But actually seeing that history is a different story. The fascinating photographs below -- of people in their native costume passing through Ellis Island in the early 20th Century -- hint at just how incredible and unique America's history is as a nation of immigrants. These photos were taken by Augustus Sherman, an amateur photographer who worked as the chief registry clerk on Ellis Island from 1892 until 1925. Sherman snapped these photographs of people passing through customs in their native costume. New York began using Ellis Island as a way station for immigrants on Jan. 1, 1892, and between then and 1954, more than 12 million immigrants used the island to enter the U.S. The history of the island is not always a happy one: It also reflects deep racism and ethnic divisions. Here is a young German man, who the notes classify as a "stowaway":
Set up Your Story in the First Paragraphs by Jodie Renner, editor, author, speaker I receive several first chapters (and synopses) every week as submissions for possible editing, and I always read the first page. Some are clear and compelling and make me want to read more. But too often, two main problems emerge: Either the author spends too much time revving his engine with description or backstory before we even care (boring); or we’re plunged right into the story but have no idea where we are or what’s going on (confusing). There are three cardinal rules of successful novelists: 1. 2. 3. I’ve discussed the negative effects of starting off too slowly, with too much description and/or backstory, in other articles (see the links at the end of this article). Your first paragraph and first page are absolutely critical! So try to work in the basics of the 4 W’s below in your first page — preferably within the first two or three paragraphs. Who? What? Where? When? Also, your first page is a kind of promise to your readers. 1. 2. 3.
50 Surprising Photos From The Past That Show How Different Life Used To Be The oldest known selfie. (1839) Source: hyperallergic.com Robert Cornelius took this photo outside the store his family owned. People posing next to the Statue of Liberty as it's unpacked. (1886) This funny portrait of a woman was taken while she was mid-sneeze. (1900) A "knocker-up" waking up clients - the early 20th century version of alarm clocks. Nine kings gather to mourn the death of King Edward VII (1910). This may very well be the most kings ever photographed at once. Before automatic pinsetters were invented, "pin boys" worked to manually line them up. (1914). Sarcastic photo taken by anti-prohibitionists to mock their opponents in 1919. A police officer on a Harley and an old fashioned mobile holding cell. (1921) An early example of "horsemanning", the 1920's version of "planking". Two winners of a 1922 Beauty Pageant, when beauty standards were much different. Source: shorpy An beach official measures bathing suits to ensure they aren't too short (1920s) Source: misslucifer
Ten Obvious Truths About Fiction The following essay was previewed in the class that Stephen Graham Jones taught for LitReactor, Your Life Story Is Five Pages Long. 1. The reader should never have to work to figure out the basics of your story. Who’s whose wife or husband, what the time period is if that matters, why these people have broken into this house, and on and on, just the basic, ground-level facts about your story. 2. Meaning you don’t have to lay every last detail of every last thing out. The best writers are the ones who can cover the most distance with the fewest words. 3. It can be as simple as if the story opens with what feels like a dramatic frame—two people sitting by a fireplace, talking over brandy—then we already expect the story to circle back to that fireplace. 4. You open with a hook, of course—the title—then you hook with the first line, then, usually at the end of the first paragraph, you set that hook. 5. They’re not reading so you can render for them their already quotidian lives. 6. 7. 8. 9.
55 Historic Photos Got Colorized. It Changes Everything. Even if you’re a history buff that is well-versed on historical events, these photos might change how you feel about certain moments in history. A Redditor gathered together a group of cleverly edited historic photos; seeing these blew my mind. They’re not digitally altered to the point of ruining the photo, they are simply colorized. Somehow, just adding color to some of these incredibly iconic images makes it seem entirely different. If only they had modern recording technology back then… Source: Reddit Did history look quite the way we picture it in these colorized photos? Share these enlightening photos with others by clicking below. The 25 Best Websites for Literature Lovers | Flavorwire | Page 6 It’s an interesting relationship that book lovers have with the Internet: most would rather read a physical book than something on an iPad or Kindle, and even though an Amazon purchase is just two or three clicks away, dedicated readers would rather take a trip to their local indie bookstore. Yet the literary world occupies a decent-sized space on the web. Readers, writers, publishers, editors, and everybody in between are tweeting, Tumbling, blogging, and probably even Vine-ing about their favorite books. In case the demise of Google Reader threw your literary Internet browsing into a dark void, here’s a list of 25 book sites to bookmark. The Millions Ten years is a mighty long time in terms of Internet life, but that’s how long The Millions has been kicking out a steady stream of reviews, essays, and links.
Rare Historical Photos Pt. 8 Rare Historical Photos Pt. 8 [20 Pics] Mar 29 2013 Another roundup of the popular historical series of posts that we do. Filming of The Matrix. Abraham Lincoln's hearse, 1865. F1 pilot ejects at extremely low altitude. Fidel Castro smoking a Cohiba cigar in Havana, Cuba. 1984. German engineers testing the Messerschmitt BF109 E3. In 1955 Marilyn Monroe left Twentieth Century Fox, to move onto bigger and better things. Golden Gate Bridge construction. 1937. Jack in the Box, 1964. Jimi Hendrix driving a dune buggy with an unidentified woman. Manhattan, New York City. Martin Luther King, Jr.' Mona Lisa being returned to its home at the Louvre in Paris, France after WW2. 1945. St. NASA before Powerpoint. New York World's Fair, railroad pageant. Niagara Falls during the freeze of 1911. The original Piggly Wiggly Store, Memphis, Tennessee. Saturn V lower stages under construction at Michoud Assembly Facility. Rotterdam after a bombing, 1940. See more photo posts Rare Historical Photos Pt. 7 [20 Pics]
NoveList | EBSCOhost Latest News & Events Latest Articles Technology & Services Discovery & Services Publisher Services ppf Subscription Fulfillment Content Research Databases Magazines, Books & Journals Readers' Advisory NoveList Medical Resources Skills Development Interact Blogs Rare Historical Photos Pt. 7 Rare Historical Photos Pt. 7 [20 Pics] Feb 5 2013 Another roundup of the popular historical series of posts that we do. You can find the previous post here, and the start of the series here. Titanic in dry dock. The headquarters of Benito Musolini and the Italian Fascist party. Crew members of Apollo 1 rehearsing their water landing. 1966. Hindenburg flies over Manhattan in 1936. Construction of Mount Rushmore. 1934-1939. Buzz Aldrin, sitting inside Apollo 11 lunar module. A Russian Sukhoi Su-25 close air support jet that was damaged by a Georgian MANPADS (Man Portable Air Defense System). Folsom Street in San Francisco, USA after the great earthquake of 1906. Soviet cruiser “Murmansk” that ran aground off the Norwegian village Sørvær during the transfer to be scrapped in India. 1994. Hoover Dam penstocks and outlet pipes such as this one were fabricated from 45,000 tons of steel and welded into nearly three miles of pipe varying from 8.5-30ft (2.6-9m) in diameter. See more photo posts View Post
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