Why "Start With the Action" Messes Up So Many Writers
By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy If I took a poll for the most common writing advice, “start with the action” would make the list. Which it should, as it’s great advice.
A Simple Novel Outline – 9 questions for 25 chapters « H.E. Roulo
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.
Galleons, galleasses and carracks; a classification of Tudor ships of war
Galleons, galleasses and carracks; a classification of Tudor ships of war This page attempts to describe the different classifications of ships of the Tudor Navy. Line Drawings of ships of the 16th Century by David Meagher It would be appreciated if any inaccuracies, omissions, sources or suggestions could be emailed to me at: ben.simpson@wolfson.ox.ac.uk
Writing The Perfect Scene: Advanced Fiction Writing Tips
Having trouble making the scenes in your novel work their magic? In this article, I’ll show you how to write the “perfect” scene. Maybe you think it’s impossible to write the perfect scene. After all, who can choose every word perfectly, every thought, every sentence, every paragraph? What does perfection mean, anyway? Honestly, I don’t know.
Writing Fiction: How to Structure a Killer Novel Ending
There are more than a few writers and teachers out there, many of them orders of magnitude more famous than I am (not hard to do), who don’t like to compartmentalize or even attempt to define the sequential parts and essential milestones of a story’s plot structure. Too formulaic, they say. Takes the fun and creativity out of it, they claim.
The Five Beats of Successful Storytelling & How They Can Help You Land Your Next Job
Author Philip Pullman wrote, “After nourishment, shelter and companionship, stories are the thing we need most in the world.” Whether we’re talking about life, business, or art, storytelling is an essential skill. Maybe even THE most essential skill. But that doesn’t mean it comes naturally. Whether it’s your own personal bio, a summary for your company’s “about” page, or a pitch to a major client, fitting everything important into a concise yet engaging narrative is a challenging task.
Basic Tips To Write Better (And More Likeable) Badasses
Yet another character type that is often poorly-written by amateurs, many badass characters end up becoming completely unlikeable or even despicable. Here are a few tips to keep these characters from going this route. Your character needs to be more than tough and talented. Strong, sexy, smart, skilled, and sassy are all great character traits, but on their own they're going to leave you with a character who is at best forgettable, and at worst completely unlikeable. You build a good badass the same way you build any other character type - by creating a complex, three-dimensional, nuanced character with believable emotions, fears, hopes, vulnerabilities, hobbies, quirks, etc. Don't create a badass who happens to be human; create a human who happens to be badass.
Courtesy Titles and Honorifics
By Mark Nichol There was a time when it was considered proper form to refer indirectly to people in writing with a courtesy title or an honorific — a designation that identifies gender, profession, or title of nobility. That time, to the great relief of writers everywhere, has passed.
Writing Tips for Fiction Writers
Effectively Outlining Your Plot by Lee Masterson Have you ever had an idea for a novel, and then just sat down and began writing without knowing exactly where the story was going? It happens to everyone at some point, but most people begin to realize that the events in your plotline get confused, or forgotten in the the thrill of writing an exciting scene. There are those who continue to write on, regardless, fixing any discrepancies as they work, or (worse!) those who do not check that events are properly tied in place to bring their stories to a satisfying conclusion. And then there are those writers who believe that creating a plot-outline is tantamount to "destroying the natural creative process".
WRITING TOOLS
Character Pyramid Tool (PDF) Visualize your character’s FLAWS & associated behaviors (for a deeper understanding of this tool, please reference The Negative Trait Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide to Character Flaws) Character Target Tool (PDF) Organize and group your character’s POSITIVE ATTRIBUTES by category: moral, achievement, interactive or identity (for a greater understanding of this tool, please reference The Positive Trait Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide to Character Attributes) Character Profile Questionnaire (PDF)
Diegesis
Diegesis /ˈdaɪəˈdʒiːsəs/ is a style of fiction storytelling that presents an interior view of a world in which: details about the world itself and the experiences of its characters are revealed explicitly through narrativethe story is told or recounted, as opposed to shown or enacted.[1] In diegesis the narrator tells the story. The narrator presents the actions (and sometimes thoughts) of the characters to the readers or audience. In contrast to mimesis[edit]
How Not To Write Female Characters
There are already a lot of articles around on how to write female characters. That’s all well and good, but I think it’s a lot less restrictive to have an itemized list of things you shouldn’t do. It also might be easier to digest than lengthy essays. Also, this list is intended for people with more testosterone, but since I’ve seen young female authors screw up their own young female protagonists, estrogenites are perfectly allowed to read this too.
Kirbside
This post has been a long time coming, but I do still want to talk about some of the trips I took last fall. One of the things I’ve loved most about my writing career has been the opportunity to travel, to meet new people and have wonderful experiences I wouldn’t otherwise get to have. So without further ado…
Easy Novel Outline – Free Writing Lessons and Worksheets
Here you'll find easy novel outline techniques to plan your book step by step, along with worksheets for planning characters and scenes. This is just one of many pages on this website with creative writing worksheets and advice. At the bottom, you'll find links to related pages on how to write a novel. An outline for your novel A novel outline is a plan for a novel. If you are doing this for yourself and not for an editor, then the good news is there are no rights or wrongs.
