But what’s the creative strategy, behind the words? Run the Gauntlet (RTG) is a free monthly program where one lucky writer receives a developmental edit of their opening scenes. The feedback is recorded in real-time, on-screen and then posted publicly so that other writers can share in the insights garnered. In this live critique: A … Continued
The 5 Narrative Writing Modes: Dialogue, Action, Description, Exposition & Thought Today we explore the five narrative writing modes every fiction and memoir writer must master for dynamic storytelling. My research of this subject began when I shifted from screenplay assessment to fiction editing. I’d often wonder why, in film adaptations, the book was … Continued
Guest Post: Editing & Proofreading Tools By Leona Hinton Writing with style and substance is essential to becoming a successful author or blogger, but perfecting the ability to proofread and edit your own work will save you time and money down the line. The best way to start the proofreading and editing process is to … Continued
Almost every rough draft I encounter would benefit from at least one, if not all of these storytelling tips. But before you toss that manuscript away, rest assured, each tip is easy to implement once you’re aware of the principles at play, and why they’re important. Storytelling Tips #5 Identify a Theme Great storytellers understand … Continued
Guest Post by internationally bestselling author, Joanne Fedler. Aspiring writers sometimes ask me, ‘How can I write like you?’ The answer is, ‘You don’t want to write like me, you want to write like you. You want to find your writing voice, and that will be nothing like mine.’ But I get what people are really … Continued
Show us the evidence, don’t Tell us to believe you. The old ‘show don’t tell’ rule is one of the most important for good writing, and once you understand it you’ll find yourself cringing over old work that suddenly appears obvious and overstated (I know I did). So, what is the Show versus Tell … Continued
4 Fast Rules for Mastering Dialogue Punctuation Punctuation rules, like all literary devices, are there to help the writer get a succinct, accurate meaning across. To discard the finer points of punctuation (in this case, the proper use of quotation marks) is like a sculptor wielding a sledgehammer. Messy, messy, messy. Use the following rules … Continued
So everyone hates adverbs. But why? An adverb is a descriptor such as: She rubbed her eyes and said tiredly, “These adverbs are so redundant.” Consider that sentence. The word “tiredly” didn’t need to be there, because we already indicated she was tired by saying she “rubbed her eyes”. Recognizable by their ‘ly’ ending, adverbs … Continued