What are you working on? Is it finished? When can we see it? Do you have a day job? Are you published? But seriously, what do you do for money? Are you also looking for a real job? Is your book any good? How long did it take you to write it? Are you published? …
Writing When You Just Can’t
Note: I was sick as a dog this week, so this one is going to be pretty quick. It's also more practical than my usual entry. Please note as well that there will be no update next week, due to the imminent holiday. Thanks. There are days when you just can't write a word. Days …
Finding the Heart of a Story
It's hard enough just putting a story together. Keeping track of all the details, making sure it all makes sense. There is an endless series of decisions that have to be made before the story comes together, before it feels like it's done. But there's one question a lot of writers forget to ask along …
Second Person and Present Tense: Why and Why Not
I risk coming off like a grumpy old man in this post, which is something I'll just have to live with. It's my assertion, though, that second person viewpoint and the present tense are overused in modern writing, and that outside of certain usages they should be shunned. Let's start with second person, that is, …
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The Dreaded Infodump
Exposition is a crucial part of any story. It's how you create your world and how you share it with your reader. Yet it's also a great way to bring your narrative flow to a crashing halt and bore anyone who was kind enough to pick up your book. Writers often decry the "infodump", the …
Three Act Structure
There are, of course, an infinite number of ways to write a book. In these articles I've been outlining how I do it, because that's what I know to write about, but there are no binding rules, no arbitrary guidelines. That said, there are some structural... suggestions that can benefit almost any writer. Stories can …
NaNoWriMo Tips
I'm a huge fan of National Novel Writing Month. I think it's one of the best ways to get people inspired to work on that novel they've always dreamed of writing. Structure is a writer's best friend (even when sometimes it feels like a frenemy). Every year I try to post daily writing tips for …
Why I Don’t Believe in Willful Suspension of Disbelief
We're told, almost certainly apocryphally, that one of the earliest movies was of a train heading directly toward the camera, and that audiences who saw it ran for their lives. We're told that a truly great piece of fiction makes the reader forget they're reading a book (or seeing a movie, etc.) and immerses them …
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Bad Writing Advice: “Write What You Know”
99% of all writing advice is just inspirational nonsense. Most of it boils down to "sing the story inside of you!" or "don't give up on your dreams!" If you're a writer, you don't need to be told this. If you have the bug, you're going to write and nothing, not even self-interest, will stop …
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