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Whether you write fiction, memoir, nonfiction or poetry, your chosen form must have a shape that draws readers in. Writing Tip for Today: Here are some tips for sculpting your story’s shape: Climbing the Mountain If you’re a fiction or memoir writer, you’re probably aware that your story or book-length work must start with a […]
Writing fictional characters that are also unforgettable takes a delicate combination of inner and outer knowledge, motivation, actions and decisions. Writing Tip for Today: Let’s take a look at some simple ways to deepen your fictional characters: Where the Stakes Are Before your story can take off for readers, the lead character must need/want/be desperate […]
Are your character’s inner and outer conflicts balanced? Conflict is uncomfortable. Yet a story written without conflict will struggle to attract readers. Writing Tip for Today: Writing conflict is more than a bunch of stuff blowing up. Writers must learn to balance a character’s inner and outer conflicts. Here are some ideas: Outer Conflict Let’s […]
We hear it over and over: to engage readers, stories must contain conflict. But this prescription is deceptive. Not all conflict is created equal. Writing Tip for Today: Here are some ideas for story conflict that captures and keeps readers: Don’t Just Blow Stuff Up New writers often mistake story conflict for any sort […]
As you develop your Main Character, her motivation and her problem, you should be able to answer the question: what is at stake here? Although you want to tap into universal problems, the more specifically you answer, the more you can see just how high the stakes are and if they could be even higher.Writing […]
When writing your novel’s middle, do you feel discouraged? Stuck? Wondering why you thought this story would work? You’re not alone. Even accomplished novelists often struggle to connect a brilliant beginning to a satisfying end.Writing Tip for Today: The first and third acts of your story will be shorter than this yawning abyss called “the […]
A Main Character who is larger-than-life, has certain attributes and who faces high stakes is often a winning combination. Yet when creating conflict for our characters, novel writers should beware of loading too much personal angst or not enough of a conscience. Balance is key.Writing Tip for Today: Here are some ideas for balancing a […]
One of my favorite “how to write” authors is literary agent Donald Maass, of Writing the Breakout Novel fame. In his newest book on fiction techniques, Writing 21st Century Fiction, he discusses microtension.Writing Tip for Today: Exactly what is microtension and how do you use it in fiction? Microtension is Two-Faced. According to Maass, Microtension […]
Elizabeth Craig’s fun post on writing a mystery got me thinking about other genres. Since romance is the type of novel I’m attempting to learn, I thought I’d throw out some of the things Romance Writing has taught me so far.Writing Tip for Today: 3 useful additions to a Romance: Meet and Greet. Get the […]
Many novel writers agonize over the plot, and that’s a good thing. But did you know that a typical reader cares less about what happens in a novel than how and why?Writing Tip for Today: Your main character holds the keys to your reader’s sympathy. And sympathy for the main character almost always equals a […]