The first thing to determine is how you see things. How does your brain work? Some people need everything on paper in a notebook where they can physically touch a page – while others like to store items on the computer. Do you need it to be accessible everywhere? Like in the cloud?
To make a big splash in today’s literary world, genre mixing is essential to a writer. Like a chemist, contrarian writers must mix many story elements to produce a powerful and fresh literary work. Premise and POV (point of view) must be chosen first, but then another critical choice awaits the writer.
Consistency has never been my strong point. I’ll say that up front. So the opportunity to write about how I manage to overcome this failing is something of a cathartic exercise for me.
The first line of Herman Melville’s Moby Dick is “Call me Ishmael.” Thus begins an incredible saga told through the eyes of one of literature’s greatest narrators.
Let’s welcome back monthly columnist Catharine Bramkamp as she shares with us “Manuscript for Sale.”
Even though they want to be writing, many writers have a hard time coming up with ideas. Then they’re not writing and get upset about that, and don’t even start. A bit of a vicious circle and a painful one too.
The summer is almost here which for some means sun and fun, and for others it means possible blocks of time to get some real writing done. What is “real writing”? Real writing is working on a project that’s meaningful, to you and that you expect (or would hope) is meaningful to others. It’s writing with a purpose and direction, with the aim of completion and of course, with the intent of sharing it.
Setting is a crucial part of any story. A while ago, I said it could be handled essentially as a character—for example, by using it to focus on the senses and build emotion. But you can also make your story placement meaningful, not just convenient. You want your setting to be more than a backdrop for events.
Please welcome Seana Graham to our Featured Q&A series at Writer’s Fun Zone. If you’d like to be considered for an interview, check out our guidelines here.
This month we listed our medium size house for sale and I moved to our smaller house (a second house that earned its way to first house). The real estate agent recommend that not one, not two, but all the bookcases in the “big” house be moved so as to make all the rooms look larger.
There are blogs, books, software and even podcasts all discussing productivity. So why am I adding to the massive amounts of information that’s already out there?
Many well-known writers have such distinctive writing styles that after reading a few paragraphs, you can identify a book’s author without seeing the cover. In fact, some writers have such distinctive voices that readers pick up their books solely because a particular name is on it,
At present, I find myself overwhelmed to the point of exhaustion with requests for help. Of course, it’s gratifying to be sought after for my expertise in something.
Let’s say that you’ve written the first draft of your novel, and maybe you’ve even checked to see that all your turning points, your scenes and sequels, are where they’re supposed to be.
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Beth Barany helps authors get their books completed and out into the world, into the hands of their readers.
Creativity Coach for Writers, NLP Master Practitioner, and Master Teacher, Beth Barany has been there and knows how hard it can be to take your idea and turn it into a real book, that people will actually be interested, and even yearning, to read.
She walks the talk, as her clients like to say. She is the author of the 2012 award-winning young adult fantasy novel Henrietta The Dragon Slayer, as well as the author of the bestselling nonfiction books for authors and aspiring authors.
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