I began writing short stories to ease my sense of isolation and help me make it through each day. I recall experiencing a profound sense of exhilaration. You could say I was falling in love.
Today we welcome a new columnist, Jackie Blain who is stopping by to chat with us today about “don’t show, don’t tell, inhabit!” from a screenwriter’s perspective. Enjoy! *** Here’s a simple description based on a short...
This material first appeared as a course within the Group Coaching Program for Novelists where Carol is an assistant mentor. Click here http://coaching.bethbarany.com/ for more information about the program where we help novelists write, edit,...
by Beth Barany · Published August 21, 2014 · Last modified August 19, 2014
Join me in giving a warm welcome back to our monthly columnist, author Kay Keppler, as she shares her tips with us on breaking through writers block. Enjoy! *** You know how hard writing is. Just finding...
I think it was the first time that as I writer I really felt out of my comfort zone; it was also the first time I’d ever said, ‘I don’t think I can write this story.
Author Career / Author Entrepreneur
by Beth Barany · Published July 29, 2014 · Last modified July 27, 2014
Your plan should have all the tools you need to accomplish what you want. It’s YOUR writing business, and YOU decide how and where to go!
Taking the research deeper may reveal things, but this initial sweep should weed out any of the obvious bad choices.
We aren’t going to be able to do all our novel research on the internet. We have to get off our butts, climb out of our office chairs, pack a backpack, and leave the safety of our homes in order to get up-close-and-personal research for the sake of enriching our stories.
Novelists tend to fall into one of two camps: either they start their books knowing only one character, or a character’s name, and discover the plot and other characters as they write, or they do a 90-page outline with all the turning points and climaxes in place.
It’s time to take internet security into our own hands, and start to inbox a bit cleverer.
Hooking that reader with an intriguing opening is critical, especially if that reader is unfamiliar with your work. Many books have well-established ways of opening. Authors, like chess masters, can choose familiar opening gambits that help readers feel comfortable while establishing the story, stirring interest, and starting the action. You might want to think about launching your story with one of these familiar types of openings.
I’m constantly gathering short phrases, jotting down ideas, even drawing sketches – and I’m no artist. It’s all fodder for stories and blog posts; most of it won’t be used, but in there somewhere there’s always a nugget I can work on.
Here are five steps to help get your mojo back, or to quit without the guilt.
Please join me in welcoming memoir writer, Denis Ledoux, as he explains the pleasure associated with ghostwriting as an artist to create a living history that has style and deep, family meaning. Enjoy! ***...
Subscribe here to get notified each time we publish a post.
Welcome to the Writer’s Fun Zone, a blog for creative writers by Beth Barany, fiction writing teacher and novelist.
Articles by creative writers like you.
Check out the How To Write The Future podcast.
Subscribe to Writer's Fun Zone blog for resources, inspiration, and free resources:
Get these goodies:BONUS
As a bonus, you will also be subscribed to the CreativitySparks (tm) newsletter, full of tips and tools for novelists building a successful career. (Sent 1-2 times per week) By Beth Barany, Editor and Publisher of the Writer's Fun Zone, and a Creativity Coaching for Writers, and a novelist herself.
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.
Ready to finish your book but not sure how?
Hire Beth to help you or take a class at Barany School of Fiction. Or join her Group Coaching Program.
Still have questions? Email Beth.
Recent Comments