Getting into the Head of Your Antagonists by Raina Schell
Let’s welcome back monthly columnist Raina Schell as she shares with us “Getting into the Head of Your Antagonists.”
Tagged: Writing Tips
To Conference, or not to Conference, That is the Question by Jami Gray
Let’s welcome back monthly columnist Jami Gray as she shares with us “To Conference, or not to Conference, That is the Question.”
A Recipe for Writing and Personal Success By Carol Malone
Happy New Year! Time for resolutions and goal setting. Time for me to freak out. I’ve always hated the words goal and resolution. Oh, I had them – the same every year: lose weight, save money, get out of debt. But I never thought about the plans, the schedules, the hard work it took to achieve those goals, so I bailed and failed and told myself that it was better not to have goals so I could save myself from anxiety and disappointment.
Time and Your Story by Kay Keppler
Now that we’ve entered a new year—a new time, essentially—it seems like a good moment to think about how you use time in your story and what place and function it serves.
Encouraging Reading by Annmarie Miles
I found a way to encourage myself when confidence is low; and it came from the most unlikely place.
New Year Survival Tips for Writers by Jami Gray
You survived November’s month of word carnage (aka NANO), you’re sliding across a sheet of ice straight for the Christmas Tree, and when you get up to dust off the pine needles, the New Year will meet you with a hard glare for your foolishness and demand a plan for the upcoming months. Welcome to the holiday season for writers.
Writing Romance is a Different Animal by Carol Malone
All fiction genres have plots. A story needs a story-line, something that pushes the characters from page one to the end. When we look at a mystery, we want to see how the main character is going to solve the mystery and save themselves and probably their lover. In romance, the plot HAS to be driven by the romantic relationship of the hero and heroine and by the turning points in their romantic relationship.
Entertaining the Muse by Catharine Bramkamp
I’m not a fan of Sara Gilbert per se, but she delivered a great TED talk on the Muse. And based on that talk she has just published a book on creativity called Big Magic
Ready to Roar! By Nevada McPherson
If you could give yourself a present for the holidays that would improve your life, your art and your relationships with others, what would it be? For me it would the gift of confidence! Having confidence in yourself as a writer and as an artist is crucial to your success and to your very survival in what can often seem to be an indifferent world. To have confidence in yourself is to appreciate and treasure your uniqueness and singular point of view that no one else in the world has.
Writing Can Be a Real Bear (or Eagle, or Deer) by Wyatt Bessing
As a relief from my freeway commute in the mornings, I’ll sometimes get off and head west toward the Pacific coastal range, past ranches and pastures, over rolling hills and through redwood groves.
Characters and Their Sensory Limitations: POV and Description by Susanne Lakin
Few writers pay much attention to character placement, but this is something of paramount concern to filmmakers, and a subject I cover in depth in Shoot Your Novel. A director has to lay out his camera shots, deciding when a close-up shot would be more effective than a long shot, for example. He may want the camera positioned far away from the action, to make details unclear and evoke curiosity or misinterpretation. Or he may have an extreme close-up to ensure viewers don’t miss a tiny detail that is crucial to the plot.
Don’t Rush Your Writing by Deanna Jackson
About 3 months ago I submitted my writing to a chapter contest for Romance Writers of America. I received the feedback a little over a month ago and am just now writing a post about it because I was too embarrassed to share before.
Ten Minute Trick Pony by Catharine Bramkamp
Many authors and students have difficulty starting their projects. For students, often the problem is they aren’t terribly inspired by the topic. I don’t blame them for feeling stuck. It’s difficult find motivation in broad topics like, say, global warming. Once you’ve created a slide showing that poor polar bear swimming in the melted waters of the Arctic, there isn’t much else to say.
Shock Your Writing Back to Life by Wyatt G. Bessing
Does your writing sometimes feel dead? Perhaps your words stare vacantly back at you like lumps on the page? Or do you feel like a lump as you write? How can you inject passion and danger back into your writing?
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