Riley Adams's Blog, page 54

December 14, 2019

Twitterific Writing Links

Bluebird with beak open and 'Twitterific Writing Links' by ElizabethSCraig superimposed on the image


by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig


Twitterific writing links are fed into the Writer’s Knowledge Base search engine (developed by writer and software engineer Mike Fleming) which has over 50,000 free articles on writing related topics. It’s the search engine for writers.


Have you visited the WKB lately?  Check out the new redesign where you can browse by category, and sign up for free writing articles, on topics you choose, delivered to your email inbox!  Sign up for the Hiveword newsletter here.


New Stuff

Eldon Sarte (who helped me design this site and has done other web-related work for me) and his son are running a special promo for book marketing graphics. They also have some free downloads of motivational quotes for authors.  For more information, head here. 


Business / Miscellaneous

Why Self-Publishing Authors Should Consider Establishing Their Own Imprint: @Wogahn @JaneFriedman
How to Become an Editor: A Comprehensive Guide for Writers: @danasitar @thewritelife
How to Create a Self Publisher Imprint Name and Logo: @carlaking @BookWorksNYC

Conferences and Events / Miscellaneous

How You Too Can Build a Literary Festival: @StoryADayMay @WriterUnboxed
Newly Developed Data To Fuel IPA’s 33rd World Congress in Norway: @Porter_Anderson @IntPublishers @Bodour @pubperspectives
The Dos and Don’ts of Making School Visits: A Writer’s Survival Guide: @RealAlexWoolf @WritersDigest

Creativity and Inspiration / Goal setting

How many words should you write each day? @pubcoach

Creativity and Inspiration / Inspiration

Find Your Creative Heart: @JFbookman @IndieAuthorALLI


Creativity and Inspiration / Inspiration / Reading as Writers

5 Frankenstein-Inspired Stories That Recontextualize the Monster: @nataliezutter @tordotcom
Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Norwegian Literature (Almost): by John Freeman @lithub
How Grief Changed My Reading: @SaraOhlin222 @WomenWriters
50 Fictional Librarians, Ranked: @knownemily @lithub
Top 10 lighthouses in fiction: by Nicholas Royle @GuardianBooks
The Messy, Beautiful Worldbuilding of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe: @mattmikalatos @tordotcom
Queer Communities and Found-Family in Speculative Fiction: @ginnhale @tordotcom
Five Books That Will Make You Feel Young Again: @kellysimmons

Creativity and Inspiration / Motivation

Writing Motivation: How to Keep Writing Through Life’s Big Changes: @sarahstypos

Creativity and Inspiration / Productivity / Fitting in Writing

How a Production Schedule Helps You Develop a Lasting Writing Habit: @mridukhullar @NinaAmir
Writing During School Breaks: @WordNerdsVlog

Creativity and Inspiration / Writing Life

6 Daily Habits of Successful Writers: @johnpwriter
Don’t Throw Away Your Work. Just Set It Aside: @MegDowell
Exactly Why Failure is Key to Exceptional Success: @SeptCFawkes
Gift Ideas for Writers: @ReedsyHQ
Yoga Stretches for Writers: @FionaQuinnBooks
It’s Never Too Late to Start/Start Over: @KevinTheWriter
Demystifying the Writer’s Fear of Failure: @Sarah_LaBrie @lithub
Exploring Family Relationships — Interview With Kristan Higgins: @Kristan_Higgins @DIYMFA
Writing With Small Children: @JanetFitch323 @aprildavila
Why Writers, Like Athletes, Should Cross-Train: by Lucia Tang @ReedsyHQ
How to Trust Your Creative Gut: @katekrake

Genres / Fan Fiction

How To Turn Fan Fiction Into Original Work: by Robert Wood @standoutbooks

Genres / Fantasy

Mythic Guide to Heroes & Villains — The Fatal Flaw and Unlikely Heroes: by Antonio del Drago @mythicscribes

Genres / Horror

Digging Deeper Into Genre: Horror: @WordNerdsVlog

Genres / Middle-Grade

Decisions after writing a middle-grade book: @Kell_McK @A3writers

Genres / Mystery

Crime Writing: Weapons Most Often Used to Kill: @LeeLofland

Genres / Non-Fiction

The Impossibility of Capturing Truth in a Biography: by Iris Origo @lithub

Genres / Picture Books

Picture Books: Two Art Directors in Action: The How and Why: https://t.co/R3GIyLKkRf and @MiraReisberg @kathytemean
Writing Picture Books – Polish Your Manuscript to Perfection: From Children’s Book Insider

Genres / Romance

4 Reasons an Editor Decides Not to Publish a Romance Novel (And How to Avoid Them): @BrynDonovan
How to Craft Romantic Chemistry Between Characters: @kristen_kieffer

Genres / Screenwriting

How Objective And Subjective Storylines Can Improve Your Screenplay: @RobTobin @CreativeScreen

Promo / Ads

Avoid These Facebook Ads Oversights: @araesininthesun @TheIWSG
20 BookBub Ads for Design Inspiration: by Miranda Ditmore @BookBub

Promo / Metadata

How to Get Your Book Sales Page Looking Good on Amazon: @harmony_kent @StoryEmpire

Promo / Miscellaneous

17 Fantastic Ways to Sell More Books for the Holidays: @DianaUrban @BookBub
Four Ways to Connect With Readers During The Holiday Season: by Kelsey Worsham @WrittenWordM
Reader Profiles: Effective Tools to Sell More Books: @Bookgal
The Top 12 Questions About How to Market a Book: @Bookgal

Promo / Platforms

How to Build an Author Platform: @reedsy

Promo / Social Media Tips

Develop your author social media strategy: @WriteNowCoach @sandrabeckwith
What Happened to the Scheduling Option for Facebook Pages? @EdieMelson

Promo / Speaking

Why Authors Should Learn To Speak In Public: @thecreativepenn

Publishing / Miscellaneous

“Mistakes I made with my book”: @pubcoach
Look Back at Self-Publishing in 2019: @OrnaRoss @IndieAuthorALLI
Tales of Two Markets: USA and UK Amazon Charts’ Year-Enders: @Porter_Anderson
US Register of Copyrights Karyn Temple To Leave the Post for MPAA: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives
Penguin Random House’s International CEO’s Year-End Letter: @Porter_Anderson @penguinrandom @PenguinUKBooks @PRHDigital
AAP: US Student Spending on College Materials Down 23 Percent in Fall: @Porter_Anderson @AmericanPublish
Michael Tamblyn on Kobo’s 10th Anniversary: ‘A Better Reading Life’: @Porter_Anderson @mtamblyn @kobo @pubperspectives

Publishing / News / Data

Bowker Self-Publishing Report Analysis-5 Surprising Findings for 2019: @Wogahn

Publishing / News / International Publishing

Words Without Borders December: True Crime for the Holidays: @Porter_Anderson @wwborders @SusanHarrisWWB @pubperspectives
In Canada, the Year’s End in Fiction, Nonfiction, and Youth Bestsellers: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives
Storytel Projects Over 1 Million Subscribers, Opens New Media Center: @Porter_Anderson @storytelsverige @clipsource @pubperspectives
Metabooks Brasil Completes Submarino Integration, Opens in Mexico: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives @CANIEMoficial @rschild
Dom Publishers Builds its Own Book Distribution Network in Russia: @HannahSJohnson @pubperspectives
Canada’s 2019 Governor General’s Literary Awards Winners: @Porter_Anderson @GGJuliePayette

Publishing / Options / Self-Publishing

Rookie Mistakes Indie Writers Make: @jamesscottbell @killzoneauthors

Publishing / Options / Traditional Publishing

When You Have an Offer Letter and No Agent: @Janet_Reid

Writing Craft / Beginnings

Why Writers Should Use a Clearly Defined Perspective—Not an Indeterminate One: by Peter Selgin @JaneFriedman

Writing Craft / Characters / Antagonists

When Your Antagonist Goes Viral: Infectious Diseases: @DPLyle

Writing Craft / Characters / Development

Character Development: Morally Grey Characters: @jennamoreci

Writing Craft / Characters / Protagonists

How Do You Know If Your Protagonist Is Strong Enough? @AngelaAckerman
Captivating Protagonists: The Essentials: @stormwritingsc1
18 Ways for Protagonists to Contribute: by Chris Winkle @mythcreants

Writing Craft / Common Mistakes

Learn How to Put Your Reader to Sleep: @EdieMelson

Writing Craft / Dialogue

Let’s Talk Regional: @MaeClair1 @StoryEmpire
Dialogue Tags: by Leann Austin @A3writers

Writing Craft / Diversity

Dos of Writing People of Color: Read What We Write: @WritingwColor
Writing with Color — Character of Color Research – Chart: @WritingwColor
Writing with Color — Addressing Native Issues in a Western: @WritingwColor

Writing Craft / Flashback and Back Story

This Is How to Transform Info Dumps Into Exciting Plot Reveals: @KMWeiland

Writing Craft / Humor

How to Use Comedy in Your Writing: @RhodaBaxter @SelfPubForm

Writing Craft / Miscellaneous

What Really Makes a Novel Good? by Niki Kantzios @FloridaWriters1
10 Interesting Writing Ideas from The Guardian: @nownovel
How Lit Witchcraft Can Help Your Writing: @LezaCantoral @LitReactor
The Stage Direction Checklist: @KMAllan_writer

Writing Craft / Pre-Writing / Research

Siege Warfare Before Gunpowder: by Oren Ashkenazi @mythcreants

Writing Craft / Punctuation and Grammar

Compound Possession: @GrammarGirl

Writing Craft / Series

Sequels are Hard: @savyleiser @NaNoWriMo

Writing Craft / Series / Series Bible

The Usefulness of a Series Bible:

Writing Craft / Settings and Description

The Emotional Power of Connected Settings: @LiveWriteThrive

Writing Craft / Subtext

Subtext in scene/dialogue: by Alicia Rasley

Writing Craft / Tension

Does Your Story Need More Tension? @allisonmaruska @TheRyanLanz

Writing Craft / Tropes

On Writing: Mentor Characters: from Surrounded by Pearls

Writing Tools / Miscellaneous

Gifts for Writers: @adm1nangelsUK @IndieAuthorALLI
4 Favorite Tools to Organize Your Book Material–Before It Gets Overwhelming: @writeabook

Writing Tools / Resources

Best Writing How-To Audiobooks of the Year 2019: @juleshorne @IndieAuthorALLI

The Top Writing Links From Last Week Are On Twitterific:
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Published on December 14, 2019 21:04

December 12, 2019

Why Writers, Like Athletes, Should Cross-Train

Woman running in park


by Lucia Tang with @Reedsy


Cross-training is exercise gospel. Gung-ho gym-goers gush over its benefits, from speeding up recovery time to improving overall fitness. Best of all, switching up a fitness routine can stop overtaxed muscles from getting so tired of moving they collectively riot, forcing the unwilling athlete to take up permanent residence on the couch.


No wonder you’ll see gymnasts run, runners cycle, and cyclists swim. But for those of us whose primary form of exercise is flexing our fingers at the keyboard, specialization is the name of the game — often not even on a single genre, but on a single work.


How am I supposed to finish this novel if I keep starting new ones? I should just sit down and force myself to slog through it. You’ve probably told yourself something like this before. That is how the conventional wisdom goes, and it really might help you finally churn out a finished manuscript.


But what if you’re thinking on a larger scale — beyond this one manuscript, to your long-term future as a writer? In that case, this kind of literary single-mindedness can do more harm than good, inviting boredom and burnout.


Like cross-training athletes, writers can and should move between projects — not guiltily, but with intention, as part of a well-organized plan for artistic development. Here are three reasons why.


1. You’ll gain versatility, making everything you write more well-rounded

We all tend to write what we’re good at, gravitating towards projects — and genres — that play to our strengths and paper over our weaknesses. Say you’re often at a loss when it comes to plot, but you’re a lyrical wordsmith who strings gorgeous sentences together on instinct. Then, you probably spend your time writing lit fic instead of thrillers, prioritizing elegant style over tantalizing inciting incidents and satisfying resolutions.


It makes sense to keep doing what works. But if you want to push yourself and expand your range as a writer, it’s a good idea to work against the grain of your own inclinations from time to time.


If you’re more a stylist than a storyteller, try your hand at a genre like crime fiction, where you can’t hide behind your natural lyricism. On the other hand, if you build up intricate storylines as easily as breathing, but have trouble peopling them with a complex, realistic cast, experiment with some quiet, character-driven slices of life. If you normally shy away from dialogue, go all in on it: write a scene from a screenplay. And you tend to rely on stoic, analytical protagonists because you struggle to depict intense emotion, try to build a piece around a real drama queen.


Chances are, the writing you produce in this experimental mode won’t be as polished as what you normally put out, but that’s just the way it should be. After all, even a world-class runner won’t be able to out-swim Michael Phelps when he cross-trains in the pool. The important thing is, you’re developing your overall fitness as a writer, shoring up your weaknesses instead of boxing yourself in.


2. You’ll need less recovery time between work sessions

Writing is exhausting, even if it doesn’t tax your lungs as much as running a marathon. There’s no denying that it takes something out of you to turn the images in your head into well-formed paragraphs. No wonder it feels like you need two hours of Netflix, Candy Crush, or online “research” for every hour you spend plugging away at that novel.


And often, the siren call of the internet and its myriad attractions aren’t the only things making you lose focus. So many of us get chased down by a dozen new plot bunnies as soon as we make any headway in an existing project. You can try to swat them away. But what if these new potential stories keep hopping circles around your head, making it hard to resist starting a whole new novel?


Stop resisting. Toggling between two projects at once — if not three or four — might sound like the perfect way to court writerly disaster. But some judicious multi-tasking can actually help you finish each project faster than working on them one by one.


Feeling trapped by a particularly thorny plot problem? Having trouble getting into your villain’s head? Tired of spending time in the world you’ve built? Start a new story, and you’ll be able to switch gears whenever you get stuck — and then return to the problem feeling refreshed.


Think of it this way: an athlete who hits a plateau will often switch up their training. You’re doing the same thing. And this way, you’ll still be writing instead of eking out another level of Candy Crush.


3. You’ll be able to keep the writing process fun

When you’re knee-deep in a dreaded revision, eyes glazing over and mind moving like a rusted gear, it can be hard to remember why you even started writing in the first place. That’s the perfect time to put your manuscript away and work on something else: not a second project, but something just for fun, like an epic poem dedicated to your cat or a self-indulgent fanfic about your favorite pop star going to Hogwarts.


Don’t worry about whether your words will ever see the light of day. Just write with abandon — try to rediscover the joy of seeing your ideas in motion, no matter how ridiculous they are. It’s like taking the day off from jogging your usual trail to drop in on a swing dance class. You may not come back every week, but isn’t it exhilarating to try something new?


Remember, writing is something you do for you. Don’t let it turn into a chore! After all, boredom and suffering aren’t signs of artistic progress: they’re harbingers of burnout. And you can hone your craft while still having fun.


Lucia Tang is a writer with Reedsy , a marketplace that connects self-publishing authors with the world’s best editors, designers, and marketers. Reedsy also provides tools to help authors write and format their books, as well as free courses and webinars on publishing. In Lucia’s spare time, she enjoys drinking cold brew and planning her historical fantasy novel.


 


3 Reasons Writers, Like Athletes, Should Cross-Train by Lucia Tang @Reedsy:
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Published on December 12, 2019 21:01

December 8, 2019

The Usefulness of a Series Bible


by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig


If you’re starting a series, or even if you’re already several books in, I highly recommend a series bible.  A series bible, or a document that helps you keep track of trivial details in your stories, is a useful tool to keep from making mistakes.


I don’t think I really realized how important a series bible was until readers started emailing me to let me know about errors that I’d made…usually contradictions.  In one book, I’d said that a character had never smoked.  In another, I said the character had been a former smoker.


It’s easy to toss out these little details and then promptly forget about them, especially if you have a long-running series.  But it’s horrifying when a reader finds the mistakes.  And readers these days, in our binging entertainment world, sometimes read books back to back that we wrote over a course of years.  If there are errors to find, they’ll find them.


That’s why a series bible is so helpful. Any sort of minutiae that might crop up again can be carefully recorded.  Then, before making a statement you’re not completely sure of, you can check it. Are a character’s glasses wire-rimmed or rimless?  Exactly how old is a recurring child character?  What’s the name of the local cemetery (handy to know in a mystery)? The denomination of the church the protagonist attends?


Naturally, it’s easiest to record the facts in book 1…that’s what I’ve done with my new series. But it’s not too hard to do it for older books in an active series if you’re good at skimming.  Just pick out content that is important for you to track or which might come up for a future story.


With my series bible, I list my recurring characters and all of the trivia about them.  Then I list details for recurring settings.  I have any recurring subplots, tropes, story memes, etc. listed after that.


Whenever I add a fact to the bible, I document where it came from, abbreviating the book title to keep it pithy.


I also track style notes.  (Is the newspaper The Bradley Bugle or the Bradley Bugle?  Is the dog’s name Noo-noo or Noo-Noo?  Is the name of the quilting guild The Cut-ups or the Cut-Ups?)


The Types of Things I track:


Character habits or details:  Early riser.  Kills houseplants.  Subscribes to the newspaper.  Peanut allergy.  Cries at weddings.  Scrapbooks.  Reads nonfiction only.  Likes jazz.  Attends church. Exercises daily. Eats junk food. Smokes. Drives a minivan.


Character description:  Wears glasses (and type/color of frame), never wears flats, blue eyes, gray hair, fondness for bowties, age, height.


Character beliefs:  Political leanings, spiritual beliefs, attitudes toward family or spouse.


Character backstory.


Setting details.  The color of a house, the name of the character’s street, the favorite hangout for the characters, what type of food their favorite restaurant serves, the character’s living room. Population of the town.


Continuing subplots: A character’s health issue, a character’s relationship with another character, a character’s issues with his work or his family. Story tropes:  a character’s bad cooking, silly book club meetings, a lazy housekeeper’s “thrown” back, a character’s chronic insomnia.


The most important thing is to use the series bible once you’ve taken the time to put it together. I’m not going to say I don’t make mistakes anymore, but I’m doing a whole lot better, despite being on book 16 of one series and book 12 of another.


For further reading: 


How author Lorna Faith uses a series bible.


Author Heidi Hormel on the IWSG explains how to create one using Excel. 


Anne Walk on creating a bible using Scrivener


Do you use a series bible to keep your story facts straight? What kinds of things do you track?


The Usefulness of a Story Bible:
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Published on December 08, 2019 21:01

December 7, 2019

Twitterific Writing Links

Bluebird with beak open and 'Twitterific Writing Links' by ElizabethSCraig superimposed on the image


by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig


Twitterific writing links are fed into the Writer’s Knowledge Base search engine (developed by writer and software engineer Mike Fleming) which has over 50,000 free articles on writing related topics. It’s the search engine for writers.


Have you visited the WKB lately?  Check out the new redesign where you can browse by category, and sign up for free writing articles, on topics you choose, delivered to your email inbox!  Sign up for the Hiveword newsletter here.



Conferences and Events / Miscellaneous

London Announces Writers’ Summit; Reed Completes India Event Buys: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives
Translation Awards: Banipal Prize Shortlist and Others in London: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives
In London, Raymond Antrobus Named 2019 Young Writer Award Winner: @Porter_Anderson @YoungWriterYear @JuliaArmfield @yazzarf @kimtsherwood

Conferences and Events / NaNoWriMo

So You Lost Nano? @WordNerdsVlog @DesirayeTheNerd

Creativity and Inspiration / Inspiration

Weird (but Worthwhile) Websites: Using the Internet for Novel Ideas: @shaylaleeraquel
How to Use Music as a Writing Inspiration: by Curtis Dean @A3writers
Need Some Writing Inspiration? | Getting Inspired To Write: @kwistent
What Filled 1 Writer’s Creative Well in 2019:

Creativity and Inspiration / Inspiration / Quotes

20 Great Writing Ideas from the Art of Fiction: @nownovel
10 Jojo Moyes Quotes About Writing for Writers: @amymjones_5 @WritersDigest
Anne Enright’s 10 Rules For Writing Fiction: @Writers_Write

Creativity and Inspiration / Inspiration / Reading as Writers

A Cultural History of Nancy Drew: @oldrutigliano @CrimeReads

Creativity and Inspiration / Productivity / Fitting in Writing

4 approaches to finding time in busy schedules: @Eva_Bec @beprolifiko
“My Journey to Developing a Good Writing Habit”: @BeingTheWriter @womenonwriting


Creativity and Inspiration / Productivity / Writer’s Block

Reboot Your Creative System: Five Tips to Get out of a Slump: by Savannah Cordova @ReedsyHQ
Break Through Writer’s Block: @thejkstudio

Creativity and Inspiration / Productivity / Writing Quickly

Why You Should Pretend Your Internet Is Down: @PaulineWiles
Use Data to be a More Productive Writer: @rachelmcwrites @IndieAuthorALLI

Creativity and Inspiration / Writing Life

Things I Forget to Remember: Writing Can Be Uncomfortable: @sarahrcallender
Skill vs. Talent – Which do you have? @TheRyanLanz
Are you getting enough sleep for writing? @pubcoach
The In-Between Writing Plan: @KMAllan_writer
13 Reasons it’s Scary to Live with a Writer: @EdieMelson
10 Hard Truths of Being a Writer: @jennamoreci
How To Write Your Darkness: with David W. Wright @thecreativepenn
“The Sheldon Cooper in Me”: @katmagendie @WriterUnboxed
How To Prevail As A Writer: @ADDerWORLD

Genres / Dystopian

Building a Realistic Dystopia: Interview with Rob Hart: @robwhart @DIYMFA

Genres / Fantasy

Five More Underused Settings in Spec Fic: by Oren Ashkenazi @mythcreants

Genres / Memoir

How to Write a Compelling Memoir (and Stay Sane in the Process): @tpajevic @WritersDigest

Genres / Miscellaneous

Commercial vs Literary Fiction: @alexadonne

Genres / Mystery

Crime Writing: What Authors Need To Know About Being Arrested: @FredBobJohn

Genres / Screenwriting

Screenwriting: Top 5 Formatting Mistakes Writers Make: by Ashley Halsey @Bang2write

Genres / Short Stories

Using Short Stories to Deepen Your Expanded Universe: @beth_wangler @phoenix_fiction

Promo / Blogging

Tips for Writers Who’d Like to Blog: by Amanda Zieba @hopeclark

Promo / Metadata

Kindle Keywords for Self-Publishers: Should You Use All 50 Characters? @DaveChesson

Promo / Miscellaneous

How to Market Your Book Using Competing Book Titles: @Bookgal
How to Promote Books and Have Fun on the Radio: @ElizabethDucie @IndieAuthorALLI

Promo / Platforms

A Guide to Branding Yourself as a Writer: @TiffanyYamut

Promo / Social Media Tips

Facebook Marketing: How Authors Use Facebook to Promote Their Books: by Evelyn Maguire @BookBub
Become a Social Media Maven: by Hayley Milliman @ProWritingAid

Promo / Websites

How to choose a hosting company for your author website: @debemmitt

Publishing / Miscellaneous

Penguin Random House Uses UK Designer for Holiday Campaign, Donates 300,000 Books: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives
US Publishers Back Congressional Letter on Copyright Restatement: @Porter_Anderson @AmericanPublish @pubperspectives

Publishing / News / International Publishing

Content From More than 200 of Spain’s Publishers at Guadalajara Fair: @Porter_Anderson
The Philippines’ SPi Global Is Buying Springer Nature Group’s SPS: @Porter_Anderson @spiglobal @SpringerNature
HarperCollins India’s Ananth Padmanabhan: Maker of Small Films: @Porter_Anderson @jilpanz @pubperspectives
Shanghai International Children’s Book Fair Reports 16,145 Trade Visitors: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives
In China, the 2019 Prix Fu Lei Honors New French-to-Mandarin Translations: @oliviasnaije @pubperspectives
India in Guadalajara: ‘Translation is Part of Our Mental Makeup’: By Adam Critchley @pubperspectives
Mediacorp Series Based on Wattpad’s ‘Slow Dancing’ Announced at ATF: @Porter_Anderson @mediacorp @wattpad @pubperspectives
Danish AI Software Specialists UNSILO Announce Japanese and US Deals: @Porter_Anderson
Guadalajara’s Marisol Schulz: ‘The Biggest Challenge Is Not Repeating Ourselves’: @Marisolschulz @pubperspectives by Adam Critchley

Publishing / Options / Self-Publishing

“Why I Chose to Self-Publish My Debut Novel (an Adult Space Opera)”: @MegLaTorre

Writing Craft / Beginnings

Don’t establish a mystery without giving us a reason to care (Page critique): @NathanBransford
Real Life Diagnostics: Is This Idea Worth Pursuing? @Janice_Hardy

Writing Craft / Characters / Protagonists

Creating A Compelling Protagonist: @JustinAttas @thecreativepenn

Writing Craft / Common Mistakes

Character Actions: How to Make Characters Take Action: @suelarkinsweems @write_practice

Writing Craft / Conflict

Objects of Desire, Objects of Conflict: by Larry Pass @StoryGrid
Conflict Thesaurus Entry: A Repressed Memory Resurfacing: @AngelaAckerman

Writing Craft / Diversity

Is It Okay for My Disabled Character to Use Futuristic Assistive Devices? by Fay Onyx and Chris Winkle

Writing Craft / Drafts

How to Start Your Second Draft Right: @WriteToSell

Writing Craft / Lessons from Books and Film

3 Powerful Writing Tips From “Joker”: by Chris Jones @Bang2write

Writing Craft / Literary Devices

Irony: What It Is and How to Use It: @ReedsyHQ
Finding the Theme of Your Story: The Vomit Draft: @woodwardkaren
How to Get the Most from Your Themes: @AJHumpage

Writing Craft / Miscellaneous

7 reasons to write in English when it’s not your first language: @TheLeighShulman
6 Ways to Immerse Your Reader in the Setting of a Story: by Joslyn Chase @write_practice

Writing Craft / Pacing

Narrative Balance: A Pacing Necessity: by Arielle Haughee @FloridaWriters1

Writing Craft / Pre-Writing / Outlining

See How Quickly You Can Structure Your Book This Way: @ChadRAllen

Writing Craft / Punctuation and Grammar

Predicate Nominative and Predicate Adjective: @writing_tips

Writing Craft / Revision

Why Listen to Your Book for Rewrites? @penpaperpad
The Final Cuts on Your Story: by Mark Alpert @killzoneauthors

Writing Craft / Settings and Description

Forget Writing What You Know. Write Where You Know: @andrewshatch @CrimeReads
How to Describe Your Main Character: @jamesscottbell @killzoneauthors

Writing Craft / Voice

Writing with Authenticity–Why It’s Important to Foster a Unique Voice in Your Art: @writeabook

Writing Craft / Word Crafting

Three Tips for Crafting Lyrical Prose: by Angelica Hartgers
Why Word Choice Matters: by Tom Ashford @SelfPubForm
19 New Words to Spice Up Your Vocabulary in 2020 (Infographic): by Isabel Cabrera

 


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Published on December 07, 2019 21:02

December 5, 2019

What Filled My Creative Well in 2019


by Elizabeth Spann Craig, @elizabethscraig


I had a lot of changes going on for 2019.  On the professional end, I started a new series (the first for about nine years). On the personal end, I ended up with an empty nest and a husband who started working remotely from home.


I also had a very productive year. Because of the new series, I wanted to put out two new books in the series fairly close together.  I ended up writing five books in 2019 instead of my usual 3.5.


This all means that I needed to refill my creative well a little more than I usually do.  And I did. Despite writing more than usual and despite all the changes (and I’m not one who handles change easily), I didn’t experience any burnout or the usual irritability that comes with change/not being in control of things.


I did quite a few writing sprints, using my timer.  Sometimes I followed the Pomodoro method and sometimes I made the sprints a bit shorter. Following the sprints, I took breaks. Some of the breaks were pretty long, but I found I could still hop back into my story easily for the next sprint.  Having breaks definitely helped keep me motivated.


What kinds of things filled my breaks?


I’ve listened before to NPR’s Tiny Desk Concerts, but only erratically and when I followed a link to them.  But this year, I’ve really enjoyed listening to them (they’re short…only about 15 minutes) and discovering a variety of different musicians and types of music.  When I found someone I liked, I added their music to my Amazon Prime Music playlists or Spotify.


I’ve also listened to podcasts again this year.  There are so many different choices out there that anyone should be able to find something of interest.  A few years ago, I was more interested in listening to fiction on podcasts and also writing-business-related podcasts, but this year it was nonfiction…true crime on Crime Junkies, This American Life, etc.


I’ve also spent more time watching films this year…mostly independent or classic films instead of films from big studios. I’ve found these on free accounts through my local library on Kanopy and Hoopla.


Writer and artist Austin Kleon’s newsletter has provided a weekly rabbit hole of inspiration and creative well-filling.


Can exercise help fill your creative well? I wouldn’t have said so (and I don’t enjoy exercising…I enjoy having exercised) but I’ve found that my daily walk on the treadmill I purchased in February has really helped me in terms of focus and general well-being. I’m going to reluctantly add it to my creative well list.   :)


What has helped you fill your creative well in 2019?


What Helped Fill 1 Writer's Creative Well in 2019:
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Published on December 05, 2019 21:01

December 1, 2019

A Guide to Branding Yourself as a Writer


by Tiffany Yamut, @TiffanyYamut


I started writing online in 2015 not having a niche, unique voice, and loyal readership. Like a new hire, I felt lost and wanted to belong.


Because of that, I grabbed every opportunity that came my way.


As I became more mature in my writing, I realized how essential it was to brand myself. And I believe that every writer, newbie or experienced, should take branding seriously if they want to succeed.


You’ve come to the right place.


Today, I’ll be showing you why branding matters in your writing career and how you can build a personal brand.


Why Is Branding Important for Your Writing Career?
1. Sets you apart from other writers

Like running a business, you want to be known for something. Are you focused on one thing or spreading yourself too thin?


When you think of Stephen King, you imagine tales of horror and suspense. If it’s JRR Tolkien, fantasy images fill your mind.


As a writer, you want to be known for something. That way, people know whom to seek if they need content on a certain topic. Branding increases your authority.


2. Allows you to stay focused

Can you imagine writing about 10 different niches at the same time? It won’t be long before you’ll go crazy!


You see, focus is extremely important to create the highest quality content. Because when your mind is cluttered, you cannot give your “all” to a task.


Focus helps you effectively research and plan your content before you start writing. And as you write, you’ll be able to “get in the flow.”


3. Gives you a sense of pride and satisfaction

Building a personal brand helps you feel most accomplished. You’ll have high regard for your writing work. You know where you excel and you’ve played to your strengths.


Tips on Creating a Personal Brand as a Writer
1. Consider your passions and interests.

First, you need to identify your strengths. What are you good at? Are you most passionate and interested in fiction? Blogging in B2B niches? Legal writing? Know your niche/genre and the kind of writing skill you have.


2. Decide on your look.

Visual cues matter in branding. People should be able to tell that it’s you who wrote a piece of content by its appearance. Your logo, colors, fonts, and graphics should spell Y-O-U.


3. Be visible to your readers.

To demonstrate your personal brand, you need to create an online presence. Your target audience should be able to discover you. Here are ways to establish yourself online:


Blog regularly


Start a website that showcases your expertise. Make sure that it has a blog section where you can write about topics that offer value to your target audience. Share your experiences as well as tips and strategies.


Post social media content


Social media is a must these days. Having a social media presence ensures that people see your written content. Complete your social media profile with your image and description. Keep your updates relevant to your brand.


Start an email newsletter


An email newsletter helps you communicate your brand messages more often. That way, you can stay in touch with your audience.


Final Thoughts

These are just some of the things  you can do to develop a personal brand in your writing career. A personal brand allows you to stand out, produce better work, and stay happy! If you have additional tips to share? If so, please leave them in the comments section below.


Tiffany Yamut is the founder of Freelance Writing With Joy. She has ghostwritten thousands of articles online since 2015.


Through her blog, she hopes to share everything she learned as a professional freelance writer so that aspiring writers can thrive and excel in their journey. You can also connect with her on LinkedIn.


Image credit: Pixabay


 


Writer @TiffanyYamut with a guide to branding yourself as a writer:
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Published on December 01, 2019 21:01

November 30, 2019

Twitterific Writing Links

Bluebird with beak open and 'Twitterific Writing Links' by ElizabethSCraig superimposed on the image


by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig


Twitterific writing links are fed into the Writer’s Knowledge Base search engine (developed by writer and software engineer Mike Fleming) which has over 50,000 free articles on writing related topics. It’s the search engine for writers.


Have you visited the WKB lately?  Check out the new redesign where you can browse by category, and sign up for free writing articles, on topics you choose, delivered to your email inbox!  Sign up for the Hiveword newsletter here.


Business / Miscellaneous

How to Speak to Journalists Before Your Book is Published (And Not Give It All Away): @LisaTener
What Do Editors Do Anyway? @topshelfedits
A Novelist’s Necessary Evils: @jaelmchenry @WriterUnboxed

Conferences and Events / Miscellaneous

8 Tips for Attending Writer’s Conferences and Getting the Most From Your Writing Conference Experience: @robertleebrewer @WritersDigest

Creativity and Inspiration / Goal setting

Want to Write a Book? Here are 3 Must-Ask Questions for Planning Success: @JLHarrisCoach

Creativity and Inspiration / Inspiration

How to Court Serendipity When You Write: @Peter_Rey_
Turning creative sparks into a fire: @pubcoach


Creativity and Inspiration / Inspiration / Quotes

8 Leigh Bardugo Quotes About Writing for Writers: @AmyMJones_5 @WritersDigest

Creativity and Inspiration / Inspiration / Reading as Writers

Five Sci-Fi Books Featuring Futuristic Technology: by Veronica Roth @tordotcom
9 Science Fiction and Fantasy Stories about Music: @SarahPinsker @ElectricLit

Creativity and Inspiration / Productivity / Writer’s Block

6 Ways To Stay Productive In A Creative Slump: by Macy Thornhill @thecreativepenn

Creativity and Inspiration / Writing Life

Why Publish: Iseult Murphy on the Power of Getting Your Writing Out There: @sarahstypos @write_practice
Fears That Usurp Writing: @chicklitgurrl
Showing, Telling, Making: @davidfarland
6 Myths About Writing: @katy239 @TheRyanLanz
7 Tips To Remove Distractions While Writing and Blogging: @akshayhallur @Writers_Write
Can Writers Lose Their Fingerprints? @SueColetta1 @killzoneauthors
Writing Under Duress: How to Persevere When Your Job, Life, and Kids Are Also a Priority: @saderotica @LitReactor
Selectively Keeping My Mouth Shut about My Writing: @AmrenOrtega
Should You Really Get Up Early to Write? @AnneJanzer
I Don’t Feel Like Writing, Yet Here I Am. @MegDowell

Genres / Mystery

The 5 Essential Elements of Unforgettable Crime Thrillers: @DerikCavignano @CrimeReads

Genres / Romance

5 Necessary Characters in a Romance Novel: @woodwardkaren

Genres / Screenwriting

The Protagonist’s Lack of Metaphor Family, Argument Tactic, Strong Motivation, Goals, Insistence, and Decision-Making Ability in “Get Out”: @CockeyedCaravan
Script to Screen: “Zombieland”: @GoIntoTheStory
Wrapping Up the Internal and External Journeys of “Get Out” : @CockeyedCaravan

Genres / Women’s Fiction

Get Real: 4 Tips for Writing Bestselling Women’s Fiction: by Brenda Copeland @CareerAuthors

Promo / Blogging

Is blogging dead? @DanBlank

Promo / Book Descriptions and Copywriting

Compelling Book Descriptions: by David Kudler @JFbookman
How to Improve Your Amazon Book Descriptions: @Bookgal @JaneFriedman

Promo / Miscellaneous

How (and Why) to Market Yourself: @EJWenstrom @DIYMFA

Promo / Newsletters

Designing the Perfect Product Funnel For Your Online Business: @KarenBanes

Publishing / Miscellaneous

Tips on Audiobook Production for Indie Authors: @KyleRbrtShultz
Daunt at FutureBook Live: Barnes & Noble’s ‘Crucifyingly Boring’ Stores: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives @TheFutureBook
How Audiobooks Became a Powerful, Unexpected Format to Sell Books: @Rhys_Keller
FutureBook Live: Audiobooks, Katie Espiner on Publishing Management: @Porter_Anderson @kesp @pubperspectives
No, Woke Culture Is NOT ‘The Death Of Storytelling’: @Bang2write
Remembering German Publisher Monika Schoeller: by Hannah Johnson @pubperspectives
7 Things You Should Know About Kobo: @Joni_DiPlacido @RomanceUniv
Self-publishing News: AI and the Indie Author: @agnieszkasshoes @IndieAuthorALLI

Publishing / News / International Publishing

BookNet: Canada’s Book Club Memberships Have Doubled This Year: @Porter_Anderson @BookNet_Canada
China Bestsellers October 2019: Better Days by Jiu Yuexi: @Porter_Anderson

Publishing / Options / Traditional Publishing

The Woes of Unsolicited Manuscripts in Publishing: @CindyDevoted @EdieMelson
Are Your Expectations for a Literary Agent Too High? @tessaemilyhall @A3writers

Publishing / Options / Traditional Publishing / Querying

Make your plot tangible (Query critique): @NathanBransford
How to Write a Query Letter that Makes Agents and Editors Swoon: by Michael Cristiano @TheRyanLanz
Submitting ork? Build a Better Battering Ram: @davidfarland

Publishing / Process / Book Design

How To Make An Animated Book Cover That Rocks: @ADDerWORLD

Writing Craft / Beginnings

How to Ground (and Hook) Readers in Your Opening Scene: @Janice_Hardy

Writing Craft / Characters / Antagonists

The Secret to Writing Fascinating Villains: @LMacNaughton

Writing Craft / Characters / Development

How to Reinforce Your Characters with Detailed World-Building: @NaNoWriMo
Character Type: Orphan: @GoIntoTheStory
When Your Character Is His Own Worst Enemy: @LiveWriteThrive
5 ways to make a character more sympathetic: @NathanBransford
Readers Must Sympathize with Characters: @Lindasclare

Writing Craft / Characters / Protagonists

How Do You Know If Your Protagonist Is Strong Enough? @AngelaAckerman

Writing Craft / Conflict

Conflict Thesaurus Entry: A Car Accident: @beccapuglisi

Writing Craft / Dialogue

How to Get the Most Out of Your Dialogue: @AJHumpage

Writing Craft / Diversity

Diversity in Fiction: Writing the Character You’re Afraid to Write: @sacha_black

Writing Craft / Humor

Five Proven Ways to Add Humor to Your Story: @ElleCarterNeal

Writing Craft / Lessons from Books and Film

6 Ways Terry Pratchett Can Help You Improve Your Writing: by Robert Wood @standoutbooks
Why it works: “Go Tell It on the Mountain” by James Baldwin: @NathanBransford

Writing Craft / Literary Devices

The figurative language of John MacLachlan Gray: @pubcoach

Writing Craft / Miscellaneous

Narrative Drive – Do You Have It? @JordanDane @killzoneauthors
10 Tips for Writing a Story That Will Become a Fandom: @_HannahHeath
Joseph Finder’s 8 Tips For Writers: @Writers_Write
Chekhov’s Gun: The Importance of Follow-Through in Fiction: @annerallen
Writing Callbacks: @SeptCFawkes
What Does It Mean to Write About Happiness? by Andrea Lundgren @TheRyanLanz
What’s Your Point? Figuring Out What Goes Into Each Chapter: by PJ Parrish @killzoneauthors
What is Your Core Message? @LisaEBetz @A3writers

Writing Craft / Pre-Writing / Outlining

Plotting, Pantsing & Personality Type: @Julie_Glover

Writing Craft / Pre-Writing / Research

Things to Consider When Writing About Royalty: from Sandy Dragon

Writing Craft / Punctuation and Grammar

A Comma Here, A Comma There: by Carlton Hughes @A3writers
How to Make Words That End in Y Plural: @GrammarGirl
Punctuation Marks: The Serial Comma: @WritingForward

Writing Craft / Revision

Quick and Tidy Tips to Streamline Editing: @GinaArdito @TheIWSG
Shoot the Weasel Words: @AndreaMerrell

Writing Craft / Settings and Description

World Building: Physical Setting: @FaeRowen

Writing Craft / World-Building

6 Tips for Worldbuilding on a Time Crunch: @rebekah_loper @NaNoWriMo

Writing Tools / Resources

8 Resources for Info and Inspiration for Writers: @Roz_Morris

The Top Writing Links From Last Week Are On Twitterific:
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Published on November 30, 2019 21:02

November 23, 2019

Twitterific Writing Links

Bluebird with beak open and 'Twitterific Writing Links' by ElizabethSCraig superimposed on the image


by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig


Twitterific writing links are fed into the Writer’s Knowledge Base search engine (developed by writer and software engineer Mike Fleming) which has over 50,000 free articles on writing related topics. It’s the search engine for writers.


Have you visited the WKB lately?  Check out the new redesign where you can browse by category, and sign up for free writing articles, on topics you choose, delivered to your email inbox!  Sign up for the Hiveword newsletter here.


I had two books come out last week. :)  Hushed Up and Overdue are now available for purchase.


Happy Thanksgiving to my US blog readers! I’m taking the week off to spend time with my family, but will be back here next Sunday again.  (You may also find that the website is down sometimes for maintenance and design work during this time. Thanks for stopping by!)


Business / Miscellaneous

5 Steps to Finding Profitable Book Topics on Amazon: by Alexandria Evensen @sabsky
Branding for editors and proofreaders – beyond me-me-me: @LouiseHarnby
10 Financial Rules for Writers: @PaulaSMunier @CareerAuthors
An agent on the value of an electronic footprint: @Janet_Reid
Should You Join an Association for Writers? @RJCrayton @IndiesUnlimited
Working with (Those Dreaded) Editors: by Florence Osmund @JFbookman

Conferences and Events / Miscellaneous

Aspen Institute Names Its 2020 Aspen Words Literary Prize Longlist: @Porter_Anderson @AspenWords @adriennebrodeur
The US National Book Awards at 70: Looking for Permanence: @Porter_Anderson @nationalbook @pubperspectives

Conferences and Events / NaNoWriMo

NaNoWriMo Week 3: Reinvigorate Your Story: @syd_thedreamer @NaNoWriMo
Changing a NaNo Project Halfway Through: @savyleiser

Creativity and Inspiration / Inspiration

5 Practices to Increase Your Creativity: @createastorylov
How Reddit Can Inspire Your Novel: @alexadonne

Creativity and Inspiration / Inspiration / Quotes

C.S. Lewis Quotes on Writing: @stevelaubeagent


Creativity and Inspiration / Inspiration / Reading as Writers

Thrillers in Disguise: @debraimmergut @CrimeReads
So You Think You’re Cool? On Referencing Pop Music in Fiction: @RobertHallerNY @lithub
Cool Male Protagonists Everyone Should Know: @jrc2666 @ReadItForward
On the Appeal of Ex-Library Books: by Mark Sieber @CemeteryDance

Creativity and Inspiration / Productivity / Fitting in Writing

Scheduling Time to Outline or Write: from Fix Your Writing Habits
Struggling to Write? How to Stay Motivated When Life Gets in the Way: @KimberleyGrabas

Creativity and Inspiration / Productivity / Writer’s Block

Writing: Why You’re Procrastinating, and How to Stop: @RebeccaNeely1

Creativity and Inspiration / Writing Life

12 Keys to Successfully Returning From a Writing Hiatus: @MegDowell
5 Steps to Make the Most of Your Writing Session: @the_writing_pal
You’ll be miserable if you don’t do what you’re supposed to do: @austinkleon
Self-belief vs Self-delusion: @dlwebb @WomenWriters
Téa Obreht On Abandoning a 600-Page Novel: @FirstDraftADOW @lithub
Readings for Writers: No Friend but the Pen: @ElizabethHuergo
Author Mindset: 4 Practices For Overcoming Self-Doubt: by Philip Kenney @thecreativepenn
Writing Purpose — How to Find Yours: @sowulwords @DIYMFA
Overcome Fear to Unbox Your Best Writing: @erikaliodice @WriterUnboxed
Libraries Are Even More Important to Contemporary Community Than We Thought: @EricKlinenberg @lithub
The Strangest Questions Ever Asked of New York City Librarians: @nypl @lithub
The Joys and Perils of Writing Longhand: @LisaTener

Genres / Fantasy

Combining Fantasy and Science Fiction Elements: by Chris Winkle @mythcreants
History for Fantasy Writers: Journeymen: by E.L. Skip Knox @mythicscribes

Genres / Horror

How to Write Effective Horror: @ReedsyHQ

Genres / Mystery

How to Write Suspense: @ReedsyHQ
3 things a reader doesn’t like in a cozy mystery: from Cozy Mystery Tea Time

Genres / Non-Fiction

How Indie Authors Can Sell More Nonfiction Books: @mtjacobsen @IndieAuthorALLI

Genres / Romance

Toxic Romance? @ClareLangleyH @killzoneauthors

Genres / Screenwriting

4 Secrets To Selling Your Screenplay… And Not Your Soul: @Pendensham @CreativeScreen
How to Get Your Gritty Horror Movie Made While Working a Full-Time Job: @JasonHellerman @nofilmschool

Genres / Short Stories

Anthony Doerr on Throwing Out All the Rules for Writing a Short Story: @lithub
On the Many Different Engines That Power a Short Story: @TheLincoln @lithub

Promo / Book Descriptions and Copywriting

How To Write Compelling Back-Cover Copy: @StephMorrill @GoTeenWriters

Promo / Book Signings and Launch parties

Once Upon a Book Tour: @Kristan_Higgins @WomenWriters

Promo / Miscellaneous

3 Book Marketing Ideas You Should Be Using: by Angelica Hartgers @TheRyanLanz
Book Marketing: Publicity Tips For Your Book: @KayePublicity @thecreativepenn

Publishing / Miscellaneous

Alibaba nets $1 bn in 68 seconds. Beats Amazon’s last quarter revenue in one day: @TNPS10
What it Means to be a 21st Century Author: @Roz_Morris @vicdougherty
AAP’s StatShot for September: Modest Gains in the US Market: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives
Three Books, Three Lessons: by Richard Charkin @pubperspectives

Publishing / News / Amazon

Amazon Reducing Orders to Publishers: @PublishersWkly

Publishing / News / International Publishing

Environment and Climate on ‘Beyond the Book’: New Delhi’s Smog Crisis: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives
The US National Book Awards’ Lisa Lucas: ‘The Times We Live In’: @Porter_Anderson @nationalbook @likaluca @TheBookerPrizes @NewDirections @riverheadbooks @sandstonepress @wwborders @LitTranslate @chadwpost @open_letter
Industry Notes: IFFRO Elects New Board, Cara Duckworth Joins AAP: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives
UK’s £50,000 Baillie Gifford Prizewinner Will Be Announced Tonight: @Porter_Anderson @BGPrize @StigAbell
Hallie Rubenhold Wins 2019 Baillie Gifford Nonfiction Prize for ‘The Five’: @Porter_Anderson @HallieRubenhold @BGPrize
On World Children’s Day, the UN and IPA Highlight the SDG Book Club: @Porter_Anderson @IntPublishers @pubperspectives
Industry Notes: John Murray Launches US Basic Books Imprint in the UK: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives
BIEF’s Fellowship for Arab Publishers: Contrasts and Commonalities: @oliviasnaije
Publishing Scotland’s Translation Fund Reopens, One Eye Watching Brexit: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives @PublishScotland
Polish Publishers Launch an Online Bookstore Called Inverso: @jaroslawadamows @pubperspectives

Publishing / Options / Traditional Publishing

Preparing to Make an Offer of Representation: @BookEndsJessica

Publishing / Options / Traditional Publishing / Querying

“Why don’t people want to rep the book?” @Janet_Reid

Publishing / Process / Book Design

Questions to Ask Before Hiring Your Interior Book Designer: by Mary E. Neighbour @BethBarany

Writing Craft / Beginnings

An editor critiques a YA submission: @Kid_Lit

Writing Craft / Characters / Development

Character Inspiration Is All Around You: @thekayleighwebb @NaNoWriMo

Writing Craft / Characters / Protagonists

5 Questions for Choosing a Protagonist Who Represents Your Story’s Theme: @KMWeiland

Writing Craft / Common Mistakes

Rookie Mistakes Indie Writers Make: @jamesscottbell @killzoneauthors

Writing Craft / Endings

Writing your Final Chapter: 6 Do’s and Don’ts For a Satisfying Conclusion: @annerallen

Writing Craft / Literary Devices

Theme—The Abstract Element of Novel Writing: @NeelyKneely3628 @EdieMelson

Writing Craft / Miscellaneous

Why Your Character (and You) Should be an Expert in Something: by Alyssa Hollingsworth
7 Tips to Write Better Fiction: @createastorylov
3 Areas Of Your Fiction Craft To Hone: by Angelica Hartgers, @SelfPublishing7
The Intersection of Character Transformation and Moral Dilemma: @LiveWriteThrive
10 Character Traits of an Espionage Hero: @PiperBayard
Three Important Story Elements: @hanque99
Breaches That Elicit Fear in Your Characters: by Bonnie Randall
Fresh Writing Sells: Power To The Hug: @MargieLawson

Writing Craft / POV

How to Exploit Uncommon Points of View in Your Novel: @HDemchick

Writing Craft / Pre-Writing / Naming

Edith Wharton Will Teach You Everything You Need to Know About Naming Characters: @AdamOPrice @The_Millions
These Four Websites Are A Huge Help With Naming Your Characters: @BrynDonovan

Writing Craft / Pre-Writing / Plotting

Why Being An Expert At Structure Helps Your Writing: @Bang2write

Writing Craft / Punctuation and Grammar

Can You Start a Sentence With “Because”? Oh Heck Yeah, You Can: @KathrynPetras @thewritelife

Writing Craft / Revision

Learning to Love Book Revision: Process is Key: @AnneJanzer
How to Edit a Book: An Easy Step-by-Step Guide: by Michael Aragon

Writing Craft / Tension

How to Write Tension and Twists by Karen S. Wiesner: @womenonwriting

The Top Writing Links From Last Week Are On Twitterific:
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Published on November 23, 2019 21:02

November 21, 2019

Three Important Story Elements


by Hank Quense, @hanque99


To a new fiction writer, there are a bewildering number of story elements that are essential to the story and incorporated into the work.  To mention a few, there are character development, plotting, setting, point of view, and others.  These story elements are explained in depth in any number of books and are easy to research.


However, there are three other story elements that are just as vital, but are hardly mentioned in books on fiction writing.  When they are mentioned, the description is vague and hard to understand, let alone use in stories.


In this article, I’ll discuss these three elements which are: dominant reader emotion, the character arc, and the emotional arc.


Dominant Reader Emotion

This is the emotion you want (hope?) the reader will experience whenever a character is in a scene. For the story’s protagonist, you want the reader to have positive emotions such as empathy, sympathy, delight, or intrigue.  For the bad guy, the emotions can be animosity, irritation, pity, hostility, and anger.


When I’m developing a new major character, the DRE is one of the first characteristics I assign because it affects the way I develop and write about the character. For instance, if I want the reader to admire the character, then I can’t have this character kicking puppies or running away from a fight. The DRE dictates that I develop the character’s attributes so the reader won’t be turned off by the character.


Character Arc

In short, the character arc is how the character’s life changed as a result of the events in the story. If nothing changed then the story is a ‘who cares’ because everything after the story is the same as before the story.  So, nothing happened except the character got a bit older.


The character arc can be physical or mental but a mental change is more interesting to readers than a physical change.  In a mental character arc, the character learned an important lesson.  In a physical one, the character’s situation changed for better or worse.


Here are a few examples of character arcs.



A character starts out as a bigot, but during the course of the story, learns to be less bigoted and becomes more open-minded.
A proud or pompous (or both) character gets humbled as the story unfolds.
A lazy character gets motivated.
A character evolves from an uninterested bystander or a follower into the leader of a movement.

Emotional Arc

Most writing books don’t emphasize, if they mention it all, that the main character in a scene must undergo an emotional change.  To put this another way, whatever the character’s emotional state is at the beginning of the scene, it must be different at the end of the scene.


Further, in the next scene with the same character, the starting emotion is the ending emotion from the last scene.


In the case of the protagonist, these emotional changes are negative as his failures to solve the plot problem take a toll. Thus, the emotional arc can start at happy at the story’s beginning and change to annoyed, startled, alarmed, and desperate as the story progresses.  By the time the character is desperate, the story will at the climatic scene at the end of the story.


These three story elements are covered along with many other elements in my Story Design lectures.  You can learn more at: https://bit.ly/338UqjY



You can also find out more about my lectures on this webpage: https://padlet.com/hanque/rph7u51miayn


Hank Quense writes satirical fantasy and sci-fi. Early in his writing career,

he was strongly influenced by two authors: Douglas Adams and his

Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and Joseph Heller’s Catch-22. Happily, Hank

has never quite recovered from those experiences.


He lives with his wife in northern New Jersey, a mere 20 miles from

Manhattan, the center of the galaxy (according to those who live in

Manhattan). They have two daughters and five grandchildren all of whom

live nearby.


For vacations, Hank and Pat usually visit distant parts of the galaxy.

Occasionally, they also time-travel.


Besides writing novels, Hank lectures on fiction writing, publishing and

book marketing. He is most proud of his talk showing grammar school kids

how to create a short story. He used these lectures to create an advanced

ebook with embedded videos to coach the students on how to create

characters, plots and setting. The target audience is 4th to 7th graders. The

book’s title is Fiction Writing Workshop for Kids.


3 Important Story Elements to Include in Your Novel from @hanque99 :
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Published on November 21, 2019 21:01

November 17, 2019

3 Areas Of Your Fiction Craft To Hone


by Angelica Hartgers, @SelfPublishing7


Are you taking part in NaNoWriMo?


As well as being a time to test your writing effort and output capabilities, it’s also a time to gain valuable insight.


When we practice our fiction capabilities so intensely, we inevitably find out where we are as writers.


Which parts of our craft are looking strong? Which are in need of improvement?


Regardless of whether you’re taking part in NaNoWriMo or not, the opportunity to evaluate our craft skills and find areas to work on shouldn’t be passed up.


Here is a selection of fiction craft resources to help you hone your skills.


Crafting Better Characters

The most memorable fiction characters live on in our hearts and minds, long after their book is finished.


On the opposite end of the scale, dreadful characters can cause reader rage. 


Spend some time reading through reviews and you’ll soon find people whose main dislike of a book is due to their impression of a character. 


Given the immense importance of characters, how can we assess and improve the way we craft them?



Reader Reaction. Perhaps the most important way to assess the state of your character craft is by gauging reader reaction. Even the best character on paper is totally pointless if readers don’t react well. 
Depth. Even characters with the most useful plot function will suffer if they come across as too basic, flat, or functional. Taking the time to really get to know your fiction character will help to avoid any problems with depth.
Necessity. What role does your character play in the story? Taking the time to think through this aspect of character development will help avoid adding anyone superfluous.

There isn’t a fiction genre out there that wouldn’t benefit from better characters. Why not take the time to assess and improve yours?


Improving Dialogue

Dialogue that sounds forced, unnatural, or outdated can ruin the rhythm of fiction. Pointless dialogue that does nothing for the story is also a waste of time. 


If you feel your conversational craft could use some improvement, what are some areas to focus on?



Purpose. For dialogue to be meaningful, it should serve a clear purpose in your story. Are your readers learning something new? Is the plot being advanced? Meaningless chit chat is likely to annoy and bore your readers.
Natural Sound. Often, dialogue that works well in our mind when we write it doesn’t sound as good as intended out loud. Read it through to make sure the rhythm is natural and you haven’t accidentally repeated anything distracting or annoying.
Consistency. Unless there’s a meaningful reason for their variation, you want your character to speak as consistently as possible. This adds to believability and character depth, allowing them to live on in the mind of your reader. 

Improving your dialogue will give your reader a really precious gift – a memorable character that lives on inside their minds. 


Expanding Your Fiction Horizons

Sometimes, the best way to refresh your writing craft is to expand its scope. 


It can be all too easy to get stuck in a craft rut, where we feel uninspired and unenergized. 


Signs that this might be the case include finding fiction tedious if you usually enjoy it and feeling burned out if you attempt something like NaNoWriMo. 


Looking to refresh your love of fiction writing?


Here are a few ideas.



Writing prompts. Using a writing prompt feels like a fun, low pressure way to get your fiction juices flowing again. If you need to restore your love of crafting fiction, why not try experimenting with writing prompts outside your genre? You’d be surprised by what you discover when you leave your comfort zone.
New collaboration. Sometimes, the best way to feel good about fiction is to work with someone new. Is there an exciting new collaborator you could seek out? An accountability partner for an upcoming craft project?
A change of scene. Your fiction writing environment influences your output. If you’re feeling stuck or uninspired, can you switch up where you write? This could be as simple as moving from room to room, or even switching writing devices and going to a new location entirely. 

Sometimes, the best way to keep your fiction craft as fresh and fun as possible is to mix things up. By re-energizing your fiction as a whole, you improve every individual part at the same time. 


Which Craft Area Are You Working On This NaNoWriMo?

NaNoWriMo is something to be celebrated, no matter how much you’re personally participating. 


Even if you’re not intending to become a winner, it’s still an invaluable chance to get swept up in the atmosphere, analyze your fiction craft, and consider some areas for improvement. 


What’s your personal approach to assessing your craft? How do you go about it, and which exercises do you find most helpful? 


What’s your take on NaNoWriMo in general?


Thank you everyone, and good luck!



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The post 3 Areas Of Your Fiction Craft To Hone appeared first on Elizabeth Spann Craig.

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Published on November 17, 2019 21:01