Kaye Dacus's Blog, page 71

Nano Prep: Propping Up Your Story Bible

Hopefully you took the weekend to work on adding your character and setting information to your Story Bible. Because today, we’re adding . . . Props This is where those writing contemporary fiction set in the real world have it so much easier than those writing historical or otherworldly settings—because not only do we not […]

NaNo Prep Day 4: Setting the Scene in Your Story Bible

We’re going to move away from characters (don’t worry, we’ll come back before we’re done with the story bibles) and talk about other aspects of the story that you need to include in the SB. NaNo Prep Day 4 Assignment: Add a Section for Settings I say to add a “section” because there are various […]

NaNo Prep Day 3: Creating Your Story Bible–Getting Your Characters into SHAPE

Yesterday, we described our main characters’ physicality. Today, we’re going to go deeper with them and write their backstories. When I start developing a story idea and know who at least one of the main characters is, the first thing I do is figure out where that character came from—literally and figuratively. I know that […]

NaNo Prep Day 2: Creating Your Story Bible–What Do Your Main Characters Look Like?

Now that you’ve decided HOW you’re going to create/keep your Story Bible, it’s time to start filling it. NaNo Prep Assignment for Tuesday, October 9, 2013: Today, your assignment is to have some fun! If you haven’t already done so, it’s time to put the full description of each of your main (POV) characters into […]

NaNoWriMo Prep: Creating a Story Bible Step 1–Pick Your Poison (or Software)

National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo or NaNo) starts in 23 days. Now that we’ve taken a reboot look at the processes that go into becoming a writer, let’s get you prepped to actually take that step and write. I’m going to spend some time over the next few weeks helping you get all your ducks […]

What Are You Reading? (October 2013)

It’s the first Monday of the month, which means it’s time for your book report. Tell us what you’ve finished, what you’re reading, and what’s on your To Be Read stack/list. (And if you’ve reviewed the books you’ve read somewhere, please include links!) . What book(s) did you finish reading (or listening to) since last […]

In the Kitchen with Kaye: Italian Sausage and Kale Soup Recipe

Adapted from a recipe claiming to copycat Olive Garden’s Zuppa Toscana. I made this (with my adaptations below) Saturday night, and it was FANTASTIC! I left out the potatoes, because I’m trying to watch my carbs, and I used evaporated milk because that’s what I had in the house. Next time, I’ll probably do it […]

I Want to Be a Writer, but How Do I Get Started Writing a Book?

Putting the first words of a story down on page is like someone who’s never sewn anything cutting into an expensive piece of silk to make a dress. If that seamstress doesn’t know how to sew, doesn’t know what a dress pattern looks like or how to read the instructions on it, she’s going to […]

I Want to Be a Writer, But How Do I Choose Which Story to Write?

As I’m sure you’ve already experienced, there’s a huge difference between “getting an idea” for a story and actually beginning to write that story. So there are two issues we need to examine: how to choose the story idea and how to get started writing it. How do I choose which story to write? In […]

Big Sister vs. Little Sister–Working with the Analytical and Creative Sides of the Brain

Are you RIGHT BRAINED or LEFT BRAINED? Hop over and take this quiz to find out for sure: Are You Right or Left Brained? It’ll open in a new tab/window, so it’ll be easy to come right back over here once you’re done. Got your results? As I have known for quite a long time, […]