Janice Hardy's Blog, page 29
February 13, 2021
WIP Diagnostic: Is This Working? A Closer Look at a YA Suspense First Page
Critique by Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy WIP Diagnostics is a weekly column that studies a snippet of a work in progress for specific issues. Readers are encouraged to send in work with questions, and we diagnose it on the site. It’s part critique, part example, and designed to help the submitter as well as anyone else having a similar problem.
If you're interested in submitting to WIP Diagnostics, please check out these guidelines.
Submissions currently in the queue: One
Please Note: As of today, critique slots are booked through February 20.
This week’s questions:
1. Is this opening working?
2. Is there enough emotion?
Market/Genre: Young Adult Suspense
Note: This is a revision of a previous submission. Here’s the original if you’d like to see how the author revised.
On to the diagnosis…
Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com
February 12, 2021
Story Structure: How the Inciting Event Works in a Novel
By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy The opening scene isn’t the real start of your story. The inciting event is.
The inciting event is one of my two favorite turning points in a novel (the other is the midpoint). It’s that moment at the top of a roller coaster just before it tips forward and races into a spiral. It’s when all the fun and excitement you’d been anticipating while waiting in line is about happen.
Sure, the first line, the first page, and the first chapter get most the attention, but they’re only the first things readers see, not where the story begins. First pages are the setup for the real story, and the bridge that connects the opening scene to the inciting event.
And that’s when things really take off.
Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com
February 11, 2021
6 Ways to Fit More Story in Less Space
By José Pablo Iriarte, @LabyrinthRat Part of the Focus on Short Fiction Series
JH: Hemingway’s famous “six-word story” proves you can pack a lot of story into a small amount of space. José Pablo Iriarte share six tips on creating depth in short fiction.
When I have conversations with other authors about writing and selling fiction—particularly when I'm talking with folks who are aware of my magazine and anthology sales—I often hear novelists say some variation of "I couldn't write short fiction to save my life! It's so hard to get a whole story in such a small space!" Often there seems to be an implication that some people are born short story writers and some are not, which is where I take exception.
Because the thing is, I also used to believe that I just wasn't born with the knack for writing short. Back around 2012, before I made my first sale, at my writing group's first meeting of the new year, when we discussed our writing resolutions, I remember how mine was to figure out how to write a story of under five thousand words. This was something I had never yet succeeded in doing. In the years since, I've sold nearly thirty short stories to top spec fic markets, been nominated for awards, and generally come to be known as a short story writer.
Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com
February 10, 2021
Fiction University Has a New Column: Focus on Short Fiction!
By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy Short fiction used to just be short stories, but these days, shorter works are a vital part of an author’s body of work.
This site has mostly focused on novels in the past, but that’s about to change. Short fiction is a growing market, and one that writers should seriously consider, even if they’re not a short story writer.
Because short fiction isn’t just about short stories.
Short fiction is a way to release more stories to your readers.
Look at your favorite authors—odds are they have novellas mixed in with their series, side stories that weren’t focused on in the main storyline, or tales told from secondary characters. Maybe they’re prequels or epilogues for fans who want to know more about the characters they love.
Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com
February 9, 2021
6 Steps to Fast and Easy Revision
By Laurence MacNaughton, @LMacNaughtonPart of The How They Do It Series
JH: The first draft is only the first step of a novel, and the revision is where the fun (and work) really begins. Laurence MacNaughton shares an easy plan for revising your novel.
Some writers love to revise their work. At least I assume so. I've never met any. That's why I try so hard to make the entire revision process as painless and quick as possible. Let's face it, the process of revising an entire novel can seem impossibly daunting. And while it is a lot of work, it's not impossible.
Here's how to break it down into manageable chunks so you can get your revisions done faster and easier than ever before.
1. Before you start changing anything, decide which changes you're going to make.
Don't just dive in and start making changes one by one, or you could end up getting lost in the details. Instead, take a step back and evaluate the feedback you've received so far.
Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com
February 8, 2021
4 Ways to Develop Character Agency
By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy Many novels fail because their protagonist lacks agency.
Early on in my writing career, I’d never heard the term “agency.” Then I started hearing it everywhere. I suspect I’d crossed a learning threshold and had begun reading more advanced blogs and books, and had stumbled into a higher level of writing advice than I had previously seen.
To paraphrase regular guest author, Rochelle Melander, I had leveled up as a writer.
These days, I hear folks talking about agency all the time, and the word has become part of my writing vocabulary. But I’d bet plenty of other writers still encounter it and have no idea what it is, or they get the general gist of it in context, but aren’t really sure what to do with it.
Imagine my shock when I realized I’d never once written about it here. 3,000 articles on this site, and not a single one on character agency.
Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com
February 6, 2021
WIP Diagnostic: Is This Working? A Closer Look at Building Tension in a Scene
Critique By Janice Hardy, @Janice_HardyWIP Diagnostics is a weekly column that studies a snippet of a work in progress for specific issues. Readers are encouraged to send in work with questions, and we diagnose it on the site. It’s part critique, part example, and designed to help the submitter as well as anyone else having a similar problem.
If you're interested in submitting to WIP Diagnostics, please check out these guidelines.
Submissions currently in the queue: One
Please Note: As of today, critique slots are booked through February 13.
This week’s questions:
1. What does/doesn't work in this scene?
2. Is there a sense of caring/identifying with the character?
3. Is there enough showing instead of telling?
4. Is the hook strong enough?
Market/Genre: Romantic Suspense
On to the diagnosis…
Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com
February 5, 2021
Story Structure: How the Opening Scene Works in a Novel
By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy The opening scene is the preview for your entire novel.
I find opening scenes both easy and hard to write. Once I’m ready to write them they’re easy, but it might take me a month or more to figure out the right opening line. And I can’t write the novel until I have the right opening line and scene. I need to start off from the right point or I tend to wander into the weeds.
Other writers don’t have this issue, and write whatever comes to them, knowing they’re going to revise it later. They don’t know what the right opening scene is until they write the final scene.
Both (and everything in between), are perfectly acceptable ways to write opening scenes.
Which is good, because opening scenes need to do a lot. They need to introduce the protagonist, the setting, the hook, the problem, show conflict, create voice, craft intriguing story questions, ground readers, make readers like your characters, and the list goes on and on.
Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com
February 4, 2021
How Do You Write a Great Story? Go Hot, Go Deep
By Dario Ciriello, @Dario_Ciriello Part of The How They Do It Series
JH: Skimming the surface of your story might work for an early brainstorming session, but it won't get you the novel you really want. Dario Ciriello shares tips on how to dig deeper for a strong novel.
Many years ago, the legendary, multiple award-winning editor of Asimov’s Science Fiction Magazine, Gardner Dozois, was telling my Clarion West class about the magazine’s slushpile. Once you got rid of the garbage, he said, you were left with quite a few publishable stories. The challenge then was finding the one that stood out from all the “not bad” ones, the story that achieved greatness and would resonate with readers. A few years later, when I had my own slushpile for the Panverse series of SFF novella anthologies I edited and published, I discovered he was absolutely right. And in the several years since, working as a freelance editor/copyeditor, I find the same to be true.
Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com
February 3, 2021
3 Steps to Ground Readers in Your Story World
By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy Losing readers in the opening scene is a problem many novels face.
Opening scenes lead really stressful lives (metaphorically speaking). They have to hook readers, offer a compelling problem, introduce characters, show voice, and establish the world and setting by the end of the scene. No pressure, right?
I’ve been doing weekly critiques on this site since 2010, and the most common submission I get is the first page. So I’ve seen a lot of openings in a variety of genres and markets. And there’s one mistake I see writers make over and over.
Not grounding readers in the story world.
Grounded readers have the tools they need to embrace—and enjoy—the story.
Ungrounded readers feel lost and confused, and the longer that confusion lasts, the more likely it is they’ll stop reading the book. They’re too busy trying to make sense of what they’re reading to lose themselves in the story. Quite often, they can’t connect to the characters because they can’t get a bead on who they are and what they want.
Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com
