Janice Hardy's Blog, page 32
January 10, 2021
WIP Diagnostic: Is This Working? A Closer Look at a Fantasy First Page
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: None
Please Note: As of today, critique slots are open.
This week’s question:
Does this opening work?
Market/Genre: Fantasy
On to the diagnosis…
Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com
January 8, 2021
4 Reasons Over-Explaining Will Kill Your Novel
By Janice Hardy, @Janice_HardyDon’t let the urge to explain ruin your novel.
Writers have trust issues sometimes. We worry whether or not our readers will get what we're trying to do. Will they spot that oh-so-subtle hint in chapter three? Will they get the subtext between the romantic leads in scene five? Is the protagonist’s backstory clear or should we throw in a flashback that explains it?
We worry so much readers might miss something, we end up shoving the story right down their throats.
And that's bad.
Explaining a novel is not the same as telling a story.
For one thing, it frequently leads to bad writing, because we're explaining what happens, we’re not dramatizing a scene as it unfolds. For another, it robs readers of the chance to discover the story and connect to it on their own level. They’re not given the opportunity to make their own choices and decisions about the characters and story and what it means to them.
Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com
January 7, 2021
5 Options for Creating Your Amazon Ad Copy
By Beth Whitney Part of The Indie Authors Column
JH: Authors are great at writing stories, but we're not always so great at writing ad copy to sell those stories. Beth Whitney shares tips on finding the right words for our Amazon ads.
Take it away Beth...
We’ve all sat staring at that blinking cursor, waiting for the right words to jump into our brains. But as I’ve written for Best Page Forward, I’ve gradually developed some strategies for quickly creating ad headlines. Now the short and snappy taglines are my favorite part of the blurb to work on. I save them for last, like leaving a sweet for after dinner.
Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com
January 6, 2021
5 Places in Your Novel That Probably Aren’t Terrible Enough
By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy With so much at stake, the smart writer takes a closer look at their stakes before they send that manuscript out.
Just a quick heads up that I’m guest posting over at Writers in the Storm today, talking about a simple change you can make to improve your writing success this year. Pop on over and say hello.
I know this is a touchy subject for some writers, but…I love revisions.
First drafts are also fun, but it isn’t until I’ve been through the story once that I see where I can dig in and make it worse.
Yep, you heard me. Worse.
As in, raise the stakes and be as evil to my characters as I can. Because high stakes and personal consequences keep tensions cranked up and the pace chugging along, and that keeps readers glued to the page.
First drafts are all about getting the story down on paper, and we frequently don’t know everything about that story yet. For a rare few, one draft is all they need, but for most of us, several drafts (at least) are required to fully understand the full potential of the conflict. Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com
January 5, 2021
Voice in Fiction – Vague, but Vital
By Ann Harth, @Annharth
Part of the How They Do It Series
JH: Every writer has their own voice--even if they haven't found it just yet. Ann Harth shares tips on how to develop both your author, and your characters' voice.
Ann Harth writes fiction and non-fiction for children and adults. Strong, interesting female characters creep into many of her books, and many arrive with a sense of humor.
She taught writing for the Australian College of Journalism for eight years before taking the leap into freelance writing and structural editing work.
Ann is the Far North Queensland coordinator for The Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. She’s had a number of fiction and non-fiction children’s books published in Australia and the UK and over 130 short stories sold internationally.
When not tapping the keys, Ann stuffs a notebook into her pack and searches for remote places to camp, hike or explore.
Website | Goodreads | Facebook | Twitter |
Take it away Ann...
Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com
January 4, 2021
An Easy Fix for a Tighter Point of View
By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy You might be inadvertently pushing your readers away from your novel.
Decades ago, a detached, omniscient point of view was all the rage.
Readers wanted to be told a story, so the stories read as if someone was indeed telling them. That style faded as readers sought a more immersive read, and tighter points of view became popular. The pendulum keeps swinging, and these days, readers read on both sides of the narrative fence.
What does this have to do with point of you, you ask?
Because narrative distance is what makes the different point of view styles feel different.
Regardless of who the narrator is, that’s the “person” readers experience the novel through. A tight first-person narrator, an omniscient third, a limited third, it’s all filtered through somebody’s eyes—their point of view (POV).
Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com
January 3, 2021
Are You Looking for a Critique Group or Partner?
It's Critique Group Time Again! The 2021 Winter Session is now open!
Finding other writers to share work and critiques with isn't always easy, particularly for newer writers who often don't even know where to start looking.
In 2013 I created "Janice Hardy's Critique Connection" to help such writers connect with like-minded folks looking for critique groups or partners. It was designed to help people find long-term, quality writing partners, not just places you can toss up your work and get quick feedback.
It went from a one-time event to annually, and now to every six months (I open it up every January and July).
If you're looking to join or create a critique group, add more to your existing group, or find a critique partner, odds are you'll find someone here.
Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com
January 2, 2021
WIP Diagnostic: Is This Working? A Closer Look at a YA Fantasy Opening
Critique By Maria D'Marco 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: Two
Please Note: As of today, critique slots are booked through Jan 16.
This week’s question:
1. Does this opening work?
Market/Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
On to the diagnosis…
Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com
January 1, 2021
A Look Back, a Look Forward. What Are Your 2021 Goals?
By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy It’s a new year, and time to take a look back on what we accomplished, and set new goals for 2021.
Happy New Year, everyone!
And a quick note...Janice Hardy's Critique Connection will open up on Sunday, January 3. So if you're looking for a crit partner or group, keep an eye out for that.
Moving on...
I write these round ups every year, and it’s always interesting to me to see what I did (and didn’t do) over the previous twelve months. This year was quite the year, and despite everything the pandemic brought, it did give me time to reflect on what I wanted from my writing career. After a decade as a professional author, it was time to make some hard decisions, and I did.
It also gave me time to develop my thoughts into goals, and then plans, and then I realized what I wanted to do was a two- or three-year-plan, not a few months of work. But that’s okay, because having that detailed and comprehensive plan is good. I have a much better understanding of what I need to do to accomplished my goals now.
Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com
December 30, 2020
I'm Not Evil: Writing from the Antagonist's Point of View
By Janice Hardy, @Janice_HardyShould you write scenes in your antagonist's point of view? Maybe.
The first novel I ever wrote “for real” (with the intent to submit it to agents) used points of view from both the protagonists and the antagonists. It was one of those epic fantasy monstrosities with about twelve point of view characters and a backstory history I thought could become its own series (I shudder at the thought now).
This novel will never see the light of day, but it still has the best villains I ever wrote.
They were layered. They were compelling. They were interesting. But mostly? They were fun to both write and read about.
I had no idea what I was doing back then, so I think the reason they turned out so well was because I wrote from their perspectives. I had to know them to do that, so they became real people with real problems they were just trying to sort out, same as my protagonists.
Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com
