Janice Hardy's Blog, page 40

Create a Powerful Story Cast: A Master List of Character-Building Resources

By Angela Ackerman, @AngelaAckerman

Part of The How They Do It Series 

JH: Developing a novel takes so much brainpower, it's nice to find some tools to lessen the load on our creativity.  Angela Ackerman shares some great resources and tools for building and developing your characters.

Angela Ackerman is a writing coach, international speaker, and co-author of the bestselling book,  The Emotion Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide to Character Expression  (now an expanded 2nd edition) as well as seven others. Her books are available in eight languages, are sourced by US universities, and are used by novelists, screenwriters, editors, and psychologists around the world. Angela is also the co-founder of the popular site Writers Helping Writers, as well as One Stop for Writers, a portal to powerful tools to help writers elevate their storytelling.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

Take it away Angela...

Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com

WIP Diagnostic: Is This Working? A Closer Look at Mixing Internal Thoughts into a Third-Person POV

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 September 19.

This week’s questions:

1. Am I getting closer to an acceptable opening?

2. Does this sound realistic, like something a 10 year old would gripe about?

3. Did I ground the setting?

Market/Genre: Middle Grade

Note: We’ve had a lot of resubmits lately, and here’s another. The previous versions are here: first, second, and third for those curious to see how this revision has developed.

On to the diagnosis…
Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com

Why Query Letters Matter to Self-Published Authors, Too

By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy
Part of the Indie Authors Series

If you’re self publishing, you might think your query-writing days are over—but they’re not (sorry!). The target of those query letters has simply changed.
A good query letter bears a striking resemblance to good cover copy. They’re both designed to entice a potential reader to pick up the book. The same skills that go into writing a strong query letter also apply to great cover copy, and you’ll need great cover copy for your self-published book. 
Think about it—a query for an agent or editor only needs to convince a handful of people to read the book. Cover copy has to convince every reader to read it. That’s a lot of pressure for a few paragraphs.

Luckily, some of the details that complicate a query letter don't apply to cover copy, which makes the process a little easier. Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com

Stop Dreaming, Start Doing Workshop Series

By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy

Are you ready to stop dreaming and start writing?

Do you have a story to tell but you can’t quite get it on the page? Are you ready to see your name in print, but you don’t know how to get there? Are you dying to get an MFA, but you don’t have the time, money, or other resources to dedicate yourself to going back to school?

If you answered yes to any of those questions, let me tell you about a free workshop series.



Gabriela Pereira, the creator of DIY MFA, is releasing an amazing FREE video series called Stop Dreaming, Start Doing , designed just for people like you.

In this series, you’ll learn...

Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com

The 3 Minute Scene Fix

By Laurence MacNaughton, @LMacNaughton

Part of The How They Do It Series

JH: Getting stuck on a scene isn't just frustrating, it can throw off your whole writing session. Laurence MacNaughton shares an easy three-minute fix for getting that scene back on track.

Writing good fiction takes time. But that doesn't mean you have to spend endless hours agonizing over a scene that's just not working. In most cases, you can fix a troublesome scene in just three minutes.

All you need is a kitchen timer and the willingness to brainstorm as fast as you can.

Set your timer for one minute, and answer the first question below. Don't stop to think, because you don't have time for that. Just jot down as many answers as you can possibly think of. Keep going until the timer beeps. Then move onto the next question.
Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com

WIP Diagnostic: Is This Working? A Closer Look at Developing POV in an Opening Scene

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: Two

Please Note: As of today, critique slots are booked through September 26.

This week’s questions:

1. What does/doesn’t work with this as an opening scene?

2. Does how the character feels come across?

3. Does it have a good enough hook to want to read more?

4. Does it show instead of tell?

Market/Genre: Inspirational Romantic Suspense

Note: This is the third pass for this submitter. If you’re curious to see how this has developed, here’s submission #1, and submission #2. 

On to the diagnosis…
Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com

Successful Self-Publishing: Build Your Brand

By Laurisa White Reyes, @lwreyes

Part of The Indie Authors Series 

JH: A successful writing career takes more than just writing great books. Laurisa White Reyes shares tips on how to build your author brand, and why it's a critical element of an author's career.

Laurisa White Reyes is the award-winning author of seventeen books, including  8 Secrets to Successful Self-Publishing . She is also the founder and senior editor of Skyrocket Press and teaches English composition at College of the Canyons in Southern California. Visit her website at www.SkyrocketPress.com.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads |
Take it away Laurisa...

Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com

Are You Showing or Telling Your Internalization?

By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy

Show, don't tell doesn't just apply to the action in your scenes. It also affects a character's internalization.   

When writers worry about showing, not telling, we typically think about the descriptions--the explanations of backstory, infodumps, and the mini-history lessons that "tell" readers what they need to know.

But telling can also occur in a character's internalization. Telling in internalization can distance the reader from the character, creating detachment instead of the closeness good internal thoughts excel at.

These emotional and motivational tells sneak into a manuscript when the author stops the story to explain what's motivating a character to act, or why that character is feeling what she's feeling.

Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com

Suspenders for Pantsers: A Little Support for the Pantsing Writer

By Orly Konig, @OrlyKonig

Part of The How They Do It Series

JH: If outlining is too strict, but pantsing is too loose, you might consider using some plotting suspenders. Orly Konig shares her in-between process that mixes plotting and pantsing.

Orly Konig is an escapee from the corporate world. Now she spends her days chatting up imaginary friends, drinking too much coffee, and negotiating writing space around her cats. She is the founding president of the Women’s Fiction Writers Association and a member of the Tall Poppy Writers. She’s a book coach and author of The Distance Home and  Carousel Beach .

Website | Facebook | Pinterest | Instagram | BookBub | Goodreads

Take it away Orly…

Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com

WIP Diagnostic: Is This Working? A Closer Look at Establishing Setting in an Opening Scene

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: Three

Please Note: As of today, critique slots are booked through September 19.

This week’s questions:

1. Does this work for an opening scene?

2. Does it orient you, grab attention, make you want to read on?

Market/Genre: Women’s Fiction

On to the diagnosis…

Continue ReadingWritten by Janice Hardy. Fiction-University.com