Rob Bignell's Blog, page 279

Writing Prompt: Just who and why?

Suffering from writer���s block or need to add some spunk to your writing? The problem may be that you need to change up your routine.

To that end, try this tip: Take the following line, ���He had a good head start.��� Brainstorm (and take notes as doing so) who ���he��� is, what he���s running from, why he���s running from it, where he���s running, and so on.

Professional Book Editor: Having your novel, short story or nonfiction manuscript proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Houston, Texas, or a small town like Chicken, Alaska, I can provide that second eye.

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Frame story useful in limited situations

Sometimes when plotting a novel, rather than jumping right into the action you may want to use a frame story to set up the main tale.

A frame story ��� also referred to as a frame tale or a frame narrative ��� is a story-telling technique in which boundaries are placed around the main story being told. For example, in the classic ���One Thousand and One Nights,��� the character Scheherazade narrates a set of stories to Sultan Shahriyar every night for nearly three years. The fairy tales told are done so in context of Scheherazade���s and the Sultan���s interactions each evening.

Generally, the frame must appear at least twice in the story ��� the prologue/opening chapter that sets up the main story and an epilogue/final chapter that shows the narrator is done telling the story. In novels, the frame also needs to be inserted at least every few chapters to remind the reader of the narrator and listener.

Today, the frame story generally is considered archaic. An elaborate story setup simply isn���t necessary for readers familiar with storytelling conventions via constant reading in school and the pervasiveness of television and motion pictures. In addition, often the frame amounts to exposition; the main story alone should be suspenseful enough to grab the reader���s attention. Finally, a frame story runs the risk of creating an intrusive narrator. Even after the opening frame ends at the story���s beginning, the narrator���s presence is still implicit.; in any case, after the main story has concluded, a closing frame must be included, and usually that part consists mainly of exposition.

Still, the frame story can be useful in modern storytelling in a couple of different ways. First, it can help set the reader���s disposition toward the main story, which is useful when the narrator is unreliable. Most modern readers automatically assume the narrator is honest and likeable, but a frame story can help cast doubt on that. Secondly, a frame story can be used in novels to link disparate short stories together into a larger work. This is particularly effective when the story���s theme is paramount, such as in science fiction���s future histories. Ray Bradbury in ���The Martian Chronicles,��� for example, writes about the hope that comes with the colonization of Mars, the conflict between aboriginal Martians and the colonizing Earthmen, and the near extinction of two species in tales that span half of a century.

Professional Book Editor: Having your novel, short story or nonfiction manuscript proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Orlando, Florida, or a small town like Beer Bottle Crossing, Idaho, I can provide that second eye.

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���I don't believe any real artists have ever been non-political. They may have been insensitive to this particular plight or insensitive to that, but they were political, because that's what an artist is ��� a politician.��� - Toni Morrison

���The finder of his theme will be at no loss for words.��� - J.V. Cunningham

���Many people can and have written books, but many have nothing to say.��� - Amy Rogers

���Novelists don't normally write about what's going on; they write about what's not going on.��� - Martin Amis

���Why do people always expect authors to answer questions? I am an author because I want to ask questions. If I had answers, I'd be a politician.��� - Eug��ne Ionesco

Professional Book Editor: Having your novel, short story or nonfiction manuscript proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Youngstown, Ohio, or a small town like Hogshooter, Oklahoma, I can provide that second eye.

 

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Writing Inspiration: Remain in the present

Remain in the present when writing. All too often writers put off the enjoyment until some goal, such as the completion of their book, is achieved. Instead, take pleasure in the act of creating, sentence by sentence, as you write. With each sentence you complete, congratulate yourself and smile.

Professional Book Editor: Having your novel, short story or nonfiction manuscript proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Jacksonville, Florida, or a small town like Dinkytown, Minnesota, I can provide that second eye.

 

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Editing client publishes first paranormal novel

A recent editing client of mine has published his first paranormal novel. Ruben Avilla���s ���She Cries��� tells the story of Ivan Franco, who after a frightening and paralyzing experience searches for the truth behind recent haunting apparitions of a strange woman and two children.

Doctors dismiss these episodes as sleep paralysis. His continued encounters with the ghostly woman and children push him to the edge of sanity, and he seeks additional medical attention. During a routine test, an extraordinary event leaves a team of medical professionals baffled. The renowned sleep disorder specialist Dr. Noemi Ochoa, a highly educated woman with a particular interest in parapsychology and the possible link between the unconscious mind and paranormal activity, joins the group to further the team���s efforts.

Ivan and Dr. Ochoa together will uncover the bizarre connection between mysterious deaths along a corridor that stretches across over six thousand miles and his recent horrifying experiences. The book is available online.

Professional Book Editor: Having your novel, short story or nonfiction manuscript proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Baltimore, Maryland, or if you come from a small town like Giants Neck, Connecticut, I can provide that second eye.

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Write end of chapter summary in nonfiction books

When writing a nonfiction book, novice authors often omit a key element: a summary at the end of each chapter.

Usually chapters come packed with information that prove more than a reader can remember. The summary helps jogs readers��� memories of what was read, and in doing so sets them up for the next chapter. The summary can appear either as a paragraph of text or as a set of bullet points. Usually these bullet points are the headings of chapter subsections or the opening sentences of each subsection.

Writing a summary also can benefit authors during the early drafts by keeping them on track. Before writing the summary, jot down what the table of contents and the opening paragraph says will be in the chapter. Next, read the chapter, taking notes of the key points. These notes then serve as a summary. Compare the notes to what was jotted down earlier from the table of contents/opening paragraph. Do they jive? If not, then something needs to be rewritten ��� the table of contents, the chapter���s opening paragraph, or the chapter text itself.

Also consider adding links with the summary, especially for ebooks. These links might go to other articles or even books that elaborate on the bullet point. By including these links, your title becomes a reference book for its field and even can lead to sales of other books you���ve written.

Professional Book Editor: Having your novel, short story or nonfiction manuscript proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Portland, Oregon, or a small town like Papa, Hawaii, I can provide that second eye.

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Let's look again: Recheck vs. re-check

Here���s one confusing pair of words that often has writers doing double takes.

Most language arts textbooks will tell you there are two situations when a hyphen should appear between the suffix re and the second part of the word:
���Re is added so that the word is the equivalent of doing something again: In the old days, writers had to re-type each draft of their manuscript.
���Re would result in a confusion with another word: The company decided to re-create its image. Using recreate, as in recreation, would confuse readers.

So re-elect would be correct.

But hold on! Some stylebooks disagree. The Chicago Manual of Style specifically states that no hyphen appears in reelect. The Associated Press Stylebook says a hyphen should appear (re-elect) but not for the grammar reason given above; AP���s reason is that a hyphen should appear between a suffix and the syllable that follows if the suffix ends with the same letter that the second part begins (so re-enlist and recheck are correct).

The best rule to follow is one of consistency. Simply choose a style and stick with it throughout your manuscript.

Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Norfolk, Virginia, or a small town like Crappo, Maryland, I can provide that second eye.

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Writing Prompt: Observe and write

Suffering from writer���s block or need to add some spunk to your writing? The problem may be that you need to change up your routine.

To that end, try this tip: Place yourself in a situation where you can see or overhear what needs to be written in a passage. For example, if you���re uncertain how to describe the way people react when their favorite team scores, go to a sports bar during a big game. If you need to describe two people talking in hushed whispers to one another, go somewhere where people do that, such as a coffee shop.

Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Hampton Roads, Virginia, or a small town like Crappo, Maryland, I can provide that second eye.

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Keep freeze-frame in story brief, relevant

Sometimes the littlest detail, when mishandled, can significantly slow a story. Such is the case with a freeze-frame when writing fiction.

A freeze-frame occurs when the writer briefly pauses the action to describe a new character, object or setting that appears in the story. For example, her hair pinned up is a freeze-frame in Margie, her hair pinned up, entered the room. The term, borrowed from the movies, was coined by CSFW���s David Smith.

Often a freeze-frame is necessary in a story to help orient the reader. The challenge facing writers is to not overdo it. For example, the following freeze frame provides too much information:

Margie entered the room, a rectangular 11��� x 17��� with drape-covered windows on the wall opposite of the door, a twin-sized bed with a flower-print spread, and a television across from it.

The hotel room description takes up several ���frames��� in the story and so is akin to a camera shot lasting too long on a setting. It unnecessarily slows the story, as there���s no suspense in the description.

When writing a freeze-frame, follow a couple of simple guidelines. First, it should never last more than a sentence, and a phrase often is enough. It simply needs to point the reader in a certain direction by telling what a character���s key emotional trait is or what is the mood of a setting. Secondly, any freeze-frame needs to be relevant to the story. Simply describing someone as tall or a city as large usually is overgeneralized and insignificant (as is the case with the details in the above hotel room example). Instead, the character might tower over the others in the room or the city might span to the farthest mountain range on the horizon if the hero needs to quickly get from side of town to the other.

Professional Book Editor: Having your novel, short story or nonfiction manuscript proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Charlotte, North Carolina, or a small town like Butts, Georgia, I can provide that second eye.

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Five Great Quotations about Why We Write

���Writing it seemed to have higher quality than not writing it, that was all.��� - Robert M. Pirsig

���We write to rekindle the inner spirit.��� - Lailah Gifty Akita

���We restore order with imagination. We instill hope again and again and again.��� - Kelly Marcel & Sue Smith

���A person is a fool to become a writer. His only compensation is absolute freedom. He has no master except his own soul, and that, I am sure, is why he does it.��� - Roald Dahl

���Why did I write? Because I found life unsatisfactory.��� - Tennessee Williams

Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, or a small town like Cluttsville, Alabama, I can provide that second eye.

 

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