Stuart Aken's Blog, page 202

Updated Writing Contests Page

Just a quick message to know the table has been updated and you’ll find it here. Good Luck!Filed under: Author, Creative Writer Tagged: Writers Resources, Writing

Cut The Fat; Make Your Writing Lean: #Tip 27.

Writers share ideas to improve their craft. Here, I’m looking at ways to trim our writing. Readers will thank us for removing common redundancies and flabby expressions. Close proximity: Something in proximity to something else is close to it, so ‘close’ is a tautology. e.g. The close proximity of the backpacker caused the tourists to […]

Cut The Fat; Make Your Writing Lean: #Tip 26.

Writers share ideas to improve their craft. Here, I’m looking at ways to trim our writing. Readers will thank us for removing common redundancies and flabby expressions. Cease and desist: The lawyers seem to love this one, but writers of creative work would, I hope, resist the tautology. e.g. Cease and desist all contact with […]

The Spirit of a Witch, by Sarah Jane Avory, Reviewed.

This book came to me as a prize in a raffle at the Fantasticon 2015 fantasy convention in Hull. I doubt I would’ve come across it otherwise and don’t think I’d have read it. The novel is clearly aimed at young women and I suspect many of them, especially cat lovers, will enjoy it. The […]

7 New year’s resolutions to make your blog more user-friendly

Originally posted on Daily Echo:
You’ve done all the celebrating, the world is slowly getting back to normal and the Easter eggs are already crowding the shelves of the supermarket (yes, really). Many New Year’s resolutions have already been broken, slightly bent or put off till after the weekend… but there are a few easy…

Cut The Fat; Make Your Writing Lean: #Tip 25.

Writers share ideas to improve their craft. Here, I’m looking at ways to trim our writing. Readers will thank us for removing common redundancies and flabby expressions. Careful scrutiny: Scrutiny is the careful examination of something, so ‘careful’ is a tautology here. e.g. Susan read the contract with careful scrutiny. Try: Susan read the contract […]

A Brief Update on The Writing Contests Table

As promised, I’ve looked at the way the new table works and it does update as I enter and ‘save’ information. This means whenever you access the table it will hold the latest information. Obviously, as this is now a ‘rolling’ amendment to the content, I can’t produce a notification for every time I make […]

Creative Writing #Contests Table Updated.

As previously advised, this is just to let those interested know that I’ve updated the writing contest table today. Here’s the link. I may have found a way to allow access to the updates as I do them. I’ll let you know if what I’ve proposed works!Filed under: Author, Creative Writer, Prizes Tagged: Author, Writers […]

What to Do about Reviews Disappearing from Amazon (Proactive Solutions)

Originally posted on chrismcmullen:
REVIEWS REMOVED FROM AMAZON It’s a well-known fact: Amazon blocks and removes numerous four- and five-star reviews, but almost never removes a one- or two-star review. You have two choices: Get upset about it. Find a proactive way to make the most of it. I have proactive suggestions for: Customers who…

Cut The Fat; Make Your Writing Lean: #Tip 24.

Writers share ideas to improve their craft. Here, I’m looking at ways to trim our writing. Readers will thank us for removing common redundancies and flabby expressions. Cameo appearance: In terms of performance, a cameo is a short appearance, so ‘appearance’ is redundant. e.g. Kaley’s cameo appearance caused a real stir in the theatre. Try: […]