Reference
Blogs
Step-by-Step Guide to Writing a Series Bible for Television and Novels, Part III of III
So far in this series, we’ve looked at the difference between a TV Series Pitch Bible and a Series Bible, and how to develop the first of these. Now let’s look at how to expand your initial efforts into a broader, more complete bible to serve as a receptacle for all the details and elements contained within the series.
Step-by-Step Guide to Writing a Series Bible for Television and Novels, Part I of III
Writers have entire worlds in their heads, filled with characters, locations, stories, and consequences. It’s a lot to keep track of when creating a story or series, which is why series bibles exist.
Creating a Solid Writing Process: Finding What Works for You (Part 2 of 2)
Finding a productive writing process can help the act of writing come easier to you and reduce the friction associated with writing.
Gifts for Writers 2021
Gift ideas for the writer and reader in your life, even if that’s you. Here is the 2021 holiday gift guide from Figments & Fables.
What I Carry: Inside a Writer’s Go Bag
Summer is fading, even if the heat persists. It’s back-to-school time and the sales of pens, paper, and notebooks are calling to me as they always do.
12 Non-Writing Fields Writers Should Study
Studying is an eternal state of being for writers. It’s our lifeblood–how we hone our craft and add depth to our work. As Gary Paulson says, “If you want to be a good writer, you’ve got to read like a wolf eats.” I believe that applies to studying too.
Habits Writers Should Embrace
There are many habits a writer should develop. These are just a few. Let’s call them my top 15.
Location Scouting—What Writers Can Learn from Filmmakers
One of the first steps in pre-production, after developing a treatment and writing the screenplay, is figuring out where you can shoot the script. Where can you get those beautiful establishing shots and find sets to bring the story to life? Where in the world can you find places that look like what’s described in the screenplay or novel it is based upon?
Research: Looking Beyond the Surface
Research should reveal more than simple fact. It can offer insights into a time period, an event, a moment. It can reveal hidden depths. The trick is to use these insights to create more textured and layered characters.
Research: Determining How Much You Need
The following is an excerpt from my upcoming book on Research for Writers:
There are different levels of research: cursory understanding, basic competence, proficiency and mastery.
Resources for Writers (for general use and during COVID-19)
Never before has the Internet been so important. Heaven help us if wifi goes down. We might not make it.
Sequestered in our homes, it’s books, movies, and streaming content that keeps us going. That is, when we’re not working out, cooking or obsessing about flour, yeast or paper products. But even YouTube can let us down now and then. Our feeds get gunked up with cat videos and before we know it, we’re down the rabbit hole never to be seen again.
Well, here are some links to help you stay on track, even if you are still sitting on the couch:
Writing Lessons: Learning the Craft
There’s so much info available about writing—blogs, videos, classes, lectures, workshops, conferences, books. It’s easier now than ever to learn more about the craft and that’s amazing. It’s essential to work on your skills, to learn how grammar, structure and mechanics work in writing, and how to improve the other elements of good fiction and creative nonfiction.
But (there had to be a but, right?)…
Writing Supplies—Pens and Paper, Oh My!
I have a problem. I love pens. I own boxes of pens that I rarely use or even look at, but am loathe to throw away, minimalism be damned. They’re pens. It’s like asking me to get rid of books—it’s not going to happen even if they threaten to bury me alive. There is something visceral at work here—the potential of so many words yet to be written. They are there, hovering out of sight, waiting on inspiration. Pens hold that potential. The paper awaits their brilliance. All that’s needed is me.
September rolls around and the sales begin and I find myself grabbing pens and tossing them in my cart. I have to collect them all—pens, pads of paper, highlighters, pencils, erasers. They call to me. Loudly.
The thing is there may be a reason for that temptation.
Is Journaling Your New Year’s Resolution?
Most writers try journaling at some point in their lives. Some keep it up all their lives. Others come and go from the practice. While some flounder at the very idea of keeping a journal. There is no rule that demands writers keep one, but they can prove helpful. The trick is to figure out what kind of journal would benefit you and which you are likely to keep over time.
The best way to begin is to decide what you want to gain from your journal. This will help you figure out the best way to approach journaling. It can take many forms. Here are some ways to journal that go beyond the “Dear Diary” model, although that is a classic:
Get Inspired by the Season: Books & Films
There is nothing better in December (for me) than curling up with a good Christmas book or watching a classic movie. It reminds me to be more positive and embrace the joy of the season.
I don’t often make lists of books or movies I recommend, but I have decided to make an exception. Here is my list for the holidays that is sure to make you smile.
What does this have to do with writing? Everything. Stories inspire us—those we read and those we watch. I love classic and modern movies. I am addicted to books. Whenever I can share those passions, I will. This seemed a great opportunity.
‘Tis the Season: Gifts for Writers & Readers
’Tis the season to celebrate and to make our list for Santa. I always loved writing to Santa as a child. It was magical that I could write a letter to someone like him and know he received it. I knew that because at least one of my requested gifts always appeared under the tree on Christmas morning, except when it was too large or unrealistic, like the horse I wanted one year or the penguin.
These days my lists go to my husband who tries to offer a combination of items off my list with things he picks out to surprise me.
My list always includes things writers would love. Here are a few items I’ve found and dreamed up this year:
Embracing the Unknown: The Role of Research and Learning in Writing
Lately I have moved from writing to research. I am in the process of pitching my novel and using the waiting period between pitching and the inevitable edits to dive into a new story. I have a rough idea of what I want to write, including the prologue and opening scene, but I also have huge, gaping holes in my knowledge. This explains the huge stacks of books lining my desk and the hours I’ve spent learning everything from creation myths to Jungian psychology to black holes. I am diving down rabbit holes in search of my story.
Shortcuts for Quicker Notetaking
The past few weeks I’ve posted four articles on research techniques. They included planning your research, , taking notes and organizing your research. Now I’d like to add a quick list of abbreviations I use to take faster notes.
Research: Organizing Your Research (Blog 4 of 4)
Research is a key part of writing. It forms the foundation for story. In this series on research, we’ve covered how to plan your research, offered tips for conducting effective research and discussed how to take good notes. Now we’ll tackle how to organize your research.
Research: Taking Effective Research Notes (Blog 3 of 4)
In the previous two articles, we covered how to plan your research and tips for conducting effective research. Now it’s time to begin, which means tackling the best way to take notes. Like everything, there are options. Your best bet is to choose the method that makes sense to you.
Research: Tips for Conducting Effective Research (Blog 2 of 4)
In the last blog, we covered when to conduct research. You can read it here. This week we’re going to look at some ways to make your research time more effective for you.
Here are my best tips for conducting research:
Research: Planning Your Research (Blog 1 of 4)
Writing requires research. It’s a nature of the beast and it doesn’t matter whether the work is fiction or nonfiction. Story relies on a strong foundation built from knowledge.
Sometimes we know the subject sufficiently to begin immediately. Other times we are creating a fictional world with fictional people. But it doesn’t seem to matter in the end. Inevitably we will need to ferret out some obscure fact to make our words ring true.
‘Tis the Season: Writer Gifts
I love the end of the year: the holidays, the decorations, the end of year reviews. It’s the perfect culmination of a year well spent. It’s also when I bury myself in holiday classics and stories. Somehow the dark nights and colder temps make reading better. I mean who can argue with reading a book before the fire, a cup of tea in hand and a cat curled up in your lap?
Top 40 Writing Tips
Being a writer requires a strong foundation in many things. It’s more than banging out a few lines and hitting post. Like any profession, there are basics every writer needs to master. Grammar is your foundation, but there’s so much more.
Story doesn’t rely on how to use a semicolon or the definition of a dangling participial phrase. It needs understanding and ideas that come from a broader education and perspective.
My Writing Process: 20 Steps to Finished
Clients often ask me about my process, wanting to know how I am going to spend my time on their project. It’s not an easy answer. I approach every project differently depending on what I’m writing. A script is different than a speech, which is different from an article or blog. There is no one answer. But there are basic steps in common.
Ebooks Versus Paper Books
I am often asked why I don’t read ebooks more? Especially given my space issue with my large library. What can I say? I prefer paper. I want to hold the book in my hand and feel the pages as I turn them. I want to browse my shelves and pull books down to flip through old favorites and to search for my next adventure to read. Scanning electronic shelves is not the same. There’s no anticipation of seeing titles from across the room and remembering the moment I found it waiting in a book store for me.
Too Many Books…I Don’t Think So
Today’s blog is a bit of a rant about my library—my personal library. Now, I am the first to admit I own a lot of books. Just over 7,000 at last count. But that does not make me weird or a hoarder. I simply refuse to believe that books can be hoarded. A library is a treasure of stories, worlds and knowledge, not a pile of rotting papers moldering in the corner. There’s a difference.
Apps and Electronics—Gadgets & Gizmos (Part 2 of 2)
Last week I shared my favorite gadgets and gizmos. This week I am focusing on programs. While I am not a huge user of apps, I do find a few helpful and have looked into other that I don’t use yet but plan to add to my capabilities.
Gadgets and Gizmos: Writer’s Tools (Part 1 of 2)
I am the first to admit I am not enamored of all things electronic. I tend to be a bit old school, but I do have my favorite things, which I am going to share today.
The reason I am not fond of many gadgets and apps is that I find they confuse things and make them harder than they should be or at least more cumbersome. When it comes to research and writing, I like to keep things fairly simple, but that is not to say I don’t use technology. I do and the things I use I swear by. Don’t try to take them away from me. You will get hurt.
The Passing of a Book Lover
I run a small book club that actually reads the selected books. We are a tight group that loves books and sharing them, beyond our group reads. We have a page set up on Goodreads and talk about our lives, books and all things story in whatever form they exist. They are my tribe. The people who understand me. We may not always read the same books or genres, but we share a love of story and the feel of books in our hands. We are true readers.
A Reader’s Problem
It’s a new year and a new opportunity to write and read.
I have been adding to my to-read pile throughout the holidays and it is now so large I don’t know where to begin. There are more than 600 books on the so-called “short” list of what I want to read this year and that doesn’t account for new releases that will appeal to me. It is insane. There is no way I can hope to read a quarter of that, much less all of it.
Holiday Spirit: Finding It Through Picture Books
It has been a busy season around here and I have been struggling to finish projects and get into the holiday spirit. Instead of baking gingerbread houses, I have been crunching deadlines and running errands like a crazy woman.
We finally got our tree up and decided that we needed to do something to find the spark that was eluding us. Hanging the stockings just wasn’t getting us there. So we did something that never fails: we turned to a book. Well, books. But not just any books–picture books.
20 Ways to Research More Effectively
Twenty tips to strengthen your research and add more depth to your stories. Research is the key to details that bring your writing to life.
Stories Read Aloud for Every Age
Reading is my hobby, my passion and my obsession. I am not afraid to admit that I collect (hoard) books and have more than 7,000 books in my house. They are in every room, in every corner. My husband fears for the structural integrity of our floors on higher levels. He is not wrong to do so. Books are heavy.
I cannot stop buying them. Each one offers such possibilities. Will they become a friend or a mentor? Will they disappoint, but teach me why that is? Will they linger on my shelves for years waiting for me to open them knowing I may never catch up with my stack of books to read.
My library is a source of pride, happiness and anticipation. It feeds me and sustains me. It gives me comfort.
I am an addict.
A book addict.
When I can’t read, I turn to audio books. I love to listen while I use the treadmill or go on long solo road trips. For those short jaunts about town, I turn to audio short stories.
The great news is that there are plenty of places to get audio files for free, here are some of my favorite:
My Short Stack: Books Writers Should Read
As with every shelf in my library, my writing books overflow their designated space. Some of the books packed on the shelves I have read intently and others I have skimmed or use as reference. Others linger should I ever need them for anything.
Over the years, I have found I return to certain writing books more than others. Here is my short stack: