Figments & Fables Blog
The Science of Story
Stories are powerful. We all want to know what happened next, how it felt to stare down danger or fall in love or fail spectacularly. It’s exactly those stories that help us connect and feel.
This blog could be like any other out there, sharing the power of story. But what happens if I tell you why stories matter to me? What if I let you into one of my stories before I give you facts on why stories work? Let’s see.
The Empathy Center of the Brain & Why You Need to Understand It
Human beings rely on empathy to navigate the world. That...
Brainstorm More Story Ideas: Understanding the Science & Proven Tips for Generating Ideas
All writers live by the power of their story ideas. How are yours? Do you struggle to come up with ideas? Or do you hit a wall when you try to develop them into something useable?
How to Write a Treatment for Scripts and Screenplays
A treatment is a summary of your script or screenplay idea. They are used for a variety of purposes, but mostly to pitch an idea and approach for a film or video. Writers typically use treatments for corporate work, influencer scripts, YouTubers, documentary films, short runs, and other quick pitches. They are the fastest way to convey your idea for visual or audio formats.
Step-by-Step Guide to Writing a Series Bible for Television and Novels
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.
Story Problems: Four Major Issues Writers Face, Part III of III
The final story issue in our series concerns inconsistencies in your story, series, and world. In other words, contradicting facts in your story’s canon.
Story Problems: Four Major Issues Writers Face, Part II of III
Mary Sues are perfect in whatever they do. They possess skills at an unusually high level with little or no effort required to acquire those talents. They never have to try and never fail. They are the “chosen ones” or the best at what they need to excel in their world or story. They are beloved by all for no obvious reason. They are simply desired. They are attractive, but lack personality in most cases. But they do have power even if they don’t have to work to achieve their goal.
Story Problems: Four Major Issues Writers Face, Part I of III
Identifying and avoiding story-related issues in your writing that weaken the experience and characters. While the following list is not exhaustive, it does reflect some of the most glaring issues facing stories today. Ignore them at your peril. Three are character based and the final issue affects every aspect of story. This is part one of a three-part series. More to come.
Three Big Plot Problems and How to Fix Them, Part II of II
There are many ways a plot can go astray, but plot armor, deus ex machina, and plot holes are the most common. So why would you ever want to use these devices? And if you do, how do you use them correctly?
Three Big Plot Problems and How to Fix Them, Part I of II
There are many ways a script or novel can go astray. Today, we’re going to review three big plotting issues that face writers: plot armor, deus ex machina, and plot holes. All three fall squarely in the writer’s hands.
Concept vs. Premise vs. Story, Part II of II
In the first part of this series, we looked at the definitions and purposes of concept, premise and story. Now let’s look at how to build a good premise and break down one of the previous examples to see how the author built a stronger story from her concept and premise.
Concept vs. Premise vs. Story, Part I of II
Concept, premise and story are not the same things. Confusing them or using them interchangeably is a common mistake, but one that weakens writing. In this two-part series, we’ll explore what each of these terms means and how to use each technique to build stronger stories.
How to Succeed in Your Writing and Freelance Business in 2022 (Part IV of IV)
The final blog in this series focuses on how to achieve your goals as a freelance writer of self-directed work (articles, blogs and such) and as a novelist.
How to Succeed in Your Writing and Freelance Business in 2022 (Part III of IV)
Explore strategies and tactics for finding client-based work in this third installment in the series on finding new work in 2022. We’ll finish up the series next week with a blog focusing on strategies and tactics for freelance writers (articles, blogs, etc) and those writing novels or nonfiction books.
Taking on clients is a great way to boost your business. Not only does it open up your potential sources of income, but clients offer a variety of benefits to any freelance business.
How to Succeed in Your Writing and Freelance Business in 2022 (Part II of IV)
What are you goals in 2022? What do you need to do to reach them? This series looks at the questions you need to ask and answer to achieve your vision. It looks at questions like, how many words do you want to write? How many clients do you need? How many assignments? How much will you need to charge to make it?
How to Succeed in Your Writing and Freelance Business in 2022 (Part I of IV)
Success looks different these days. Our world has changed these past couple of years and freelancing has become more common and more competitive. Standing out as a freelance writer or author has become a bit harder. How will you succeed?
This series looks at setting yourself up for success in the new year. January is the perfect time to set a course for the months ahead. It’s typically a slow period for freelancing and the weather invites introspection and planning.
Setting Your 2022 Writing Goals for Success
The start of a new year always comes with a sense of new beginnings and a refreshed attitude. Making resolutions to write more and finish that novel go hand-in-hand with renewed energy. The problem is making that energy last beyond the second week. Sticking to those resolutions until they are fulfilled or underway and part of a new routine.
End of Year Tasks for Freelance & Professional Writers (Part 3 of 3)
Finish out the year with our list of year-end tasks designed specifically for freelance writers.
End of Year Tasks for Freelance & Professional Writers (Part 2 of 3)
Finish the year strong by doing a series of year-end tasks designed to help you analyze how you did last year and set you up for a more successful year in 2022.
End of Year Tasks for Freelance & Professional Writers (Part 1 of 3)
Time has flown this year and it is time again to close out another year of writing.
This is a great time to take stock of where you are with your writing and get organized for the year to come. Finish our your freelance writing year with a few year-end tasks. Below you will find part one of our three-part series on steps writers and small businesses should take to finish out a year for better success in the new one.
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.
NaNoWriMo: The Halfway Point—How Are You Doing?
We are halfway through November, which means, if you are doing NaNoWriMo (writing a novel during the National Novel Writing Month of November), you should have at least 25,000 words on the page by now. How are you doing? Ahead of schedule? Behind? Hopelessly flailing or flying along?
Finding the Theme of Your Story: And Why It Matters
Themes enhance stories, making them more meaningful. It’s theme that makes a story linger in your memory. It’s theme that provides the touchstone for what happens. It’s what informs everything that follows the opening sequence. Themes matter to the story and your writing. But most of all, theme matters to your characters.
Rejection: It’s Okay to Feel the Pain
Writers get rejected. It’s part of the job. But the frequency with which it happens doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt.
Recently I threw my name into consideration for a contract position I wanted. It would have meant a significant cut in my rate, but an increase in my quality of life. I would have been writing about a topic that would have brought me joy. It was a job I also would have excelled at doing. But therein lies the problem—I was overqualified and too expensive. Or maybe they just didn’t like my pitch or tone or samples. Who knows? I never heard. It was one of those situations where you apply and hear crickets.
16 Ways to Open a Script: The Opening Scene
The first moments of your script or novel matter. They set up what is to follow and hook the audience. Or they don’t.
The best film openings establish tone, settings, and character. They establish context for what will follow or establish expectations that will be thwarted later on. They do more than simply open the film. They start the story and grab the audience.
16 Ways to Open a Script: Opening Scenes
How you start your script or screenplay matters. These opening scenes establish an expectation and either appeal or repel an audience. What a film shows in the first five minutes is critical to how an audience will react, how engaged they become, and how long they will sit watching your story unfold.
The opening shot is your chance to hook them. It’s the first exchange of information. The first connection. How you approach that is everything.
What You Read…Does It Matter?
Does it matter whether you fill your head with the classics or modern books? Manga or SciFi/Fantasy? Romance or nonfiction? The top 100 books by NPR or the Rory Gilmore Challenge? Does what you read matter as much as the fact that you are reading?
Care and Feeding of a Client (Part 2 of 2)
Part one of this blog covered the first five tips for caring for your clients as a freelance writer.
Clients are essential to running a successful freelance business. They keep the lights on and the dream alive. It pays to learn how to care for those relationships.
Care and Feeding of a Client (Part 1 of 2)
Freelance writers need clients. They are the lifeblood of a strong freelance business. They pay the bills and keep the dream alive. As such, it pays to take care of them and nurture those relationships.
For the purpose of this article, I will lump editors and publishers (both traditional and online) in with clients. The tips below work for anyone who hires you to write for them.
Scenes: How to Strengthen Yours and Make Them the Heart of Your Story
Scenes make up stories. They are the building blocks that form narrative. As writers, we stack scenes together to tell a particular tale. How we write, build, and stack those scenes matters.
15 Tricks for Proofreading Your Work
You’ve finished your project and hit send. Then you notice an error. It’s the worst feeling when you find the mistake after submission. Those tiny errors haunt writers, which is why proofreading is an essential step for everyone. It doesn’t matter whether you’ve written an email, presentation or novel. It needs to be error-free.
Start of School: How a Box of Pencils Inspires Better Writing and Renewed Passion for Freelancing
The sight of school supplies lined up in boxes in colorful store displays brings back memories. There is something magical seeing those pencils sharpened and ready to write new words and stories. It’s a writer’s dream. Even when I was a grade school student, I loved the colors and feel of pencils. Later, I became obsessed with pens and have boxes of them stashed in my office supply closet.
They contain possibilities. Words still unwritten. Stories begging to be released.
The Five Phases of Big Picture Editing
Editing can be fun, but it also can be tough. It’s an emotional phase of the writing process that can batter a writer’s spirit. Not all of the time. There will be projects that are easy to write and edit, but I’m not talking about those projects today. Today I’m talking about those larger beasts that tear at a writer’s soul. The projects that make us question whether we can write and why we want to do this in the first place. Those projects are the ones that test our resolve to write.
Top 12 Tips for Critiquing Someone Else’s Work
I am often asked to critique my friends’ work. I consider it an occupational hazard. Of course, I also offer manuscript critiques as part of my business. I enjoy doing them, but recognize they can present a few challenges and always proceed with caution.
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.
The Throughline: What It Is, Why You Need One, and How You Create One (Part 2 of 2)
In the last blog we defined throughlines, loglines and taglines. Now let’s look closer at throughlines—the most important of the three.
The Throughline: What Is It, Why You Need One, and How You Create One (Part 1 of 2)
The throughline is a single thread that winds through your story and off which everything else hangs. It drives the writing and organizes the plot, action and character development. The throughline is the main motivation driving the protagonist toward the ending. It is what holds your story together so it can be a story instead of a random collection of anecdotes and scenes. A good throughline is how you propel your story forward in a way that makes sense.
Three Questions to Ask Yourself If You Want to Be a Writer
Lots of people talk about writing and being a writer. They dream about book signings and being famous, the photo on the back of the cover, the money. What few do is embrace what it takes to get there. The hard days/nights of work and the roller coaster of emotions that are inevitable. Even fewer actually sit down and write.
If you want to be one of this small group, ask yourself these three questions:
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.
Interrogating Your Characters: How Asking Questions Will Lead to Stronger Writing (Part 2 of 2)
In Part I of this series, we examined some ways to dig deeper into your characters’ motivation and figure out their stakes in the plot. Now let’s go even farther by asking your characters:
Interrogating Your Characters: How Asking Questions Will Lead to Stronger Stories (Part 1 of 2)
The only thing that matters in fiction is why. Why does what is happening matter to the protagonist and other characters? Why should we care? It’s not enough for things to happen to your characters. You have to know what it means to each of them and how it affects their lives. This means you need to know what makes your characters tick. Why they make the choices they do. Why they react the way they do. Why they don’t just walk away.
Habits Writers Should Embrace
There are many habits a writer should develop. These are just a few. Let’s call them my top 15.
Opening Lines (Part 2 of 2)
In the last blog, we discussed what first lines of stories need to include. Now we’ll look at ways you can improve your opening lines.
Opening Lines (Part 1 of 2)
First sentences are paramount to stories. They are the first impression. The hook by which readers are tempted to continue on instead of tossing the book back on the shelf so they can keep looking. They are a portal to the story itself.
Why Storytelling Matters in Business: Another Market Segment for Writers
Life is emotional. So is business, whether you want to admit it or not. Sure, you might not be able to cry at your desk everyday or throw temper tantrums in the break room, but emotions do come into play in business.
Organizations use emotion to make you care about their products, services, and causes. They use it as a form of persuasion, which is the art of making you desire something you might not otherwise.
Breaking Through the Resistance: A Writer’s Constant Challenge (Part 2 of 2)
Not writing happens more than writing. Staring at the blank page. Struggling to get motivation to put words on the screen. We have all felt that way. It’s common. Its cause? Resistance.
Resistance keeps writers from writing. It stands in the way of every type of creative endeavor, whether its a painter who isn’t wielding her brush or a writer avoiding the page. It is the single biggest challenge in creating things that are whole and realized and finished.
Fighting Against Resistance: A Writer’s Constant Challenge (Part 1 of 2)
Stephen Pressfield wrote in his book The War of Art that “it’s not the writing part that’s hard. What’s hard is sitting down to write. What keeps us from sitting down is resistance.”
He is not wrong.
Adapting The Rule of Six for Novelists (Part 2 of 2)
In part one of this series, we talked about how and why film editor Walter Murch’s famous Rule of Six works equally well for novelists. Now let’s break down each of the six rules:
Adapting The Rule of Six for Novelists (Part 1 of 2)
The Rule of Six is a list of the six most important types of cuts a film editor should make, according to famed film editor Walter Murch in his book, In the Blink of an Eye. Though written for film editors, his suggestions make sense for novelists too.
Writing the Emotional Arc (Part 2 of 2)
A story hinges on the inciting incident—the event that pushes a protagonist outside of her status quo and forces her to move in a new direction. The inciting incident presents a choice: to stay and deal with the new circumstances or to move beyond what’s comfortable to go after what the protagonist really wants, facing new challenges along the way. It really isn’t a choice since it wouldn’t be much of a story if the protagonist stayed where she was. Thus, the inciting incident starts the journey.
Writing the Emotional Arc (Part 1 of 2)
The point of any story is to engage the audience or reader. It’s why the hook is so important; it’s the part of the story that grabs the readers’ attention and makes them want to know what happens next. But the ultimate goal is to make your readers’ care about what they are reading or watching.
Finding Work as a Freelance Writer
This past year has been a tough one for everyone. The lockdowns have torn up our economy and caused many creatives to lose their livelihoods. Contracts dried up, assignments faltered, and paychecks disappeared. But there is hope.
Life as a freelancer has its challenges, now more than ever, which is why it helps to be creative in finding solutions. Now is not the time to stick to the usual.
Work is out there. Here are a dozen places to try to find it:
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.
What Do You Do for a Living? A Writer’s Response
There are conversations in life that we expect. Ubiquitous questions we all encounter from “What’s your name?” to “Where are you from?” and “What do you do for a living?”
While, being a military brat, I struggle with the second question, it is that last question that gives me pause. What do I do? Do I cop to it or play it down? The first thing that pops in my brain is “What should I say?”
Writing for Free: Is It Ever a Good Idea? (Part 2 of 2)
This two-part series began with the reasons you might choose to write for free. The key word in that sentence was choose. It is fine if it is your decision to provide your talents to a project without payment. But that is not always the case.
Here Are Some Reasons When It Does Not Make Sense to Write for Free:
Writing for Free: Is It Ever a Good Idea?
There is a pervasive idea in freelancing that writing for free is a legitimate avenue to finding paying work. In downturn economies and tough times, like trying to find work during a pandemic, taking any assignment sounds better than turning one down, even if the assignment is on spec or without pay. Don’t fall prey to this idea. It is false.
12 Steps for Freelancers to Start the Year Off Right
It’s a new year, finally, and, despite coming off a rocky year, there is room for hope and anticipation for the year ahead. This pandemic will pass and life will resume. It always does. Eventually.
Work will resume too. I know many of us (me included) took a beating last year, losing contracts, work, and facing grim prospects. But this too will change. All you need is patience and some preparation so you’re ready to grab opportunities as they appear. And they will appear. Trust me.
A New Year’s Message for Writers
There is no question this has been a tough year for us all. The pandemic. The riots. The unrest. The economic uncertainty. The losses. There have been so many pressures and demands with little relief in sight.
Holiday Gift Giving
Every year during the holiday season, I have offered up a list of gifts worthy of any writer on your holiday list, or for yourself, should you be the type to reward yourself with a treat at the end of the year. This year, with the tough times and pandemic, I have chosen a different route.
Common Reasons for Not Writing: No Focus (Part 4 of 4)
This series on writing obstacles has looked at three of the four main excuses writers use for not putting words on the page: no energy, no motivation, and no ideas. In our final installment, we’re going to look at lack of focus.
Common Reasons for Not Writing: No Ideas (Part 3 of 4)
This time, we’re focusing on a lack of ideas. This is a big reason why some people stop writing. It’s simply because they can’t think of what to write next. Here are some tricks to get around that:
Common Reasons for Not Writing: No Motivation (Part 2 of 4)
This series is exploring the many reasons writers come up with for not writing and the four main reasons for those excuses: no energy, no motivation, no ideas and no focus.
Today we are looking at a lack of motivation and offering tips to help boost yours:
Common Reasons for Not Writing and Ways to Circumvent Them (Part 1 of 4)
There are many reasons writers come up with for not writing. It’s amazing how many reasons there can be, ranging from being exhausted to needing to defrost the freezer to the absolute crisis of not having any caffeine in the house. As long as there are excuses to use, writers will find them. Heck, we’re the ones who make them excuses up in the first place. We’re writers! But excuses are not going to get your novel finished or get that client project turned in on time.
There are four major categories for these excuses: no energy, no motivation, no ideas and no focus. I’m going to tackle each one and offer solutions to overcoming your particular brand of excuse. First up: No Energy.
Tips for Participating in NaNoWriMo (Part 2 of 2)
Last week, we talked about strategies to take on NaNoWriMo, now let’s get into specific strategies you can use to up that word count.
Tips for Participating in NaNoWriMo (Part 1 of 2)
If you are one of many writers who have signed on to do this year’s NaNoWriMo, you are in luck. Here are my top tips for doing it right:
Choosing to Do NaNoWriMo: Seven Reasons to Join
Next month is NaNoWriMo: the National Novel Writing Month. It’s a time when writers around the world hunker down to write 50 thousand words on a novel in a single month. It’s not a small endeavor. So why do it?
Here are my top seven benefits to you from choosing to join NaNoWriMo:
Rejection—You’re In Good Company (Part 3 of 3)
In this series on rejection, we’ve looked at how to handle the disappointment and reason behind rejections. Now let’s get a little bit of perspective.
Every writer gets rejected. Every one. Even the best.
Rejection—Why It Happens (Part 2 of 3)
In the first blog of this series, we talked about how to handle rejection. Now let’s look at why rejections happen…and they are going to happen.
Finding Time to Write
It doesn’t matter if we’re always at home now or not, it’s always hard to find time to write. There are too many distractions: paying work, family, home improvement projects, laundry, dishes, dinner, Netflix, YouTube, Pinterest, Instagram, piles of books. So many lovely excuses keeping you from the page. Heck, that blank page is often enough to prompt bouts of irrational cleaning. Anything instead of doing the work.
It’s not always about finding the time. It’s about creating the right mindset so you want to write and then carving out time to do just that.
Writing Breaks Are Healthy (Part 2 of 2)
Writing breaks are healthy for every writer. That’s why Figments & Fables is on a two-week break. We will be back next week with new content. Until we return, we invite you to revisit some older blogs:
Writing Breaks Are Healthy (Part 1 of 2)
Coming up with ideas, researching them and then writing useful blogs takes time and energy. For the past few years, I have poured myself into this task without taking any breaks. But the time has come. Figments & Fables will be on break for the next two weeks. While we are away, check out some of our blog series (I will post the first link in each series):
Getting Freelance Writing Jobs Even During COVID-19 (Part 3 of 3)
In the first two blogs of this three-part series, we talked about what to prepare to do a marketing push and how to find new clients. Now we’re going to look at what to do during the in-between bits—between your preparation and your initial pitches.
Not Landing Jobs
Getting Freelance Writing Jobs Even During COVID-19 (Part 2 of 3)
In the first part of this blog series on finding freelance work, we talked about things you should do before you begin your marketing and sales pitches. Now we’ll look at concrete actions you can take to find work.
Getting Freelance Writing Jobs Even During COVID-19 (Part 1 of 3)
Writers find work in a variety of ways, dictated mostly by experience level and type of writing. In the nonfiction world, this may mean publications, blogs, websites, corporations, nonprofits, agencies, production houses, and more. This makes it more difficult to answer the question: how do I find work, especially during a pandemic when so many are out of work or are operating at lower capacity? Even given these challenges, there are ways to boost your chances, no matter your skill set or level.
Top Ten Bits of Advice for Aspiring Writers (Part 2 of 2)
A continuation of the first part. Five more bits of advice for aspiring writers.
Top Ten Bits of Advice for Aspiring Writers (Part 1 of 2)
1. Write, It’s As Easy As That
This will end your “aspirations” and make you an actual writer. The fact is you are either writing or you are not writing. There is no in-between.
The Power of Storytelling
In this world of quarantine and social distancing, the only escape we have left is story-based. Whether you choose to open a book, lose yourself in a movie, or tackle the latest video game story mode, it is the story that draws us in and lets us forget about our worries for a while.
Top 12 Mistakes I’ve Made in My Career
Being a freelance writer is a tough gig. Not because of the writing, though that has its own difficulties, but because of the business side of things. Through the many years I’ve been doing this, I have learned some tough lessons. Here are my top 12:
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:
Why Writing Is Important, Especially Now
I was talking with someone recently who was despondent because she felt her writing no longer held meaning in light of what was happening in the world around us. I understand how someone might feel like that. We’re not on the front lines. We’re not putting our lives at risk sitting in front of a blank page. It’s an easy assumption to make, but an erroneous one.
Writing in a Time of Coronavirus
Across the country, we are hunkering in our houses, apartments, condos, and yurts hiding from an invisible pathogen intent on causing harm. We’re closed off from others, forced into an isolated existence. The kids are home. Shops closed. Parks cordoned off. It feels like a different world than it did a month ago and it looks like it’s going to get worse before it gets better.
As writers, it is up to us to capture this time in words. It’s time to keep a journal. Take a moment each day to write down what is happening and how it makes you feel. Take the shock, worry, anxiety, anger, fear, compassion, sadness and grief we all feel and commit them to the page. Describe what is happening—all of it. The boredom, the loneliness, and the obsession for toilet paper. These are the parts of the pandemic that are human. They are the emotions that define this time. It is also where you will find story and character.
Tips for Working from Home (Part 2 of 2)
In the last blog, I shared tips for working at home. In this age of COVID-19, more people are self-isolating and working from home than ever before. But it’s nothing new for freelance and independent writers. We always work from home, but that doesn’t make it easy, especially at first.
After two decades, I have come up with some tips for making the transition from a traditional work environment to a solo venture. Look for the first set of tips in the previous blog. Here are the rest of my tips for surviving a work-at-home situation:
Tips for Working from Home (Part 1 of 2)
COVID-19 has changed the way the world works. People are self-isolating and working from home in vast numbers. But working from home is nothing new for freelance and independent writers. We always work from home, or a cafe, a plane, the park. It’s part of the job description.
After two decades, I have come up with some tips for making the transition from a traditional work environment to a solo venture a bit easier. Here are my best tips for surviving a work-at-home situation:
Discipline for Writers: Practical Habits to Develop (Part 4 of 4)
Discipline is key to succeeding as a writer. This series has explored why discipline matters, how to embrace a discipline mindset and offered tips for developing discipline by focusing on you and your habits. This blog finished the series by looking at external things you can do to develop better a writing discipline.
Discipline for Writers: Tips for Handling Emotional & Physical Barriers (Part 3 of 4)
There are reasons why discipline is difficult for creative people. We tend to be free spirits who eschew structure. The very act of creating is rebellious. It’s a breaking free of the rules and expectations. It’s a more untethered life than the typical nine-to-five affords. It is at its heart an emotional act. On the other hand, discipline is based in thought and rationale. It’s not surprising these two opposites clash. But there are ways to change that.
Discipline for Writers: Changing Your Mindset (Part 2 of 4)
Habits are mental. They are choices you make every day—choices that require discipline. Yes, that D word that carries some negative connotations. But though discipline isn’t easy to develop, it is far from a dirty word. Rather it is a commitment. Dedication to a dream combined with the will to execute.
This blog will focus on ways to embrace discipline as a writer.
Discipline for Writers: Why It Matters (Part 1 of 4)
Writing is a creative pursuit. It isn’t like traditional, non-creative, jobs where you punch a clock and pick up a paycheck. There’s no boss to report to or inbox to tackle. It’s less structured than all that. And not. Not if you want to survive.
Tricks to Help Writers Stop Procrastinating
We’ve all been there—desperately searching for any task to be completed other than writing. There’s nothing like staring at a blank page to make laundry, cleaning the bathroom, mopping or taking out the trash look so good.
Meet procrastination—the habit that keeps writers from writing. It’s what forces us down the rabbit hole of YouTube and what has us launching Netflix instead of working on our pages. It’s why we flee from that insistent cursor that waits for words to pour from our fingers.
Resolutions for Writers (Part 2 of 2)
’Tis the season for resolutions. In Part I of this two-part series, we talked about ways to learn, stretch your skills, connect, be kind to yourself and commit to reading and writing in the new year. Below are more resolutions to take up in your pursuit of writing.
Resolutions for Writers (Part 1 of 2)
Every year, millions set resolutions for the coming year. Months, weeks, days, and sometimes even hours, later those resolutions fail. There is something in our minds that rebel against change, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try forming new habits. In fact, it is that resistance that demands we keep trying.
NaNo: Now What? (Part 4 of 4)
This month we’ve been focusing on what to do now that NaNoWriMo is over. This four-part series has covered the initial steps of revision, editing on a larger scale, and drilling down to the sentence level edits. Now it’s time for the last bit of advice before you can send your story out into the world.
General Advice:
NaNo: Now What? (Part 3 of 4)
NaNoWriMo is finished, but you aren’t. This four-part series covers what you need to do next. The first blog tackled the initial steps of revision. The second focused on editing on a larger scale. Now we’re going small, moving on to the sentence level.
Sentence Level:
There are a host of elements to check at the sentence level.
NaNo: Now What? (Part 2 of 4)
NaNoWriMo is over. So what now? This series lays out a game plan for revising your manuscript. The first blog covered the initial steps to take. Now we’re moving on to editing, starting large and moving toward the smaller details as we go. The final blog will cover the final steps of manuscript preparation.
NaNo: Now What? (Part 1 of 4)
You’ve made it. It’s finally December and NaNoWriMo is over. You did it. Or you did something. It doesn’t matter whether you reached your goal or fell a bit short. Just because NaNoWriMo is done doesn’t mean you are. There are still many things left to do if you want to turn your words into something finished.
Gifts for the Writer in Your Life–Even if That’s You
The holiday season is a great time to give writing- and reading-related gifts. Here is a quick list of ideas.
Tension: Breaking Down Goldilocks and the Three Bears
The past few blogs we’ve focused on complications, tension and raising the stakes. Now we’re going to look at how that plays out by breaking down a fairy tale. We’ll begin with Goldilocks and the Three Bears.
The story typically starts out with the bears discovering their porridge is too hot and deciding to go for a walk, leaving their home unoccupied. I say typically starts out because there are many versions of this tale, each with its own quirks and variances. But let’s work with this opening as the hook. Talking bears who live in a house and eat porridge. Check. I want to read that.
Tension: Raising the Stakes
This blog examines the types of stakes you can use to raise tension to its highest levels.
A good place to begin is with some questions:
What happens if the protagonist fails?
What is at stake? Personally? Publicly? Morally?
Why can’t your protagonist just walk away?
Adding Tension to Your Story
Tension is a key element in storytelling. It’s that strain and uncertainty that hooks the reader. What’s making that creaking sound? Will the hero save the world? Can the kidnapped boy escape before the villain returns? Will the heroine ever recover from the spell the witch cast or is she doomed forever?
Putting your characters in peril pulls your reader into the story and makes it interesting. When there’s no tension, stories can feel flat or boring. But how do you add tension to a story?
Succeed at NaNoWriMo: Tips for During NaNoWriMo (Part 2 of 2)
Part one of this two-part series focused on tips you can use before NaNoWriMo begins. This part looks at what to do during NaNoWriMo to increase your odds of succeeding, though the tips work equally well for writing a first draft any time.
How to Succeed at NaNoWriMo (Part 1 of 2)
It’s almost November when hundreds of thousands of writers will take on the challenge of writing 50k words in a single month. It’s not a small undertaking, but one that is easier if you have a plan.
Exposition Explained
Exposition is the part that holds stories together, the bit that introduces information the reader needs to know to understand the plot. It’s the detail that cannot be contained within dialogue or action. Exposition is why a story makes sense.
Five Ways to Establish Context in Your Story
Context is everything in stories and in life. In the last blog, we explored the relationship between context and complication. This time, we’re going to examine the ways to establish context within your story.
There are two ways in which context affects story—the context of the plot (or event, in the case of nonfiction) and the context of character.
Using Context and Complication to Strengthen Your Story (Part 1 of 2)
Context is the foundation for everything. It colors perception and fact. It changes minds and tugs on emotion. Without context, a story is nothing more than an anecdote floating in space.
Context provides the background, backstory, setting and structure that holds the details of a story together and gives the reader the framework necessary to understand. Without this, the reader cannot know how to feel.
It’s Complicated (Part 2 of 2)
The first part of this two-part series covered the importance of complications and how to test whether the complications you are are adding are within the framework of your story. In this blog, we’re going to look at the different kinds of complications typically found in stories.
There are many ways to add complications in your story. In a romance novel, it might be rival or obstacle that keeps the two main characters apart. In a mystery, it could be a serial killer or a lack of clues. In SciFi, it might be an alien invasion or a dystopian world that oppresses its citizens. The list is limited only by your imagination.
It’s Complicated (Part 1 of 2)
I don’t know many people who don’t lean in when they hear that phrase. “It’s complicated.” Two words that hold the power to intrigue and pique curiosity. They make us click to find out more. They prompt questions and promise a bevy of details. “It’s complicated” might not be a great way to live, but it sure is a good way to tell a story.
Complications make stories. As writers, we understand this. It’s why we cram complications into our stories and keep shoving until our characters can’t take it anymore…and then we add more.
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.
Truth in Story and Setting
As writers, we create the circumstances and context for our characters. We create the world. The setting. The characters themselves. Then we offer it all to our readers with an unspoken promise that the story and characters will be worth their time. This promise is an acknowledgment that we will do our research and write a story that is not full of errors, factual, grammatical or otherwise.
Setting and Set Dressing (Part 3 of 3)
Setting is more than the broad location and time. It is everything contained within that space—the items and props that your characters handle and face.
Setting and Set Dressing (Part 2 of 3)
Setting is an essential element in any story. It provides context and a space for your characters. When wielded properly, it can do more than simply list what your characters can see. It can support every other aspect of your writing.
The last blog covered the basics of setting. Now it’s time to explore ways to use setting to its best advantage.
Setting and Set Dressing (Part 1 of 3)
Story requires place to make it come alive. Writing setting is much like the job of a set designer for the stage or screen. The trick is to discover ways to bring your setting to life. This may mean describing a building, a forest, a living room or some other place where your characters can move about their lives. This is setting. It includes everything from location to descriptions of the dishes on the kitchen table.
Living a Freelance Life
Living a freelance life has its advantages and disadvantages. Sure, you can write in your pajamas, but you can also be left waiting by the mailbox waiting for that check to arrive so you can pay your mortgage. But you get to be in control of your work and your life.
The benefits will vary depending on the person. What I find an advantage someone else may not, but here is how I see it:
Flat or Static Character Arcs
Negative Character Arc
There are three main types of character arcs: positive, negative and flat/static. This is the second of three blogs that will analyze these types of character arcs. (Warning: spoilers ahead.)
Positive Character Arcs
There are three main types of character arcs: positive, negative and flat/static. This is the first of three blogs that will analyze the three types. First up: Positive arcs. Caution: Spoilers ahead.
Character Arc: Steps for Developing the Arc (Part 3 of 3)
This is the final blog in a short series about developing a character arc. The first blog defined the character arc and its importance. The second discussed how to begin developing that arc. This final blog offers concrete steps to take to create a fully developed character:
Writing a character is like giving birth to a fully grown person. You are in charge of making them from how they look, walk, speak, act and everything else that comprises a person. Here are some tips to bring them to life:
Character Arc: Developing the Arc (Part 2 of 3)
Characters need to be a fully realized, complex people with virtues and flaws. They need convictions and fears, hopes and worries, and skills to help and hurt their progress. Most importantly, they need to change. This is the crux of character development. But how do you do that?
Character Arcs (Part 1 of 3)
When we read a story, we want to get pulled into the lives of the characters on the page, to connect and engage. We want to struggle with them. Fall in love. Experience everything they do. We want to see them change. That’s how their journey becomes ours.
It doesn’t matter how amazing a setting or world is if there is no character for us to identify with or rail against. It’s the characters who pull us into and through the story. Characters who prevail and share their triumphs and failures with us. Ideally, these characters change somewhere between the beginning and the end.
The course of a character’s story is called a character arc.
Story Stealers
Story is everything. It’s the prime initiative. The raison d’être. Nothing should subjugate it. Nothing be held higher or given more attention. Sounds simple, right? Not so much.
I recently read a story that had amazing detail, setting, and concept, but the author spent so much time pushing her agenda she lost the thread of the story. It was lost among the message. It didn’t help that she presented her story in a fractured timeline, destroying any chance for tension. The characters were subservient to the setting. The setting used mostly as evidence in proving her cause. It was a missed opportunity. The book could have been great. It had all the elements, but needed editing and a strong hand.
There are steps you can take to ensure your story remains at the forefront. The biggest is to understand the big ways you can go off track. Here are some things have a tendency to take over:
Writers: Fact and Fiction
Several years ago a friend graduated from FLETC (the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center). Naturally, I gave her a refresher course in case she forgot her training, namely all the films I could find that included Secret Service agents. Guarding Tess. In the Line of Fire. Dave. Imagine my surprise when she said none of them were accurate.
The fact is Hollywood gets most things wrong in this world, but no more so than when they portray the life of a writer.
7 Questions to Ask Your Character: The Stanislavski System
Studying acting is a great way to learn how to create characters as a writer. In my last blog, I wrote about what I’ve learned from acting. In this blog, I am going to delve into the Stanislavski System of acting.
Constantin Stanislavski is recognized as the father of modern theater. He created a system of acting that dug deeper into the emotions of the actor and the work. He created a series of seven questions to help actors approach a character. I have listed those questions below with tips for how writers might use these questions to create better characters.
18 Lessons for Writers from Acting: Bringing Characters to Life
In many ways, I learned more about writing from my music and drama classes than I did from my writing classes. I learned about rhythm, cadence and flow from music. How to build tension and action to a crescendo in the work and then how to release it for a satisfying ending. Those are the building blocks of music theory. I learned how to explore character, motivation and emotion in my acting classes. All of those are valuable lessons for a writer.
My writing classes taught me the craft, but music and acting taught me how to add depth and bring those mechanics to life.
When to Quit Writing…and When Not To
Writing is hard. Words don’t flow out easily and land on the page as genius. They need to be selected, ordered, rearranged, swapped, lined up and perfected. Most times they are not cooperative companions though. They are like the unruly child who doesn’t recognize the word “no” even when yelled and accompanied with hands held face out.
There is a reason so many talk about writing instead of doing it. The trick to making it as a writer is not quitting when it gets tough.
Tech Writing—Why I Don’t Write It
Being a writer for hire opens a world of opportunity. There are many places that need good writers. I’ve written about it before. But within those vast opportunities, there is a clear divide between technical and non-technical writing. Choosing between them is a tough decision. Should you follow the emotion or the facts? The story or the money?
Why Do You Want to Write: Not the Best Reasons (part 2 of 2)
Last week, I covered some great reasons to pursue writing as a career. But there are as many bad reasons to write.
Here are some of the wrong reasons to go down this path:
Why Do You Want to Write? Reasons to Write (Part 1 of 2)
After offering a series debunking popular myths about writers and writing (insert links), it’s time to look at why you want to write because what motivates you to sit down and write will determine your success and career.
There are so many people who talk about becoming a writer. They share ideas and talk about writing, but only a few actually do it. Even fewer finish. The ones who do succeed are those who write for the right reason.
Not all reasons are equal. Here is my breakdown of some of the right reasons to write. In my next blog, I will cover some of the “wrong” reasons.
Writing Myths: Separating Fact from Fiction (part 4 of 4)
Getting published is a dream for most writers. It’s the dream of putting your work out there and building an audience. But for as many as make it, there are just as many myths working against those who have not.
Here are the top myths about publishing:
Writing Myths: Separating Fact from Fiction (Part 3 of 4)
In this series, we’ve covered myths about Writing and Writers. But even with the many myths about writing and writers, there are even more about the potential barriers to writing and some commonly held myths that are plain annoying.
Here are some myths that prevent some people from pursuing their writing:
Writing Myths: Separating Fact from Fiction (Part 2 of 4)
There are as many myths about who writers are as people as there are about the process of writing. It’s sort of amazing the popularly-held beliefs about who writers are. Below are some of the top myths about writers. To read the Myths of Writing, read part 1 of this series. Part III and IV will follow this blog.
Warning: This list may get a bit personal as I’ve had each of these “myths” lobbied at me at some point in my career.
Writing Myths: Separating Fact from Fiction (Part 1 of 4)
Most writing myths fall into four basic categories: writing, writers, obstacles to writing, and publishing. In this four-part series, I will share the popular myths from each category and debunk them.
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:
Start the Year Off Right
It’s a new year and the perfect time to start fresh. I like to recommit to my writing and draft an action plan two times a year: in January at the start of a new year and in September when school begins. These seem like good times to reassess my progress and plan my future.
Here are some ways to do that:
12 Habits Writers Should Embrace
Happy New Year! To celebrate the new year, I am reposting an edited list of 12 habits every writer should embrace. It’s a great place to make some resolutions for your writing habit.
Boost Your Creativity Through Play
There is something about snow that brings out the child in me. It starts to fall and I want to run out, tip my head back and stare up into the infinite flakes falling. And then I want to fling myself down and make snow angels. The urge to act like a child is even stronger at this time of year with the packages and wrappings and toys. Santa. Reindeer and all the trimmings that come with the holidays.
But it shouldn’t take a holiday for us to put aside our adult selves and fall into the freedom of play. As writers it is essential to indulge our imagination and play like a child, to feel that release in letting go of adult responsibilities and worries. Not only is it fun, but it is essential for writers and other creative types to learn to tap into that part of themselves.
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.
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.
It’s Not You: Writing and Rejection (Part 2 of 2)
Every writer will tell you to get used to rejection. They say it because it’s true. There’s no way around it. For writers, rejection is as common as succeeding and it never gets easier. But that doesn’t mean you can wallow in it your disappointment. You will never get anywhere if you do that. You need to learn how to cope with rejection and keep going.
It’s Not You: Writing and Rejection (Part 1 of 2)
There’s nothing more nerve-raking as a writer than submitting your work to an agent or editor. There’s that moment before you hit send that makes your heart skid to a halt and then jump back into rhythm. It’s a queasy act of faith before you’re forced to wait and worry. Is my work good enough? Will they like it? What if they don’t?
Writing Is a Strange Career
Writing is a strange career. It’s at once a creative endeavor and a masochistic effort. We stare at a blank page and do our best to spill out our ideas, emotions and past on the page. It’s a personal and vulnerable act that opens us up to criticism and judgement. To rejection. It allows us to explore expression and creation, which is both exhilarating and terrifying, depending on how the words are flowing and the day.
15 Lists for Writers: A Compilation and a Bonus
Over the past five years, I’ve posted 15 lists filled with advice for writers on a wide variety of topics within the industry. Now I’ve pulled them together in one compilation.
Strategies for Submissions
I’m in the last days of polishing my manuscript and am gearing up to jump into research for my next one. It’s been a long haul for this manuscript. I love the characters and story, but struggled with the usual things—self-doubt, length, setting, how to transfer the story I had in my head to paper, getting it right. Writing is never an easy process. We fling words on a page and then rearrange them until they feel right. Sometimes it takes no time at all and other times it takes what seems a lifetime. In the end, all that matters is that we finish.
Freelance Writing Contracts: What You Need to Know
Before I begin, I urge everyone to hire an attorney to draft their freelance contract. This cannot be overstated. A good attorney is essential in any business. Someday you will need one to send a letter to a deadbeat client or take a client to court based on your enforceable contract. Your success relies on the strength of your contract and your case.
I am not an attorney. This article is for information purposes to familiarize you with a freelance contract. It is not intended as a substitute for an attorney’s advice.
Firing Clients: How to Do It (Part 2 of 2)
Being fired is the worst. It never feels good being let go for whatever reason. But sometimes it is necessary. As a freelance writer, there will be times (see our previous blog as to when those times are) when you need to fire a client. In the first part of this two-part blog, we covered when this is a good idea. Now it’s time to look at how to do it.
Here are some tips for how to fire a client:
Firing Clients: When It’s Time (Part 1 of 2)
Sometimes being your own boss has its downsides. Mostly when those clients who pay the bills and keep your writing career afloat aren’t as supportive and wonderful as you’d like. When clients cross the line from professional to unprofessional, it’s time to cut ties. That’s obvious. But being unprofessional is not the only reason to sever ties with a client.
Here is my master list of reasons to fire a client:
Transitions—Moments that Make or Break a Story
There are moments in a dance that instantly distinguishes a great dancer from a mediocre one. It’s the same type of moment that differentiates a choppy film from one that sweeps you away.
I’m talking about transitions. Those tiny moments between movements and scenes. The seconds hidden in the in-between spaces. A great dancer will use those transitions to make the dance flow seamlessly. A filmmaker uses transitions to hide cuts and let the story feel whole.
Hubris, Bravado & Vulnerability: Three Traits of a Writer
Writing is a combination of hubris, bravado and vulnerability. You have to possess all three to succeed. Selling your ideas isn’t easy. Selling yourself is even harder. Showing your work is anxiety-inducing. It takes a tough skin to be in this business where criticism and rejection are as common as commas. But you can’t harden yourself and your emotions if you want to write with honesty and connect with your audience. It’s a balance between self-esteem and vulnerability.
Writing is a tough gig, but a worthwhile one. If you want to write, then you will need to learn how to embrace the big three traits. Let’s break them down:
Finding Your Writing Mojo
There are days I don’t want to write. No matter how I struggle, the words don’t want to come. Every syllable I manage on those days feels forced onto the page like Sisyphus with his boulder. Those are the days I wish I had picked another profession, one where I could punch the clock, do my task and go home without another thought. I even look back fondly on those days in college when I worked as a waitress.
Luckily those days are rare.
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.
What to Say or Write—Tips for Developing Articles and Speeches (Part 4 of 4)
In previous blogs, we covered what to say in your writing and how. The last blog covered a list of quick tips for writing in various formats.
This blog will focus solely on writing for the ear—speeches, radio scripts, podcasts, narration tracks, and other audio forms. This type of writing is different than writing for the page.
What to Say or Write—Tips for Developing Articles and Speeches (Part 3 of 4)
What to Say or Write—Tips for Developing Articles and Speeches (Part 2 of 4)
Figuring out how to begin is always tough for writers. It’s the first big hurdle in the writing process. But with a little help, it doesn’t have to stop your progress.
This series breaks down the steps to figuring out what to write or say. To read the first blog in our series with steps one, two and three, click here.
What to Say or Write—Tips for Developing Articles and Speeches (Part 1 of 4)
Before you can write, you have to have something to say. It’s a pretty simple concept of putting ideas before words. Still it’s funny how often people sit down at their computer and expect to write a flawless article or speech without first considering how to develop their idea.
Now I get the whole “pantsing” it idea, but when it comes to writing short form pieces, it pays to get the idea clear in your head before you begin.
Characterization (Part 2 of 2)
This is part two in Developing Characters. You can read the first part here. It talks about creating characters that are complete, like people. This part is focused on the big answers you need when creating a good character.
Characterization: The Basics (Part 1 of 2)
Building a character is harder than making a friend (which is not a small statement for an introvert to make). This is, of course, if you don’t make a habit of analyzing everything about your friends and their every action, which would be both presumptuous and rude, at the very least.
Dissecting Your Way to Success: How to Break Down a Novel (Part 2 of 2)
This is the second part of a blog on approaching a book like a writer. The first part can be found here.
The best way to learn how to write a novel is to pull some apart and analyze how they were put together. Here is the second part of things to look at during your dissection:
Dissecting Your Way to Success: How to Break Down a Novel (Part 1 of 2)
What I am advocating is to approach the book like a writer. Investigate what made the book work and fail. Pull it apart into its component parts — plot, character, scene, POV — and see how it was put together. There is no better master class in writing than looking deeply at the books you love and love to hate. But you have to be critical in your analysis.
Building a Story, Article or Script—It’s All About Structure
Structure is 85% of your story. Never heard that before? Yeah, that’s because I made it up. I don’t think anyone has an exact statistic showing the importance of structure, but maybe they should. Structure is essential, even if the math of the thing is not. All you really need to know is that structure is essential to a good story, whether that story is fiction or nonfiction.
Making Setting Come Alive (Part 3 of 3)
This is the final installment in my three-part series on Setting. It’s time to share some great examples of setting in novels for inspiration.
Some authors excel at setting. You read them and can feel the wind on your face or get goose bumps from fear. These masters know how to use setting to increase tension, mood, characterization, anchoring and texture.
Making Setting Come Alive (Part 2 of 3)
Setting is an essential part of any fictional work. It anchors your character in time and place, and allows your reader to see, hear, smell and touch the world you have created. This is not an easy task. It takes careful consideration and a deft touch.
Making Setting Come Alive (Part 1 of 3)
Characters cannot live outside of time or place. Story demands setting to anchor characters in the world around them. You do this by using specific details. Anchoring requires specific details to firmly establish the what, where and when. But setting goes beyond that basic information. It also helps ground story in mood, texture and sense. It lets a writer reveal how a character feels about place, time and items around them. It also contributes to tension and pacing.
10 Elements of Effective (Client) Writing (Part 2 of 2)
In the last blog, I shared the first five steps to effective client writing. Below are the final five steps to providing your clients work that fills their needs:
10 Elements of Effective (Client) Writing (Part 1 of 2)
Effective writing can mean so many things, depending on the type of writing you are talking about. But when to comes to client work, effective writing means work that meets a goal and does its job. It’s that simple. And that hard.
Loglines: How They Can Improve Your Writing
In film, producers often use loglines to discuss the content of a film. A logline is a summary of the dramatic narrative in a story that makes it easier to encapsulate the idea and sell it. Basically, a logline is the core essence of your story in 25 words or less—the shortest form of narrative summary.
Loving All Forms of Writing
There is a reason we all sit down and pick up a pen or tap at the keys. We all have something pushing us to begin. While we may have our various reasons, what it comes down to is a love of words and writing, feeling that imperative to capture the human experience in written form. The problem is that so many people feel the only way to pursue a life as a writer is to pen the great American novel. Now I’m not going to say writing fiction isn’t a noble pursuit, I’m pursuing it myself after years of nonfiction work. The lure is strong. But what drives me isn’t the form my work takes, but the compulsion to wrangle 26 tiny letters into sentences that convey emotion, story and facts.
Platform or Writing…That Is the Question
It is conventional wisdom in the industry that all writers need a platform to succeed. While this isn’t necessarily the case, it is something that most writers will need to understand. The problem with this concept is that it suggests that having a platform is the most important part of publishing and it is not.
It’s About Story…Or Should Be
It’s all about story—or it should be. When books and movies fall apart it’s often because the story gets pushed to the background. It becomes secondary to other concerns, like action sequences, special effects, pushing an agenda, or…insert reason here.
Options for Previously Published Works
Last week we talked about what being previously published means. This week we’re looking at options for work that falls into that category and your options for moving forward.
Tips for Breaking Writing Obstacles
I’ve written before about not believing Writer’s Block exists. I still don’t. It’s the Sasquatch of our industry. What I do believe in is not having ideas or motivation and not being in the zone, but those aren’t blocks, they are obstacles. Every career has them. And they can be overcome.
There are days when writing is a painful process of flinging words on the page without passion or a clue. We’ve all been there. Flailing about for an idea, any idea. But that’s different than having writer’s block.
Writer’s Resolutions: Ways to Form Habit
If you’re like me, you are probably setting goals for the new year—promises to exercise daily or eat right. It’s the season for starting over and re-committing to good habits. There’s nothing quite like feeling like you have a clean slate and move forward freely into a new and improved you. But while you’re picking good habits, don’t forget your writing.
Writing is a habit like any other. It takes discipline to stick to it, especially when the self-doubt creeps in or the rejections start piling up. The more you can do to create a habit of writing, the better you will be able to handle the vagaries of the craft.
My New Year’s Wish for You
There are so many articles and blogs out there telling writers how to be writers and offering advice and tips; I should know because I write one. But my New Year’s wish to all of you is to step away from that stuff for a moment and offer something else: Trust.
This year, I hope you learn to trust your own counsel, your inner ear and your ideas.
Giving Yourself a Clean Slate for the New Year
The holiday season is a time for joy and forgiveness, which includes forgiving yourself for all those creative projects languishing in the back of your closet or in forgotten files on your computer. All those stories awaiting an ending. All those tiny scraps of paper sporting lines of dialogue. All those frustrated characters without an ending.
‘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?
Go for the Feels—Emotions Are Key to Story
I remember the first time I performed a monologue in drama class and got some of my fellow students to cry. It was a heady thing. Such power. Such exhilaration making someone else feel the way I wanted them to feel.
Getting to those feelings are the goal of every writer. We want our readers to feel the thrill of the chase, the fear of a killer, and the joy of falling in love.
Time for Thanks
‘Tis the season for school assignments asking students what they are thankful for in their life. My son came home with just such an assignment and it made me think about what I was thankful for this year. It wasn’t hard to come up with an answer. It’s been a good year.
Tracking Client Work
Tracking client work will save you time, money and frustration. Here is how I track my client work and clients.
Tracking Submissions—The Administrative Side of Writing
Like most writers, I love the research and writing parts of the job, but don’t care for the administrative tasks that come with the gig—doing the taxes, accounting, legal and tracking everything. It’s easy to let those things slide and I did when I first started out, until I learned better.
It is easier than you think to misplace vital information, lose track of invoices and payments, and forget to track what you send out into the publishing world. The only way to stay sane and solvent is to track everything. It will help your sanity too.
Finding Time to Write
Time is the number one excuse given for not writing. People love excuses. They never end. I have a job. I have a family. I have a life. Where could they possibly find time to write a book? Where indeed?
Top 10 Tips for Writing Scripts
Writing scripts is not like writing for the page. It takes a different set of skills. Here are my top tips if you want to write scripts for a living:
Writing Scripts for a Living—How to Begin
The writing I contract the most is scriptwriting. I love the combination of writing with moving images and sound. Film and video expands what I am able to do on the page. Besides it’s fun to collaborate with a production team.
The challenge with writing scripts is that it requires a different approach than writing for the page. Sometimes formal grammar has to go out the window. This is writing for the ear, not the eye, which means you can get away with more. There are also challenges working with footage and designing a script that can be filmed in budget.
Write Stronger: Cutting Weasel Words
Strong writing requires strong verbs. That’s nothing new. It’s far better to say enraged than angry and exhausted rather than very tired. There are tons of articles about that on the net. What isn’t talked about as often is the ways we soften language.
How to Create a Working Editorial Calendar for Your Blog
Blogging is fun. I love writing my blog. But it is more than that. It’s a commitment to my readers and my industry. It’s a commitment I take seriously.
Writing a blog takes discipline. You owe your readers consistently good content that can be found on a regular basis. As a working writer, it’s not always easy to honor that commitment. Life gets in the way, which is why discipline matters. It helps to be organized too.
Blogging: A Writer’s Perspective
Writers write. It’s what we do. These days the easiest way to do that is to write a blog. Most writers have one. Some use it to post news and updates on their work. Others write about their families and lives. Then there are those, like me, who write about writing, which makes sense since writing is my passion. It’s also a great way to give back to the industry and share what I know while meeting other writers and writers in training.
Things You Should Never Do As a Writer
There aren’t rules for being a writer. No requirements to get the job. No employer or client requires a certification, test or degree. But there are things every writer should avoid in order to be successful. Most of them are common sense, or perhaps common business sense. Others are industry specific.
Here are some of the top things you should never do as a professional writer.
Top 15 Tips for Running a Successful Writing Business
No matter what you write, earning money from your writing means you are running a business. If you want to be serious about having a writing career, one that will allow you to pay your mortgage and eat, then you need to know what you are getting into and plan accordingly. Here are 15 tips for setting up a professional freelance writing business.
Freelancing Is Business
Through the years, I’ve known a lot of people who were freelance writers. Some of them did it on the side and others wrote for a living. The big difference between the two groups was how they approached the work. The ones looking at it as extra money, typically didn’t approach it like a business. It was just a part-time gig that brought in a bit of extra cash. It was not how they paid the mortgage or put food on the table.
Top 15 Tips for Working with Editors
Working with an editor is like any other business relationship. It requires professionalism and courtesy. Never forget that writing is a business. Just as you would hire a lawyer to negotiate your contracts, you need an editor to publish your work. They are there to partner with you to create something better.
The Niche Myth: Or the Case for Writing Broadly
There are those in freelance writing who advocate (loudly, I might add) to choose a niche and stick to it if you want to make money. I get it. It’s easier to market yourself if you have a specialty. But being a freelance writer should be about more than the money. It should be about the writing. Choosing a niche is not always the best option.
Top 10 Things People Don’t Tell You About Being a Freelance Writer
Oh, the dreams are big. Quit your job. Write all day. Make a living in your PJs, working your own hours. It’s so romantic. So appealing. The image of the writer is part of why so many people want to embrace the life of a freelance writer or novelist.
Give Ideas Time
Ideas are needy. They’re like flowers that cannot be rushed from seed to bloom. Like a flower needs good soil, sun, water and time, ideas need imagination, nourishment, and to exist in the real world on a page or screen. They also need time.
Get Out of Your Head
Ideas are everywhere. If you doubt that, just tell someone you’re a writer and they’re sure to respond with their “great” idea for a novel. (That tendency may be why I rarely tell people what I do for a living, but that’s another blog for another day.)
My Top 10 Truths About Writing
After so long in the industry, I have learned some overarching truths. Here are my top 10 lessons learned.
The Five Phases of Big Picture Editing
Editing can be fun, but it also can be tough. It’s an emotional phase of the writing process that can batter a writer’s spirit. Not all of the time. There will be projects that are easy to write and edit, but I’m not talking about those projects today. Today I’m talking about those larger beasts that tear at a writer’s soul. The projects that make us question whether we can write and why we want to do this in the first place. Those projects are the ones that test our resolve to write.
The Ups and Downs of Editing
Editing someone else’s work is always easier than editing your own. When I review someone’s manuscript, I can always see the flaws, the errors in grammar, the leaps in story logic, the stalled through line. It jumps out at me demanding attention and comment.
The same thing does not always happen in my own writing.
Top 12 Writing Fails: Editing & Script Doctoring
In my business, I am not always the first call and I like it that way. Call me weird, but I love being called in to fix writing that isn’t working. Luckily, there always will be those clients who think they can write their own scripts, speeches and manuscripts. They think taking English classes in high school and college means is enough preparation, and sometimes it is. Then again, sometimes it is not.
Finding Your Center
I have a friend who asked me recently what he should write, not because he did not have ideas, but because he had too many. I suggested he write what kept him up at night—the idea that begged to be put on the page, the one that would not let go. When he complained writing was difficult when he was distracted by the multitude of ideas I referred him to my favorite book about writing: Letters to a Young Poet by Rainer Marie Rilke.
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.