Villain Month
Writing » Character Development, Links, TipsMay 27th, 2008
Since I cheated my usual schedule and made my real post yesterday about finishing First Draft B, I’m dedicating this post to a fellow writer-blogger, Eliza W, who’s dedicating her blog to a month of developing villains in fiction.
Jump over, take a look, join in!
First Draft B Complete
Writing » Work-in-ProgressMay 26th, 2008
The title of the post says it all, but here are some details.
Saturday night, I couldn’t focus on homework. So instead, I daydreamed about my novel.
At midnight, I decided I would tape the show I had been staying up to watch so I could write, instead.
By three in the morning, I had a draft of the last chapter that I liked better than the six other half-starts I’d saved in the file, and the other almost fully-drafted chapter that I had in my paper journal.
Sunday morning, I woke up to re-read the chapter and found I still liked it. A good sign.
WIP: A New Beginning
Writing » Editing, Work-in-ProgressMay 20th, 2008
A little over a week ago, I added a new scene to the beginning of the WIP. It shifts the moment when the reader joins the story from the original scene to fifteen minutes earlier. Amazing, what a quarter of an hour can do, right? This new scene completely changes the tone of the opening chapter, yet still is in keeping with the tone of the entire work. My problem is that I feel the original scene also sets the story and tone correctly. Which should I choose?
Thursday Thirteen: Tools to Research Setting
Writing » Research, SettingMay 15th, 2008
I often find interesting bits of information that don’t necessarily correspond to an entire blogpost. To compensate, sometimes I’ll have a Thursday Thirteen to collect and spread the knowledge-love around, which was the original point of Worderella Writes. But I reserve the right to have a Thursday Seven, Thursday Two, Thursday Whatever-Number-I-Manage-to-Get-To… even though they don’t sound as good. Today’s theme is tools to help you research and/or write your setting.
Guest Post: Stay the Course
Writing » Guest Post, Inspirational, Tips, Writer's BlockMay 6th, 2008
A guest post from my friend Graham Carter, a reporter and editor from across the pond. He writes to answer the cries of us writers who have let our doubts get the better of us, and not a moment too soon. So read on, and feel inspired!
Let’s talk drumming.
Yes, I know this is supposed to be all about writing, but there is an analogy here that I think all writers should be aware of, so stick with it (pun intended).
WIP: Dragging my Feet
Writing » Work-in-Progress, Writer's BlockApril 29th, 2008
Am I the only one whose writing slows to a sluggish halt as the finish line approaches? I’m terrified of everything seeming like a deus ex machina, so I’m fighting to make sure nothing is too easy, and that everything depends on the characters. Which means I’m leaving a lot of notes in this draft for the editing phase about dropping hints here and there in the character’s actions so that things make sense, that everything is building up to the end.
Writing for the Love of it
General, Writing » Craft, Quotes, Tips, Tools, Writer's BlockApril 22nd, 2008
I once got into an odd conversation with someone about writing… let’s call this person Frank the Writer. So Frank saw my pile of writing magazines, and I could tell by his expression upon opening one of the issues that he was surprised I highlighted certain sentences which I found insightful or helpful to me as a writer. Watching him read my notes in my old Writer’s Digest, Poets & Writers, and The Writer issues was, for some reason, like watching a child realize there is no Santa.
Guest Post: Writing on the Go
Writing » Guest Post, Research, Setting, TipsApril 8th, 2008
A guest post by Blair Hurley from www.blairhurley.com listing some hints on how to make sure you’re writing on the go.
Writers use their own environment constantly to enrich their stories. We draw upon our settings and the people around us to create worlds. So when we travel, it’s crucial to take advantage of the new environment and use it to improve our fiction. But when you’re on the go in a new place, how’s a writer supposed to get down information? Read on!
WIP: A Writing Update
Writing » Hook, Work-in-ProgressApril 1st, 2008
No April Fool’s today, just a quick shout-out to my mother (it’s her birthday!), an announcement, and a long-overdue post about my WIP.
If you visited the blog recently, you noticed that the WIP counter on my sidebar has suddenly changed from 82k, a mere 3% away from my 85k goal, to 87k. Admission time: I’ve been past the 85k goal since the beginning of March. I didn’t want to change my progress counter until I actually finished First Draft B, which is silly, but true. I haven’t finished it, but I can see the finish line.
Mark Twain’s Tips on Writing Well
Writing » Craft, Dialogue, Editing, Plot, TipsMarch 13th, 2008
We all know Mark Twain for Huckleberry Finn, Tom Sawyer, The Prince and the Pauper, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court, etc. In literary circles he is known for his lambasting essay, The Literary Offenses of Fenimore Cooper, where he writes his Nineteen Most Important Rules of Literature. The essay claims that James Fenimore Cooper, another well-known American author, broke eighteen of them. How do you make out?
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