Writing Tips

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Breaking Out of the Editing Funk

Posted by on Dec 15, 2011 in Writing Tips | 5 comments

In a self-destructive editing funk? Yeah, me, too. These are the issues I’m wading through: Not covering enough ground per day Self-doubt: will it ever be good enough? Balancing everything: character development,  foreshadowing, symbolism, authentic dialog, inner struggle, raising the stakes, pacing Scenes & sentences are running together   Here is how I’m dealing with them: CREATING NEW HABITS   KNOW WHAT YOU’RE WRITING ABOUT Begin each writing/editing...

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7 Deadly Sins of the Twitterverse

Posted by on Dec 11, 2011 in Writing Tips | 0 comments

Avoid the seven deadly sins of Twitter or you’ll surely go straight to #TwitterHell in a hand basket. #7. DRUNK PICTURES I like to have a good time as much as the next guy, but don’t give free fodder to those who may want to crucify you later.  DUH. #6. RETWEETING IMPERSONAL LINKS Sharing relavent articles is great. Go for it—SOMETIMES. Show your sparkling personality inbetween the blurbs of hard news. Just spare us the talk of laundry folding and toilet scrubbing. #5. DIRECT...

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Best Checklist EVER: 10 Rules of Writing

Posted by on Dec 4, 2011 in Writing Tips | 6 comments

I confess, this is not my writing checklist. Janis Hubschman created it and is kind enough to share it with the world. If you aren’t using these techniques to advance your prose, I suggest you get busy. They may save you a couple of crappy first novels or short stories. 1. WHEN THE STORY STALLS, ask: what is the character thinking now? Is she thinking anything? If not, why not? Characters need to learn something about themselves, about their values and assumptions. 2. CHARACTERS REVEAL...

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Revising Your NaNoWriMo Novel…or Any Other Novel For That Matter

Posted by on Nov 30, 2011 in Writing Tips | 2 comments

I’ve grappled with how to begin the second round of revisions on my novel (not a NaNoWriMo book) the last few weeks. I’m at the part, you know, where you really have to make your prose sing.  The problem is, everytime I’ve thought of tackling my MS, I’ve wanted to beat it with a broom handle rather than face it again. Soooo, I took a six week break and enlisted a few high profile beta readers. The result: it’s in decent shape, but still needs some very...

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Tips to Survive NaNoWriMo

Posted by on Nov 8, 2011 in Writing Tips | 0 comments

A week into NaNoWriMo and that 50,000 word total is beginning to look a little outrageous? Sometimes you just need a little help… Create a Pitch as a Motivational Touchstone I stole this idea from Diane Holmes over at pitch-university.com. Diane says to jot down a pitch based on the reasons you’re thrilled to be doing NaNoWriMo (“This is a book where I get to….”, “I can’t wait to play with….”, etc.) as a way to generate motivation. I’ll add my own...

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Writing a Novel is like Birthing a Baby

Posted by on Oct 28, 2011 in Writing Tips | 1 comment

If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to grow and deliver a baby, I have great news. You don’t even need a uterus! You just need to write a book of 100,000+ words and you can have an exact idea of what it’s like. Ok, that’s a bit of a hyperbole. I mean, let’s face it, squeezing a bus through a golf ball hole isn’t the most comfortable thing in the world. So how is writing a novel like birthing a baby? Sooo many similarities. THE GROWING PROCESS I read...

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