4 days ago by Camy Tang

Ideas For Fixing a Disatisfying End to the Story Sometimes a writer’s critique partners or first readers will comment that they didn’t like the ending of a story, or that the novel didn’t resolve well. While critique is always good, a vague “I didn’t like the ending” isn’t helpful for fixing it. How ...

Story Sensei - storysensei.blogspot.com · Rank: 15,237 · 43 references

5 days ago by Noble M Standing

I have a friend who is entering a publishers open submission period. We were talking about the submission process. The problem with this submission is that instead of the traditional two paragraph blurb about your story, in a traditional Query, and a one-four page synopsis. They want a two-three sen ...

My life in a laptop - cmichellejefferies.blogspot.com · Rank: 134,413 · 13 references

8 days ago by Amy Bai

I’m slowly picking my way past the always-exciting Pivotal Mid-Book Catalyst Scene…always exciting, that is, because I’m always excited when I get there, not necessarily because the scene itself is full of excitement. I have one of these in every book I’ve written: somewhere in the darkest thicket o ...

the purple patch - amybai.wordpress.com · Rank: 12,215 · 17 references

9 days ago by Camy Tang

How to Bring a Story to an End The Beginning of the End is often used to refer to the climax of the story, or roughly the last 25% of the novel (in terms of word count or page count). After building the tension and conflict of the middle of your novel, now you want a strong ending that will grip the ...

Story Sensei - storysensei.blogspot.com · Rank: 15,237 · 43 references

10 days ago by DarcKnyt

Country Cooking is a PBS show, actually a spin-off of America’s Test Kitchen, which is a visual representation of Cook’s Illustrated magazine. The show depicts typical American recipes – country cooking, the show says – and shows viewers how to work them to achieve the intended results, rather than ...

DarcKnyt - darcknyt.wordpress.com · Rank: 83,939 · 40 references

11 days ago by Alexandra Sokoloff

Okay now, remember, if you just finished your draft on Nov. 30, taking time off from it before you jump into revisions is far more important than anything else I’m going to say here today. But once you have taken the time off… how the hell do you proceed with the second draft? Well, first you have t ...

Alexandra Sokoloff - thedarksalon.blogspot.com · Rank: 35,421 · 64 references

16 days ago by Camy Tang

Tie Up Threads Before the Last Section of the Novel Subplots are wonderful things. They can help the reader better understand the characters by showing them in various situations and how they react. Subplots can also complicate a plot and help it take its meandering way to the climax. But there is a ...

Story Sensei - storysensei.blogspot.com · Rank: 15,237 · 43 references

18 days ago by darksculptures

Has National Novel Writing Month helped you write a crappy novel or a fantastic draft? The answer lies in the power of perception—your perception. Is your glass half-empty of half-full? The first draft is never a best-selling novel or a meticulously crafted example of fine literature. It is however, ...

Darksculptures Thinks and ... - darksculptures.wordpress.com · Rank: 182,021 · 1 reference

18 days ago by Carolyn Howard-Johnson

By Larry Brooks In some polite company it’s not kosher to speak the truth about publishing your fiction. It’s like walking into a cancer ward and announcing to all those folks hooked up to tubes that only one out of ten of you is going to survive. Not good. Haven’t tried that one, but I have spoken ...

Sharing with Writers and ... - sharingwithwriters.blogspot.com · Rank: 20,143 · 45 references

18 days ago by Camy Tang

Rehashing Information May Cause a Sagging Middle in Your Novel Many times, writers will be able to see that their middle “sags,” or the pacing slows in the middle portion of the novel. There are several ways to avoid the sagging middle, but often the problem can be some repetition of information. Id ...

Story Sensei - storysensei.blogspot.com · Rank: 15,237 · 43 references