This month is NaNoWriMo, For those of you scratching your head, that’s National Novel Writing Month (https://www.NaNoWriMo.org) a non-profit with only one goal – to goad you, encourage you, and praise you into kick-starting your next book. How? It’s a simple premise – commit to writing 50,000 words, starting November 1st and writing at least…
Tag: Readers
Marketing Critical Mass
I once went to a book signing of a prominent author (someone quite famous and established, but I won’t name-drop). As the last one in line to get his signature, I was surprised and pleased when he said, “Looks like you’re the last one. Tell you what, I’m starving, let’s go get a bite to…
The Immediacy of Action
Writing an action sequence is a unique part of writing. All of the rest of writing—setting a scene, establishing a character, revealing an epiphany, etc.—are all different as well. But they are clear siblings of each other. Action stands apart from all the others as much as a raven sitting on a wire amidst blue…
I Want to Interview Your Character
I don’t care which – protagonist/antagonist – preferably a major player in your latest WIP. This exercise is great for helping us flesh out characters even if those details don’t make it to the page. Having a fully detailed character comes through in other subtle ways. Try it and see – pick your favorite or…
Building Plot Complexity
For most readers, a satisfying plot is a fairly complex one. A single, relatively linear plot can be mildly entertaining, but usually not very memorable or satisfying. A story with not only twists and turns, but with sidetracks and subplots that all seem to somehow tie in, even loosely, give readers a much richer, deeper…