Tag Archives: mythcreants

Articles, Blog, Craft, Opinion, Writing and Publishing

About This Writing Stuff…

This week, Deb Caletti offers reliable tips on unreliable narrators while Chris Winkle explains the importance of planning character arcs. Emma Lombard and Carol Van Den Hende discuss developing a marketing plan and creating an author brand, respectively.

At the Write Practive, Jeff Elkins provides six critical steps to creating a good villain and J.D. Edwin gets back to basics with four foundational skills for writing fiction.

Claire Armitstead delves into the growing theme of climate fiction (cli-fi) and if you’re struggling to write the perfect ending to your novel, the folks at NaNoWriMo might be of help.

All that and a little more. Enjoy!

8 Tips to Writing Unreliable Narrators by Deb Caletti

How to Develop a Marketing and Promotion Plan as an Indie Author by Emma Lombard

Don’t Cheat Your Reader by Mae Clair

Keeping it Real—or Not: Fact and Fiction in the Novel by Carol Goodman

Planning Character Arcs by Chris Winkle

How Twitter Can Ruin a Life by Emily VanDerWerff

Stories to Save the World: The New Wave of Climate Fiction by Claire Armitstead

Selling Foreign Book Rights – How Authors Generate International Income by Matt Knight

How to Write Good Fiction: 4 Foundational Skills and How to Build Them by J.D. Edwin

How to Write a Villain – 6 Scenes Your Story Needs by Jeff Elkins

8 Mistakes to Avoid While Writing the Perfect Ending to Your Novel from the NaNoWriMo Blog

The Myth of Quality vs Quantity in Publishing by Kristina Adams (podcast)

What is Author Brand and How to Craft Yours by Carol Van Den Hende

Articles, Blog, Craft, Opinion, Writing and Publishing

About This Writing Stuff…

This week, Paula Munier offers advice on transitioning from writing nonfiction to fiction while Anne R. Allen reminds us that self-publishing is serious business. Anne’s article has a few points in common with Sue Coletta’s tips on maintaining etiquette in the writing community.

TD Storm discusses the pros and cons of using filtering language, Alison Flood delves into the effects of cancel culture in publishing, and Kathryn Craft explains how we can increase tension in our stories through the eyes of an observer.

Oh, I almost forgot—Hanna Mary McKinnon provides tips on crafting characters with amnesia.

All that and much more. Enjoy!

How to Write About Amnesia by Hanna Mary McKinnon

Your Nonfiction is Showing by Paula Munier

Self-Publishing is a Business: Don’t Treat it Like a Childish Game by Anne R. Allen

To Filter or Not to Filter by TD Storm

What is DRC and How to Make it Work for You by IndieReader

Writing Community Etiquette by Sue Coletta

Six Ways to Add Stakes to a Mystery by Chris Winkle

Publishing’s Debate over Cancel Culture by Alison Flood

Managing a Motif by Dave King

Heighten Tension with a Watcher by Kathryn Craft

Character Description: 6 Tips from Stephen King’s Memoir by David Safford

Bringing a Character to Life by Barbara Linn Probst

The Unintended Consequences of a Lack of Setting by Amanda Patterson

 

 

 

Articles, Blog, Craft, Opinion, Writing and Publishing

About This Writing Stuff…

The past several weeks have been hectic, leaving me little time for blogging. Unfortunately, I’ve also been contending with depression, burnout, and fatigue for reasons too long to elucidate here (and you probably don’t care anyway).  Winter and ongoing pandemic stress have exacerbated the problem. Whatever. I’m working through it.

On a lighter note, I’m thrilled to announce that four of my short stories will be published across two anthologies in late March. More information on that soon! For now, I lined up another fantastic selection of helpful articles about writing and publishing.

Monica Valentinelli discusses the ingredients of dark science fiction and offers a generous helping of positive writing advice to keep us motivated.

Ken Miyamoto explains the difference between story and plot while Susan DeFreitas delves into strategies for presenting backstory.

Over at Mythcreants, Oren Ashkenazi warns prose writers against emulating TV and film while Chris Winkle teaches us how to improve reader engagement.

Brian Andrews guides us through writing believable action scenes, Julie Duffy provides pointers on transitioning between novels and short stories, and Philip Athens summarizes the history of pulp magazines.

All that a little more. Enjoy!

When Science Fiction Meets Horror in World-Building by Monica Valentinelli

101 Softly-Delivered Writing Lessons by Monica Valentinelli

What the 2021 Facebook Changes Mean for Authors by Thomas Umstattd, Jr.

Plot vs. Story: What’s the Difference? by Ken Miyamoto

Backstory and Exposition: 4 Key Tactics by Susan DeFreitas via Jane Friedman

Focus on Short Fiction by Julie Duffy

Five Bad Habits Writers Learn from Movies and TV by Oren Ashkenazi

Optimizing Your Story Ideas for Better Engagement by Chris Winkle

How to Write Amazing Action Scenes by Brian Andrews

How to Write A Bestselling Thriller by Hank Phillippi Ryan

Doublespeak: A Look at Voice by Terry Odell

A Brief History of Pulp Fiction by Philip Athans

 

 

 

 

Articles, Blog, Craft, Opinion, Writing and Publishing

About This Writing Stuff…

This week, Ken Miyamoto provides a regimen for becoming a screenwriter in one year. Chris Winkle offers suggestions for maintaining tension during those in-between scenes (often called sequels) while Donald Maass shows us how to meld the mundane and spectacular in our stories to suspend the reader’s disbelief.

We delve into all things editing with Patti Callhan Henry, PJ Parrish, and Jim Dempsey. Julie Glover reminds us of how real life can be fodder for fiction, and NYT bestselling author Jeffrey Deaver reveals his 13 rules for writing fiction that sells.

All that a little more. Enjoy!

365 Days: How to Become a Screenwriter in One Year by Ken Miyamoto

Self-Editing Secret: Listen Carefully by Patti Callahan Henry

Editing: The Three Levels of Hell by PJ Parrish

What to Expect from an Editor by Jim Dempsey

Five Ways to Restore Tension by Chris Winkle

The Real vs. The Unreal by Donald Maass

How Much of Our Real Life Shows Up in Our Fiction? by Julie Glover

List of Fantasy Magazines and Journals by Richie Billing

10 Things Screenwriters Don’t Need to Worry About by Ken Miyamoto

Jeffrey Deaver: Thirteen Rules for Writing Commercial Fiction by Diana Belchase (video)

 

 

Articles, Blog, Craft, Opinion, Writing and Publishing

About This Writing Stuff

In our final edition of About This Writing Stuff for 2020, Ken Brosky offers advice for managing multiple narrators while Abigail Perry helps us decide when our story can support two protagonists.

Even as an inveterate plotter, I admit that Hank Phillippi Ryan makes a strong case for writing without an outline (aka pantsing, but I like her use of “emergent design”).

In the Kill Zone, Sue Coletta provides insightful tips for crafting a series bible while James Scott Bell shows us three ways to weave humor into our stories. Over at Mythcreants, Oren Ashkenazi discusses how to handle content edits and Chris Winkle suggests clever ways to describe your POV character.

If you’re considering self-publishing, I encourage you to take some pointers from Anne R. Allen, and if you’re struggling to find that powerful opening to your story, let Josyln Chase help.

All that and a lot more. Enjoy… and Happy Holidays!

How to Effectively Manage Multiple Narrators in Your Novel by Ken Brosky via Jane Friedman

5 Tell-Tale Signs of an Amateur Self-Published Book by Anne R. Allen

How to Write Without an Outline by Hank Phillippi Ryan

Productive Procrastination: Re-Purposing Downtime to Profitably Promote by Ellen Byron

6 Tips to Help You Network Like a Natural by Penny Sansevieri

Tips to Create a Series Bible by Sue Coletta

On Using Humor in Fiction by James Scott Bell

Five Things to Know When You Get Content Editing by Oren Ashkenazi

Nine Ways to Describe Your Viewpoint Character by Chris Winkle

Staging the Scene by John J. Kelley

The Secret for Creating Characters that Readers Want to Root For by J.D. Edwin

Can You Have More Than One Protagonist in Your Story? by Abigail Perry

How to Start Your Story: 10 Ways to Get Your Story off to a Great Start by Joslyn Chase

A Look at Literary Devices: What is Motif? by Sherry Howard

How a Limited vs. Tight Point of View Can Confuse Writers by Janice Hardy

Articles, Blog, Craft, Opinion, Writing and Publishing

About This Writing Stuff

This week, James Scott Bell makes a good case for putting your protagonists between opposing characters, thereby forcing them to choose a path. Siera London introduces us to the BENP system of book marketing, and Daphne Gray-Grant links perfectionism with depression.

Richie Billing examines the use of religion in the fantasy genre, Joe Bunting provides a 20-step guide to novel writing, and Donald Maass teaches us to how dance to the beat (story beats, that is).

At Fiction University, we get schooled by Kassandra Lamb on the relationshp between backstory and behavior, Chris Eboch explains the importance of plot questions, and Janice Hardy offers advice about planting clues in your story.

All that and a lot more. Enjoy and Happy Holidays!

Religion in Fantasy by Richie Billing

What Kind of Marketing Plan Will Work for Us? by Siera London via Jami Gold

Put Your Lead Between Opposite Characters by James Scott Bell

How to Choose Scenes for Your Story by Chris Winkle

What is DRM (Digital Rights Management)? by Matt Knight at Sidebar Saturdays

Show Me the Money: Royalties, Rights, and Riches for Indie Authors by Erika Liodice

The Beat Goes On by Donald Maass

How to Write a Novel (Without Fail) by Joe Bunting

How to Sneak Clues Past Your Readers and Keep Them Guessing by Janice Hardy

Writing a Page-Turner: Keep the Reader Guessing with Story Questions by Chris Eboch

The Importance of Backstory (or How the Brain Connects the Present to the Past) by Kassandra Lamb

Is Your Depression Masquerading as Perfectionism? by Daphne Gray-Grant

11 Ways to Give Writing Perfectionism the Heave-Ho by Daphne Gray-Grant

60 Things For Your Character to Do When They Talk or Think by Amanda Patterson