Now Novel
Jordan Kantey is an editor, writer and writing workshop facilitator. He’s been helping authors develop their stories for ten years. He achieved his Honours in English Literature with distinction from the University of Cape Town. He has had poems published in several journals and an anthology. He blogs about writing craft and process at Now Novel and loves to help aspiring authors reach their goals.
World building tips often focus on fantastical genres such as fantasy and sci-fi, because they involve creating worlds different to our own. It’s important to create immersive, interesting and believable settings, whatever your genre. To build a detailed world, one to rival Westeros, Hogwarts (or Dickens’ London), use these world building tips:
What makes a plot keep you turning pages? Plot has many moving parts. Incidents and elaborations, causes and effects, doubling back and forecasting approaching events. Learn more about the relation between ‘plot’ and ‘story’ and ways to make your plot more captivating:
The writing process is often spoken about in near-mystical terms. Sit in the right chair, at the right desk. Burn some sage. Turn around three times before you sit down to write. Yet anyone can build a successful writing process. Here are 7 key habits to reach your writing resolutions:
The past decade gave us everything from viral K-pop hits and ice bucket challenges to the first photo of a black hole. The 2010s also saw many interesting moments in writing and publishing. Read 10 insights from authors’ interviews, conversations and tributes from the past decade:
Finishing a draft of your manuscript brings with it a fantastic feeling of accomplishment. Yet great books are made in the writing and editing process. Editing copy for common SPAG (spelling, punctuation and grammar) errors, stylistic gaffes such as tautology, and other flaws will help you strip your story down to its most compelling elements.
Where do great writing ideas come from? Ideas arise from many places. Questions about broad societal issues. Visual images that linger in your imagination. Questions such as ‘what if…’ and ‘why is it that…’. Read 7 insights on how to get writing ideas from Goodreads’ author interviews:
Whether or not you participate, there are useful NaNoWriMo lessons and insights to discover each year, in the writing community’s discussions, celebrations and lamentations on writing. Read 9 NaNoWriMo insights applicable to all writers:
Finding a great story premise that excites you and motivates you to write is a great win. Yet finding how to turn a premise into a plot with greater detail is trickier. Try these 7 tactics to build your story idea into an engaging narrative:
How do you find the plot of a story from a broad situation? Brainstorming scenarios – specifically the best- and worst-case outcomes in a given situation – helps to find plot details. To brainstorm a plan for high and low points in characters’ arcs, try these tips:
