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How to write story exposition that hooks readers fast
'Story exposition' is often described as background, the necessary part to include so that readers know when, where and why your story takes place. Yet the exposition in a novel or short story is also an opportunity to entice, amuse, alarm and surprise your reader, foregrounding engaging themes ...
September 6th, 2021
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How a novel writing coach helps you get better faster
The benefits of coaching in athletics and business are well known. How does a novel writing coach help you write your story, though? Read on for eight insights into how coaching works, and why: 8 reasons why a writing coach makes writing easier: You set and achieve SMART goals Coaching...
August 30th, 2021
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Writing focus: 9 ways to improve yours
When you're writing, your focus isn't 'on' every day of the week. Improve your writing focus so you can get to work and finish your story. Try these 9 strategies for the busy writer: 9 ways to build your focus to write: Start with freewriting Keep active Plan ahead Remove distractions Joi...
August 23rd, 2021
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Author interview: Writing historical romance with Fil Reid
We chat to Now Novel member Fil Reid who recently won Dragonblade Publishing's "The Write Stuff" contest, about writing historical romance. About Fil and her winning publishing contest entry Jordan: Hi Fil, thank you for sharing the news that you won Dragonblade Publishing's contest and a ...
August 19th, 2021
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Tips when writing a book: Top 10 from Now Novel's webinars
Many tips to remember to when writing a book are shared in writing seminars, interviews, critique circles and webinars around the world. Here are ten curated from Now Novel's monthly writing webinars where authors from 5 continents come together to discuss writing craft: Remember these tips w...
August 16th, 2021
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Your goals in writing: 10 ideas to keep them
Keeping to your goals in writing is hard. Maybe balancing creative 'me' time and office time grew harder while working from home. Or you commute a lot. Or you have young children who require the lion's share of your focus. Sticking to your goals is easier with SMART, quantitative goals. Here are...
August 2nd, 2021
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Author interview: Joe Byrd - Monet & writing historical fiction
We chat to author and Now Novel Coaching member Joe Byrd, who discusses his debut historical novel about the French Impressionist painter, Claude Monet. We chat about researching and writing about historical figures, the genesis of his book Monet & Oscar: The Essence of Light, and the experi...
July 21st, 2021
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How to organize story scenes (plus scene structure template)
Understanding how to organize story scenes will help you to draft scenes with an underlying sense of purpose and focus. Learn how to use Now Novel's Scene Builder to create your own scene structure template that is flexible and custom-made for your story: First, what is Now Novel's scene buil...
July 19th, 2021
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How to publish a memoir: My two best tips
Now Novel co-founder Bridget McNulty’s book, The Grief Handbook: A guide through the worst days of your life is being published internationally (in the UK, US and South Africa) this week. Here are her two best tips on how to publish a memoir: I’ve been thinking a lot about what advice I w...
July 12th, 2021
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How to write multiple points of view in a novel: 8 tips
How do you write multiple points of view in a novel? More importantly why have multiple viewpoint narrators in your novel? Read on for 8 tips on writing books with multiple narrators, with practical POV examples from Barbara Kingsolver and others and a POV exercise by Ursula K. Le Guin: How t...
July 5th, 2021
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How to write fight scenes and battle scenes that grip readers
Learning how to write fight scenes or battle scenes is crucial if there are important, action-packed conflicts in your story. Whether it's a historical war story set in the trenches or a story of epic clashes between good and evil, these tips will help: How to write fight scenes and battles: ...
June 28th, 2021
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How to write book blurbs: 8 tips for selling by summary
Book blurbs are brief, promotional summaries on books' back covers (or inside jackets) that sell the story. Knowing how to write book blurbs is useful for promoting your own work. It's also handy if you are ever asked to write a blurb for another writer. Read 8 tips to write the best blurb for y...
June 21st, 2021
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