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What makes a plot intriguing? 6 ideas
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: 1. Elaborate your story...
January 13th, 2020
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Your writing process: 7 habits for success
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: 1. Kee...
January 7th, 2020
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The decade in writing: 10 insights from 2010-2019
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: 1. Write fr...
December 23rd, 2019
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Editing copy? 8 tips for a word-perfect manuscript
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...
December 17th, 2019
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How to get writing ideas: 7 insights from Goodreads
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: 1...
December 9th, 2019
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9 NaNoWriMo lessons for next year and beyond
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: 1. Get a head start on writing while motivated Writi...
December 2nd, 2019
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How to turn a premise into a plot: 7 tactics
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: 1. Use simple writing prompts to ask helpful questi...
November 25th, 2019
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How do you find the plot of a story? Using scenarios
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: 1. Find the best- and worst...
November 18th, 2019
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The writing process: 10 tips from Writers & Artists
The writing process is something every author finds a way to navigate. Writers & Artists: The Insider Guide to the Media regularly interviews authors about their process. Read tips from 10 established authors' writing routines and approaches: 1. Have a schedule There's truth to the say...
November 11th, 2019
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How do you start a chapter in a novel? 10 examples
How do you start a chapter in a novel to hook your reader and structure your story? These 10 examples reveal ways to make your chapter beginning count: 1. Introduce urgent current or impending action Consider the opening paragraph to the first chapter of Anthony Doerr's Pulitzer-winning w...
November 4th, 2019
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What are the elements of plot development?
What are the elements of plot development to remember when crafting a story? Read about 7 key elements of plot: 1. The premise (or story scenario) The premise or scenario is the situation or concept on which we build a story. Take a logline for a popular novel, such as John Grisham's The R...
October 28th, 2019
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How to develop your book idea: 8 exercises
So you've got a book idea. There's a story image or event teasing your imagination. How do you develop a book idea in a germinal state into something detailed, more ready to begin your draft? Read 8 ways to build on a founding story idea: 1. Condense your book idea into a logline This m...
October 21st, 2019
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