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Character profiles: 5 questions for a detailed cast
Character profile writing is a useful way to build a rounded idea of your characters. Knowing your characters' appearance and persona inside out makes scenes practically write themselves, sometimes, when you bring characters together. To create a character profile, ask these 5 questions and writ...
June 15th, 2017
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How to describe hands: 6 ways to make characters real
Describing hands is useful for showing characters' psychological traits and personality, age and more. Many amateur writers stop at describing eye colour or how characters say their dialogue. Yet there are many different physical details you can use to show a character's nature. Read exampl...
June 12th, 2017
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Writing an affecting novel: Examples of tone and mood
Tone and mood are two powerful elements of writing that affect how readers feel. Tone tells us a lot about characters - a protagonist whose tone is mostly sarcastic, for example, might seem jaded. Mood is closely tied to place. The atmosphere of a story setting, how characters feel about it, aff...
June 8th, 2017
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Novel structure: 7 tips for structuring your book
Understanding how to structure a novel makes your story easier and more satisfying to read. Good structure creates plot clarity and cohesion. Read 7 tips for how to structure your book, including story structure examples from accomplished novels: 1: Understand basic story structure 2: Lear...
June 5th, 2017
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Examples of adjectives from top authors' novels
Adjectives - words that describe nouns or pronouns - add specificity and detail to writing. The literal definition of adjective is 'throw towards', from the Latin prefix ad- (towards) and the verb jacere (throw). That's what great describing words do: They 'throw' readers into your fictiona...
May 29th, 2017
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How to edit your novel: 8 simple steps
Learning how to edit your novel before a professional editor even sees it is smart. When there are fewer minor errors, a hired editor can focus on large-scale issues: Plot holes and inconsistencies and issues of style and tone. To edit your own writing, try these 8 simple steps: ...
May 25th, 2017
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How to write cliffhangers: Suspense examples from books
Learning how to write cliffhangers and suspenseful scenes is a crucial skill, whether you write mystery thrillers, fantasy fiction or another genre. The suspense examples from books below show how to bring readers to the intolerable state of not knowing that makes us race to turn the page. ...
May 22nd, 2017
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7 lessons from books made into movie adaptations
Many authors who have had books made into movie adaptations have become multi-millionaires almost overnight. Why are some books primed for screen adaptation from the start? They share in common strong high concepts, great structure, visual flair and more. Read 7 lessons from books adap...
May 18th, 2017
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Writing great characters: 5 lessons from modern novels
If you want readers to fall in love with your novels, writing great characters is crucial. Read 5 lessons modern novels give us in writing vivid characters: Lesson 1: Make characters surprise each other and the reader Great characters often emerge in stages rather than all at once. Allow c...
May 11th, 2017
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How to make a plot captivating: 7 strategies
Sometimes you get half way through a story or novel before you realize that your plot is missing something. Maybe it plods and meanders, or there is a sameness of tension and pace. These 7 strategies will help you make a plot more captivating: 1: Vary the intensity of rising and falling actio...
May 2nd, 2017
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Character archetypes: How to enrich your novel's cast
The best-loved fiction for children, teens and adults shares characters who feel familiar. This is because effective characters often have strong archetypal qualities. They have combinations of fears and goals - character psychology - we've seen before. What are character archetypes, exactl...
April 24th, 2017
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Better mystery plots: 7 clues to writing mysteries
What are essential components of mystery plots besides suspicion and secrets? What can Arthur Conan Doyle and cult classic TV mystery series teach us about writing better mysteries? Read 7 clues for writing your own engrossing puzzler: How to write and develop mystery plots: Know differen...
April 20th, 2017
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