Writing Tips
(Each Spring, Summer, Winter, and Fall!)Collected for sale as downloads, wherever ebooks are sold.
- Coincidentally...
The uses and abuses of coincidence
- Becoming a Hero
Story structure points 9 & 10
- Climbing Up to Kaboom:
Story structure points 7 & 8
- Rise up & Commit:
Story structure points 5 & 6
- Foiled Plans:
Story structure points 3 & 4
- Lights, Camera, Kickoff:
Story structure points 1 & 2
- Fixing the Most Common Intermediate Mistake:
How Scene/Sequel structure forces your protagonist to become active.
- The Most Common Intermediate Mistake:
Inactive protagonists
- The Art & Necessity of Critique (Part 3):
Size Matters
- Set up & Pay Off:
Creating more emotional impact in your story.
- A POV Footnote:
How many beginner mistakes can be avoided by writing in close 3rd person
- Single Spy to a Teeming Horde:
Point of View, Part Two
- Tense Persons:
Point of View, Part One
- Villains:
Because a good bad guy is the author's best friend
- High Concept:
Whether your plot or your premise is stronger, what that means, and why it matters
- Scoring in the Elevator:
All I know about writing a good two sentence pitch
- Show and Tell:
The proper uses of summary
- Taking out The Trash:
How to dig out your unique writer's voice
- Tale of Two Synopsises:
More on writing a synopsis that works
- Rising to the Occasion:
The climax of your novel
- Middle-of-the-Novel Mud:
How to winch your way out and stay out
- Doghouse on Malibu Beach:
What you should, and shouldn't, put in the first five pages of your manuscript
- Taking away the "Easy" Button:
Bell's three rules for writing about magic
- Pitching to the Pros:
What you can (and can't) expect if you ask someone to evaluate your writing, and what kind of sample you should offer them
- Hunting for an agent:
Shotgun or target pistol
- Playing for Higher Stakes:
Why your dog is more important than the universe
- Exploding Writing Myths:
Some things "they" say that might be true for them but not for you
- Are you the
next American Idol?:
Some things to think about before you decide to self-publish your book
- A Time to Write:
How to phrase your New Year's resolution properly
- TV or Not TV isn't the Question:
Why we don't care what kids do instead of reading
- What Colour Hat Does Your Universe Wear?
- How Big a Hammer?:
Is it important for the reader to understand your theme?
- The Irrational Optimism of Writers:
Why this particular form of insanity is a good thing
- The Pesky Typo Hunt:
Why you should take the trouble to track them down and eliminate them before they can breed
- A Point of E-tiquette:
Does your T-shirt have holes in it
- Making your reader believe
Whether he wants to or not!
- The Art and Necessity of Critique (Part
2):
How to give and take criticism without coming apart at the seams
- The Art and Necessity of Critique (Part 1):
How to find (or create) a writers’ critique group
- Writing the Other:
writing from the viewpoint of the opposite gender
- Beating the Evil TV:
The most valuable tip I’ll ever give you -- and it’s short too!
- Badge & Handcuffs:
Writing with Authority
- The editor is Never Wrong, Mostly:
Well, hardly ever
- Do You Want a Cookie?:
The question of revising on spec
- But What do the Trees Say?:
Or, the unimportance of worldbuilding
- Writing the dread synopsis
- Writing children's books vs. adult books
