Writing Tips

Some of the Worst Advice I Have Seen for Writers

Writing experts abound. I don’t claim to be one of them. My articles pass along things I have learned during my 40+ years of writing…

Using Your Personal Experiences

You broke up with your boyfriend/girlfriend, got divorced, were diagnosed with a terrible disease, won first prize in a contest, were fired from a job,…

More on Dialogue

People talk. So do characters in novels and other works of fiction. And one of the most important things you can do to make reading…

Switching Genres

There are two times in your life as a writer when you will very possibly find yourself switching from one genre to another. Embrace the…

Write for Yourself or the Market

These days, writers face a choice. Do we write for ourselves or for the market? Only you can answer that. And a factor in making…

Beware the “Experts”!

Lots of people are being touted these days as writing “experts.” And you can easily tell what their latest advice is by the posts you…

Revisiting Ghosts of Writings Past

Over the years, even published writers who are successful at selling their books build up “ghosts of writings past” – bits and pieces that they…

When a Minor Character Becomes Major

You’re typing along about a scene with a character that you intend to have a minor role in the story or novel and suddenly realize…

Publisher & Agent Fiction Genres Defined

Genre can decide the fate of your work of fiction (short story, novella, novel, poetry), so paying a bit of attention to what it is…

Point of View

In writing fiction, you’re telling a story from a particular perspective. That’s a point of view (POV). The point of view you use matters. It…

Types of Editing for Your Work of Fiction

Your hard work as a writer of a work of fiction deserves proper attention before you take it to the next level – publication. In…

Some Thoughts on Dialogue

Whether you’re writing a novel, novella, short story, or screenplay, dialogue is an important feature. In fact, it can make or break you. Stiff dialogue…

Killing Your Characters

There is a hierarchy among your characters – main, secondary, occasional, and cameos. Some are killable, and others aren’t, or so many literary “experts” say.…

More on Characters

What’s a work of fiction without at least one character? Nothing. Bupkis. Nada. Zip. Zilch. So, let’s dive into what a character is. Seems obvious,…

When Life Interferes with Your Writing

Not everyone has the luxury of being able to write full time. Even full-time writers can’t write full time. Life interferes. The key for you,…

Do You Need Social Media?

We authors need to be seen “out there,” i.e., on the internet, particularly on social media, or do we? What seemed to be a no-brainer…

5 New Year’s Resolutions for Writers

The New Year 2022 is here. It’s a time when people make resolutions to lose weight, be nicer, or some other personal improvement. But resolutions…

Fitting Holidays in Fiction

On this Winter Solstice, the thought of fitting holidays into fiction comes to mind. If you’re writing a story about a particular holiday, the whole…

Getting the “Saids” Right

A challenge for fiction writers when dealing with conversations is something I call the “saids.” All those “he said” and “she said” after every line…

When Inspiration Hits

Inspiration can hit anytime, anywhere, and it usually comes at some of the most inopportune moments. These include when you’re lying back trying to sleep,…

When Using Passive Voice Works

Yes, you can use passive voice! I know, I know, the “experts” say otherwise. But like all rules, it’s general, meaning that you the author…

Formatting Advice for Self-Publishing from a Successful Author

Dear readers: I have had to remove this article, having discovered that the person I was quoting here is a bit – well, the best…

Crafting Your Characters

You have a great plot. You’ve written the perfect opening where Billy kills Johnny – an opening that will hook a prospective reader instantly. (See…

Thoughts on Finding Readers

Authors need readers, but finding them can be a real slog through the mire. If you are like me, your most enjoyable moments are when…

How Do You Get Started?

Just as some painters are daunted by that blank canvas or sheet of paper, we writers can be daunted staring at a blank sheet of…

Let Your Social Media Reflect You

Writers are encouraged by publishers and literary agents to have a social media account (usually one of the mainstream sites). This isn’t just a casual…

Infusing Your Many Talents into Your Writing

You can infuse aspects of your own talents into your writing, applying them to various characters in your story or novel as a way to…

Thoughts on Writing

We writers are, if nothing else, true individuals, and in my view it is the main reason for us writing, but that can be a…

Conversation vs. Text

Conversation in fiction is something we writers have to handle differently in several ways than the fiction text itself. Grammar Grammar in conversation is looser…

Style vs. Knowledge

I recently tried to read a new novel where the author had avoided using quotation marks. After reading about half a chapter, I stopped. Trying…

Inspirations

Readers often wonder what inspires an author. I certainly do. For example, I wonder what inspired an author to write about a ghostly gunslinger dead…

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