Author Archives: Rob Bignell

What is your big, seemingly impossible, goal as writer? To write a nonfiction book? To publish a short story? List the steps you must take to achieve this vision. Now work on achieving each one of those smaller steps as you head toward your big goal. ______________ My name is Rob Bignell. I’m an affordable, professional editorContinue reading “Writing Inspiration: Set Steps for Your Goal”

The next time you write one of these words, you may want to back up and see if you’ve got it right. Knowing which part of speech you’re using will prove helpful. “Backup” as a single a word with no space or hyphen can be used either as an adjective (When Johnson got knocked out, theContinue reading “Get in Gear with Backup vs. Back Up vs. Back-up”

Perhaps the most profound conflict a character can face is coming into conflict with himself. Conflicts in which the protagonist faces off against other individuals or society often result in characters that represent ideals and concepts. But the character that first must deal with his own foibles to overcome a villain or oppressive values has learnedContinue reading “Strengthen Story with Man vs. Himself Conflict”

Science fiction stories typically arise from a novum, a scientifically plausible concept that is a “reality” in the tale. The novum might be an mechanical device like robot servants, artificial intelligence, or faster-than-light spacecraft; it also can be a hypothetical idea such as “The Earth is a scientific experiment run by aliens to determine the meaning ofContinue reading “5 Cool SciFi Novum Writing Prompts”

It’s easy to get it’s vs. its right – and your readers will appreciate its correct usage. “It’s” is a contraction for “it is”, as in It’s just like the one my father wore. (“It is just like the one my father wore.”) “Its” is the possessive form of “it”, as in The sun shined high overhead, its brightnessContinue reading “Get it right: Its vs. it’s”

When promoting your self-published book, consider offering additional valuable content. This tried-and-true technique can drive readers to a service you provide or to other books you are selling. Your book already is valuable content. But after the reader finishes it, you only can hope that the reader takes the next step of hiring you for theContinue reading “Offer Valuable Content to Increase Sales”

“It is perfectly okay to write garbage – as long as you edit brilliantly.” – C. J. Cherryh “PROOF-READER, n. A malefactor who atones for making your writing nonsense by permitting the compositor to make it unintelligible.” – Ambrose Bierce, “The Devil’s Dictionary” “I believe more in the scissors than I do in the pencil.” –Continue reading “Five Great Quotations about Editing”

If blocked while writing the opening of your story, approach the story sideways. Start in the middle or with a scene that is more fully formed in your head. A sculptor, after all, doesn’t have to start with the feet or the crown of the head but can begin at any portion of the statue. HeContinue reading “Writing Inspiration: Approach Story Sideways”