Category Archives: Uncategorized

…a good writer should draw the reader in by starting in the middle of the story with a hook… Once you have the reader hooked, you can write whatever you want as you slowly reel them in. When you do your research write down whatever interests you. Whatever stimulates your imagination. Whatever seems important. AContinue reading “Great Writing Quotes by Author Roland Smith”

You’ve written a first draft of your novel or short story, but reading it over, it feels like a mess! Even worse, you’re a little overwhelmed about exactly how to fix it. Here are seven great tips to help you get started on revising your manuscript. Click the linked title for the full article: • YouContinue reading “7 Great Tips for Revising Your Manuscript”

Among the most common mistakes I see when editing novice writers’ manuscripts is the use of redundant words. A redundancy exists when the modifying words aren’t needed because they say exactly what the word being modified implies. For example, “rich heiress” is redundant as an heiress by definition is rich. Writer Samuel Delaney recommends a simpleContinue reading “Delete Redundancies for Tighter Manuscript”

Books are the quietest and most constant of friends; they are the most accessible and wisest of counselors, and the most patient of teachers. The finest language is mostly made up of simple unimposing words. No story is the same to us after a lapse of time; or rather we who read it are noContinue reading “Great Writing Quotes by Author Charles W. Eliot”

A person is a fool to become a writer. His only compensation is absolute freedom. He has no master except his own soul, and that, I am sure, is why he does it. For me, the pleasure of writing comes with inventing stories. When you’re writing a book, it’s rather like going on a veryContinue reading “Great Writing Quotes by Author Roald Dahl”

You have to figure out who the right person is to tell the story. And often, people who are very self-aware will only sound as if they are pontificating if they tell the story. You put a character out there and you’re in their power. You’re in trouble if they’re in yours. Italics provide aContinue reading “Great Writing Quotes by Author Ann Beattie”

Read a thousand books, and your words will flow like a river. Poetry is on earth to make you serene, not corrupt your mind, thoughts, or emotions I write a thousand words a day. The greatest calling of all is to have a literary life. ______________ My name is Rob Bignell. I’m an affordable, professional editorContinue reading “Great Writing Quotes by Author Lisa See”

Among the big mistakes novice writers make is they don’t allow their protagonist to solve the story’s central problem. A story always is structured around the main character overcoming some conflict that sets the tale in motion; this is the central problem. The bulk of the story focuses on how our hero attempts to resolve thatContinue reading “Your Protagonist Must Solve the Story’s Problem”

Though your story may have reached its climax, the tale isn’t over yet. The author also should briefly detail the effects that the climax has on the characters. This section of the story is known as the falling action. It’s what happens to the main character as he descends the mountain that he has spent theContinue reading “Plotting Your Story: Falling Action and Denouement”