By Sue Weems The best writing teacher is the world around you — if you only learn to pay attention. Ready to develop your writer’s eye? Here’s how to see the stories all around you. What are you learning? Sometimes it feels like I can’t learn things fast enough. I’ve been working to improve my […]
By Joslyn Chase To build characters that strike a chord within readers, you need to craft someone who feels realistic, someone your readers can relate to because their motivations and behaviors are modeled on the way real people think and act. As a writer, have you ever thought about using a sort of psychotherapy to develop […]
By David Corbett Source: Writer’s Digest In a genre that has historically lacked diversity, six writers of color discuss overcoming the challenge of breaking in and the current climate for crime, mystery and thriller fiction. “It can be lonely. … And there have been times when I’ve retreated to my hotel room, emotionally exhausted from […]
By Mindy McGinnis Source: Writer’s Digest In crafting fiction across genres, a perfect love interest is a tempting trap—and a trope. Writing flawed characters, even the one your protagonist is head-over-heels for, is a must. Here’s how to make the object of your character’s affection believable and lovable while avoiding clichés. Love interests aren’t restricted […]
By Andy Martin Source: Independent “There’s no way you can teach this stuff,” he said. “It just cannot be taught. You’ve either got it or not.” Which was ironic, considering that the “he” in this case was a well-known poet/novelist and the “stuff” (meant in a good way) he was supposed to be “tutoring” was […]
By Sophie Caldecott Source: Darling Magazine A magical land at the back of an old wardrobe; a dystopian future where all humans are bred in test tubes and assigned a rigid place in society; an orphaned teenager who is repeatedly saved from death because his parents’ love cast a protective spell over him as a […]
By William Kenower Source: Huffington Post Learning the craft of writing is one thing. There are lots of classes and books that can help you understand both the fundamentals and the nuance of story, dialogue, character, and description. If you don’t like books and classes, you can also just write as much as you can […]
By William Kenower Source: Huffington Post Like many writers I know, I had big dreams for myself when I began my first book. I imagined myself winning all the usual awards, appearing at the top of bestseller lists, and being invited to speak to thousands of people. I was embarrassed to share the specifics of […]
By Dianna Booher Source: Huffington Post No, it’s not just you. You’re not just imagining that half the blogs and books you’ve read in the last few years have urged you to learn to tell a great story. Here’s why. Stories make things stick. Professional speakers, CEOs, entertainers, trainers, and leaders have learned that data, […]
By Idrees Patel Source: Writer’s Treasure So you now know about the creative writing skills, and want to master them too, but don’t know how? Not to worry. These creative writing skills are easy to grasp, easy to know, and easy to master. (Note: Of course for every person these skills may not be easy to […]