Daniel Arenson, Fantasy Author - Kindle and iPad Fantasy Novels, Character Motivation © 2007 Daniel Arenson I previously wrote about creating great characters who stand out. In this article, I’d like to drill deeper into the subject of characterization and discuss what motivates our characters. To create powerful drama, characters should be motivated by deep, personal needs. Even if you’re writing a story about politics and international intrigue, I suggest that your characters be motivated by jealousy, love, or hate. Let’s look at an example. Suppose I’m writing a thriller about a British spy in the Soviet Union. Ivanov is prepared to authorize an invasion of a small Asian country aligned with Britain, and Anya holds his battle plans. But can we crank the drama up a notch? Suppose that Hathaway and Ivanov were old classmates in Oxford. Now, years later, Hathaway wants to get back at Ivanov. Ivanov, meanwhile, prepares for war. What about Anya? I began with a story about war and international intrigue. Enjoyed these writing tips?
Son of Citation Machine Tips for writing a good paper: Common Grammatical Mistakes: Sentence Fragments These are incomplete sentences. Remember that ALL SENTENCES need a subject and a verb.Example: She was an interesting talker. (This is a complete sentence.) A woman who had traveled all over the world and lived in 7 countries. Comma Errors Periods and commas go inside quotation marks.Example: I am consistently amazed by the TV show "The X-Files." Two sentences cannot be separated by a comma. Agreement Errors A subject must agree with or match the verb. But, while these examples are simple, some subject/verb agreements are not so easy to spot. She is one of those people who are never ready on time. In this case, the subject of the sentence is the word people instead of she. Organizational Tips: Methods Of Organizing Your Paper First, narrow down your topic into something manageable. Organizing before you write gives your ideas a structure to cling to; it allows you to articulate, analyze, and clarify your thoughts. The First Draft
Online - Thirty Tools for Writers [Author’s note: Of the many things I’ve written for the Poynter website, none has been as popular as my "Twenty Tools for Writers." This list has been quoted, cited, praised, debated, and repurposed by writers, editors, teachers, and other professionals who care about the craft. That folks find these tools useful gives me courage. As you can see, I’m very impressed with myself. At times it helps to think of writing as carpentry. Below is a list of 30 writing and revising tools. Sentences and Paragraphs 1. 2. 3. 4. Language 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. Effects 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. Structure 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. The Writing Life 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. This list contains tools, not rules. Tags: Writing tips and techniques
Creative Uses of Magic in Your Fantasy Story Creative Uses of Magic in Your Fantasy Story by Philip Martin Return to Speculative Fiction · Print/Mobile-Friendly Version How can you create an interesting form of magic for your fantasy story? Will magic, in your fiction, be like a tool? A technique? Or will you have several forms, as Tolkien did in The Lord of the Rings, where the dark forces use magic like a bulldozer to gain power, while the elves have a wonderful nature that is magic simply because everything they do is "more effortless, more quick, more complete" than the abilities of those around them? In fantasy fiction, magic is the central nervous system. Magic doesn't need to be plausible, but it has to work well. 1. Magic needs to work according to firm rules. Everything should be set in place long in advance. 2. For dramatic impact, as important as the powers of magic are its limitations. In the Harry Potter books, Harry's nemesis, Lord Voldemort, has great powers, but even so, those powers are limited. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.
Turkey City Lexicon – A Primer for SF Workshops Edited by Lewis Shiner Second Edition by Bruce Sterling Introduction by Lewis Shiner This manual is intended to focus on the special needs of the science fiction workshop. Having an accurate and descriptive critical term for a common SF problem makes it easier to recognize and discuss. This guide is intended to save workshop participants from having to “reinvent the wheel” (see section 3) at every session. The terms here were generally developed over a period of many years in many workshops. Introduction (II) by Bruce Sterling People often ask where science fiction writers get their ideas. Workshops come in many varieties — regional and national, amateur and professional, formal and frazzled. But the workshopping experience does not require any shepherding by experts. The general course of action in the modern SF workshop (known as the “Milford system”) goes as follows. No doubt a very interesting book could be written about science fiction in which the writing itself played no part. Fuzz
Synonyms for words commonly used in student's writing Amazing- incredible, unbelievable, improbable, fabulous, wonderful, fantastic, astonishing, astounding, extraordinary Anger- enrage, infuriate, arouse, nettle, exasperate, inflame, madden Angry- mad, furious, enraged, excited, wrathful, indignant, exasperated, aroused, inflamed Answer- reply, respond, retort, acknowledge Ask- question, inquire of, seek information from, put a question to, demand, request, expect, inquire, query, interrogate, examine, quiz Awful- dreadful, terrible, abominable, bad, poor, unpleasant Beautiful - pretty, lovely, handsome, attractive, gorgeous, dazzling, splendid, magnificent, comely, fair, ravishing, graceful, elegant, fine, exquisite, aesthetic, pleasing, shapely, delicate, stunning, glorious, heavenly, resplendent, radiant, glowing, blooming, sparkling Begin - start, open, launch, initiate, commence, inaugurate, originate Brave - courageous, fearless, dauntless, intrepid, plucky, daring, heroic, valorous, audacious, bold, gallant, valiant, doughty, mettlesome
How to becoming a better writer by Stephen King If you want to learn how to write better where do you go? Well, you can take a creative writing course. Or read the books, biographies and studies of men and women hailed as literary geniuses throughout history. For today, I’ve chosen to take some advice from one the most popular fiction writers of the last few decades: Stephen King. Now, great sales figures aren’t always an indication of greatness in any field. But it probably means that the creator knows what s/he is doing and what works. , The Long Walk or The Running Man – are really good reads (and sometimes even greater films I’ve learned/been reminded about these seven tips by rereading King’s memoir/how-to-write book On Writing – highly recommended for many good insights into writing and a writer’s life – and by a whole bunch of his novels I’ve sacrificed sleep to keep on reading. 1. Don’t waste your reader’s time with too much back-story, long intros or longer anecdotes about your life. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. How do you find time to read more?
World Building 101 World Building 101 by Lee Masterson You are the ultimate creator of your fictional world. No matter where or when your story is set, regardless of what events unfold, and despite the characters you introduce to your readers, they are all products of your unique imagination. "But I write romance set in the present time," I hear you cry. It doesn't matter whether your story is set in 16th century Middle Europe, or the 28th century Altarian star-system, your story still belongs in a world created entirely by you. The good news is you still get your chance to put on your megalomaniac's hat and play God! Regardless of where (or when) your story is set, YOU have decided your characters' destinies for them. But there's a whole lot more to world-building than simply creating a nice backdrop for your characters to parade against. In short, the fictional world your characters live in must seem plausible to your readers. Ask yourself these things about your characters and your story: -
Fantasy Clichés to Avoid - What Beginners Do in Fantasy Fiction Fantasy Fiction Clichés to Avoid - What Beginners Do in Fantasy Fiction [First, my profound apologies to the vast majority of readers who don't steal content, but I have to state the following. This article and all content on this website belongs to Val Kovalin, copyright © Obsidianbookshelf.com, except where noted. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without written permission from Val Kovalin is strictly prohibited. Here at Obsidianbookshelf.com, I always have to keep these clichés in mind. Architecture.An historic castle is sometimes really tiny! In reality, those castles and keeps were sometimes built small to be easy to defend. Appearance of character.Keep it to a minimum.I'm all for not describing your character at all, and letting your readers fill in their own picture. I realize that writers of romance or epic fantasy will probably ignore my advice. Characters – EthnicityWhy is everyone a Northern European? For example, I have a sergeant. Read Tolkien.
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