Establishing the Right Point of View Establishing the Right Point of View: How to Avoid "Stepping Out of Character" by Marg Gilks Return to Characters, Viewpoint, and Names · Print/Mobile-Friendly Version "Dalquist was shaking with rage, tears streaking down her face. 'Get out,' she whispered. Then she lunged for the other woman, shrieking, 'Get out! Yikes! If you can see what's wrong with this excerpt, congratulations. What's wrong with the above excerpt? Paragraph one is ambiguous. Every scene should have only one POV character, and everything must be filtered through that POV character's perceptions. But, isn't it so much easier just to tell the reader what character X is thinking, rather than trying to show it in ways the POV character (and thus, the reader) can see and understand? Let's look at that again, and we'll see a hint: isn't it so much easier just to tell the reader what character X is thinking, rather than trying to show it in ways the POV character can see and understand? Yup: "show, don't tell."
Gothic, Horror, and Mysteries: YA Fiction for Fans of Edgar Allan Poe It’s the time of year where readers start asking for creepy and the supernatural, and teens flock to stories of gothic horror and murder mysteries. There’s no shortage of young adult fiction in these genres and there’s even quite the list of Poe-inspired works. This is a list to satisfy those with an appetite for the macabre or mysterious! Edgar Allan Poe is often beloved by middle school students. As far as assigned reading in school goes, short stories like “The Tell-tale Heart” or poems like “The Raven” or “Annabel Lee” were some of my personal favorites that even my less bookish classmates enjoyed. These YA novels were inspired by the works of Poe. YA Novels Inspired by the Works of Poe The Masque of the Red Death by Bethany Griffin A steampunk retelling of The Masque of the Red Death. The Fall by Bethany Griffin A new novel is that reimagines The Fall of the House of Usher. Ashes on the Waves by Mary Lindsay A paranormal gothic novel based on the poem Annabel Lee. Nevermore by Kelly Creagh
Creating a Realistic Fantasy World by Penny Ehrenkranz Did you ever wonder how David Eddings, Terry Brooks, Orson Scott Card, Stephen King, Piers Anthony, or J. R. R. Tolkien created their worlds? Creating your fantasy world means building a world based upon reality and making sure that your reader knows the rules of that world. J. How do you go about creating a reality that readers will accept as readily? Defining the Physical World Defining your locale can be a good place to start. Orson Scott Card began his fantasy novel, Hart's Hope, by designing a map. Instead of a map (or in addition to it), you may prefer to jot down descriptions of places you will need to use in your story. Defining the Rules of Magic Magic is often the key in fantasy. In Terry Brooks' Magic Kingdom of Landover series, wizards and witches have innate power. Your society will be structured around the question of who has magic and who doesn't. Piers Anthony's Apprentice Adept series offers are two parallel worlds. Defining a Consistent Reality
The Art of Description: Eight Tips to Help You Bring Your Settings to Life The Art of Description: Eight Tips to Help You Bring Your Settings to Life by Anne Marble Return to Setting & Description · Print/Mobile-Friendly Version Description is something that gets in the way of many authors. Why? Well, because it's so darn hard to write. And no wonder. If you're not very accomplished at writing description, then sometimes you might want to avoid writing it. At the same time, some writers err in the other direction, including too much description. How bad is bad description? Avoid Huge Lumps of Description In the past, authors could get away with including long, detailed descriptions in their stories. Unless they're seeking out writers known for lyrical descriptive passages, today's readers wouldn't put up with that sort of thing. Of course there are authors who, even in today's marketplace, can get away with pages and pages of description. Make Description an Active Part of the Story How did I come up with that line? Describe What Your Characters Would Notice
Quick Story Idea Generator Stories The theme of this story: dark quest. The main characters: unbalanced hero and humble secret agent. The theme of this story: light-hearted horror. The theme of this story: metaphorical adventure. The theme of this story: noir slice-of-life. The theme of this story: parody revenge. The theme of this story: serious adventure. The theme of this story: surreal romance. The theme of this story: wacky slice-of-life. The theme of this story: weird revenge. The theme of this story: weird thriller. Mayn't Change the World Chapter 1: Dernière Danse, a puella magi madoka magica/魔法少女まどか★マギカ fanfic Dernière Danse - Last Dance The curtain rose (the fog came in). The witch's barrier bled into the landscape (below the stage, the conductor lifted his hands). Her heart thumped erratically in her chest (her face was set in a determined scowl). 'Again.' Across the stage from her was Madoka (Walpurgis). They met in the middle. Graceful, dizzying circles, and Madoka's dress billowed out as Homura raised her arm to spin her (fire billowed from Walpurgis as Homura leapt across buildings to destroy her). Walpurgis screeched (Madoka laughed) in response. Her heart lurched painfully and though she smiled through it, she felt trapped. 'Let them deal with it,' came the insidious thought. The brisk pace of the music sought to consume her, arms straining as she loaded the dance with as much force as she could muster (dozens of AT-4s lugged over her shoulders, even more lifted by her magic, she was an army of one). After all, what would they have done in her place? But she cared too much. Slowly, Normal…
Themes & Things To Keep In Mind When Writing Fantasy Stories and Adventures » Daily Encounter This list is far from complete. It’s not even trying to be complete. It knows better than that. It just wants to be helpful and provide some inspiration here and there; you know, offer little suggestions that might lead to bigger ideas. (Especially by using the words offered as Wikipedia searches!) Feel free to make suggestions in the comments! Weather Natural: sunlight, rain, snow, hail, fog, humidity, moonlight, wind, smoke, clouds, shadows, overcast skies, clear skies, lightning, hurricanes, tornadoes, moon in sky during daytimeFantastic: summoned weather, unnatural coloration (eg. green fog) Terrain Changes Landmarks Natural: stone outcropping, lightening struck trees, large boulders, waterfallsArtificial: lone buildings (eg. towers, houses, barns), statues, signs/markers, border wallsFantastic: large skeletons (eg. dragons, giants) After-Effects of Events Tricks Cultures Mysticism Events Unfolding Harsh Situations fatigue, hunger, thirst, extreme temperaturesenemy territories (invading?
Magical World Builder By, Stephanie Cottrell Bryant <map name="admap78618" id="admap78618"><area href=" shape="rect" coords="0,0,468,60" title="" alt="" target="_blank" /></map><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="width:468px;border-style:none;background-color:#ffffff;"><tr><td><img src=" style="width:468px;height:60px;border-style:none;" usemap="#admap78618" alt="" /></td></tr><tr><td style="background-color:#ffffff;" colspan="1"><center><a style="font-size:10px;color:#0000ff;text-decoration:none;line-height:1.2;font-weight:bold;font-family:Tahoma, verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif;text-transform: none;letter-spacing:normal;text-shadow:none;white-space:normal;word-spacing:normal;" href=" target="_blank">Ads by Project Wonderful! The Magical World Builder's Guide is a tool for creating a fantasy universe.
Random Book Title Generator Hit a button to share with your friends Brought to You in League With... Leave a message for ANY other driver in the world, check your messages too! So funnny you'll ROFL, maybe PYP The best Comedic Wit in the world Put on your 3D Glasses & freak out! Random Movie Plot Script Generator Eye & Brain Melting Optical Illusions Your IP Address, spoken for the lazy Virtual Reality 3D Face Generator Other Sites & Ppl We Like Ripper's Oculus RiftVideo of the DaySausage DoggieNissan Figaro BlogUK Thunderstorm DetectorUK Bank Holiday DatesToy RayGun CollectorCool GadgetsUKDad Ukulele BlogWebcam DatabaseBaby Name DatabasaeHairyfriend Pet InfoBy Penny - jewellery from photos Strange Horizons, a weekly speculative fiction magazine The Witch's Knives by Margaret Ronald 17 October 2016 I am here to rescue my husband, she rehearsed in her head, trying to ignore how the red sap trickled through her hair and how the railroad ties sank and splintered underfoot. Podcast: The Witch's Knives by Margaret Ronald, read by Anaea Lay In this episode of the Strange Horizons podcast, editor Anaea Lay presents Margaret Ronald's "The Witch's Knives." Timothy by Philip Schweitzer 10 October 2016 She takes the usual accoutrements of a resurrection from a drawer in the night-stand: two damp cloths to go over Frances’s eyes, and a C# tuning fork to sound the life back into her. Podcast: Timothy by Philip Schweitzer, read by Anaea Lay In this episode of the Strange Horizons podcast, editor Anaea Lay presents Philip Schweitzer's "Timothy." Archived Fiction View nearly every story Strange Horizons has ever published in our Archive, thanks to the kindness of our authors who allow us to keep their material online. Top
10 Writing "Rules" We Wish More Science Fiction and Fantasy Authors Would Break Kinja is in read-only mode. We are working to restore service. I give a hearty Here Here for #4! Remember, the whole Trilogy+ got started when the publisher got fed up with the fact Tolkien wouldn't finish. The moment I see something like "Book One of the (insert name of place or magic item and latin number)ogy", I want to put the book down. Flagged Creating the Perfect Setting - Part I It was a dark and stormy night... This is one of the most ridiculed openings, not because once upon a time it didn't work, but because too many people have written their own version of it. And yet setting, the weather, landscape, the opening scene, can often lay out the feel and tone of a book brilliantly, and create an instant context, often a time-stamp, a fixed point which helps the reader find the correct emotional stance to absorb the work. The first I heard of the beach was in Bangkok, on the Khao San Road. Khao San Road was backpacker land. Note here that we don't just get setting but also information, some explicit, but a lot implicit. As David Lodge pointed out in The Art of Fiction, a distinctive sense of place was not always a feature of prose fiction. Unfortunately, the first thing some writers did was to overwhelm the reader with masses of descriptive detail, often using description only as a warm-up to the rest of the book. Fog everywhere. Writers have to think of setting.
Setting of a story — The Writer’s Craft The following exercises will allow you to create a rich, vibrant setting of a story, giving the reader the full vicarious experience. 1. Use the setting worksheet we have provided. Sit in a quiet place, close your eyes and imagine a particular setting for your scene. Using all of your senses visualize or experience everything that you see, hear, smell, taste, or touch. Make notes in the appropriate boxes. 2. You can do this in any setting-—the mall, the grocery store, a bar, a city street. 3. 4. 5. 6. Character ExercisesCreative Writing Exercises
Why Good Writers Sometimes Hire Ghosts Perhaps the most surprising fact about ghostwriters is that the people who hire them often write beautifully on their own. That's certainly true of my clients. Two of them are former English professors! Every one of them is exceptionally articulate, some commanding high fees on the public speaking circuit. A published ghostwriter improves your own chances of being published. Hiring a writer frees you to concentrate on promotion. Prior to the release of your book, a publisher would much rather see you engaged in building an advance audience than laboring over a word-processor. On paper, a skilled ghost may sound more like you than you do yourself. Most of my clients are great talkers. Ghostwriters are great listeners. With the possible exception of your mother, nobody hangs on your every word like a ghost. Two heads are better than one. When you work with a collaborator, don't be surprised if you hear yourself saying things you never knew you thought. It's more fun. Who are your clients?