Fictional Culture The way I build worlds is by collecting cool stuff from the history, myth and people around me. I blend these details with my own imagination, and create my own cultures. Culture is a vital part to realistic worldbuilding. Normally there are a few particular cultures that interest me at a given time. I read whatever I can find about them, their environment, their traditions and their myths. In the long term, there is nothing more inspiring and challenging than visiting foreign cultures yourself (especially if you can get far beyond your comfort zone to do it). But reading (non-fiction, myth/legend/fairytales, as well as the classics like Dune and Lord of the Rings) and watching documentaries/films can get you a long way toward filling up on your inspiration tank. It’s important to remember: Culture in fiction isn’t a rod to get a point across. What is the most important ideal to this culture as a whole? Like this: Like Loading...
Truths About Fiction The following essay was previewed in the class that Stephen Graham Jones taught for LitReactor, Your Life Story Is Five Pages Long. 1. The reader should never have to work to figure out the basics of your story. Who’s whose wife or husband, what the time period is if that matters, why these people have broken into this house, and on and on, just the basic, ground-level facts about your story. If you don’t relay that stuff up-front, as quickly and efficiently as possible (and please don’t be fancy), then your story becomes a game of three-card-monty, with you hiding information under this or that shell, trying to keep everything moving fast enough that nobody knows what’s going on. Which is to say your story becomes about the reading of the story, not the experience the story is trying to get the reader to engage. 2. Meaning you don’t have to lay every last detail of every last thing out. The best writers are the ones who can cover the most distance with the fewest words. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.
the basic plots in literature Example Questions That Can Be Answered Using This FAQ I’ve heard there are only 7 (or 5, 20, 36…) basic plots (or themes) in all of literature. What are they? People often say that there are only a certain number of basic plots in all of literature, and that any story is really just a variation on these plots. 1 Plot | 3 Plots | 7 Plots | 20 Plots | 36 Plots 1 Plot: Attempts to find the number of basic plots in literature cannot be resolved any more tightly than to describe a single basic plot. 3 Plots: Foster-Harris. "’Type A, happy ending’"; Foster-Harris argues that the "Type A" pattern results when the central character (which he calls the "I-nitial" character) makes a sacrifice (a decision that seems logically "wrong") for the sake of another 7 Plots 7 basic plots as remembered from second grade by IPL volunteer librarian Jessamyn West: [wo]man vs. nature [wo]man vs. 20 Plots: Tobias, Ronald B. 20 Master Plots. 36 Plots Polti, Georges.
20 Tips For Writing a Captivating Short Story (Part 1) by Mindy Halleck Today, as I edit, trim, cut, and otherwise obliterate a short story I wrote that ended up to be 8,000 words, but needs to be 5,000 words, I am reminded of this quote: “Not that the story need be long, but it will take a long while to make it short.” -Henry David Thoreau Wise man. I thought I’d share some editing tips this morning, not so much for you as for me. I will share these tips in three concurring post over the next two weeks. Anyway . . . drum roll . . . . Writing short stories is a great way to investigate diverse genres, characters, settings, and voices. Here are some editing tips that hopefully will keep you from banging your head on the editing desk. Watch your word count. Check out part 2 for the rest of the tips! Mindy Halleck is an award winning author who lives in the Pacific Northwest. Like this: Like Loading...
33 Ways to Write Stronger Characters (and why they should be your #1 concern) — She's Novel 21. Find their gender. In most cases, your character's gender matters less than you would think. Just because you had a male protagonist in mind doesn't mean that they would be the best choice for your novel, or vice versa. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. Who were they in the beginning? That is your character's story. Not 32 individual statements, but one incredible story of was and is and will become. Feeling inspired to strengthen your own characters? How to Write a Plot Outline: Infographic Learning how to write a plot outline is an essential skill if you want to become a prolific author. Whether you find the distant target of reaching a substantial word length or the creation of a satisfying, forward-moving plot daunting, if you write a plot outline for your novel in advance you will have a blueprint that you can alter if necessary as you go. Our previous post on the subject suggested 7 ways you can outline your novel. We’ve since converted this information into the handy infographic below. Save it, pin it, or share it with writers you know who could benefit from having a clear structure in place before they begin writing their first drafts. Click image to view full size Once you have your outline written, the matter of writing your first draft remains. The Hero’s Journey 10 Rules for Writing First Drafts Over at Copyblogger, Demian Farnworth put together this poster that gives the 10 cardinal rules for getting the first rough draft of your manuscript finished.
8 Rules of Writing Historical Fiction Research After researching and writing my novel Orphan #8—which was published by William Morrow in 2015 and is the August Target Club Pick and an Indie Next Great Read—I put together this list of eight rules for historical fiction research. For each I’ll give you an example of how I applied that rule of research to writing my novel. This guest post is by Kim van Alkemade. Van Alkemade is the author of the historical fiction novel Orphan #8 (William Morrow). Her creative nonfiction essays have appeared in literary journals including Alaska Quarterly Review, CutBank, and So To Speak. 1. In 2007, I took some brief notes about a woman doctor who X-rayed eight children at a Jewish orphanage. 2. You don’t have to be an academic or a librarian to use archival materials. [Understanding Book Contracts: Learn what’s negotiable and what’s not.] 3. Evocative historical writing is made up of more than facts and figures. 4. [Want to know the standard word counts for different genres? 5. 6. 7. 8. Brian A.
How I Went From Writing 2,000 Words a Day to 10,000 Words a Day When I started writing The Spirit War (Eli novel #4), I had a bit of a problem. I had a brand new baby and my life (like every new mother's life) was constantly on the verge of shambles. I paid for a sitter four times a week so I could get some writing time, and I guarded these hours like a mama bear guards her cubs - with ferocity and hiker-mauling violence. But (of course), things didn't work out like that. Needless to say, I felt like a failure. When I told people at ConCarolinas that I'd gone from writing 2k to 10k per day, I got a huge response. So, once and for all, here's the story of how I went from writing 500 words an hour to over 1500, and (hopefully) how you can too: A quick note: There are many fine, successful writers out there who equate writing quickly with being a hack. Drastically increasing your words per day is actually pretty easy, all it takes is a shift in perspective and the ability to be honest with yourself (which is the hardest part). Update! Side 2: Time
How to Write Articles and Essays Quickly and Expertly Translations: Belorussian Introduction: Four Types of Discursive Writing From time to time people express amazement at how I can get so much done. I, of course, aware of the many hours I have idled away doing nothing, demur. It feels like nothing special; I don't work harder, really, than most people. Nonetheless, these people do have a point. Part of it is tenacity. Begin by writing - in your head, at least - your second paragraph (that would be the one you just read, above). But how do you write this paragraph? You have more options because there are four types of discursive writing. These are your choices of types of article or essay: Argument: convinces someone of something Explanation: tells why something happened instead of something else Definition: states what a word or concept means Description: identifies properties or qualities of things An argument is a collection of sentences (known formally as 'propositions') intended to convince the reader that something is he case. Summary
The Right Way and the Wrong Way to Foreshadow a Story Part 11 of The Do’s and Don’ts of Storytelling According to Marvel Really, your job as an author can be summed up in one simple word: control. It is your responsibility to control readers’ experience of your story, to make them think and feel very specific things. One of the most important and powerful ways in which you do this is by understanding how to properly foreshadow a story. Accurate foreshadowing, wielded with just the right amount of subtlety and clarity, creates a seamless and fulfilling experience for readers. It tells them what to expect, then rewards them for those expectations. On the other hand, sloppy or forced foreshadowing will leave readers feeling either (best case scenario) confused or (duck and cover!) Unluckily, the balance between the two can be a very fine line to walk, and even storytellers as aware and excellent as Joss Whedon can miss the mark. Why Avengers: The Age of Ultron Makes Me Very, Very Grouchy In short, this is how not to foreshadow a story. 1. 2. 3.
MASTER LIST of Physical Descriptions! | Bryn Donovan Sometimes it can be hard to find the right words to describe individual facial features, faces in general, bodies, and even hair. I’m hoping this post will be a good resource for describing the looks of characters in your story. Before I get to the long list, I have a couple of notes and words of advice: When you’re in a character’s POV, their attitude toward another character’s appearance may change over the course of the story as their relationship to that character changes. Don’t rely too much on attractiveness or ugliness to make me as a reader like or dislike a character. Some of these phrases are more expected than others, and whether you care is up to you. Okay, here we go! Eyes – General I’m focusing here on physical descriptions rather than emotional expressions, though there’s a little crossover. large small narrow sharp squinty round wide-set close-set deep-set sunken bulging protruding wide hooded heavy-lidded bedroom bright sparkling glittering flecked dull bleary rheumy cloudy red-rimmed beady birdlike