Show Notes
How and why should we avoid our character traveling? And how does Orson Scott Card not make blunders in his novels? Here is his tool for having a mistake-free novel. Also: here is why our scenes--almost all scenes--should have some action, and how to write that action. Support the show Buy the master class.
More from Essential Guide to Writing a Novel
Not just comedy novels but rather almost all novels will benefit from humor. Here is how to exaggerate to make readers laugh. Also, avoiding dialogue tag modifiers so that our dialogue doesn't become unintentionally funny. Here is a 20-episode master class on fiction writing—a start-to-finish course covering plot, characters, dialogue, scenes, sentence-level craft, and much more. Each episode is focused and about 30 minutes. The full class—all 20 episo...
We writers should give readers what they want, and readers like dialogue. Here is a technique for making our dialogue more engaging. Also: the ten most beautiful words in the English language. And: how to change telling to showing so the scene grips the reader. Support the show Buy the master class.
Among hundreds of fiction writing techniques, here is my favorite, and it involves weeping. Also, a review of a critical skill for us: controlling the point of view. Here is a 20-episode master class on fiction writing—a start-to-finish course covering plot, characters, dialogue, scenes, sentence-level craft, and much more. Each episode is focused and about 30 minutes. The full class—all 20 episodes—is available now for a one-time price of forty-nine dollars. If y...
Thomas Cullen writes, "the brains of skilled writers are wired over many years to mimic the rhythms, structures, patterns and prose of their favorite authors.” We can learn lovely rhythms by reading famous fiction passages. And: how to overcome the possible grind of writing the middle of the novel. Support the show Buy the master class.
Do we have what it takes to write a novel? Here are six questions we can ask ourselves that'll shed light on the issue. Also, when should a writer make an exception to a tried-and-true rule of writing? Here is a 20-episode master class on fiction writing—a start-to-finish course covering plot, characters, dialogue, scenes, sentence-level craft, and much more. Each episode is focused and about 30 minutes. The full class—all 20 episodes—is available now for a one-ti...