I, personally, am trash for tropes and believe they make the world of fiction go ’round. But love ’em or hate ’em, there’s something about holiday tropes that hit a little extra. This article is dubbed “holiday” as it centers on the tropes we often see in rom-coms around the winter holidays. But I willContinue reading “15 Holiday Tropes + More”
Tag Archives: writing resources
When A Plotter Goes Pantsing
How Your Writing Style Can Impact Your Writing No, I did not spend November running amuck around my peers pulling down their pants. However, I did spend this past NaNoWriMo doing something that might have been just as uncomfortable. I wrote a story by discovery writing. I have always self-declared my writing style as aContinue reading “When A Plotter Goes Pantsing”
The Horrors of Vanity Publishing – With Guest Author Shelly Connor
As we say goodbye to spooky season, many of us are saying hello to NaNoWriMo. It’s a true measure of commitment and endurance to write a novel in one month, but sadly that is only the first step. Once you have written your novel, you have to move on to editing, and then figure outContinue reading “The Horrors of Vanity Publishing – With Guest Author Shelly Connor”
11 Most Common World-Building Mistakes & How to Avoid Them
When creating a whole new world, your goal is to build something that’s unforgettable! Shining, shimmering, splendid, should just be the tip of the iceberg. It can be a lot of fun to dream up ideas about alien spacecraft or magical laws. World-building is an opportunity to let our imagination run rampant and go BIG!Continue reading “11 Most Common World-Building Mistakes & How to Avoid Them”
Add Tension and Build Suspense with Try/Fail Cycles
In the first imaginings of our stories, we often have an end goal in mind. Character X is put into situation Y and comes out changed (whether that’s for better or for worse depends on whether it’s a positive or negative character arc). Our story would be rather short if the goal you set forContinue reading “Add Tension and Build Suspense with Try/Fail Cycles”
Word Choice – How Anglo-Saxon vs. Latinate origin words can impact your writing
This article is not intended to be a grammar lesson. Instead, I want this to call attention to something I found fascinating. Since researching word origins, it has educated my word choice while writing to have a stronger intention. I strongly advocate writing with intention. It’s the same way I believe you need to understandContinue reading “Word Choice – How Anglo-Saxon vs. Latinate origin words can impact your writing”
10 Reasons Why Writing a Novel is Like Running a Marathon
Happy November! This means we are just kicking off National Novel Writing Month. If somehow you’re unfamiliar despite my preptober posts last month, it is when insane people, myself included, participate in this annual event to write a novel (50,0000 words) in one month. It’s truly a test of endurance and motivation. In tandem withContinue reading “10 Reasons Why Writing a Novel is Like Running a Marathon”
Preptober Week Four: Organization and Time Management – With Guest Author Erin Thomson
Ready or not, Prep-tober is wrapping up and NaNoWriMo is upon us. We have created our plot outlines, made character info sheets, and brainstormed worlds and extra details. What’s left is organizing yourself to ensure NaNo success! This week, we have guest Author Erin Thompson providing useful insights, including ways to psych yourself up andContinue reading “Preptober Week Four: Organization and Time Management – With Guest Author Erin Thomson”
Preptober Week Three: World Building and Extras
So far, we have focused our preptober efforts on the dual arm of plot and character, but those are not the only two considerations while planning a story. This week is to prep all the remaining details that are pertinent to your story. Planning out the rest of this “stuff” includes world building, but itContinue reading “Preptober Week Three: World Building and Extras”
Preptober Week Two: Characters
Welcome to the second week of Preptober! This week, I’m focusing on developing my characters. Believable characters are unique and three-dimensional, but there’s a lot to consider. Each character has specific attributes, like appearance, personality, and a backstory, that make them relatable. A character’s motivations inform their actions and decisions, creating the narrative arc ofContinue reading “Preptober Week Two: Characters”
Newbie to Novelist 