Writing Description in Fiction
Today’s post includes excerpts from What’s the Story? Building Blocks for Fiction Writing, chapter eight: “Description and Exposition.” Enjoy! Without description, readers wouldn’t be able to visualize what’s happening in a story. We need to see the setting and the characters. Because there are no visuals in prose, writers must use words to describe a…Read More
Poetry Writing Ideas and Activities
A poem can come out of nowhere and land on the page, fully formed, in just a few minutes. A poem can also be the result of hours (or weeks) of laboring over line breaks, word choices, images, and rhythm. Poems are funny little things, appearing out of nowhere and disappearing for no apparent reason….Read More
Punctuation Marks: Ellipsis
You see it everywhere, but most people don’t know what it’s called or how to use it properly. In fact, it’s often referred to as “dot, dot, dot” even though it does have a name. This punctuation mark is the ellipsis. It is a series or row of three periods, which is usually used to indicate…Read More
Creative Writing, Art, and Commerce
What is art? People have been trying to answer that question for centuries, but we still don’t have a definitive answer. We know art is borne of creativity. It’s meant to impact whoever is experiencing it. And it comes from a place within the artist that we don’t truly understand. Art remains a mystery, both…Read More
How to Make Grammar Part of Your Daily Life
I recently started relearning how to play the guitar after a rather long hiatus. It’s not like I ever learned how to play it properly in the first place — so I’m still a beginner. And at times, I find it frustrating. I just want to pick the thing up and rip out a song,…Read More
The Only Two Writing Tips You’ll Ever Need: Read and Write
I love collecting writing tips. You never know when you’re going to stumble across a golden nugget of wisdom that will make your writing richer and more vibrant. One of the reasons I started this website was so that I could share the many valuable tips that I’ve collected over the years. I figure that…Read More
Writing Resources: Natalie Goldberg’s Writing Down the Bones
This post contains affiliate links that earn commissions from qualifying purchases. “I used to think freedom meant doing whatever you want. It means knowing who you are, what you are supposed to be doing on this earth, and then simply doing it.” — Natalie Goldberg, Writing Down the Bones Ah, words of wisdom. I was…Read More
25 Story Starters for Writing Fiction
Are you a storyteller? Do you want to be a storyteller? If you’re interested in writing flash fiction, short stories, or novels, then you’re going to need lots of ideas, especially if you want to write professionally. Some of us have too many ideas; others don’t have enough ideas. Maybe we have a solid idea…Read More
From 101 Creative Writing Exercises: Potter Wars
101 Creative Writing Exercises is a book on the craft of writing that is jam-packed with fun and practical writing exercises. You’ll learn useful writing techniques while gathering ideas and inspiration for all your creative writing projects. You’ll experiment with fiction, poetry, freewriting, journaling, memoir, and article writing. Today, I’d like to share an exercise…Read More
Action and Dialogue in Storytelling
Today’s post is an excerpt from What’s the Story? Building Blocks for Fiction Writing, chapter seven: “Action and Dialogue.” Enjoy! Action and dialogue are the wheels that carry a story forward. The easiest way to imagine action and dialogue in written narrative is to think of a movie. When characters onscreen do things, that’s action….Read More
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