I’ve been going back and looking at my blog entries from years ago, and I kept coming across advice from author James Scott Bell. I quote him a lot. Two books on writing craft I highly recommend are:
- Write Your Novel From The Middle: A New Approach for Plotters, Pantsers and Everyone in Between
- The Art of War for Writers: Fiction Writing Strategies, Tactics, and Exercises
He has more writing craft books on Amazon, and I just realized, “I need to read these.”
Back in 2016, I listened to a webinar called How to Revise Your NaNo Novel. Bell was one of the guest authors. Here are some quotes by Bell from the webinar:
What is the most important aspect of revision?
“It’s a mistake to start on page 1 and revise, First, get an overview by reading it like a reader. The stakes of the story should be about death, either the physical, psychological, or relational …”
“Print out hard copies; take notes; create a reading experience; ask where a busy reader or editor would put it down. If plot points are in place, then look over individual scenes; do the scenes have objectives? Conflicts? …”
“Scenes between friends–sitting around eating, etc.–must have conflict. If not, create inner monologue with conflicting emotions …”
How do you take a one-dimensional character and flesh them out?
“Use characters who surprise readers. What does a character have hidden that he doesn’t want anyone to know about? Also, use action and dialogue that is unexpected. The definition of a dull read is the readers know what to expect in the story; they know what comes next …”
What advice do you have for description in fiction writing?
“Look for the telling detail, the one image that illuminates what’s going on inside the character’s mind. Stop and think about what the character sees, feels, and notices. Also, overwrite the section of description and then find a one or two details that work, then throw the rest away.”
Voice Journals
Here is a blog entry about doing voice journals for characters, a concept I learned from Bell:
Friday’s Findings: Doing Voice Journals
The Best Writing Advice I Know
And finally, I’m reposting a link to this video:
Photo by Steve Johnson: https://www.pexels.com/photo/vibrant-3d-geometric-abstract-art-design-29764260/
Andrew M. Friday 
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