Category: fiction writing workshops
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NaNoWriMo Day 30: Some resources to check out
No two writers approach their WIPs in the same way. Over the years, I’ve used a combination of the following methods to develop my stories. You may be familiar with some of them. Some of them may be new. I cherry pick parts from them and have created an amalgam of a fiction creating process…
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Start The Scene With Action And Dialogue
Okay, this is a long post. Just warning you. This good news is you can just read the highlights in bold to get the gist for each section. This post is for reference as you may want to experiment with the writing exercise I’ve fleshed out in the following paragraphs. In the previous post, I…
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Friday’s Findings
It’s hard to believe almost a year ago I attended my first Imaginarium conference. This event brings together writers and editors of science fiction, fantasy, horror and other genres that fit into the “speculative fiction” category. Imaginarium offers workshops on honing the fiction writing craft and marketing a writer’s products This year, due to COVID-19,…
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Writing Style Outcasts: Passive Voice
You may have heard using the passive voice is “incorrect.” In fiction writing, however, the passive voice can be used. It is not so much incorrect as “When is it appropriate?” Before discussing the answer to that question, I’d like to offer a brief review of the difference between passive voice and active voice. Sentences…
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Writing Style Outcasts: Telling
Geez, “telling” gets treated like like the weird kid at school, but it’s an important tool in the writing and editing process. Stop harassing it! You’ve all heard, “Show don’t tell.” The thing is, the writer is suppose to use both. Usually, I use telling at the beginning of the scene. If the reader needs…
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Writing Style Outcasts: Exclamation Marks
“An exclamation point is like laughing at your own jokes.” F. Scott Fitzgerald As the author of classics such as The Great Gatsby and This Side of Paradise has said in the above quote, the exclamation point is like that guy who utters stupid jokes and laughs at himself. Followed by that awkward silence. In…
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Writing Style Outcasts: Adjectives
Not the cool kids at school. This is a series on the aspects of writing style that are bullied. But they serve a purpose. Yesterday, I talked about adverbs. Today, I talk about adjectives. Descriptors like adjectives and adverbs are kicked out the writing style kingdom like lepers. “Don’t use adverbs!” “Don’t use adjectives!” But…
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Writing Style Outcasts: Adverbs
High school cliques appear in most young adult fiction. And in real life. Yes, they are tropes found in 13 Reasons Why, The Hate You Give and The Perks of Being a Wallflower, but that’s only because cliques actually do exist in high schools. Yes, the popular kids roam around like royalty because they’ve managed…
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A Three Hour Writing Course That’s Worth Your Time
Beware: the following sounds like like a commercial, but it’s only because I liked the “product” so much. Now that I’m wrapping up the second draft of my WIP, I wanted to share my thoughts about an online course I took called Write a Bestselling Novel in 15 Steps, which I’ll refer to as WABNI15S…
Andrew M. Friday 