Andrew M. Friday

Tag: fiction writing

  • Periodic table of storytelling

    Let this periodic table of storytelling destroy your writer’s block.

  • Fiction Writing Workshop: Voice

    What is voice? Everyone pretends to understand what he means when he mentions voice in writing. I call terradiddle on that. When it comes to prose, I think people have a hard time telling the difference between voice and other elements like style and tone. I do. For now, let’s see how some writers define…

  • Writing Blog Roundup: book blurb, better writing, be a writer, point-of-view, got theme

    Some articles I recently read on writing blogs: Margaret Atwood Rejects Book Blurb Requests with a Poem. Looking for a respected author to give you a blurb about your new novel? Don’t ask Margaret Atwood. You Don’t Need to Become a Better Writer. Every day, I get a message from a writer who wants to…

  • Writing blog roundup: great writing, create characters, writing exercises, write description, show don’t tell

    What I read this week in writing blogs: The Secret of Great Writing. I recently finished editing my first novel, The Golden Crystal. How to Create Larger Than Life Characters. One thing we’re always focusing on, as authors, is creating realistic characters. Fiction Writing Exercises for Creating Characters. Whenever I’m working on a story idea, I…

  • Writing Blog Roundup: consistent relationships, large cast, 47 rejections, write well, third person

    What I’ve read lately in the writing blog arena: Keeping relationships consistent. On my current WIP novel, I am revising to make sure the character relationships are consistent . . . Two ways to manage a large cast of characters in your novel. On the recommendation of a coworker, I started reading Ken Follett’s Century…

  • Fiction Writing Workshop: Character

    My friend, Rachel, has two Shih tzus who are her babies: Marley and Rosa. Rachel also has dozens of toy balls of assorted colors laying around the house. Marley has no interest in the toy balls; those belong to his sister, Rosa. Rosa loves playing with the toy balls. When I visit, she’ll immediately bring…

  • Writing blog roundup

    Some entries from blogs on writing that I’ve read lately: Does it matter where a writer lives: a big city or the countryside; a two-story house or a basement; a culturally diverse or monotonous neighborhood? Read more. Why Keeping a Journal is so Important for Writers and all Creative Types. Read more. The Art of Character:…

  • The girlfriend of my protagonist is boring. Hate her.

    No, I don’t really hate her. She has the potential to be an interesting character for my novel–for now I’m calling it The Deity Run–but it’s my fault she’s boring with an uppercase B. In the first draft I wrote during National Novel Writing Month, I created a girlfriend for my protagonist, Ferdinand Clark. Her…

  • Making a scene

    Making a scene

    One thing I find helpful for NaNoWriMo is making an informal list of scenes. The key is to not get married to this list; just use it as a jumping point. I usually end up moving the order of the scenes around. Here are some things to keep in mind when thinking of scenes: Think…