Blog - Related to Writing & Publishing A Book
Creative Writing Courses versus Writers' Groups And Writing Magazines
Posted: Thursday, 11th March 2010
Hi,
I have enjoyed reading your articles and blogs/posts. Would really love to communicate more with you cos I think I really appreciate your train of thought. It appeals to me a lot. I am also an avid writer and have written many articles.
Can you recommend a good creative writing course for me to attend close to Plymouth, Devon. I am more than half way past writing my first novel but i think i need a professional to look at my work so far.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book; Creative Writing
EBOOK PRICE-FIXING: Who Gets Hurt in the End?
Posted: Thursday, 18th February 2010
I'm delighted, today, to include an article by Angela Hoy, on the topic of price-fixing the unit cost of e-books - a practice which will, ultimately, lead to a monopoly and, therefore, destroy choice for the end-user - readers!
Do let me know what your views are. Comments are moderated, and your contact details will never be revealed to any third party.
By Angela Hoy, Publisher, BookLocker printable version | Share on Facebook
----- This article can be reprinted/redistributed freely, as long as the entire article and bio are included. -----
price fixing (n.
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Current Affairs; Writing & Publishing A Book
Manuscript Submissions Under A Pen Name
Posted: Friday, 22nd January 2010
Hi Mel,
I was interested to see what you had posted earlier this
month on your blog about formatting a manuscript; it was most
helpful.
Articles on related themes:
Writing & Publishing A Book
Conflict Resolution: Relationship Psychology - And Creating Fictional Characters
Posted: Wednesday, 6th January 2010
What I’m about to tell you will revolutionise the way you perceive your personal relationships. It will also give you immense insight when it comes to creative writing and publishing a book and, in particular, when you’re creating fictional characters.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book; Relationships; Personal Growth; Self Help; Character
Creative Writing: How, Where & When?
Posted: Monday, 7th December 2009
How, where and when do you write and, more to the point, does it matter? Many bestselling novelists, whose diverse methods and locations are described below, would chant an unequivocal ‘Yes!’ And I think I would have to agree.
WRITING IN LONG-HAND
Perhaps because my earliest stories and dramas were written when I was only a child, my first few published books naturally began life in long hand, in exercise books. There is something about forming cursive lettering with a pen on a page which seems to help the creative juices to flow.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book
A True Story: How To Ghost-Write, Or Write Biography
Posted: Friday, 20th November 2009
True story telling and writing has been around for a very long time but, as a genre, it really came into its own a few years ago with a spate of ‘kiss and tell’ books.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book
Creative Writing: Tips For Novelists On Priming The Pump
Posted: Wednesday, 28th October 2009
Authors of books are urged, by writing pundits, to identify the genre and market for which they are aiming before they commit to print. This is for good reason; not least that if you are engaged in writing and publishing a book, knowing who you are writing for will affect how seriously a publisher views your work.
But there is another aspect to understanding what you are trying to achieve in your writing. In my last post on this topic, Authors: Tellers of Tales, Weavers of Dreams, Tap Into Your Childhood To Reveal & Nourish Hidden Emotional Creativity I identified seven reasons why readers buy books.
Articles on related themes: Inspirational; Writing & Publishing A Book
Creative Writing Style: Do You Have One?
Posted: Monday, 26th October 2009
We talk about certain novelists as having “style”, or say that we like "the style" of this author, but not that. But what does it actually mean to have writing style and is this something we can acquire, or foster in ourselves as writers? Or is it something that just happens?
IS STYLE DICTATED BY CONTENT?
Style has been defined as “the sound words make on paper.” In an attempt to simplify a complex subject, I’d say that this might be categorised as:
- Logical
- Formal
- Slang
- Lyrical
A logical style might be used to convey scientific or medical matters and a formal style by the legal profession.
Articles on related themes: Inspirational; Writing & Publishing A Book
Authors: Tellers Of Tales, Weavers Of Dreams? Tap Into Your Childhood To Reveal And Nourish Hidden Emotional Creativity
Posted: Friday, 23rd October 2009
Why do writers exist? What is it about the human race that makes us want to be authors and readers? Tellers of tales, serialisers of stories, weavers of dreams: what compels us? Scriptwriters, dramatists, actors, theatre-goers, radio broadcasters and listeners? Why? What inner compulsion urges us on – those of us who share our inner selves – to make ourselves vulnerable? And what feeds that well of emotional creativity? What makes for great writing?
WHAT NURTURES & NOURISHES YOUR INNER SELF?
This is a serious question.
Articles on related themes: Books, Reading & Words; Self Help; Inspirational; Writing & Publishing A Book
How To Blog To Sell When Writing And Publishing A Book
Posted: Thursday, 15th October 2009
You’re an author and you have a book to sell. Selling in bookshops is one thing; selling online another. You have a question: which is superior, social media or search engines when it comes to promoting your work?
In my last blog post I concluded that, as a reader or researcher, I prefer the latter. It follows, therefore, that from the other side of the coin, as a book author, this is the method I would choose to use to promote my material.
Articles on related themes: Books, Reading & Words; Content; Writing & Publishing A Book; Blogging
Writing And Publishing: Online Marketing
Posted: Monday, 12th October 2009
I wrote, last week, about the futility of relying solely on book publishing houses to promote your new novel, and the need to think in terms of self-promotion. Publishing a novel is not an end in itself (you want people to read it!) and, sooner or later, the process of creative writing has to be transmuted into that of creative marketing.
METHODS OF ONLINE MARKETING
Methods of online marketing lie primarily within the realms of website, blog and social media. Each of these three techniques has its own distinct features but, to my mind there is little parity between them when it comes to marketing.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book; Blogging
Writing And Publishing: Promoting Your Novel
Posted: Wednesday, 7th October 2009
If you are serious about writing and publishing your book, then sooner or later you’re going to have to think about promoting it. I’m not talking here about manuscript submission guidelines, how to write a publishing proposal for your book. Nor am I referring to writing a synopsis for a novel in order to submit it to publishing houses. I’m thinking more of what you can offer a publisher in terms of helping with sales of your book.
BOOK PUBLISHING HOUSES & AUTHOR COLLABORATION
Publishing a novel is an expensive business.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book
Creative Writing Tips: Take Inspiration From The Poets
Posted: Friday, 18th September 2009
Sometimes the sheer effort of writing seems to be almost overwhelming. Whatever inspiration you once had has evaporated. You feel tired, drained and dispirited.
We’ve all experienced it. You wake up one morning and think, what on earth am I doing with my life? All those hours spent cooped up with no one but yourself and a bunch of fictitious characters for company have failed to set your writing career on fire. Your creative writing tasks are no more than a flickering flame; and the struggle to reignite them, to fan them into life and vigour is – well – simply beyond you.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book
Creative Writing Tips: Take Inspiration From The Poets
Posted: Friday, 18th September 2009
Sometimes the sheer effort of writing seems to be almost overwhelming. Whatever inspiration you once had has evaporated. You feel tired, drained and dispirited.
We’ve all experienced it. You wake up one morning and think, what on earth am I doing with my life? All those hours spent cooped up with no one but yourself and a bunch of fictitious characters for company have failed to set your writing career on fire. Your creative writing tasks are no more than a flickering flame; and the struggle to reignite them, to fan them into life and vigour is – well – simply beyond you. You wouldn’t know where to begin.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book
How To Write Description In A Novel: Describing Location
Posted: Wednesday, 9th September 2009
When you read a novel, you are being invited to inhabit an imaginary world: a fictional place, in which fictional characters live, and move, and have their being. If good descriptive writing is used, their experiences become, for the duration of the book, yours, too. But because the medium is textual, visual imagery has to form part of the narrative for it to become effective. Your job, as writer, is to create, through the words that you choose, a cinematic experience in the imagination of your reader.
Articles on related themes: Content; Writing & Publishing A Book
How To Write Description In A Novel: Characters
Posted: Wednesday, 2nd September 2009
Describing characters is a necessary part of creative writing, as is describing location. But I had to smile when I read yesterday’s review in The Daily Telegraph, of the American TV drama, The Tudors. It appears that in order to refresh viewers’ minds as to Who’s Who, from the first series, characters not only told each other what they were called, but also – helpfully – gave a brief CV of themselves! I can just imagine it.
“Good morrow, fair Anne Boleyn, the second of my eight wives, and a replacement for Catherine of Aragon.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book; Character
Right Brain Dominant: How To Make Your Writing Flow
Posted: Friday, 24th April 2009
A comment on my post The Structure Of A Novel: 12 Tips, complimented me for my articles on writing fiction, but asked when you should give up the brainstorming and simply sit down and let the narrative flow? It’s a good question and one which I thought deserving of more attention than I could give it in the comment box. Hence the observations that follow.
Please bear with me. I’ve found it quite difficult writing on this topic in a readily readable way. It’s been necessary to include some academic material, which I’ve tried to lighten with anecdotal stuff, but it has been hard not to get bogged down.
Articles on related themes: Personal Growth; Writing & Publishing A Book
Writing And Editing A Book For Publication: Listening to Dialogue
Posted: Sunday, 12th April 2009
Whilst it is true that editing and proof reading are an editor’s job, many would-be authors erroneously believe that they will undertake to knock their unleavened narrative into shape. However, your manuscript is unlikely to progress from the slush pile to the editor’s desk unless it has undergone some serious editing before hand. And whilst professional editing is available, it is not inexpensive. For most of us, editing and proof reading at home should be accepted as the natural outcome of creative writing projects if we are to have any hope of being published.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book
Writing In Style Requires Rewriting & Revision
Posted: Sunday, 5th April 2009
Can any one of us honestly say that the first draft of our book has been written in style? Yes, we fall in love with great chunks of our work – phrases, paragraphs, heck, whole chapters. But I’d be the first to admit that if I put my work away for a few weeks and then take it out to read again, some of it is pretty cringey! Without a re-write and some revision it could never, remotely, be considered a good piece of writing.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book
Really Good Writing Requires Really Good Editing!
Posted: Friday, 3rd April 2009
Anyone, it has been said, can write. But the secret of writing well is in the rewriting.
GOOD WRITING STYLES
I was very fortunate in that my first book was commissioned. Actually, what happened was that what had been one book became two. It had taken me many years to write it – plus many rewrites. And even when it was accepted by a publisher, I was still expected to undertake a great deal of editing before a final draft was deemed ready to go to the printers.
The ability to produce a good piece of writing over and over again does not come easily.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book
What is a good story? And what a good piece of writing?
Posted: Monday, 30th March 2009
"Is there a difference between a good story and good writing?"
I was asked the question by a lady living in Greece, who has been reading my blog posts for sometime, and who e-mailed me, direct. She, like many would-be authors, is frustrated by the stone-walling she has received from the publishers to whom she’s submitted her novel.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book
The Structure Of A Novel: Twelve Tips
Posted: Thursday, 26th March 2009
You’ve decided to start writing a novel but you’ve no idea where to begin. Or perhaps you’ve already made a start but haven’t a clue how to proceed. You thought that once you’d started it would simply flow, but now you’re finding that pulling all the strands together to bring the wretched thing to its conclusion isn’t quite that easy. In fact, you’re beginning to wonder if your story is simply going to end up in a drawer along with all the other half-finished best sellers, begun with the best of intentions.
Articles on related themes: Plot; Writing & Publishing A Book
Rejection Slips And Bad Reviews Of Your Book? 4 Ways Of Coping
Posted: Wednesday, 18th March 2009
There’s no such thing as bad press! So says the old adage. The idea is that a literary review for your work – regardless of how damning it may be – is, nevertheless, a step up from no review at all! That may be, but how, when you’ve already waded through an emotional ocean of rejection slips, do you now cope with a basinful of criticism?
Consider the following from someone I have never met but who had
intimated that she might review my novel, A Painful Post
Mortem, in her regular magazine column: “I have to
admit that I just couldn’t get absorbed into the book.
Articles on related themes:
Writing & Publishing A Book
Issues Of Trust Between A Mother And Her Child
Posted: Wednesday, 11th March 2009
“Can it ever be right for a mother to expose her child
in the name of literature?” I asked on an online forum.
It was a question which has provoked an impassioned response. But
it was, itself, a response – my answer – to a recent
news story which has spread itself across the pages of broadsheet
and tabloid alike, and into the hearts and minds of the nation.
Because at its heart lies the most fundamental of human
relationships: the sanctity of love and trust between a mother and
her child.
Articles on related themes:
Book Reviews; Writing & Publishing A Book
Crafting Fiction: Understanding How Scenes In Novels Are Constructed - Part 4
Posted: Saturday, 7th March 2009
By now I hope you’re beginning to understand the importance of conflict in a novel, and how to incorporate the three elements of Goal, Conflict and Disaster into each ACTION scene. I’ve had some feedback from readers via Twitter, but it would be great if you could post your comments and queries at the end of this article.
Last time, in Part 3, we looked at REACTION scenes (or Sequels), and learned where the three elements of Reaction, Dilemma and Decision have their place.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book
Crafting Fiction: Understanding How Scenes In Novels Are Constructed - Part 2a
Posted: Monday, 2nd March 2009
I know it’s not very professional to abandon a blog post half way through, and I apologise for having done so yesterday. But when your mother’s poorly and needs you, there’s just no way round it. So in the hope that you’ll forgive me, and have come back for the second half, here it is.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book
Crafting Fiction: Understanding How Scenes In Novels Are Constructed - Part 2
Posted: Sunday, 1st March 2009
I finished Part 1 of this series a couple of days ago by saying that a scene is invariably made up of three simple elements:
- Goal
- Conflict
- Disaster
THE CONFLICT IN A NOVEL IS VITAL TO ITS STRUCTURE
In a previous post, I’ve written about what makes a story a plot, and highlighted the significance of conflict and consequences. Goal, Conflict and Disaster are, in fact, the structure of the entire novel.
- A novel is a story about people.
- It’s about their one overall objective in
response to a particular set of circumstances, stated at the outset
of the story.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book
Crafting Fiction: Understanding How Scenes In Novels Are Constructed - Part 1
Posted: Friday, 27th February 2009
How do you go about constructing the scenes in a novel? Many writers simply sit down and write, in the belief that to do otherwise impedes the flow of creativity. Others ‘story-board’ the plot in a carefully assembled series of scenes for each character, arranged in sequence on a pin board. Yet others do something similar with hand-written index cards, or computer generated section sheets.
LEARN CREATIVE WRITING
Whatever your chosen method, creative writing is a little like riding a bike or driving a car. You may believe yourself to be doing it instinctively.
Articles on related themes: Plot; Writing & Publishing A Book
Are Biblical Truths Essential To An Author's Understanding Of The Human Mind And Behaviour?
Posted: Friday, 20th February 2009
Andrew Motion, the UK’s Poet Laureate (a person appointed by a government who is, typically, expected to compose poetry for State occasions) has reportedly said that, “Children should be taught the Bible throughout their education because it is an ‘essential piece of cultural luggage’ without which they will struggle to fully understand literature.” (The Guardian 17th February, 2009). He’s right, of course! From Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress to John Milton’s Paradise Lost, English classic literature is riddled with reference to the Bible stories we, once, all knew and loved.
I'd go further and suggest that this is not simply an issue for students of classical literature.
Articles on related themes: Books, Reading & Words; Writing & Publishing A Book
Inspirational Thought: 8 Ideas To Plumb For Creative Writing
Posted: Tuesday, 17th February 2009
“I write when I’m inspired, and I make sure I’m inspired at 9 o’clock every morning.”
This is said to originate with the novelist Peter de Vries, but I think it may be George Bernard Shaw.
“Writing is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration.”
A variation of Thomas Edison’s observation on genius.
I was asked, recently, to state a couple of my favourite quotations, and these were the two I chose. I have mentioned them before, but not, I think, in any depth. So today I’m going to rectify that.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book
The Book Publishing Process Laid Bare
Posted: Sunday, 8th February 2009
What do you do if you can’t get your novel accepted by an Agent or Publisher? You’ve followed up every lead: the old boy in the Post Office who published a book on pre-war bus timetables via Agatha Christie’s gardener’s aunt.
Articles on related themes: Books, Reading & Words; Writing & Publishing A Book
Descriptive Writing Styles: Conveying A Sense Of Place, Person, Personality and Mood
Posted: Monday, 2nd February 2009
When you sit down to write, do you find that the bit you like best is when you can indulge your love of description? Is that the part of your prose that you feel most proud of? Does it give you a thrill when you read it back to yourself? If so, you are not alone.
Most new writers are rather prone to the use of too much description. Large blocks of illustrative writing about the weather, the scenery, appearance, character and atmosphere add little to the modern narrative and should be used sparingly, if at all.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book; Character; Viewpoint
Creative Writing: How To Make Your Point Without Being Pointed
Posted: Wednesday, 28th January 2009
21st December 2009: This article has been revised so that it may be reproduced. See below
Years ago, when I was a member of a Writers’ Circle, we used to read aloud to one another, and subject each reading to a critique. One woman – a successful writer – used to stop those of us who were novelists mid-stream, shouting, “Authorial! Authorial!” whenever she felt that we had injected too much of ourselves into our writing. Let me explain.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book
If You're Writing In The Passive Voice, Consider Revising
Posted: Thursday, 22nd January 2009
I wrote, yesterday, on the need to find your Voice, and illustrated how verbs may be used in the Active and Passive voice. Now I am no expert when it comes to grammar, and if there are those who know better than I, I would ask you to correct me please. However, I do know that persistent use of the passive voice in writing creates a clumsy and confusing narrative, which fails to have any impact on the reader, or to engage them in any way with the thoughts, words or deeds of the character.
Articles on related themes: Books, Reading & Words; Writing & Publishing A Book
What Does Passive Voice Mean In The Creative Writing Process?
Posted: Wednesday, 21st January 2009
I received a piece of work, recently, with a request to look it over and comment on it. It has prompted me to write on the subject of Voice, and the merits (or otherwise) of how it is used. There’s a little bit of grammar instruction necessary here, but I will illustrate my point afterwards with something more creative and interesting. First let me explain the point:
A verb may be active, or inactive (in which case it is called ‘passive’).
WHAT IS A PASSIVE VERB?
Grammar: (yawn!)
The passive voice is formed with a past
participle and the auxiliary verb to be.
Articles on related themes:
Books, Reading & Words; Writing & Publishing A Book
Reviewing Techniques When Resolving Conflict
Posted: Thursday, 15th January 2009
This is the first Post on my shiny new laptop. As I wrote, yesterday on my Twitter wall (I think that’s the correct jargon) setting up a new computer is a nightmare of mistakes, misunderstandings and misapprehension. Hence the lack of time to add anything to my blog for a few days.
So I thought, today, that I’d write a combi-post. As some of you may know, in addition to posting articles on Creative Writing, my aim is to “offer hope to the hurting” (Click to see What Drives You) . Quite often – as I’ve said before – the two overlap.
Articles on related themes: Self Help; Personal Growth; Relationships; Writing & Publishing A Book; Character
Writing A Synopsis For A Novel To Submit To Publishing Houses
Posted: Monday, 12th January 2009
Your book manuscript is finished. From your Writers’ & Artists’ Year Book, you’ve chosen the first publisher you’re going to send it to, written your submission proposal letter and sat back and waited. One month. Two. . .
Hang on a minute. Rewind!
A GOOD SYNOPSIS IS KEY TO SUCCESS IN WRITING & PUBLISHING A BOOK
If the book publishing agent or editor you’ve written to is interested in reading your manuscript, she will, almost certainly, require a synopsis. Consequently, as soon as you complete your novel, you should begin working on an outline, polishing it to ensure that it is the best that it can be.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book
Manuscript Submission Guidelines: How To Write A Publishing Proposal For Your Book
Posted: Thursday, 8th January 2009
It must be nearly twenty years, or so, since many of the major book publishing houses underwent a huge reshuffle. Secretaries suddenly found themselves elevated to the status of editors and, among certain authors, an aura of gloom and doom descended. Accompanying this sense of Last Times, was the advent of the (then un-named) hand-held digital devices which, it was said, were certain to spell The End for books.
TOO MANY BOOKS PUBLISHED?
Yet evidence shows that there are now more books published than ever before. Whether this is a Good Thing or not is debatable.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book
Manuscript Formatting
Posted: Friday, 2nd January 2009
I received a manuscript, yesterday, from a friend who wants me to look it over for a client of hers (she’s a Life Coach). I have to confess that with the departure of all my visiting family after the Christmas break, bed-changing, washing and ironing have taken priority. But I did manage to take a peep – and what I saw has prompted me to write, today, about the necessary formatting of a submission. So, for those of you who are interested and don’t know, here’s how you should produce your ’scripts.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book
Let This New Year Be Your New Beginning
Posted: Wednesday, 31st December 2008
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
I hope that 2009 will bring you good health and happiness. If you’re an aspiring author, let this be the year that you achieve success in publishing terms. And if you’re simply in need of a little love and understanding, may you find it where you least expect it. Read on . . .
DARK DAYS & DASHED HOPES
I was a young woman when, in the early nineteen eighties, I put pen to paper (literally) to form the first draft of what was to become my first book. Those were dark days for me.
Articles on related themes: Books, Reading & Words; Life, Faith & Other Stuff; Personal Growth; Writing & Publishing A Book
The Seven Plot Lines: Rebirth
Posted: Wednesday, 24th December 2008
It seems appropriate to be thinking of Rebirth as the last of the seven story plots on Christmas Eve, because the birth that we celebrate tomorrow is the one that is meant to bring rebirth to the human race.
Kasia Body’s review of The Seven Basic Plots by Christopher Booker in The Daily Telegraph (2004) is titled: “Everything Ever Written Boiled Down To Seven Plots”. It continues by pointing out that “these seven plots are merely different perspectives on the same great basic drama".
Articles on related themes: Plot; Writing & Publishing A Book
Creative Writing Tutorial: Voyage And Return
Posted: Saturday, 20th December 2008
We’ve now looked at five of the seven plot lines which form the basis of all storytelling, and move on, today, to the penultimate Voyage & Return.
- Rags to Riches
- Overcoming the Monster
- The Quest
- Comedy
- Tragedy
- Voyage and Return
- Rebirth
VOYAGE & RETURN
Voyage and Return frequently follows not simply a physical journey, but an inner voyage of overcoming something that was previously alien. Thus, faced with something outside your normal experience, you may find your (inner) morals challenged. Or perhaps your belief system; your culture; even a commitment like a love affair, or a marriage. The point of the journey is that however far you may stray your return is the ultimate conclusion.
Articles on related themes: Plot; Writing & Publishing A Book
The Seven Plot Lines That Form The Basis Of A Creative Writing Process
Posted: Thursday, 18th December 2008
I began this series by saying that, according to tradition, there are only seven basic plots which form the basis of all the stories ever told or written. They are:
- Rags to Riches
- Overcoming the Monster
- The Quest
- Voyage and Return
- Comedy
- Tragedy
- Rebirth
We’ve already looked at the first three, and discovered that some story plots are a combination of two or more of the above. Today, because they’re pretty self-explanatory, I’m going to touch, only briefly, on Comedy and Tragedy.
TRAGEDY
Writing a novel and getting a readership has never been an easy matter. Dickens attracted his followers by serialising his earlier works; Shakespeare by being a playwright.
Articles on related themes: Plot; Writing & Publishing A Book
Seven Basic Plots: Part 3 - The Quest
Posted: Tuesday, 16th December 2008
I began this study on the seven plot lines that are said to be the basis of all stories, by examining what is meant by the rags to riches story, and that of overcoming the monster. Today I’m going to look at what it means to write about the quest.
THE QUEST
The Quest is the third of the seven plots, and may be described as a mission, an expedition, a hunt or a search for something. This may take the form of a mission to find something lost – perhaps a search for the lost lands of Atlanta, a Will, or buried treasure.
Articles on related themes: Books, Reading & Words; Plot; Writing & Publishing A Book
The Seven Story Plots: Parts 1 & 2
Posted: Sunday, 14th December 2008
It is said that there are only seven basic plots, to which all storylines adhere. Of these seven plot lines perhaps the best known is the rags to riches story. This, after all, is the basis of many of our favourite nursery rhymes and fairy stories. Think Cinderella, and Jack and the Beanstalk. In one the despised and downtrodden youngest sister gets her Prince Charming; in the other, the poverty-stricken Jack and his mother procure the goose that lays the golden egg.
BEST KNOWN: THE RAGS TO RICHES STORY
This rags to riches plot dates back many thousands of years.
Articles on related themes: Books, Reading & Words; Plot; Writing & Publishing A Book
Creative Writing Techniques: How To Write Good Dialogue
Posted: Saturday, 6th December 2008
I wrote, in an earlier article, about the need to give readers plenty of white space on the page, and suggested that you aim for a clotted cream effect: solid lumps of differing sizes and consistency, floating in a soft smooth cream. The cream is the narrative of your novel. And at least some of the solid lumps, and much of the empty white space on the page, can be achieved through writing good dialogue – as in the following example taken from my novel, A Painful Post Mortem. Here Rosie and Steve are discussing Rosie’s sister’s adolescence, whilst picnicking with their children.
Articles on related themes: Speaking Engagements; Writing & Publishing A Book
Creative Writing Techniques: How To Find Ideas For Plots
Posted: Monday, 1st December 2008
It seems that these days almost everyone is writing a book! Despite the fact that we’re told that computers have dumbed down and depleted our appetite for reading, increasing numbers of would-be authors are emerging. So with apologies to those who may already have read the following, I’m revising an article I wrote some time ago when I was leading Creative Writing Classes.
ARE YOU WRITING A BOOK FOR THE FIRST TIME?
If you’re like most would-be authors, you’ve probably been thinking for years about your book. The one that’s been inside you waiting to get out. Whether it’s fiction writing or a short biography, that’s good.
Articles on related themes: Plot; Writing & Publishing A Book
Writing Your First Novel: How Viewpoint Affects Show & Tell
Posted: Sunday, 23rd November 2008
An understanding of how to use Viewpoint correctly is crucial to the success of writing your first novel. A history book may tell you about a particular event, or period in time, on either a personal level or a grand scale; a text book on psychology may inform you about behaviour; a self-help book may even apply that knowledge in such a way that it may become learned behaviour. But a novel, as I’ve said before, is about people.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book; Viewpoint
Plotting Stories: Off-Topic Blogs May Be The Best Growing Medium For Your Budding Novel
Posted: Wednesday, 19th November 2008
One of the benefits of modern technology is that, as a writer, you have more information at your finger tips about who is connecting with your blog personality, and which content for your blog attracts most readers, than ever you could in the real world. So it’s exciting to know that, since I began blogging four months ago, I’ve had just short of six thousand page views, from forty-eight countries around the world, including places like United Arab Emirates, Croatia, Peru, China, Indonesia and even Afghanistan, in addition to the more obvious UK and USA.
Articles on related themes: Plot; Writing & Publishing A Book
How To Hook Your Reader: Starting Your Story
Posted: Sunday, 16th November 2008
Right! You’re sitting in front of your computer to begin your novel or inspirational biography, and you’re raring to go. You’ve identified your readers and you know which of your characters are going to be conveying your story. You also know from the previous series, The How To Of Creative Writing, that a plot in a novel is a narrative of events with the emphasis falling on causality. You’ve made a timeline map so you know you need to start at a point of conflict. And you know that right from the outset, you have to hook your reader.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book
Fiction - Main Characters And How To Choose Them
Posted: Monday, 10th November 2008
Last week, in Ten Tips Before You Begin, I wrote about the necessity of identifying your readers before you begin to write your book. That advice holds true whatever the genre in which you are writing. Today, we’re going to concentrate on writing a novel, and in particular, the importance of identifying all the main characters in your book.
FICTION – MAIN CHARACTERS
This need to identify which of your characters is going to advance the plot of your story is crucial. As I wrote in the last of my August posts, characters are not merely travellers on the journey through plot, but are the drivers.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book; Character
Writing And Publishing A Book: Ten Tips Before You Begin
Posted: Monday, 3rd November 2008
BEFORE YOU BEGIN
I remember reading, many years ago, of someone famous – a well-known pop singer – who told a story of a woman who had written to him saying: God has told me I’m going to marry you. To which the singer replied: Well he hasn’t told me!
I’ve come across many people who believe they can do something similar when writing and publishing a book. They may be writing a self help book or a novel. They may believe that what they have written – or plan to write – is exactly what the world is waiting for.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book
The How-to of Creative Writing - Plotting is a Journey
Posted: Friday, 26th September 2008
This is the last Post in this Series. Over the past few weeks you’ve been learning how to Plot your Story. Complete the process of writing your book by subscribing FREE to the next series.
SUBSCRIBE NOW *FREE* TO THE NEXT SERIES: CREATIVE WRITING – CRAFTING THE STORY. Your contact details will be kept secure at all times, and will NEVER be divulged to any third party.
PLOTTING IS A JOURNEY WITH A BEGINNING. . .
Remember I told you that plotting a story is like marking points on a map, before you undertake a journey.
Articles on related themes: Plot; Writing & Publishing A Book
The How-to of Creative Writing - Where To Begin
Posted: Saturday, 20th September 2008
Related Posts: Joining up the Dots
HOW TO PLOT A NOVEL & HOOK YOUR READER
At what point do you decide if you’re going to like the book you’ve picked up to read? Almost certainly, it will be by the time you’ve reached the bottom of the first page. If the narrative hasn’t hooked you by then, you’re unlikely to read on.
Articles on related themes: Plot; Writing & Publishing A Book
The How-to of Creative Writing - Joining Up The Dots
Posted: Saturday, 13th September 2008
LINKS TO PREVIOUS SESSIONS
How did you get on with the last session? I hope the update on all the previous tutorials was a help. For those of you who’ve just joined, the post titled The How-to of Creative Writing – What Makes A Story A Plot? – will link you to all relevant sessions.
STORY & PLOT
In the last post, I stressed the importance of conflict in plotting a story. That is as true of an inspirational true-life story or testimony as it is for a novel. We looked at E.M.
Articles on related themes: Plot; Writing & Publishing A Book
The How-to of Creative Writing - What Makes A Story A Plot?
Posted: Wednesday, 10th September 2008
I’m sorry I’m rather late with this week’s How-to of Creative Writing. I’ve been developing my website in the hope that it will make it easier for visitors to navigate. Also, I wanted to make sure that my readers – you! – understand what it’s all about. I hope you’ll take a look around and let me know what you think. I’m open to any suggestions for improvement. I may have been a published author for nearly twenty-five years, but I’m a novice when it comes to websites and blogs! I need your feedback, please, to help me get it right.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book; Plot
CREATIVE WRITING - Creativity in Conflict
Posted: Friday, 5th September 2008
DEALING WITH CONFLICT – DO YOU KNOW HOW?
Ever felt that you fall out with your partner / colleague / mother about the same thing, over and over? Not sure why this happens? Even less sure what to do about it?
This Post will, I hope, be of interest to anyone reading it, not simply to aspiring writers. I wrote a couple of days ago about the need to bring credibility to the characters we create. Now I’m going to show you how you can bring creativity to the way you manage conflict – in your own lives, as well as the lives you write about.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book; Plot; Character
The How-to of Creative Writing - Credible Characters
Posted: Monday, 1st September 2008
A couple of days ago in the How-to of Creative Writing, I said that Characters – whether in fiction or true-life stories – need:
- Credibility – to be true to life
- Creativity – in the way they respond to conflict
- Complexity – depth which makes them three dimensional
Today we’re going to look at the first of these features:
CREDIBILITY
In this Post, and the next, I’m going to show you how to know and grow your Characters.
Articles on related themes: Character; Writing & Publishing A Book
The How-to of Creative Writing - Characterisation
Posted: Saturday, 30th August 2008
DO YOU ANALYSE WHAT YOU READ AND WATCH?
Last week we looked at the way in which Theme determines the subject or focal point of a story. Have you found, since then, that you’re beginning to be a little more analytical about what you read and watch?
Before I started writing professionally, I never considered the
books I read or the films I saw in terms of Theme. We all tend to
share our enthusiasm about the latest ‘must-read’ or
‘must-watch’ in language which is to do with Plot. We
tell the story: ‘He did this; she said that; this was the
consequence.
Articles on related themes:
Character; Writing & Publishing A Book
The How-to of Creative Writing - Part Two - Theme
Posted: Saturday, 23rd August 2008
CREATIVE WRITING PROJECT
How did you get on last week? Did you find the list of prompts
helpful – i.e. considering a modern take on a Bible story or
a nursery rhyme as inspiration? I hope you’ve got plenty of
ideas milling around in your mind. Keep a note of them because
we’ll be putting it altogether in the next few weeks.
And if you’ve come up with something I haven’t
thought of, let me know by posting a comment at the end of this
post, so that we can all benefit.
Articles on related themes:
Theme; Writing & Publishing A Book
Breaking Writers Block - Two Tips
Posted: Tuesday, 19th August 2008
WRITING SCHEDULE
There’s no doubt about it, marketing a new book plays havoc with your writing schedule. I told myself, when A Painful Post Mortem hit the bookshops, that I’d give my undivided attention to book signings, speaking engagements and blogging until – well, until the end of the summer, I suppose. It didn’t last, of course. To be that disengaged from the process of writing is as close as I’ll ever know to withdrawal symptoms from any other addiction.
To begin with, I tried to hoodwink myself into believing that writing short blogs for my website, commenting on others, and writing articles for ezines would satisfy my craving.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book
The How-to of Writing a Novel - Introduction
Posted: Sunday, 10th August 2008
HOW TO WRITE A BOOK. OR NOT?
One of the flattering, if potentially fatal, aspects of being an author is that other people want you to read their manuscripts. It isn’t always that they want to know how to write a book. They have, they tell you, already done so. It’s just that, to date, no one seems to want to publish it. What they need (they say) is a comprehensive critique: the low-down on fiction writing and publishing their purple prose.
Seduced, in the early days when I was first published, I undertook to read through several dog-eared masterpieces.
Articles on related themes: Writing & Publishing A Book
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