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Signs That Email Is Predatory
address, you might receive an email like this one. Don't fall for it!
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Ten Questions To Ask To Find Extra Time To Write
I believe I can find more time in my day if I look hard for it. Perhaps you can too, if you are willing to ask yourself hard questions.
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Take 5: Perfectly Mundane Ways to Start a Story
by Christine Hennebury Okay, so you want to write a story but you have no idea idea how to get started. All you know is that you don’t want it to be boring. You want it to be brilliant and exciting and captivating. Your story can be all of those things but only if you actually write it. And if you’re under self-induced pressure to be brilliant, it will be very hard to get started. If you can even bring yourself to start typing, you will be editing word by word as you go. All of your energy will be going into trying to be a genius wordsmith, instead of…
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10 Questions To Ask When You Are Blueprinting a Scene
A scene is a small increment of the story that progresses the story forward. A scene puts the characters in a new situation in which they are either pushed toward or pulled away from their objectives. Have you planned a scene and not known where to start writing?
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Hacking Writer’s Block
Writer’s block is like a concrete barrier keeping your car from falling down to the next floor. Not all writers have this problem but when it hits, it’s a bitch.
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Three Tricks I Use To Gain More Time To Write
I’ve been writing in 10-minute increments since 2006. Over the last years, I’ve always been looking for ways to gain more 10 minute increments. It was hard enough to be a Stay-At-Home homeschooling mother of five in the first place, so I knew that if I wanted to write fiction too, I would have to maximize my strategies. Here are the first three tricks I used to train my family that gave me more time to write! 1. I delegated as much responsibility as I possibly could. I noticed that my kids could handle regular responsibility at about age six. So I made sure that I gave them age-appropriate tasks…
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10 Ways To Fight Writer’s Block
Writer's block is a frustrating and maddening wrestling match with your confidence and a treasure hunt for new words or new ideas. and putting only dull words on the paper. Writer's block can be blamed on our muse ignoring us, on our chest cold, on our own insecurities or on lies we've been told. Sometimes it's fear-based, energy-based, or we're just bored with our own ideas.
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Why Story Structure is So Important
One of my favorite writing books is Story by Robert McKee. I love it because it is a heady, thorough, and challenging explanation of exactly how to tell a story. While it’s designed mostly for screenwriters, I imagine every novelist would find value in it.
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How To Choose The Best Literary Agent
I had an agent for a previous book deal, and we amicably parted ways a few years ago. I am not quite ready to find another one, mostly because my next novel isn’t finished yet. But when I am ready, I am going to do my homework and seek out the best fit for me.
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What You Need To Be A 10-Minute Novelist
Your big, big dream can be accomplished if you have those six things and you’re willing to work.
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Dos & Don’ts for Writers Having An Existential Crisis
I have a feeling, however, that I am not the only one who feels like this. So, I’ve come up with a quick list of No-Nos for us who are doubting our writerly futures during difficult times.
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Eight Ways You May Be Bungling Dialogue
Dialogue is the soul of the characters. Dialogue is what brings the story to life for your reader. Are you bungling it?
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How to Start Writing in 10 Minute Increments
Be flexible with this system. Figure out what works. You may want more time. You may want less. The point is, you wrote words. That's all that matters.
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Take 5 Friday: Advice from Greek Mythology
By Christine Hennebury (with contributions from Alex Drodge) This week’s Take 5 Friday is brought to you courtesy of storytelling, my love for ‘transferable skills,’ and my 18 year old’s course in Greek Mythology this past semester. While the characters in Greek mythology are known for things that have little or nothing to do with writing, I’ve decided to ask a few mythological figures for some writing advice this week. Artemis – Goddess of Wild Animals and the Hunt (and lots of other things) While there is little physical danger in the hunting of words, there is still the potential for peril. That is why you must choose your targets…