Show-don’t-tell cheat sheet: facial expressions
Authors often struggle with depictions of emotions. We're supposed to show them, describe them. For example, "she was surprised by this" is a big no-no, and considered lazy writing. "Her eyes widened and her mouth slacked", on the other hand, gives us the very image...
Slow reader
Don't you hate it when people read over your shoulder?
Poetry lessons needed
I would definitely tip; those poetry lessons are sorely needed...
55 Words to Describe Someone’s Voice
I found the following great resource on Tumblr and writerformypaper.com which will appeal to any authors/writers visiting my blog: adenoidal (adj): if someone’s voice is adenoidal, some of the sound seems to come through their nose appealing (adj): an appealing...
Worst book titles ever
When you despair because no publisher seems to want your manuscript and you start feeling like a failure, just remember that the people who reject you are the same ones who have published these rare gems... Yes, you are right to think that these are the worst book...
45 ways to avoid using the word ‘very’
This is important, people! What if Gollum had said, "my very valuable! Nasty Hobbitses want to steal the very valuable"? (via Nat Russo)
Redundancy
Attention, authors: when you write, please make sure you avoid overusing redundant redundancies!
Everything is nothing
This is attributed to Kurt Vonnegut, but as Abraham Lincoln famously observed, "you can't believe everything you read on the internet." Regardless, it's a brilliant observation!
20+9 two-sentence horror stories
Update: Here are 9 more of these delightfully creepy two-sentence horrors, found on Imgur! I also managed to track down what appears to be the original reddit post.I found this brilliant exercise in lean writing on 9gag. It's 20 two-sentence horror stories, each...
Top 5 blogging tips and tricks for beginners
Drew Iaconis recently shared his Top 5 blogging tips and tricks for beginners. These are: Target Your Content to a Specific Audience Create Genuine Rapport Blog Consistently Syncing and Sharing Your Blog Via Social Media The Importance of Learning Basic SEO Read...
MMJaye features my Work In Progress, Mad Water
My current Work In Progress, Mad Water, was featured today in MMJaye's blog. She interviewed me, and even asked me to send her a photo of my workspace. Mind you, I don’t normally prattle around the place dressed up like that, but I had just come back from meeting a...
Social Media Tip: just have fun!
Kristine Kathryn Rusch is writing a series of posts on Social Media and how to use them. With so much advice on the subject, she wrote this week a great tip that somehow resonated with me: just have fun! Participating in social media is truly not required. Remember...