Feb 16, 2022 | Writing
I came across a great thread on Facebook the other day and it got me thinking. A (male) writer was asking the following question: I have a female character looking at herself in the mirror. First naked then in a white nightdress which shows her figure. She is a very...
Feb 7, 2022 | Writing
Author Anne R. Allen published yesterday a great post titled, 10 Dangerous Critiques: Beware Misguided Writing Advice. In it, she explains how trying to please everybody who beta-reads or critiques your WIP can turn a novel into a kind of jackalope of unrelated parts....
Jan 29, 2022 | Writing
No, I’m not talking about non-verbal communication, i.e. shrugs, facial expressions, etc. I’m talking about emojis and, specifically, a new form of communication: “fake typing.” As Mike Elgan explains in his newsletter (which I highly recommend to anyone...
Dec 28, 2021 | Writing
I came across an unusual post on My Modern Met the other day. It featured the work of artist and filmmaker Brian Joseph Davis, specifically his ongoing project The Composites. The project produces police sketches based on what the book descriptions suggest and is a...
Dec 4, 2021 | Writing
This is a guest post by Dave Chesson, aka Kindlepreneur. Dave is the creator of Publisher Rocket, his #1 Book Marketing Tool. Connect with him on Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn, and Twitter. 5 Fun Ideas to Engage Your Readers Engaging readers is the key to book success....
Nov 29, 2021 | Writing
We all know how adverbs are supposedly an author’s archnemesis. They are to be avoided like, well, passive voice. We’re to go through our manuscripts, find each and every one of them, and kill them while crying out, “die, rebel scum!” Hemingway...
Nov 22, 2021 | Writing
Have you ever wondered about the ubiquitous “ye” in old publications (and certain Bible translations)? Did people actually go around using “ye” instead of “the”? How about quaint shops with signs like “Ye Olde Coffee...
Oct 5, 2021 | Writing
I mentioned in my previous post how we had some American friends stay with us over the summer. One of them was a teen girl who, as teens do, used “like” every now and then. A habit I soon found myself repeating. Then I came across an interesting article on...
Aug 3, 2021 | Writing
I apologize for disappearing lately. It’s summer, which means I’m trying to get some rest and enjoy the Greek sun and sea. We also have friends over, which adds to the temptation to drop everything and head to the beach. Plus, of course, I still need to...
Jun 30, 2021 | Writing
In my last post, I discussed how to create memorable characters the Pixar way. This one has some more writing tips from No Film School. This one includes several tweets from Director and Pixar storyboard artist Emma Coats (@lawnrocket). I hope you find them useful!...
