by Ellen Buikema When I worked with my first cover designer, we spent a lot of time discussing the best font/typeface for my book. He wanted to ensure that my font “would be good for my brand.” I was a newbie Indie and had no idea what he meant by brand. Note: I’m using the Read more
The article 20 Fantasy Story Ideas appeared first on The Write Practice. Have you ever wanted to write a story, but didn’t know how to begin? Use a prompt to start getting words on the page. Our goal is to create and maintain writing momentum—but you may need a tiny push to get moving on your Read more
by Sarah (Sally) Hamer Of course, the easy answer is: As many as it takes. (Really helpful, right?) The problem answer is: It depends on many things. What Is a Scene? First, let’s define a scene. In most stories, it’s a small section of the main book, which can be anything from super short (under Read more
The article Dialogue Tags: What Are They and How To Use Them appeared first on The Write Practice. Writers encounter dialogue every day, but too often recently I’ve seen great stories ruined by choppy, incoherent, and straight-up weird dialogue. How can you use dialogue tags effectively in your stories to produce clear dialogue that zings? Read more
by Melinda VanLone This is part three of my four-part series focusing on current book cover trends for 2022. Here are the other two, in case you missed them. Sci Fi and Fantasy often get lumped together in bookstores because they both deal with the fantastical. That said, there are vast differences between the two Read more
by Stefan Emunds This new multi-part series at Writers In the Storm by Stefan Emunds examines the intersection of psychology and storytelling. Stefan, the author of the international bestseller, The Eight Crafts of Writing, is demystifying the how-to of applying psychology to storytelling to enhance your skills and the readers’ experience. Why Do Writers Need Read more
By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy There’s one trick I use that makes writing—and developing—my characters a whole lot easier. I’ve always been a bit of a pantser when it comes to characters. I figure out only the basics of who they are and where they came from before I start a draft, and I learn who Read more
The article Parentheses: How to Use ( ) Correctly appeared first on The Write Practice. People ask me all the time (and by all the time, I mean never), “Liz, what is your favorite grammatical/punctuational structure?” It’s hard to narrow it down to just one (although you’re probably already aware of my love for the Read more
The article 7 Lies About Becoming a Writer That You Probably Believe appeared first on The Write Practice. The profession of writing has been around for thousands of years. You would think we would have figured out how to become one by now, right? However, the more you read, the more you realize no one seems to Read more
by Diana Stout, MFA, PhD As writers, we’d like to think that our work will bring us an abundance of wealth, but what if it doesn’t? Is there anything we can do that would make a difference? Would you be surprised if I said, “Yes, there is”? Some Universal Laws The Law of Abundance is Read more
