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Posts from the ‘Craft’ Category

May 28

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Two reasons to delete adverbs from your writing

Readers are smart and smart people don’t need to be told how to feel when they read your story.

The best way to get your readers to feel is, of course, to evoke those emotions within them. As a writer, you do that by using strong nouns and verbs and creating meaningful images and scenes. You don’t do that by using adverbs.

According to author and poet Jack Remick, relying on adverbs to tell our readers how to feel is a lazy way to get to emotion.

In his insightful interview with Joel Chafetz, Remick gives an example of a poorly used adverb—“Get out of here, she said sternly,”—and says it can easily be replaced with something stronger such as, “Get your butt out of here,” she growled.

Another reason Remick says he hates adverbs is because they hide images. Read more

May 24

Write a scene in 30 minutes

In a recent interview by Joel Chafetz, author Jack Remick, talked about how learning Natalie Goldberg’s timed writing technique totally changed his writing.

Remick who is a poet and author of the novel Blood, among other works, said he learned to use timed writing to craft his scenes. He breaks it down as follows for a 30-minute timed writing session:

  • 5 minutes on setting, place, time, season, temperature
  • 5 minutes on character description and problem
  • 5 minutes on action and dialogue
  • 5 minutes on Intruder
  • 5 minutes on Climax and Resolution
  • 5 minutes on Hook to the next scene down the line Read more

May 21

Create order out of writing chaos

Writing is a messy business. Maybe you have a certain degree of chaos on your desk, with notebooks, bits and piece of paper, Post its with scrawled notes, and index cards from your hipster PDA. Not to mention the paper cuts.

It’s just part of the process.

When I write nonfiction features I have a system I usually follow that adds order and helps me stay focused. I create an outline but not in the sense of those outlines with the Roman numerals we learned about in grade school.

This is more of a skeleton with the main sections of the story noted: Lede, elements of the story that go in the body with a few notes about what each section will contain, and the conclusion. I visualize the story and tend to write from my notes and the mental image, but these notes serve as a guiding force. Creating the bones of the article gives me momentum and a way to relax into the writing. I can focus on the the words and ideas because I generally know where I’m going. Read more

May 17

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Winner of the weirdest book title of the year

For all our readers waiting to learn the winner of the Diagram Prize for Oddest Book Title of the Year, the suspense is over.

The 2012 winner is Goblinproofing One’s Chicken Coop: And Other Practical Advice In Our Campaign Against The Fairy Kingdom by Reginald Bakeley. This winning book is your go-to guide to banishing pesky dark fairy creatures who threaten to thwart every last pleasure, be it gardening, country hikes, or even getting a good night’s sleep. It beat out, “God’s Doodle: The Life and Times of the Penis,” and “How to Sharpen Pencils,” among others.

Back in March, I announced the contest in this post, Is your book title odd? Check these out and vote for the weirdest one. (You’ll also find links to two posts about writing book and screenplay titles.)

The prize for oddest book title is named after the Diagram Group, an information and graphics company based in London, and The Bookseller, a British trade magazine for the publishing industry. The contest was started in 1978 at the Frankfurt Book Fair, and the first winner was “Proceedings of the Second International Workshop on Nude Mice.”

For more information about how the prize started and past winners, check out the Wikipedia page, Bookseller/Diagram Prize for Oddest Title of the Year.

May 15

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Tell your story out loud to find your way into writing it

Have you ever had a story or scene to write but struggled with finding a way into it?

I have a friend who’s known for the stories she tells. She’s a keen observer of people and life and has a way of making scenes come alive. By observing her oral storytelling technique, I’ve learned how to find my way into writing scenes and stories.

Storytelling has been used since the beginning of time as a way to process life. Before paper or printing presses existed, stories were told verbally. My friend instinctively adopts the techniques of natural storytelling by creating foreshadowing, suspense, strong images, and closure. When she tells a story, I can tell she feeds off her audience, whether it’s one or several, for cues that her story resonates.

If you’re struggling with how to get into a scene or story, you might try telling it to a friend or two.

While some people say you don’t want to “talk your story out” for fear of losing the energy of it, you might find it could actually be a useful tool if you do it with purpose. Read more

May 14

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Three posts on how to write effective loglines

I’ve been working again on my logline for my work-in-progress. In movie land, a logline is a one-sentence hook that tells us what the story is about while piquing our interest. Developing a logline is also a good idea for novelists–you can use it not only to market your work but also to help you stay focused as you write.

Recently, I wrote a post about loglines based on screenwriter Blake Snyder’s advice and his four requirements for every logline.

I also discovered two really great posts on loglines:

“Writing Good Log Lines” by Stanley D. Williams. See what Williams has to say about the importance of the moral premise of your work.

“Writing Effective Loglines” by J. Gideon Sarantinos gives great examples of loglines from newer movies and classics.

Have you written a logline for your current project? If so, share it in the comments below.

May 8

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A good story should punch you in the gut…and more

Christopher Vogler, author of The Writers Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers, has been a consultant for Hollywood studios for years. He has helped guide story development for movies such as The Wrestler, Black Swan, The Lion King, The Fight Club, and The Thin Red Line.

I had the honor of learning from Vogler at the Story Masters Workshop last year. One of the things I still remember from his lecture was when he said, “If your story does not make two or more organs of your body squirt fluids, it’s no good.”

Say, what? Squirt fluids? Yes, that’s what he said. And it makes perfect sense once you know what he means. Read more

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