We'll send our best work every month.
Sitting before me is City of Bones by Cassandra Clare, the first book in the bestselling Mortal Instruments series. I don’t know anything about the story, but I can see on the cover there’s a guy thinking, Hello, my eyes are up here! Wait – … read more »
Second person point of view has a bad reputation. For some reason, using “you” as the personal pronoun in a narrative (as opposed to “I” or “he/she/they” in first and third person) is an underutilized form that is looked down upon. Critics say the protagonist … read more »
Words are the buildings blocks of prose, but not all of them are load-bearing. Some words clutter the page and make our writing sound wishy-washy, dry, or awkward. To strengthen your work, search for these 44 suspects and ask yourself: are they doing more harm … read more »
At some point, writers must face hurdles that prevent them from working. Frustratingly, these barriers can appear at random, even for storytellers with a long history of productivity. But that doesn’t mean you can’t troubleshoot and resolve these problems. Read more »
Ariel joins Chris and Oren for a discussion about perspective and point of view. They discuss the strengths and weaknesses of different perspectives and common mistakes writers make. Ariel stands up for second person, while Chris and Oren reignite their old debate about multiple points … read more »
I’ve never read Christopher Paolini’s Eragon before now, but I’ve heard it compared to both Star Wars and Harry Potter. I know I can expect a young male chosen one and (obviously) the dragon on the cover. Perhaps a dragon named Eragon, as that’s just … read more »
With the dawn of online publishing, we have more options for story length than ever before. Microfiction, flash fiction, novelettes, and novellas all have a market online, and most writers will transition to a different length during their careers. It can be confusing to adapt … read more »
Terry Brooks’ Sword of Shannara is a fantasy classic. I was warned it’s a Lord of the Rings copycat, but I knew nothing about the story or any of its characters. Naturally, I decided to read it – or try to. Whether it’s because Brooks … read more »
Different stories call for different language. You might write a romance with long flourishing sentences and a gritty noir with abrupt phrasing. Genre settings need language that blends in, or the phrasing will call attention to itself and away from the story. If you always … read more »
You know your character inside out, but that isn’t coming across to your readers. They aren’t sure what your character is feeling, and they certainly aren’t feeling it themselves. The scenes you carefully crafted to maximize emotional impact fall flat instead. If that sounds familiar, … read more »