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Category Archives: Literature
Does being well-read help you write?
Despite the flood of self-published books, there are still agents searching the field of writers attempting to discover the next best-selling author. I read a long list of short blurbs written by these agents describing what they required of those … Continue reading
Posted in Education trends, Literary devices, Story structure, Trends in books
Tagged the idiot, well-read
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Lessons in Chemistry
Chemistry–a subject in school that requires labs where students mix substances to observe what happens. However, the students spend much more time scribbling down equations on paper to calculate the result of reactions they never observe. Chemicals are often predictable. … Continue reading
Posted in Literature, Manipulation, Writer's resource
Tagged chemistry, relationships, romance
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Mixing past and present can get tense
Authors sometimes play with the parts of a novel, like wooden blocks that can be rearranged. What will happen if the middle of the story is inserted at the beginning, or time moves forward and then backwards? What if exterior … Continue reading
Posted in Literature, Trends in books, Writer's resource, Writing trends
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Breathing life into your words
Where does the spark of a story originate? Walking down the street trimmed with frosted pine swags, hearing the distant hum of a children’s choir and a mother berating her teenage son for wanting to spend Christmas day at the … Continue reading
Playing the writing game
The debate continues between those who have a flash of inspiration that propels them to write and keep writing and those who think about their ideas and outline before they start. For those who prefer the less planned routine, the … Continue reading
Idea generator
Honestly, if the vast majority of authors were confined to writing only about the kind of person that they are and only their experiences, most books would be a bit boring. Writers do not live the exciting lives that they … Continue reading
Posted in Literature, Trends in books
Tagged Creative writing, Fiction, journaling, Write what you know, Writers Resources
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Simmering the main character
Character development is probably the only way to make a protagonist that is someone else than a flat or stock character. However, this takes time and results in a slower pace of writing, like a stew that must simmer for … Continue reading
Posted in Characters, Literature, Writer's resource
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“Crazy” characters
If you want to write fiction involving mentally ill characters in a realistic way, to show how and why they no longer think clearly, you must get to know real people with real psychiatric disorders. There are many places that … Continue reading
Posted in Characters, Literature, Mental health
Tagged mental illness, psychotic, Psychoticism
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The nature of an epic
Before “epic” became a name used by companies to suggest their fame, it was a type of poem. A long one describing the exploits of heroes and often involving the rise of a nation. The poetic meter made memorization of … Continue reading
Posted in Characters, Literature, Trends in books, Writer's resource
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Traveling towards the novel
Story tellers usually start small. I did this with little sketches referred to as flash fictions, often under 500 words. I won money in contests and published some of these. I began receiving the response, ‘this intrigues me but I … Continue reading
