The Quickest, Surest Path To Fiction Writing Success

There is a path to fiction writing success that is quick and sure, even obvious. It’s a path that’s simple to explain. In fact, I’m going to explain it in this short article. And when I’m finished, most of you who read this will nod and say to yourselves, “I knew that.” Then you’ll move on without giving it another thought. And you won’t do it. And that will be a shame. As with any profession, writing good fiction requires a learning curve. It begins... Read more »

Viewpoint Writing 1: Seeing Through Your Character’s Eyes

Of the many different writing styles, viewpoint writing is probably the one that works best for aspiring writers - but what is it? Viewpoint writing is used extensively in modern novels, especially ones that contain fast-paced action. As its name suggests, it’s written from the active character’s viewpoint, telling the reader what the character sees, how they feel, what they know, and so on. We’ll look here at seeing through your character’s eyes. Maybe you think this is... Read more »

Short stories - Dead In The Water Or Alive And Kicking?

The short story genre is one that is thriving - but only in certain places. Where are they? A short story can be roughly defined as any work of fiction below about 12,000 words. A greater wordcount tends to move the story into the realms of the ‘Novella’ or Novelette’, a niche in the writing field that falls between the short story and the full-blown novel. For many years the short story was a thriving branch of fiction but took a downturn during the middle section of the 20th.... Read more »

New Writers: Please Take Note!

Have you ever wondered how some writers seem to have plenty of ideas to work with and others very few? Well, here perhaps is one reason why . . . If you have ever listened to anyone say something along the lines of ‘I had this most amazing dream last night - but I can’t just remember what it was about’ you may start to guess where I’m coming from. Firstly, it’s not about writing about dreams! I just used that as an example of the nature of memory. Sometimes your memory... Read more »

Awesome Secrets For Anglers Preparing Bass Fishing in Florida

Central Florida is a hot spot to bass fishers. In Florida waters, such as Lake Okeechobee, quite a few of bass fishermen bunch together to land blue gills, specks, largemouth bass, crappie, peacock bass, etc, which swim along the waters of the wide world’s top spot highly touted fishing place. Plus, anglers hit Okeechobee to get the butterfly bass, black bass, smallmouth, etc. Anglers through out the globe take pleasure in bass fishing, together with hobbies, sports, trophy fishing, etc. A... Read more »

Fiction Writing: Getting Your Events In Order

In fiction writing, events occur in strict chronological order. If you would like to know what this means, please read on! In previous articles I’ve used my fictional tongue-in-cheek character Detective Jake Bullett to help me along. Jake’s tough and gets into a lot of scrapes where things happen quickly. Let’s see what a sample could be like: ‘Jake lashed out and the gunman fell over, taking Jake with him. At the same time Sally screamed ‘Look out, Jake!’ and... Read more »

Viewpoint Writing 2: How To Use Your Character’s ‘Voice’

There are some simple rules to remember when writing form a character’s viewpoint, yet many forget them. Here’s a rundown of some to remember . . . No matter what language you speak, regional accents and dialect always give away your origin - unless of course you have had voice coaching. In the UK accent differences can be very subtle - for example, I can tell if someone is from my home town or a town just ten miles away. You can probably do this too. When ‘building’ a character... Read more »

Fiction Writing: Short Story Subjects That Sell

When writing for women’s magazines it’s important to know the themes that work - and those that don’t. Here we take a look at popular magazine themes. First off, here’s a question. What kind of stories do you think are printed in women’s magazines? If you don’t read them, chances are that you’ll say ‘romance’. Well, you would only be half-right. Romance still figures highly within their pages but these days it’s not the traditional stuff. Years... Read more »

Fiction Editing - Story Sense And Logic

Your story, be it novel, short story or novelette, is finished. Or is it? Before you send it to a publisher, check firstly that your story makes sense! Maybe you read my article about The Final Draft. Well, before you reach that stage there’s this one to go through. It can be hard and you need to be tough with yourself, castings an editor’s eye - not that of a writer - over your work. So what is there to look for when editing and how do you go about it? The first thing to do is to print... Read more »

Fiction Writing: Why You Should Get A Good Agent

To get an agent or not? This decision is a crucial one in your writing career so in this article we’ll examine some of the ‘fors’ and ‘againsts’ of agents for fiction writers. There is no doubt that getting a good agent can have a significant impact on your literary career. There is also no doubt that a bad agent can have an impact too - but not the kind you want. Any agent that you may contact must feel ‘right’ for you in the first place or the chances are... Read more »