Tag: how to write a book
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Aspiring Writers, Take Notes!
You can write a novel that seems absolutely perfect to you: the dialogue is tight, the characters are richly layered and the plot crackles with energy. But you’ll still get notes, I guarantee it. And that’s a good thing. Notes, by the way, are the comments you get from decision-makers (mostly literary agents and editors)…
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Want to Get Published? Know Your Genre!
You can write a novel in any genre you want, as long as you know what it is. To me, a “genre” is anything that comes with a certain set of expectations. If you tell me your story is a hard-boiled mystery, then I’ll know what to expect. If you tell me it’s a time-travel…
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What Kind of Writer Are You? Find Out!
Writers generally fall into three camps: hobbyists, aspiring professionals and working pros. The difference is not so much about your writing skills or experience as it is about your goals. A hobby writer just wants to have fun with writing. You know what I mean: get together with friends, talk about inspiration, maybe write a…
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Feel the Invisible Robot Love
These days, most of our precious writing usually ends up online, where it is relentlessly scrutinized by robots. Not the sparky “Danger, Will Robinson, danger!” kind of robots, but invisible little computer gremlins that furrow through the internet, looking for text to gnaw on. That way, if you go to Google and search for —…
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Transform Your Hero and Get Published
I was just listening to a fantastic interview with the late, great Blake Snyder, author of the Save the Cat! books. One of the many insightful things he said was, “Tell me a story about a hero who transforms over the course of an adventure.” That’s something that I struggle with in my own writing. …
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Why Editors Are Just Not That Into You
Whenever I hear a writer complain that editors just aren’t “getting” her latest story, I suspect what they’re actually not getting out of it is emotion. As human beings, we like to sit around the campfire, literally or metaphorically, and tell each other stories. Stories enlighten us, inspire us, gift us with a new perspective. …
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I Want to Teach You How to Write a Novel
Over the last few years, I’ve met and interviewed a bunch of authors at different stages in their career, from the very beginning to the very top. In one case, I had the privilege of hanging out with a debut author the same day he discovered he’d hit the New York Times bestseller list. As…
LAURENCE MACNAUGHTON 