Word Magic
Writing fiction for self-publishing authors, as well as aspiring authors
You’re writing fiction, but you’re a new author, and you’re disappointed with your results. Two strategies will help: Developing suspense: it’s essential, in the age of TikTok. Control: write in scenes, and edit. New authors tend to overwhelm their plot with backstory; that is, everything that happened before the story starts. Readers don’t care about that. They want entertainment. As … Read more
Readers want what they want, so when you’re writing fiction, it’s easy to make mistakes which annoy readers. That said, don’t despair. You can fix most mistakes easily. Writing fiction: the biggest mistake Before we look at common errors, let’s look at the biggest one: failing to capitalize on success. Sadly this is horribly common. One of my students wrote … Read more
If you’re writing fiction, it’s no wonder you’re stressed. You’ve created an entire world, and you’re keeping it in your head. Sadly, your 30th novel takes as much organization as the first. However, experience helps. With experience, you accept the stress and realize it’s normal. With any luck at all, you’ll find ways to get organized and manage the chaos. … Read more
Here’s a quick writing tip: if you’re writing fiction, start by deciding how many words your novel, novella, or serial needs. For efficient writing, deciding on a word count eliminates many uncertainties. As you may know, I mentor authors. Last week, an author contacted me about her romantic mystery. After writing a few thousand words, she was ready to give … Read more
Inspiration and motivation are short-lived. Fiction exercises help when you’re unmotivated, or think everything you’ve written is pure junk. Perhaps you’ve developed a resistance to writing: you may be avoiding a scene you know will be emotionally challenging; or you’re doubting your plot. Try the two exercises below, but consider creating your own exercises too—create your own collection. Fiction exercises: … Read more