Be sure to include detail within your setting that relates to time. For example, describe a setting that takes place in summer. A summer that is above normal temperatures could pose a threat. Or, maybe it doesn’t pose a threat, but it does give a clear indication of what time of year it is. Maybe the heat is depicted by way of the droopy leaves of the plants on the patio of the house your character lives in. Is it winter? Everyone knows that winter can present risks as well.
Category: Writing
Awaken Your Setting: Part 1
Create your setting by way of your narrator’s Point of View. Doing this will also instill feeling into your fictitious place. When that happens, your readers will feel it too, and that’s what you want. It keeps them reading.
Writing Growth
Your growth as a writer is important. After all, the better you get, the better your story/poem will be. When that happens, your reader response goes up. You also want to please others with your writing and getting better at it will accomplish that. Below are some ways to advance your writing skilks:
- Write Everyday: You might not feel like writing everyday, but if you write something…anything for just 5 to 10 minutes, it’s still something. Oftentimes, that 5 to 10 minutes turns out to be longer without you realizing it. What writing everyday is doing is getting you into a habit. Great! That’s what you want.
- Use Writing Prompts: These are particularly useful when you don’t know what to write about. Plus, if you don’t feel like writing, it’s a great way to get you writing something. Keep in mind, 1 prompt can be used for a number of different stories/poems. The internet is full of writing promt list. Just type that into Google Search
- Get Feedback: I know, no one likes to be told they need improvement. We all enjoy hearing how good we are. BUT…hearing how you can improve will raise you to that next level.
- Read from the Best: Read works from some of the best authors you enjoy reading. Do not copy them, but learn from their stylistic choices. Then use what you learn to improve YOUR style.
- Take Classes/Courses: Talk about beneficial. This is an opportunity for you to ask questions and sharpen your skills as a writer in a more in depth manner.
- Read Books about Writing: There are so many books out there on the subject of writing. Whether you are writing fiction, non-fiction, or poetry, you can find books on the different aspects that go into each. From story structure to learning how to incorporate emotions into your characters. These books will help you. Some of them even have exercises so you can practice.
Have fun with your writing growth journey. I promise you it will be a great adventure in and of itself.
Goals
If you are serious about writing a novel, novella, a book of short stories or poems; create a goal for yourself for each day. They say in order to create a habit, one must do the same thing for 21 days (maybe longer depending on the individual). Write everyday and hit the goal you set for yourself. Eventually, sitting down to write will become second nature.
However, it’s tough sitting down to a blank screen because, when this happens, many times the mind goes blank as well. Help your mind out by creating some stimulation for it. Again, we’re all different, so the type of stimulation will be different for everyone. Maybe music will get your mind going, or even the television in the background. Whatever works for you. Or, just start writing what comes to mind. This gets those wheels turning as well. Before you know it your fingers will be flying across the keyboard.
Endurance
Any of you out there who are long distance runners know that, when it comes to running, it takes endurance. You run until you reach your goal and you don’t stop. I’m not a long distance runner, but I have run distances up to 3 miles. Yes, there were times I wanted to stop. What I did was play mind games with myself by saying I’ll stop at the next corner. Then I would keep going at the next corner and say ‘ok, the next telephone pole I’ll stop’. Again, I’d keep going. I would do this all the way to the end. Eventually, I wouldn’t need to play these little games with myself because my body would get used to it.
The same thing goes for writing a novel. There are times you want to stop before you reach your goal of whatever word count you promised yourself you would write that day. So, you play a mind game. Let’s say you fixed yourself a goal of writing 1000 words everyday starting Monday. Monday comes and you are 500 words into your writing and you want to stop. You tell yourself, ‘ok, I can write 100 more words and I’ll stop.’ You accomplish this, except now when you reach the 600 word mark, you can’t stop because you’re on a roll. You keep going. All at once you look at your word count number and you have 1200 words. YAY!!! You went over your goal. Does this happen every time? No. If you find you just can not think of anything past the 500 word mark, then stop and come back to it later that day. Who said you have to write 1000 words in one sitting? As long as you reach your goal by the end of that day.
There will be down time when you need time to think about your story and what should come next. I call this ‘Planning Time’. So…plan away. I consider my walks as part of my planning time because it gives me time to relax and think about my story. Much can come from one’s brain when they relax. Another thing that will help keep up your writing endurance is by talking about your story with someone else. My daughter helps me with that. Let me tell you…it helps in a BIG way.
Writing your novel doesn’t have to be a chore, so make it fun. Run those fingers across the keyboard or your pencil across the paper. Let your brain run in several different directions as it thinks of new ideas for your story. Endure. You can do it.
Point of View: Which to Choose
On October 16, 2021 I wrote an article that talked about the various points of view in which a story teller can use to tell a story. I talked about the following points of view.
- First Person POV
- Third Person POV
- Third Person Omniscient
- Third Person Limited
- Third Person Objective
(Please refer to that article for details regarding each one) The purpose of this short article is to talk about which one should you choose. Very simply put, it’s up to you the writer. Which one will tell your story better? Well, to know this, you have to write your story in each of the points of view. That is, if you’re undecided upon which one to pick. After you’ve written your story in each point of view, read each one aloud. Doing this will give you a feel for which one suits your story more.
Conveying Anger
I talked about emotions in previous posts in months past, but today I’m going to focus on one of them. Anger. I’ve said it before, you don’t merely want to tell the reader that your character is angry. You want the reader to FEEL the anger…right off the page.
Bad Example:
Dan was angry at the sight of his girlfriend in the arms of another guy.
Good Example:
Dan stopped short and did a double take, as he passed through the student union on his way back to his dorm. It couldn’t be her. No, no. His eyes betrayed him. After all, he saw the back of her head. It could be any girl. His brain wanted to leave but his feet stood glued in place, and his eyes were pealed on that one girl. Was it her? Was it Ann? Then, as if in slow motion, the girl turned her head, her eyes stopping on his. She smiled, then leaned in toward the strange guy and kissed him full on. A heat swelled within his chest. Why was she doing this? If she wanted to break up with him, she could have said something instead of this show. The heat within continued to swell and his nostrils pulsed. Before he knew it he was upon the both of them. His fists clenched to his sides.
Writing Prompts
Hi Everybody. Good Morning, Good Afternoon, or Good Evening depending on the part of the world you are in. I hope your day is going well, and I wish you many blessings and peace. Please find listed below a list of writing prompts. Whether you are writing a short story or a book, or if you are looking for something to write in your journal, this list should help you.
- “Did you see this? Where did it come from?” asked Paul.
- I took my usual walk in the woods. The quiet and hush of the forest cleared my mind. But…..
- Jade grabbed her keys and stormed out the door.
- “For get it. I said you…..”
- We clinked our glasses together and stared into the other’s eyes while we sipped our Chardonnay. But little did Jack know…..
- Suzy hugged her teddy bear and huddled close to her mother.
- “Grab the hotdogs out of the refrigerator, would you? The grill is almost ready and…..”
- “Ok, hold that pose. Hold it. Hold it. Ok now. Walk over…..”
- The rowboat rocked and swayed, as the waves juggled it side to side.
- Walking through the mown grass, I plucked petals from the yellow rose.
- “Your arms are comfortable. I wish to never move,” cooed Katie.
- “It’s ok. You’re safe now,” whispered John.
- His chance of winning was slim, but he had to try.
- “What do you want from me?” asked Millie.
- “I think just found…”
- “It’s your choice,” she shrugged.
Dialogue: The Don’ts
In the real world we talk everyday, and what we say and talk about at the time could be part of a directed conversation about a topic or you may move from topic to topic. But, generally, what your are saying has nothing to do with moving a story forward, as in a book. Therefore, the dialogue/conversations in a the story you are writing should move the story forward. However, it needs to be done in such a way that it sounds real and everyday. So, how do you do this? Yes, this is a lot to think about, but remember you can go back later and fix it. I’ve said this before, get the words on the page first. Here are some things to keep in mind when writing dialogue.
- Remember your dialogue tags. You don’t need a dialogue tag after every line of dialogue. Every now and then put one in to remind the reader of who is speaking.
- Small talk is a killer. In real life we make small talk all the time for different reasons. Maybe we’re nervous and don’t know what to talk about, so we end up saying little tidbits of information to try and break the ice. In real life though, we aren’t trying to advance a story/plot. So, leave the small talk out of your dialogue, unless of course it advances your story/plot.
- Keep it natural. Make sure your dialogue sounds natural. One good way to tell if it sounds natural or not is to read it out loud.
- No same sounding characters. This closely relates to voice. I touched on this in a previous blog post (Voice from September 21, 2021) Make sure your characters sound different when they are speaking. Word choice, dialect, and how they say something all plays a part in this. Maybe one of your characters has a signature word they like to say. Use that.
- Using names in dialogue. Normally, one wouldn’t use someone else’s name when speaking to someone else unless one is trying to get the attention of the other or make a point. However, if it DOES work, then use it. But be careful.
- Using exposition can bore. When a character explains the story in dialogue it ends up being a form of telling. What happens when you ‘tell’ a story vs. ‘show’? You risk losing the reader. Obviously, you don’t want this. So, stay away from this.
- Don’t use ‘said’ all the time. Please refer to my blog post Words to Write By on October 18, 2021.
- Be accurate and consistent with punctuation. Some writers like to use double quotation marks (“), and some writers like to use single quotation marks (‘). Pick one and stick with it. Just don’t forget to use them. I knew a writer who, when I asked her what she felt her weakness was as it relates to story writing, said it was remembering to put the quotation marks in.
- Conversation that is unimportant doesn’t belong. If a conversation between your characters doesn’t cause some kind of friction, tension, or if it doesn’t advance the story/plot at all, leave it out.
- Silence is a good thing. Too much conversation can be detrimental to the story so be careful. Silence can add a lot to a conversation sometimes.
I know this is much to think about, but don’t sweat it too much. If you need someone to check your dialogue, have a writing buddy read it and give you feedback. Also there are some good books out there about dialogue. Here are some suggestions below (You can find any of them on Amazon):
How to Write Dazzling Dialogue: The Fastest Way to Improve Any Manuscript by James Scott Bell
The Writers Guide to Realistic Dialogue by S. A. Soule
Writing Vivid Dialogue: Professional Techniques for Fiction Authors by Rayne Hall
Words to Write By
When it comes to writing tag lines, such as ‘said John,’ sometimes we need other words to say instead of the word ‘said’. Why? Because said gets too monotonous. And in this writer’s opinion, it can ruin the flow. It kind of takes the realism out of the dialogue. So…..what are some alternatives? See the list below.
- responded
- replied
- answered
- stated
- asked
- stormed
- ranted
- joked
- gushed
- noted
- observed
- agreed
- cried
- added
- gasped
- explained
- grumbled
- boasted
There are much more than these, but you get the idea. Notice these words dig deeper into the mood/emotions of the speaker. That’s what you want because, what this does, is touch the readers’ emotions. That’s what you want.
WRITE TIME AND AGAIN 