WRITING RESOURCE
HOT LINKS
NAVIGATION
FIRST DRAFT
A-D M-Q
E-H R-S
I-L T-Z
— M —
Donald Maass
LITERARY AGENT
Donald Maass represents dozens of novelists in the SF, fantasy, crime, mystery, romance and thriller categories.
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Main Character Introductions
3 WAYS TO INTRODUCE YOUR MAIN CHARACTER
By Les Edgerton — Writer’s Digest
One of the biggest bugaboos in manuscript submissions is when the author doesn’t properly introduce the protagonist within the first chapter. Here are three ways to introduce the main character of your story.
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Multiple Main Characters
how to structure stories with multiple main characters
By K.M. Weiland — Helping Writers Become Authors
If you have two (or more) characters who are equally important to the story and receive equal POV time, how should you balance them when structuring your novel? Generally speaking, we find two different types of stories with multiple main characters.
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Make a Plan
WHEN STARTING YOUR CAREER AS A WRITER
By Janette Moore — Change Becomes You
Dreaming of establishing your reputation as a writer but don’t know where to begin? Here is a simple career plan to help you.
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Mapping Your Hero’s Adventure
By Elizabeth Sims — Writer’s Digest
How do the most successful authors of our time construct their stories? What is the Hero’s Adventure — aka, The Hero’s Journey? This post digs into that and more.
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Marketing Basics
FREE NICK STEPHENSON VIDEO
Nick Stephenson — ProWritingAidTV
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Market a Book
By Ricardo Fayet
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Market a Book
By Joanna Penn
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Marketing Through Email
3 STRATEGIES TO INCLUDE IN YOUR EMAIL MARKETING
By Derek — Oddballs Marketing
Email marketing is still one of the most effective marketing methods out there. However, a lot of strategies being used today are outdated or just plain annoying.
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Marketing Without Social Media
By Carol J. Michel
“I gave up social media in July 2020.”
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Mastering Your Mystery
WRITE, PUBLISH, AND PROFIT WITH YOUR MYSTERIES AND THRILLERS
By Cheryl Bradshaw
Do you write in the genres of mystery, thriller, or suspense? Are you interested in learning how to write better, more compelling books and becoming successful in your marketing endeavors?
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Ian McEwan on His Writing Process
Ian McEwan, author of “Solar” describes his writing process, how he schedules his day and about his homemade desks.
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Mind Mapping
Use Mind Maps to Solve Screenwriting Problems
By Steven M. Cross — No Film School
People think in connections, and a mind map can help show connections and also make new connections.
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Mind Mapping
Want to learn better? Start mind mapping
By Hazel Wagner
Hazel shares her work on mind mapping and what it can do for understanding, memorization, and retention.
FREE YouTube Video
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Mindset Matters
8 SIMPLE STEPS TO BETTER WRITING HABITS
By A. Howitt — Mythic Scribes
It might be time to address your mindset. The mistakes we make, the way we respond, and the impact on our self-worth are all matters of perception not personality traits. They’re habits. Behaviors. And behaviors can be changed.
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Missoula Writing Collaborative
The Missoula Writing Collaborative teaches literary competence, critical thinking, cultural awareness, and artistic joy through creative writing. Our writers are published professionals with a number of books and many honors among them.
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Mistakes Writers Make
GIVING UP
By Cassandra Lipp — Writer’s Digest
Perhaps the biggest skill a writer can learn to aid their career is to learn to keep going in the face of rejection. A writer who gives up as soon as it gets hard is a writer who will never see their words be published.
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Mistakes Writers Make
LACK OF CONFIDENCE
By Moriah Richard — Writer’s Digest
The Writer’s Digest team has witnessed many writing mistakes over the years, so we started this series to help identify them for other writers (along with correction strategies). This week’s writing mistake writers make is lacking conflict.
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Mistakes in Writing
here are the most common writing mistakes
By K.M. Wieland — Helping Writers Become Authors
Skipping the best parts of the story
The fastest way to frustrate readers is to write everything but the good parts!
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16 Embarrassing Writing Mistakes to Avoid
check ’em out before it’s too late!
By Writers Write
Jennifer Frost writes: ‘Writing mistakes are everywhere, especially online or when people neglect proofreading.
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Money-Saving Guide for Authors
RESOURCES FOR WRITERS WHO ARE LOOKING TO IMPROVE THEIR CRAFT AND SAVE MONEY ON CAREER EXPENSES
By Coupon Follow
A special THANK YOU! to Kelly Miller and Marisa for bringing this useful site to our attention!
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Montana Resources for Writers
By Write By Night
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Mood in Fiction
140 words describing mood in fiction
By Amanda Patterson — Writers Write
How readers feel after reading a book or a short story, or after watching a film, is known as the mood in fiction.
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Moral Dilemmas Make Characters and Stories Better
By Steven James — Writer’s Digest
Readers can’t resist turning pages when characters are facing tough choices. Use these 5 keys to weave moral dilemmas into your stories—and watch your fiction climb to new heights.
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Mother Archetypes in Crime Fiction
7 MOTHER YOU MEET IN CRIME NOVELS
By Catriona McPherson — CrimeReads
There are precious few happy kids of loving mothers in crime fiction. Perhaps that’s inevitable, since crime fiction shows us flawed individuals, at times of great crisis.
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Motif in Fiction
By Amanda Petterson — Writers Write
If you’ve ever wondered what a motif is and how to use one in your novel, read this post. We define it and give you examples of motifs in stories. A motif in fiction is a recurring object, sound, phrase, action, or idea in a story.
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Multiple Submissions
IN WRITING AND PUBLISHING
By Robert Lee Brewer — Writer’s Digest
Learn what multiple submissions in writing and publishing are from editor Robert Lee Brewer, including when writers should make them (if ever) and why they should care.
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Murder Your Darlings
And Other Gentle Writing Advice from Aristotle to Zinsser
By Roy Peter Clark
From one of America’s most influential teachers, a collection of the best writing advice distilled from fifty language books — from Aristotle to Strunk and White.
With a chapter devoted to each key strategy, Clark expands and contextualizes the original author’s suggestions and offers anecdotes about how each one helped him or other writers sharpen their skills. An invaluable resource for writers of all kinds, Murder Your Darlings is an inspiring and edifying ode to the craft of writing.
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Mystery
ESSENTIAL VERSUS NON-ESSENTIAL MYSTERY
By Amanda Kabak — Writer’s Digest
What gets a reader to keep turning pages? It’s a fundamental question all writers grapple with, and craft books and articles are loaded with advice on the subject: a compelling plot, tension, conflict, and sometimes, literally, mystery.
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Mysteries — How to Write
By K.M. Weiland
Mystery is one of the most popular fiction genres of all time. At its simplest, the genre is a puzzle for audiences and characters to figure out together. At its most complex, mystery offers a deep-dive into humanity’s most pressing existential questions and threats.
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Mystery Reads
TOP 25 MYSTERY NOVEL
By Kathy Edens — ProWritingAid
A look at the top mystery novels from the Mystery Writers of America, Publisher’s Weekly, and Goodreads’ highest rated mysteries of all time.
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Narrators: First Person Narrators
7 great crime novels
By Scott Blackburn — CrimeReads
the intimacy, the excitement, and the potential for deceit that only a good first person narrator can conjure up
As a reader, I’ve always been drawn to first person fiction. I love that it allows such a deep dive into a character’s mind while limiting my access to information, which I find crucial in building suspense. Mostly, I love that first person narration is conversational.
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Narrators: Unreliable Narrators
By Richard Thomas — Lit Reactor
The unreliable narrator is a protagonist, and technique, that I’ve used quite often.
Why? What is the appeal? How can that make your stories more effective, more intense, more interesting? Let’s talk about it.
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Narrative Mode: Point of View
By Glen C. Strathy
Choosing the right narrative mode for your story is a decision that determines the perspective or point-of-view from which your reader experiences the story, as well as the perspective the main character has on the story events.
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Narrative Voice
By Two Brothers Press
A discussion of point of view and verb tense and how these elements affect the story
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Navigating the Publishing World
By Florida Gulf Coast Sister in Crime
What are paths to publication for emerging writers? Can a self-published or independently published author make the switch to traditional publishing? What are the options for traditionally published authors who are tired of ceding control over their work and profits to third parties?
Join Sisters in Crime for an exciting discussion of the book publishing world from the POV of traditionally published, self-published, and hybrid Sisters in Crime authors. Our experienced panelists will help you explore your publishing options.
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- Part 1: Traditional Publishing
- Part 2: Self/Independent Publishing
Need An Author Website?
FOLLOW THESE TIPS
By Frances Caballo — A social media expert for authors
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Negative Tension
A FREE YOUTUBE VIDEO
By Bill Johnson
How to create and sustain narrative tension in a novel, screenplay, or play.
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Negotiating with the Dead
A writer on Writing
By Margaret Atwood
In this wise and irresistibly quotable book, one of the most intelligent writers now working in English addresses the riddle of her art: why people pursue it, how they view their calling, and what bargains they make with their audiences, both real and imagined.
An invaluable insider’s view of the writer’s universe.
“A book is another country. You enter it, but then you must leave: Like the Underworld, you can’t live there.”
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New Books Newsletter
By Book Riot
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T.J. Newman: On Letting Real Life Inspire You
By Robert Brewer — Writer’s Digest
After completing a draft of her novel, she tried finding an agent but was rejected 41 times before being taken on by Shane Salerno of The Story Factory. In this post, Newman discusses how her job as a flight attendant inspired her to write her debut release Falling and much more!
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Newsletter for Writers
YOUR SHOT OF WRITERLY NEWS + RUMORS
By SCRIBBLER
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NOIR AT THE BAR
AUTHOR INTERVIEWS ON YOUTUBE
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Novel Editing Workbook
By Kris Spisak
Finishing your book is awesome. Finishing your editing is what makes all the difference.
Looking for an editing guidebook that will help you take your work-in-progress to the next level? Look no further.
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Novel Writing for Beginners
By Joy Lynn Goddard
If you dream of writing a novel but don’t know how to get started, let me take you step by step through my novel-writing guide for beginners. Learn how to turn your big ideas into a full-length story, how to outline and structure your novel, how to develop characters so they’ll walk off the page, and how to polish, publish, and promote your work—and more. It won’t be long until you’re ready to share your novel with the world!
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Novel Writing Training Plan
Use this FREE guide before you start writing to work out your narrative arc, plan out your key plot points, flesh out your characters, and begin to build your world. Then, when you begin your writing journey, you will have a map to follow along the way.
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Novels About Novelists
By Louise Dean — The Guardian
From Louisa May Alcott to Philip Roth and Michael Chabon, writers of fiction have long been fascinated by the dramas of their own trade
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— O —
Online Creative Writing Classes
By SkillShare
Find what fascinates you as you explore these creative writing classes. Get started for FREE!
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Online Level 1 Courses
By The Writers Studio
An invigorating class that brings together students from all over the U.S. and the world to explore the myriad possibilities of narration in fiction and poetry.
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Online Writing Classes
TRANSFORM YOUR LIFE THROUGH ONLINE WRITING CLASSES
By The Writers Workshop
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Online Writing Courses
TUTORED ONE-TO-ONE
By The Writers College
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Online Writing Resources
ADVICE TO WRITERS
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On Writing Your First Novel
The Journey of a Wannabe Novelist
By Stephen Haunts
From developing intriguing plots and complex characters to word processing and formatting tools, through to staying healthy and motivated as a writer, this book covers everything a first-time novelist needs to know. Whether you’re just starting out or struggling to get your book off the ground, On Writing Your First Novel provides the guidance and motivation you need to turn your writing dreams into reality.
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On Writing
By Stephen King
Immensely helpful and illuminating to any aspiring writer, this special edition of Stephen King’s critically lauded, million-copy bestseller shares the experiences, habits, and convictions that have shaped him and his work.
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On Writing
By Carl Hiaasen — Writers Write
Some writing tips from Carl Hiaasen.
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On Writing (and Writers)
A Miscellany of Advice and Opinions
By C.S. Lewis
A definitive collection of wisdom on every style of writing and a celebration of the transformative power of the written word.
Featuring over one hundred excerpts—some short and some essay length—drawn from his wide body of letters, books, and essays, On Writing (and Writers) brings together C. S. Lewis’s reflections on the power, importance, and joy of a life dedicated to writing.
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Opening Line
What makes a great opening line?
By Allegra Hyde — Lit Hub
The spark of connection can happen on the page in the same way it can in the real world. A great first line can spur intense readerly attraction—provoke a compulsion to know more. Let’s call this: love at first sentence.
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Opening Scene
7 EASY RULES FOR WRITING A NOVEL’S OPENING SCENE
By PrecisionEdit
A story’s opening scene must attract the reader’s attention well enough to make them want to commit to reading the entire book, so it’s not a decision to make lightly. Even the most seasoned writers will admit that the choice for an opening chapter is likely to change over the course of writing the novel, making the opening scene an ever-evolving (and sometimes elusive) goal.
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Outline
how to write a plot outline
By Jordan — Now Novel
There is no single method for how to outline a story, but these are some ways to make story structure and planning work for you and your writing process.
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Outlining
THE TRANSFORMATIVE POWER OF A POST-FIRST-DRAFT OUTLINE
By Kris Spisak — Writer’s Digest
Have you ever considered outlining after finishing your first draft?
Whether your writing style is more “meticulous planner” or more “writing-by-the-seat-of-your-pants,” your first draft can find its way with persistence. There are no right answers about how you get there, as long as you do.
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Outlining
7 STEPS TO CREATING A FLEXIBLE OUTLINE
By K.M. Weiland — Writer’s Digest
Many writers who swear they dislike outlines are thinking of them in the wrong ways. K.M. Weiland’s seven-step process to creating a flexible outline for any story can help you let loose and have fun in your first draft.
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Outlining A Crime Novel
MODIFYING THE HERO’S JOURNEY
By Zara Altair — ProWritingAid
The crime genre covers a wide range of subgenres from whodunit, to howdunit, to whydunit. The general premise is the game you played as a kid, cops and robbers.
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Outlining — Start Short
DO SOME PLANNING ON THE FRONT END
By TypeRight Editing
Once you decide you want to write a novel, it pays to do some planning at the front end to ensure you put your best foot forward in your finished work. The four tips below will help you get there.
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Outlining Steps
three steps to creating an outline for your story
By Golden Storyline Books
I’ve read manuscripts and novels where the story has no evident direction or a convoluted first half. There should be a climactic scene, with a story that anticipates the climax and prepares the reader many conceivable options for the outcomes in that climax, this will give the story extra power. Otherwise the events will fail to encourage readers to suspend disbelief. The conclusion the reader discovers at the end should be gradually built throughout with the anticipations slowly raised and linked to the characters and the narrative sequence.. Books with a non-traditional narrative still generally construct a climax and establish direction towards the conclusion.
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Outlining — Take Off Your Pants
OUTLINE YOUR BOOKS FOR FASTER, BETTER WRITING
By Libbie Hawker
This instructional book explains the benefits and technique of planning a story before you begin to write.
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Pacing Your Story
is your story moving too fast?
By K.M. Weiland
In some genres, readers want to feel a sense of desperation and urgency on the characters’ behalf.
One of the best ways to ramp up that feeling is to tighten the story’s timeline and speed up events. Your characters have to disarm a ticking bomb? How much more exciting if they have to do it in five minutes rather than five days!
However, there are definite downsides to allowing your story to move too fast.
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Paris Review:
- Authors
- Podcasts
- Videos
- Interviews
- Newsletters
- Submissions
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PARKER
The Many Faces of Parker
By Nick Kolakiowski — CrimeReads
Parker is Donald Westlake’s (Richard Stark’s) most enduring, confounding character.
Parker is an ice-cold thief who meticulously plans his scores; when things go wrong (and they usually do), he’s just as methodical in killing whoever made the mistake of betraying him this time around. He doesn’t say much, and when he does, he keeps it short. He’s not given to sentimentality or mercy.
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Parts of a Book
A PUBLISHING GUIDE FOR NEW AUTHORS
By Derek Haines — Just Publishing Advice
The main parts of a book have stayed almost the same throughout the years.
Not much has changed from the time of hand-written books, through to printed and now electronic books. All have similarly ordered elements.
Most people who read your book will expect where they can find specific information.
For new authors, you should consider this when you prepare for publishing.
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Passion in Your Writing
HOW TO CHANNEL PASSION IN YOUR WRITING
By Donald Maass — Writer’s Digest
Transposing your own powerful feelings, opinions, joys and sadness to your characters, every day, is the way to instill in your pages the wisdom that is living inside your novel—and you.
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Passive Voice
A LAWYER’S THOUGHTS ON AUTHORS, SELF-PUBLISHING AND TRADITIONAL PUBLISHING
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Passive Voice
HOW TO MAKE IT ACTIVE
By Ashley Shaw — ProWritingAid
In this post, we’ll go through what passive voice is, how to recognize it, and ways to fix it to improve your writing.
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Louise Penny
STILL KILLIN’ IT
By Elaine Szewczyk — Publishers Weekly
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Louise Penny’s Inspector Gamache Books
THESE DARK DETECTIVE NOVELS ARE REALLY ABOUT ETHICS AND HOPE
By Aja Romano — VOX
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Piracy — Why You Shouldn’t Worry About It
but How to Protect Yourself Anyway
By Joanna Penn — Jerry Jenkins Blog
Yes, piracy happens, but here’s why you shouldn’t let fear keep you from putting your words out into the world.
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Planning and Organizing Your Great Story
By Derek Haines — Just Publishing Advice
If you are new to creative writing and fiction, there are a few typical pitfalls you really should try to avoid. You need to create a story that will hold a reader’s interest.
Two of the most common traps for new authors when they start fiction writing are to narrate too much and to overuse the passive voice. These two mistakes make it impossible to adopt the golden rule of fiction writing, which is show, don’t tell.
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Plan Your Thriller
OUTLINING YOUR THRILLER NOVEL
The thriller’s core emotion is excitement. A thriller novel is fast-paced and develops around what happens after you’ve established danger. Plan your thriller to keep moving and excite your reader.
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Plot — What Is It?
By Amanda Patterson — WritersWrite
A plot is a series of events that make up a story.
Plots have beginnings, middles, and endings. The first quarter of your book is the beginning, the second and third quarters are the middle, and the last quarter is the ending.
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Plot or Character?
UNDERSTANDING THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PLOT-DRIVEN AND CHARACTER-DRIVEN STORIES
By Christina Escamilla
It is essential to first think about your reasons for storytelling. What are you trying to communicate to your audience? How do you do this through your story?
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Plot Climax
WAYS TO IMPROVE PLOT CLIMAX
By Jeff Gerke — Writer’s Digest
Learn four ways to improve plot and climax in your writing by looking at the four components of a novel’s climax, including the run-up, the moment of truth, and more.
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Plot Development
CHARTS AND TIPS FOR OUTLINING AND PLOTTING
By Jess Zafarris — Writer’s Digest
To build a great story structure that will carry you through to a finished novel, you have to take a closer look at your plot and work out kinks that may come up as you’re writing.
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Plot Devices
HOW TO USE THEM IN YOUR STORIES
By Savannah Cordova — Writers Write
Writers use plot devices to advance the plot of a story. While some writers might hesitate to lean on them, there’s a reason that so many great stories use them — they work!
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Plot Holes
5 WAYS TO FIND AND FIX PLOT HOLES
By Anthony Ehlers — Writers Write
Sadly, a plot hole is often the kiss of death for your story. Essentially, it breaks the reader’s trust – they leave the world we’ve created because they don’t believe it. They feel cheated.
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Plot Problems
10-MINUTE FIXES TO 10 COMMON PLOT PROBLEMS
By Elizabeth Sims — Writer’s Digest
Good fiction takes time. You cannot sit down at the keyboard and pound out the Great American Novel in one or two sessions.
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Plot Structure
A CONVERSATION WITH HELGA SCHIER
By Creative Writing Now
“Most first-time writers who come to me for advice have trouble with two seemingly distinct issues, which, upon a closer look, go hand in hand: more often than not inexperienced writers are telling their story rather than showing it, and just as often neither character nor plot develop naturally. A novel must comprise both.”
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Plot Structure in Writing
By Golden Storyline Books
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Plot & Structure
By James Scott Bell
How does plot influence story structure? What’s the difference between plotting for commercial and literary fiction? How do you revise a plot or structure that’s gone off course? With Plot & Structure, you’ll discover the answers to these questions and more.
Filled with plot examples from popular novels, comprehensive checklists, and practical hands-on guidance, Plot & Structure gives you the skills you need to approach plot and structure like an experienced pro.
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Plot a Thriller Backwards
By Alexa Donne
I’m sharing my strategies for plotting a mystery/thriller which is… backwards! I start with the motive or twist and work back from that. I’m sharing all my tips for how I do it, and the important elements of your mystery/thriller to consider before you start writing.
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Plot Twists
how to pull off a plot twist
By K.M. Weiland — Helping Writers Become Authors
Readers love a well done plot twist. They like to have the rug skillfully pulled out from under their feet at the last minute in a way that changes everything they understood about the story, while simultaneously making them see everything with perfect clarity.
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Plot Twists
By Elizageth Day — Crime Reads
Nine works from different eras and genres, all united by one thing: a twist that completely upends your reading experience.
As an inveterate reader, there is nothing I enjoy more than being swept up in a plot and then—suddenly—having all my preconceptions pulled out from under me with a deft authorial sleight of hand.
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Plotter vs Pantser
WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE
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Plotting
WHAT IS A PLOTTER IN WRITING?
By Robert Lee Brewer — Writer’s Digest
The world of storytelling can be broken into many categories and sub-categories, but one division is between plotter and pantser. Learn what a plotter means in writing and how they differ from pantsers here.
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Plotting
USING DAN HARMON’S STORY CIRCLES
By Krystal N. Craiker — ProWritingAid
Dan Harmon, the creator of the show Rick and Morty, has simplified the Hero’s Journey. His Story Circle, or Story Embryo, fits more stories that aren’t necessarily about a hero going on a journey and returning to the mundane world. The narrative structure is so universal, it can apply to books, short stories, TV shows, plays, and movies. It’s a great place to start building the plot of your story.
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Plotting or Pantsing?
Writing Mistakes Writers Make
By Michael Woodson — Writer’s Digest
The Writer’s Digest team has witnessed many writing mistakes over the years, so we started this series to help identify them for other writers (along with correction strategies). This week’s writing mistake is choosing between plotting or pantsing.
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Plot Twists
WRITING PLOT TWISTS AS GOOD AS GONE ‘GIRL
By Kathy Edens — ProWritinAid
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Plot Twists
EVEN BESTSELLING AUTHORS DIDN’T SEE COMING
By Kristina Wright — BookBub
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Plot Twist Story Prompts
MISTAKEN IDENTITY
By Robert Lee Brewer — Writer’s Digest
Every good story needs a nice (or not so nice) turn or two to keep it interesting. This week, share a case of mistaken identity.
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Plot Whisperer
SECRETS OF STORY STRUCTURE ANY WRITER CAN MASTER
By Martha Alderson
When it comes to writing bestsellers, it’s all about the plot. Trouble is, plot is where most writers fall down–but you don’t have to be one of them. With this book, you’ll learn how to create stories that build suspense, reveal character, and engage readers–one scene at a time.
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Plotting with a Story Circle
DAN HARMON’S STORY CIRCLE
By Krystal N. Craiker — ProWritingAid
One of the advantages of the Story Circle is that the narrative structure is so universal, it can apply to books, short stories, TV shows, plays, and movies.
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Podcast
HELPING WRITERS BECOME AUTHORS
By K.M. Weiland
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Podcasts
WRITERS TALK PODCASTS
By Neil Gaiman
7 YouTube videos about podcasting.
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Podcast Marketing
CONCRETE STRATEGIES TO GROW YOUR PODCAST AUDIENCE
By Refer-O-Matic
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Podcast Studio
HOW TO CREATE A PODCAST STUDIO
By Darren Clarke — Digital Marketer
Want to record your own podcast? Then you’re going to need some podcast equipment.
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Podcast On YouTube
HOW TO START A PODCAST
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Point-Of-View
By Mike Klaassen
Narrative point of view is the perspective from which a story is told. Stories may be narrated from the viewpoint of either an unidentified entity (a persona) or one that is identified.
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Point-Of-View & Tense
By Kristen Kieffer
How you choose to structure and style your story’s prose can make all the difference.
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Power of Fiction
WITHOUT BOOKS WE WOULD NOT HAVE MADE IT
By Valeria Luiselli — The Guardian
Fiction is one of the most pleasurable of human activities. It’s one of the most difficult, yes; but when it is driven by a deep desire, it is one of the most pleasurable.
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Power of The Five Senses
WORDS COME TO LIFE USING THE FIVE SENSES
By Amanda Patterson — Writers Write
In this post, we talk about the power of the 5 senses in stories and why they are important in the books you write.
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The Prairies Book Review
FIRST-RATE EDITORIAL BOOK REVIEWS FOR INDIE AUTHORS AND SMALL PUBLISHERS
The Prairies Book Review — Submit your book at our website to get a review.
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Premise
By K.M. Weiland
For both writers and readers, the premise is the reason we become interested in a story.
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Premise
HOW TO WRITE A PREMISE
By The Novel Factory
You should be able to express the premise of a story (the central idea) in one or two sentences.
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Present Tense Fiction
MORE WRITERS ADOPT THIS WAY OF STORYTELLING TO BRING IMMEDIACY AND INTIMACY TO THEIR WORK
By Richard Lea — The Guardian
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Present Tense Novels Embrace the Immediate
By Anna Dorn — Literary Hub
The most common argument for the present tense is its “immediacy.” It’s more exciting and alive. I tell stories in the present tense because I want my listener to feel like they’re along on the journey with me.
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Present Tense Writing Benefits
PRESENT TENSE CREATES A MORE IMMERSIVE STORY EXPERIENCE
By Tom Farr — The Writing Cooperative
Writing in present tense creates makes the reader feel like they’re experiencing the action of the story as it’s happening. This helps the reader to feel more immersed in the story than if it was told in past tense.
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Producing More Words
7 TIPS
By James Scott Bell @ The Killzone Blog
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Professional Editor
WHY SHOULD WRITERS USE ONE?
By Tiffany Yates Martin — Writer’s Digest
When writers sign with a publisher, these days they’re rarely treated to the kind of intensive editorial collaboration they may have imagined. And if indie publishing, they will receive none at all unless they hire editors directly.
These seismic shifts in the industry have created a confusing proliferation of professionals-for-hire under the umbrella description of “editor.”
But what exactly is a professional editor—and do you need an editor for your book?
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Promote Your Series
By Ricci Wolman — Written Word Media
Writing into a series is a proven way to build an audience and increase sales. This free post digs into why series are so effective, and how authors should promote a series to maximize their potential.
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Protagonist — Antagonist
The Least You Should Know
By Amanda Patterson — Writers Write
If you know who your protagonist and antagonist are, and what they want, you will probably be able to tell a good story. These are the two most important characters in your story. They define the story goal and control the plot. Your characters are the answer to most of your problems in storytelling.
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The Psychology Workbook for Writers
TOOLS FOR CREATING REALISTIC CHARACTERS AND CONFLICT IN FICTION
By Darian Smith
Writers know that their characters and stories should be multi-layered and believable. Now here’s a simple workbook that uses the same knowledge that gives therapists insight into human behaviour to create fiction that hits the mark. Each chapter outlines an aspect of psychological theory as it can be used for writing and provides two worksheets to translate it into action — one to develop characters, one to develop the story.
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Public Libraries Are Under Attack
HERE’S HOW YOU CAN HELP
By Angie Manfredi — Harper’s BAZAAR
Former librarian Angie Manfredi on the freedom to read and what you can do to support your local libraries from encroaching censorship.
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Publish a Book
By Nathan Bransford
Whether you’re pursuing a book deal with a Big 5 publisher or trying your hand at DIY self-publishing, this guide has all my best advice on how to navigate the publishing process and choose the path that’s right for you.
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Published
THE PROVEN PATH
By Self-Publishing SCHOOL
This is a FREE PDF download!
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Publishing
SHOULD YOU PUBLISH TRADITIONALLY OR INDEPENDENTLY?
By Kristen Kieffer — The Well-Storied Podcast
If you’d indeed like to publish for profit, then the next step to determining which path is right for you is to get to know what each publishing option entails. This is a FREE podcast!
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Publishing
What i hate about the traditional publishing industry
By Alyssa Matesic
As a professional book editor who previously worked at major US publishing houses, I have a love-hate relationship with the publishing industry. Here are the biggest traditional publishing cons as I see them, as well as general publishing advice for anyone who is working on a book project.
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Traditional Publishing vs Self-Publishing
the pros and cons
By Joanna Penn — The Creative Penn
Authors now have a choice in how they publish and get their books into the hands of readers. This article covers the pros and cons of traditional publishing and self-publishing.
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Publishing Your Book
Traditional / Vanity — What’s the difference
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Publishing Contract
5 reasons authors should reject a traditional publishing contract
By Patrick Walsh
Lots of authors lust after traditional publishing contracts BUT authors are rejecting these traditional deals more and more. In this video, I dive into the 5 main reasons why you should reject a traditional publishing contract.
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Publishing FAQs for Writers
By Robert Lee Brewer — Writer’s Digest
In this post, find 25 frequently asked questions that Writer’s Digest editors receive along with answers to those publishing FAQs for writers.
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Publishing and Marketing Simplified
YOU CAN WRITE, PUBLISH, MARKET, SELL AND TRACK YOUR SALES—ALL FROM ONE DASHBOARD.
Bublish
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Publishing News and Resource Websites 2021
101 BEST WEBSITES FROM THE MAY/JUNE 2021 ISSUE OF WRITER’S DIGEST
Writer’s Digest
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Publishing Partner Program
IT PAYS TO REFER AUTHORS TO BOOKBABY!
BookBaby
Earn generous commissions by referring new authors to our expert publishing team.
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Publishing Questions
GREAT WRITING AND PUBLISHING ADVICE FROM AN ACTUAL LITERARY AGENT
Robert Barbara Poell — Writer’sDigest
10 Writing and Publishing Questions Answered
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Publishing Terms
100 COMMON PUBLISHING TERMS DEFINED
By Robert Lee Brewer — Writer’sDigest
Publishing has its own jargon that may not be familiar to people new to the business.
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Publishing Top 10 Sites
FOR INDIE AUTHORS
By Erica Verrillo
Indie authors need all the help they can get. Self-publishing is taxing, time-consuming, and there is a steep learning curve. Fortunately, there are lots of people who are willing to help.
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Publishing Trends to Know in 2021
THE PUBLISHING INDUSTRY IS IN TRANSITION. SEE WHAT LIES AHEAD.
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Publishing Trends of 2021
SIGNS TO CONSIDER IN 2021
By Josh Weber — Calumet Editions
Here are the major trends that are proving new ground in the publishing industry that independent authors and publishers need to be aware of to have a larger market share and broader social media exposure.
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Publishing Your Book
TRADITIONAL / VANITY — WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE
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Punctuation for Beginners
By Amanda Patterson — Writers Write
“Punctuation marks are the traffic signals of language: they tell us to slow down, notice this, take a detour, and stop.”
— Lynne Truss, Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation
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Punctuation for Beginners
all about hyphens
By Amanda Patterson — Writers Write
This post is all about hyphens and em dashes. Punctuation is the name for the marks we use in writing. Punctuation marks are tools that have set functions. We use them to give a sentence meaning and rhythm.
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Punctuation: Eats, Shoots & Leaves
THE ZERO TOLERANCE APPROACH TO PUNCTUATION
By Lynne Truss
We all know the basics of punctuation. Or do we? A look at most neighborhood signage tells a different story. Through sloppy usage and low standards on the internet, in email, and now text messages, we have made proper punctuation an endangered species.
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Punctuation Mistakes to Recognize and Avoid
By K.M. Weiland — Helping Writers to Become Authors
When shaken out with a skillful hand, the very effectiveness of punctuation makes it go unnoticed. On the other hand, when we choose the wrong punctuation in the wrong place, the result is the readerly equivalent of coughing over too much cayenne.
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Punctuating Dialogue in Fiction
By Mike Klaassen
In the world of fiction-writing, “rules” vary somewhat, depending on who is dictating them. And in some situations there are allowances for variations in objectives and personal style. No fiction-writing mode is so closely associated with specific punctuation as is dialogue.
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Punctuating and Formatting Dialogue
By Mia Botha — Writers Write
Be careful of getting yourself and your reader confused. The simpler, the better. Remember reading it aloud should be your guide.
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— Q —
Query Letters
WRITING SUCCESSFUL QUERIES FOR ANY GENRE
By Robert Brewer — Writer’s Digest
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Query Letters
HOW TO WRITE THE PERFECT QUERY LETTER
By Mary Kole — Writer’s Digest
A literary agent shares a real-life novel pitch that ultimately led to a book deal—and shows you how to query your own work with success.
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Query Letter Tips
FROM LITERARY AGENTS FOR WRITERS
By Chuck Sambuchino — Writer’s Digest
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Quote of the Day
ADVICE TO WRITERS
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HOT LINKS
NAVIGATION
FIRST DRAFT
A-D M-Q
E-H R-S
I-L T-Z
