The Value of Short
Short story writing allows you to experiment with new plot types, genres, or voices without the commitment of a novel.Check out these tips for writing short.
Plotting Against Your Characters
“What’s the worst thing I can do to this character?” It seems like a terrible question to ask, but it might be the one that takes your story to the next level.
Do I Have To Have a Plot?
Share on facebook Facebook Share on twitter Twitter We teach our students how to write and get published! View our Course Catalog > Some writers hesitate to talk about plot because they believe it equates to preplanning their stories. For the organic or seat-of-the-pants writer, pre-planning simply doesn’t work for the way story unfolds in…
Plot Structure: Formulaic or Freeing?
You have to know the rules about structure to make informed choices when writing your story. Use this outline from Kristin Wolden Nitz as a starting point.
From Zero To Sixty
Share on facebook Facebook Share on twitter Twitter We teach our students how to write and get published! View our Course Catalog > One of the hardest parts of creating a strong plot that grabs the reader is knowing where to start. If you start too soon, you risk boring the reader with a lot…
Plotting and Planning: The Premise
Before you plunge into writing the first chapter or outlining the plot, consider taking some time to put your basic premise through a stress test.
The Dance of Plot and Theme
Share on facebook Facebook Share on twitter Twitter We teach our students how to write and get published! View our Course Catalog > Many writers struggle early in their writing journal when they try to sort out the difference between plot and theme. In fact, the two work in tandem to create a story but…
Worldbuilding When You Can’t Go Out in the World | IFW
Share on facebook Facebook Share on twitter Twitter We teach our students how to write and get published! View our Course Catalog > Because many of the books I write are created based on specs crafted by the publisher, I sometimes have to write about places I’ve never visited. This can make it difficult to…
Worldbuilding Bible
What is a Worldbuilding Bible? Do you need one? Find out all the answers in part 4 of our Worldbuilding writing series from Kristin J. Dawson.
Writing in Difficult Times
Share on facebook Facebook Share on twitter Twitter We teach our students how to write and get published! View our Course Catalog > During this month of exploring the topic of world building, it seems appropriate to talk about the world building we’ve all been doing in real life during this pandemic. Just as when…
9 Worldbuilding Mistakes to Avoid
In part 3 of our Worldbuilding series, discover 9 mistakes to avoid as you build and populate the world of your novel. Don’t miss these valuable tips!
Worldbuilding: Dressing the Set
Share on facebook Facebook Share on twitter Twitter We teach our students how to write and get published! View our Course Catalog > For movies and television shows, a huge amount of time is put into set dressing, adding all the tiny details that make the world you see on the screen feel real. Set…
Digging Deeper Into Your Worldbuilding
Welcome to part 2 of our Worldbuilding series where dig even deeper into your new world and what it should include and what you can leave out.
Introduction to Worldbuilding
Share on facebook Facebook Share on twitter Twitter We teach our students how to write and get published! View our Course Catalog > Worldbuilding isn’t just for fantasy writers. Every character lives somewhere and travels through the world. When you think about the floor plan for a character’s home or school, you’re worldbuilding. When you…
Worldbuilding Checklist
Worldbuilding is usually associated with speculative fiction writers, but even historical, memoir, and romance authors must create a world for their characters.
Words As Art
Share on facebook Facebook Share on twitter Twitter We teach our students how to write and get published! View our Course Catalog > Writing is both a craft, which is learned and honed over time, and an art, which is unique and adds to our collective culture. And within the realm of writing, we generally…
Hands
Facebook Twitter We teach our students how to write and get published! View our Course Catalog > My hands are cracking from washing them so often these days. Yours too? How about, in addition to tending to your hands with soap and water, writing a poem to and for and about them, those prehensile and…
Poetry Publication Options
Share on facebook Facebook Share on twitter Twitter We teach our students how to write and get published! View our Course Catalog > For the last couple weeks, we’ve looked at the value of writing poetry simply to write it with no concern toward publication. But as writers, most of us do want to be…
My Body, Myself
Facebook Twitter We teach our students how to write and get published! View our Course Catalog > The architect Suchi Reddy said, “We build our lives from our bodies. Then we build the next layer and the next layer—our home, our towns, our cities, our villages, our world.” Do you see your body that way,…
Why Poetry?
Poetry has an intense flavor that prose generally doesn’t manage, and that intensity can make poetry valuable for a number of reasons in your writing.