Writing for Beginners

Best Plotting Advise I Heard in Years

I found this post on the blog The Other Side of the Story. Being in the middle of doing a scene-by-scene plot of my next novel, this couldn't have been written at a more opportune time. Whether you're a plotter or a pantser, this advise will help you streamline the plot tremendously. The Other Side of the Story: The Best Advice on Plotting I've Ever Heard: Two T...: But wait, there's more! I read a few pieces of plotting advice in the last few weeks I wish I'd written. They're nothing new, not

Tips to Self-Edit a Novel

For most of us, writing a novel is easy. You have the story and it’s only a matter of pounding away at the keyboard until the story magically enfolds on the pages. Right? Wrong! Getting the story onto the computer with a word processing program is the easy part. In previous posts I discussed the YWriter5 program, which is still free and I stand by my recommendation for first-time authors to attempt to use this program to plan their novel. The program has been updated and currently

Blogs and Books on the Craft of Writing

Every so often I stumble upon a blog with valuable information on writing and I realize that I have not even reached the tip of the iceberg in honing my writing craft. If you read every single blog and book about writing as a profession, you will have no time left to write the novel or non-fiction book. This is why finding a blog or blogs that keeps you on track without stealing your precious writing time, is important. Many people spend hours a day surfing the internet, trying to gather