Writers Helping Writers^®

Posts by Guest Contributor

Want to Write a Best Seller? Change Your Mind

July 5, 2012

Want to Write a Best Seller? Change Your Mind

July 5, 2012

By Dr. John Yeoman Teenagers know better than we do, how to write great stories. Sounds absurd? We’re experienced authors, right? We know the craft tricks. We’ve pounded the keypad…

The Plot Whisperer: Benefits of Plotting in Scenes

August 23, 2012

The Plot Whisperer: Benefits of Plotting in Scenes

August 23, 2012

Martha Alderson (aka The PLOT WHISPERER) is here to share the benefits of plotting in scenes, Some writers write by the seat of their pants. Others prefer to pre-plot first,…

Tips on Raising the Stakes

September 30, 2013

Tips on Raising the Stakes

September 30, 2013

Suspense & Thriller author José Bográn shares his expert advice on how we can raise the stakes. Story Stakes: How High Is High Enough? When asked what “raising the stakes”…

Mystery Writing: Characters & Plot Elements

November 20, 2013

Mystery Writing: Characters & Plot Elements

November 20, 2013

Staci Troilo is here with the basics of what plot and character elements a successful mystery novel needs. Ah, the mystery novel. The whodunit. The sleuth story. Sherlock and Miss…

Ask Questions to Find Your Story

February 12, 2014

Ask Questions to Find Your Story

February 12, 2014

I ask a lot of questions in my line of work as a professional manuscript critiquer and copyeditor. Sure, I also give a lot of suggestions and fix badly constructed…

Blurbs that Bore, Blurbs that Blare

August 13, 2014

Blurbs that Bore, Blurbs that Blare

August 13, 2014

I know that everyone has their own method of choosing books. Some go by the cover, others by the back copy. Some people get a good feel for the book…

The Secret to Creating a Really Good Bad Guy

March 5, 2015

The Secret to Creating a Really Good Bad Guy

March 5, 2015

By CS Lakin Don’t you just love to hate really great bad guys in novels? A list of the most intriguing villains in literature includes characters such as Moriarty in…

The 10 Key Scenes You Need to Frame Up Your Novel

September 26, 2017

The 10 Key Scenes You Need to Frame Up Your Novel

September 26, 2017

“How do I write a great novel?” is probably THE question every aspiring novelist has asked . . . but maybe hasn’t had answered satisfyingly and clearly. There are plenty of techniques…

The Six Stages of Your Hero’s Character Arc

August 2, 2018

The Six Stages of Your Hero’s Character Arc

August 2, 2018

By C.S. Lakin As a writer, you’re probably familiar with the term “character arc,” but what does a character arc entail? How do you structure this arc? And what informs…

All-Important Considerations When Crafting a Scene

January 10, 2019

All-Important Considerations When Crafting a Scene

January 10, 2019

By C.S. Lakin Anyone who says writing a scene is easy probably hasn’t written one. I’ve written upwards of three thousand scenes (a fairly rough estimate), and every time I…