Writers Helping Writers^®

Posts by Lucy V. Hay

How To Write A Psychological Thriller Without Frying Your Own Brain

September 19, 2023

How To Write A Psychological Thriller Without Frying Your Own Brain

September 19, 2023

Writing A Psychological Thriller Whether you’re a fan of the genre or looking to try your hand at writing one, a psychological thriller can be fun to both read AND…

How to Build Sizzling Sexual Tension in Your Novel

June 20, 2023

How to Build Sizzling Sexual Tension in Your Novel

June 20, 2023

Writing Sexual Tension Are you tired of writing boring and uneventful romance scenes? Do your readers seem disinterested or even put off by the lack of chemistry between your characters?…

The Importance of a Great Opening in a Novel

March 21, 2023

The Importance of a Great Opening in a Novel

March 21, 2023

How you start your story is super-important, which is why your novel’s opening is crucial. In just a few sentences – yup, sentences, never mind pages! – you need to…

How to Use Real Life to Inspire Your Fiction

December 15, 2022

How to Use Real Life to Inspire Your Fiction

December 15, 2022

The memoir section in any book shop is made of writers who have done outlandish, shocking or terrible things (or had them done to them). These books are popular because…

The Finishing Line: How to Celebrate A Completed Book

September 20, 2022

The Finishing Line: How to Celebrate A Completed Book

September 20, 2022

So, you’ve finished your book. Congratulations! Writers often work alone, with very little validation. We have to struggle uphill, putting up with rejection and radio silence. This is why we…

Avoiding Stereotypes in Fiction: Female Characters

June 2, 2022

Avoiding Stereotypes in Fiction: Female Characters

June 2, 2022

Readers have spoken: they want more diversity in fiction. And writers are stepping up, but it can be hard to write about someone who’s different than you. Careful research is…

Is My Story A Mystery, Horror or Thriller?

March 15, 2022

Is My Story A Mystery, Horror or Thriller?

March 15, 2022

By Lucy V Hay Lots of writers enjoy mystery, horror and thriller novels … but are not too sure what differentiates them. As a result, when they attempt their own,…

How to Write a Compelling Antihero

December 16, 2021

How to Write a Compelling Antihero

December 16, 2021

What is an Antihero? Heroes embody courage, perseverance and skill. They can easily turn into villains when they use their talents for personal gain. This means antiheroes are like their name…

How Much Do I Need To Describe My Character’s Appearance?

September 21, 2021

How Much Do I Need To Describe My Character’s Appearance?

September 21, 2021

How characters look is a much-discussed element of writing craft. So, just how much do we need to describe our character’s appearance? Obviously individual writers’ mileage may vary on this…

8 Ways to Write Your Novel’s Outline

June 15, 2021

8 Ways to Write Your Novel’s Outline

June 15, 2021

Writers who don’t outline are often very loud online. They will say outlines kills creativity. They may even go so far as to claim an outline is a ‘straightjacket’ and…