Writers Helping Writers^®

Writing Help

Occupation Thesaurus Entry: Glassblower

September 16, 2017

Occupation Thesaurus Entry: Glassblower

September 16, 2017

Jobs are as important for our characters as they are for real people. A character’s career might be their dream job or one they’ve chosen due to necessity. In your…

Writing to the Beat: Translating Story Beats to Any Genre

September 12, 2017

Writing to the Beat: Translating Story Beats to Any Genre

September 12, 2017

Readers of my blog know I’m a big fan of beat sheets, even creating a beat sheet for romance stories. Because of that, writers ask me what beats they should…

Introducing…the Occupation Thesaurus!

September 9, 2017

Introducing…the Occupation Thesaurus!

September 9, 2017

Let’s say you’re at a party, and you meet someone new. The small talk begins. If you want to learn more about them, what’s one of the first things you…

Using a Novel Journal for Writing Breakthroughs

September 5, 2017

Using a Novel Journal for Writing Breakthroughs

September 5, 2017

I was at a Bouchercon some years ago and did a panel with some other thriller authors. Before it began we were interacting with some people in the audience, and…

Why Characters Need Choices in Fiction

August 29, 2017

Why Characters Need Choices in Fiction

August 29, 2017

Choices drive every single conflict in a novel. The protagonist wants something (the goal), something is preventing her from getting it (the conflict), and she must choose what to do…

How to Keep a Short Story Short

August 22, 2017

How to Keep a Short Story Short

August 22, 2017

Part of constraining a short story to its simplest form is to observe the convention of its length. Edgar Allen Poe said it should aim for a single effect on…

Character Motivation: Entering a Competition and Winning It

August 19, 2017

Character Motivation: Entering a Competition and Winning It

August 19, 2017

What does your character want? This is an important question to answer because it determines what your protagonist hopes to achieve by the story’s end. If the goal, or outer motivation, is…

Struggling with (and Regaining) Confidence in Your Writing

August 15, 2017

Struggling with (and Regaining) Confidence in Your Writing

August 15, 2017

Every writer’s toolbox is unique, containing the techniques, reference books, personal library, and lessons or “best practices” we’ve acquired over time. But there’s one tool that all writers need despite…

Character Motivation Thesaurus: Carrying on a Legacy

August 12, 2017

Character Motivation Thesaurus: Carrying on a Legacy

August 12, 2017

What does your character want? This is an important question to answer because it determines what your protagonist hopes to achieve by the story’s end. If the goal, or outer motivation, is…

Making Characters Stuck in the Background Pop Out

August 8, 2017

Making Characters Stuck in the Background Pop Out

August 8, 2017

Maybe you have had some of the experiences I’ve had when writing a manuscript, one of which is finding yourself with a character–could be a side character, a secondary character,…