Writers Helping Writers^®

Writing Help

Your 3-Step Plan for Outlining A Novel

June 29, 2017

Your 3-Step Plan for Outlining A Novel

June 29, 2017

There’s only one reason writers ever talk about outlining. It’s a tool that’s supposed to make our jobs easier. But it isn’t always clear how to accomplish that. Do you…

Motivation Thesaurus: Escaping a Dangerous, Unwanted Life

June 24, 2017

Motivation Thesaurus: Escaping a Dangerous, Unwanted Life

June 24, 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…

Keep It Fresh: 10 Ways To Show Your Character’s Emotions

June 22, 2017

Keep It Fresh: 10 Ways To Show Your Character’s Emotions

June 22, 2017

Years ago, Becca and I grumbled about how our characters always expressed emotion the same way. My big thing? Frowning. Did my characters EVER know how to frown. They were…

How to Boost Your Self-Editing Superpowers

June 20, 2017

How to Boost Your Self-Editing Superpowers

June 20, 2017

A vast number of writers are afraid of their own power. They fall prey to listening to what other people think their story should be—writing friends, Twitter pals, critique partners,…

Character Motivation Thesaurus: Avoiding Financial Ruin

June 17, 2017

Character Motivation Thesaurus: Avoiding Financial Ruin

June 17, 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…

How to Build a Realistic Story World

June 15, 2017

How to Build a Realistic Story World

June 15, 2017

As a fantasy writer, one of my absolute favorite parts of the writing process is worldbuilding. I love creating new worlds, cities, and people groups from scratch. I probably either…

Motivation Thesaurus: Trying Again Despite a Past Failure

June 10, 2017

Motivation Thesaurus: Trying Again Despite a Past Failure

June 10, 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…

Giving Your Characters Free Rein in the Story

June 6, 2017

Giving Your Characters Free Rein in the Story

June 6, 2017

In my collection of writing books is a 1919 title, A Manual of the Art of Fiction, by one Clayton Meeker Hamilton, a professor at Columbia University. It’s a bit…

Character Motivation Thesaurus: Escaping Homelessness

June 3, 2017

Character Motivation Thesaurus: Escaping Homelessness

June 3, 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…

Theme: The Marrow of Your Story

June 1, 2017

Theme: The Marrow of Your Story

June 1, 2017

If structure is the bones of story, theme is the marrow. Plainly defined, theme is what our stories mean, and it is revealed through other literary elements such as character,…