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Creative Writing Articles |
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| 5 Questions to ask before purchasing a book online |
| by: Anand Srinivasan --> What is it you want to order?
Have a clear idea of what you want to order. Do you want to browse through a category, or do you want to read a particular author or do you know the name of the book itself.
Most online bookstores let you to browse through them by any of the above topics. When you are searching through a category, type in the most relevant subject related to the book you want. For example, if you want to search for books on "Holiday spots in Java, Indon More.. |
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| About Writing |
| by: Michael LaRocca In this free email course, I'll tell you everything I know about improving your writing, publishing it electronically and in print, and promoting it after the sale.
Two questions you should ask:
(1) What will it cost me?
(2) What does this Michael LaRocca guy know about it?
Answer #1 -- It won't cost you a thing. The single most important bit of advice I can give you, and I say it often, is don't pay for publication.
My successes have come from investing time. Some of it More.. |
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| I Am An AUTHOR" - Is This The Next Big Fad? |
| by: Martin Lemieux Write an article, get the traffic. Well sort of! Since the birth of writing articles, our industry has caught on to the phenomena of increasing your website's traffic by becoming the professional in your field. The only problem with this is that for every serious professional in one field, there are a thousand other writers who are jumping on the "band wagon".
This article phenomenon is hurting every industry!
From bloggers, column writers, and e-books, the writing industry More.. |
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| Beginnings |
| by: Rita Marie Keller Just about everyone is familiar with this beginning: 'In the beginning God created the heavens and earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep . . .' (Genesis 1: 1-2 RSV) In a sense we're playing God when we write a story. We create the characters, plot, and setting, turning a blank page/nothingness/into a compelling story.
Not only is your first scene the first impression of a story, it is the doorway that invites your reader on More.. |
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| Benefits of Journal Writing |
| by: Richard Chapo The benefits of journal writing are fairly well established due to the long history of journal writing. From Anne Frank to Di Vinci, journal writing has proven itself.
Benefits of Journal Writing
When considering the benefits of journal writing, it is important to set a few parameters. First, there is no age limit to using journals. There are distinct benefits for children of all ages, but journal writing is equally valuable to adults. The reason for this is journal writing i More.. |
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| Can Your Theme Be Proved In Your Story? |
| by: Nick Vernon Creative Writing Tips -
Your theme has to be something you can prove in your story - It doesn't have to be a universal truth. This means that your theme doesn't have to be something that happens in real life all the time (providing our logic can accept it, in order for us to believe it).
Whatever story you choose to write, be it a contemporary or a story which requires elements of fantasy such as in horror, science fiction etc the events of that story have to appear logical.
W More.. |
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| The "Casablanca" Secret |
| by: Steven Barnes Good writing is often designed around a character who has a distorted vision of himself or of the world. During the story, he is placed under sufficient pressure to force an epiphany, a moment of clarity in which, he sees the world as it is, not as he wished it to be.
A classic example is 'Casablanca,' where Bogart's immortal Rick has managed to create an insular world in which he can pretend to be utterly detached and uninvolved. He supposedly has no political beliefs, and no More.. |
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| Discover What Good Writing Is All About |
| by: Linda Correli Writing is a form of preserved talk, talk that has been pinned down on paper so the words can be heard again. The basic principles of good writing, apart, from grammatical correctness, might be presented as follows:
1) written sentences should sound like natural speech;
2) the words we use must be exact, fresh, full of strength and vitality. Picture making words are better than vague, general words;
3) fresh point of view will give flavor to the style;
4) humor will lighten More.. |
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| Do You Know What A Plot Is? |
| by: Nick Vernon Creative Writing Tips -
What a plot is and what a story is can be sometimes confusing. If you think they are the same They are not. A plot is the outline of your story. The story is everything included.
I will illustrate the difference by asking you to visualize two pictures
1. Visualize a skeleton.
Then
2. Visualize a body.
The skeleton is your plot. It's the outline of your story. It won't be visible when we flesh it out but it will still be there, holding your story toge More.. |
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| Do You Plot With Your Character In Mind? |
| by: Nick Vernon Creative Writing Tips -
You are plotting the story. You write down what will happen, what problems will arise, what obstacles you will place so the character won't reach his goals immediately, what he's going to do to overcome these problems etc
So all these things will be happening to your character since it's his story we are telling.
Does it make sense then to have your character in mind as you plot these things?
It does. Because it will depend, based on the type of person More.. |
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| Does Each Element of Your Story Further The Theme? |
| by: Nick Vernon Creative Writing Tips -
Whichever theme you choose, all the elements, which make up your story, dialogue, conflict, scenes, etc should be written with the theme in mind.
Your theme should progress the story.
If you find that anything in your story doesn't progress it, it should be cut when you are in the editing stage.
Before we see an example of elements written with a theme in mind, let's think of a theme and a story.
The theme is
'Arrogance Leads To Humiliation'
Very br More.. |
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| Does Your Plot Suit Your Characters And Vice-Versa? |
| by: Nick Vernon Creative Writing Tips -
When an idea comes to us for a short story, we either think of a story line first or a character first. Whichever we think of first, and later on build, we have to make sure the plot and the character suit each other.
Example one - We think of a story line first.
Your story is set in a rural area. A company opens a factory and employs workers from that small town. The residents welcome this, as there aren't many jobs going around. The management takes a More.. |
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| Does Your Story Have A Theme? |
| by: Nick Vernon Creative Writing Tips -
It should.
A theme is a one-line explanation of your story.. Every story should have one because our stories are about something.
When I say should, I mean that this isn't always the case. Especially so for beginner writers, who may not know, that the theme carries the story. Or even those who've been writing for years may not be aware of the importance of a theme.
And a theme is important.
A theme is what will keep you on track as you write the story More.. |
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| English as a Medium For Indian-Writer |
| by: Samir K. Dash In a paper at Regional Conference of the Association of Commonwealth Literature and Language Studies Held at India International Centre ,New Delhi on February23-6,1975,R.Parthasarathy , while exposing the position of Indian writers in English reffered to the comments of American poets Allen Ginsberg ,Gary Snycler and Peter Onlovsky: "If we were gangster poets we would shoot you"(1), his threat was direct against the Indian writers' failure to take risk with the English language More.. |
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| Essay Reveals a Writer in You |
| by: Jerry Howells During your study at college, many eyes will evaluate your essay, many heads will be thinking about its content. And your aim is not to disappoint them, not to hand in just another ordinary essay. There are some fundamentals common for all the essays we want to share with you. Though it may appear too obvious to you, but please DO read the essay topic very attentively and thoughtfully. One of the most common mistakes I come across when checking the essays is misinterpretation o More.. |
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| Field Notes on Country Linguistics |
| by: Nola Kelsey As Suzy stammered, my ears perked up. For distraction I called out, 'Hey Kathy, put on another pot of coffee.' Suzy spoke again. The fact is, gouging my own eyes out with a ketchup bottle would not have distracted me. A linguistic calamity was eminent.
The hair on the back of my neck stood up, then it ran from the room. I knew where Suzy was headed. Her speech was like watching a car accident. It all moved in slow motion. Every instinct in me said tear the phone from her hand be More.. |
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| Four Useful Lies About Writing |
| by: Steven Barnes Most writing 'experts' favor a particular way of looking at plot, and will adhere to it for years or an entire career. That's all well and good, but its important to realize that any way of modeling story is just that/a model, not the depths and living essence of story itself.
Problems arise when young (or experienced!) writers mistake a simplified structure for some deep and eternal truth. It's much better to examine several structures, see what their strengths and weaknesses More.. |
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| The Golden Hour |
| by: Steven Barnes During a conversation earlier today, a formerly svelt young lady said that she had given up on the idea of exercise, because to have a body worth the trouble, it would take three or four hours a day.
Novice writers complain that in order to build their careers, it would take six or seven hours a dayso what is the point!
And more times than I could count, stressed-out acquaintances have said that they would love to meditate, but 'don't have the time.'
It is time we explode th More.. |
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| A Guide to Creative Writing That Sells |
| by: Caterina Christakos It's unbelievable that with all the creative writing courses out there, that no one teaches the necessity of researching your market before you set pen to paper.
Yes, we all want to be creative and let our imagination go. At the same time, wouldn't it be great to have some of your work published? Even better wouldn't it be awesome to know that you have upped your chances of getting published by around 80% by simply doing a tiny bit of browsing in a library or bookstore?
More.. |
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| Guidelines For Reviewing Writing |
| by: The StoryMaster Writing detailed reviews is time well spent.
Reviewing itself is a writing exercise. At Writing.Com, creating detailed feedback for a fellow writer is one of the best tools available for improving your own writing. That said, if you're going to spend the time to do it, helping the author is important. There is a better chance for the ideas in a review to get through to an author if they are well presented.
Key Characteristics For Reviews
* Reviews should be honest. Helpin More.. |
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| Have You Completed A Character Questionnaire? |
| by: Nick Vernon Creative Writing Tips -
Complete a character questionnaire for each of your main characters or even secondary characters that play a vital role in your story. This way you will know your character(s) well before you start writing about them.
Fill in as much information about them as possible. Don't only answer what you will need in your story. The objective here is to get to know your character till he becomes a 'live' person in your mind.
So let's begin
In a few sentences w More.. |
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| Have You Plotted Your Story Before Writing It? |
| by: Nick Vernon Creative Writing Tips -
The writer, who doesn't have the time to plot, always finds the time to rewrite.
Sound familiar?
I've been guilty of this too, back in the early days of my writing apprenticeship. I was so eager to get stuck into writing my story that I wouldn't bother with plotting.
Plotting gives you a sense of direction. It's your map, which will lead you to write your story. Leaping into the unknown rarely works. Without a plot several things can happen.
Our stor More.. |
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| Have You Tested Your Plot? |
| by: Nick Vernon Creative Writing Tips -
Our plotting stage is our testing area.
Everything in the plot should be tested for its effectiveness before we put in into our stories. If you believe something in your plot could be better, make it better.
Figuring everything out in your plot will save you time rewriting later.
So how do you test your plot?
Start with everything that has gone into it.
For example...
Are the events interesting?
Does your plot contain problems for the character to More.. |
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| Have You Tested Your Theme Against Your Plot? |
| by: Nick Vernon Creative Writing Tips -
How we usually begin the preparation stage in the writing process is
We think of an idea for a story
We think of a suitable theme
We plot
Once we come up with a theme and we begin plotting, we have to see how the theme and the plot match up. Sometimes as we plot we find that the theme we had initially chosen won't do.
For example
'Winning The Lottery Makes Your Life Easier'
Plotting with this theme in mind, we have our characters pay off all their More.. |
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| Hooks, Lines & Sinkers |
| by: Sue Kendrick Hands up if the title to this article made you think that you'd strayed into a fishing feature?
Perhaps you didn't quite go that far, but hopefully you were puzzled or curious enough to wonder what on earth those three angling associated words have to do with writing. The answer of course is nothing at all if you are thinking of metal barbs, yards of tangled nylon and blobs of lead weights.
Think, however, of the good opening lines used to begin most successful short stories, More.. |
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| How to Have an Effective Reading Group |
| by: Stephen Earley Jordan, II Writing leads to reading. Therefore, it's only fair to supply my readers with sufficient information on creating an effective reading group, since the last article was based on writing groups.
You'll notice that some of the information is quite repetitive from the 'How to Have an Effective Writing Group' article simply for the fact that when you work with peer groups, there are similarities in the guidelines to which we must adhere to make the group truly successfu More.. |
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| How to Have an Effective Writing Group |
| by: Stephen Earley Jordan, II The works you've written are numerous, ranging from short stories to even the novel, hidden in a storage bin (under the bed) collecting dust. But there comes a time when you must wipe away that dust, regain your pride, and prepare your babies for publication! But, how do you get such a critical, unbiased eye to analyze your works, offering both praise and criticism?
It's simple/start a writing group!
Creating a writing group is the easy part, but creating a functi More.. |
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| How to Jumpstart your Next Writing Session |
| by: David Parton I have always enjoyed writing. Sometimes it's a problem for me to just sit down and write something. There are days when I choose 'procrastinating' over 'proactive.' Putting things off is common with everyone. I am very gifted in this area. ;)
Here are 4 areas to focus on to jumpstart your next writing session.
Concentration
Preparation
The First Word
Use your notebook
Concentration:
There are way too many distractions. Cell phones ringing, blaring car alarms and unexpec More.. |
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| How Are You Plotting? |
| by: Nick Vernon Creative Writing Tips -
Writing is a creative process and how every writer chooses to create, is individual to them. Likewise, with plotting, every writer plots at a level they are comfortable with.
Some just plot the bare essentials. They have a firm idea of the story they want to write and have a good memory to be able to memorize everything.
Others go into more detail. These writers prefer to figure everything out before they write the story.
How you plot will also depend More.. |
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| How to Write Bad Poetry |
| by: Stephen Earley Jordan, II So you've decided to crown yourself with a title that a million other people (just like you (yes, just like you!)) give themselves every day. Some people believe giving yourself such a title is equivalent to, and just as beneficial monetarily, as naming yourself Queen of England. But, there is no grace, rarely enough publicity, and only the title of Court Jester seems to be becoming for you because you are a fool among others.
What is this sacred title? Poet.
Why More.. |
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| How the Writer Survives |
| by: Seth Mullins So it's your dream to write novels? Be a freelance writer and make a living off of your articles? Or maybe you nurture an ambition to write and sell enough short fiction to put bread on the table, like those writers of the golden age of the pulps?
Well, those are all noble dreams to have. I'm smitten by the writer's glamour myself. Also I'm grateful for the others who were, those authors whom I love to read and return to time and again. I'm grateful that they possessed not only More.. |
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| The Indie Author Revolution |
| by: Seth Mullins I remember well the night I first heard Nirvana. I was sunk in wretched and ugly despondency, not wanting to talk to anyone and hating myself. I couldn't discern or articulate my inner state, even to myself. There was no separating cause and effect. Then Kurt Cobain wove his uncanny spell. Suddenly I experienced my apathy, my sense of loneliness and alienation - even my depression itself - all these emotions as EMPOWERING.
Talk about waving your freak flag.
Nirvana's success p More.. |
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| Making Freelance Writing Niche Types Fit |
| by: Roxanne McDonald Our Freelance Writing Needs Defined
We must make freelance niche types fit our needs, wants, values and lifestyles, and we also must make ourselves fit freelance niche types. Of our waking hours, we work more than we do anything else. I keep this in mind when college students come to me concerned about what to do for a living, and I tell them (because I want them happy) to do what they love. I also tell them (because I believe in the truth) to do what they are good at.
The More.. |
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| The Right Words Can Make You Wealthy |
| by: Hermas Haynes Imagine you're in a darkened movie theatre watching a suspense thriller, and the scene you are engrossed in shows a beautiful woman walking alone on a dimly lit, shadowy street. The only sound is the rhythmic noise of her shoes against the pavement.
The camera moves in for a closeup of her feet, revealing black fishnet stockings that disappear into stylish, expensive, red shoes. Then, slowly, the camera zooms out, retreating along the street from where she just came. The sound More.. |
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| Savage Nature: The Life of Ted Hughes |
| by: Paula Bardell One of the most important poets of the post-war period, Edward James Hughes (1930-1998), was drawn towards the primitive. He was enchanted by the beauty of the natural world, frequently portraying its cruel and savage temperament in his work as a reflection of his own personal suffering and mystical beliefs - convinced that modern man had lost touch with the primordial side of his nature.
Born in Mytholmroyd, a remote mill town in West Yorkshire, Ted (as he was known to his fr More.. |
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| Secrets to Creating Great Headlines |
| by: Catherine Franz By Catherine Franz
Great! You finished your piece and now need a headline. Usually headlines are less than ten words and need to be expressed in short, expressive, active words. This provides quick focus and pull in. By waiting until you know what you are ending up with, it will save you time. You can give a temporary headline while drafting.
If you have a good lead paragraph, you will find the headline. If you want to intrigue or hook your readers, look at the significant More.. |
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| Speak and Touch the Heart |
| by: Barbara White Presentations and seminars become all too familiar in the business world. Jim Speaker is there with the overhead projector and PowerPoint slides-each with four of five points.
Hours later the seminar is over. Seminars are informative but can be deadly.
Just give me the handout and I'll read it at home!
It takes a dynamic presenter to step out from behind the lectern and shake up and motivate their audience.
Facts touch or mind, but it is the power that comes from stories tha More.. |
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| Steps to a Writing an Effective Press Releases |
| by: Diana Ennen Want to get the most media attention and spotlight for your business? Then the first place to start is with a GREAT press release. Now I can almost see half of you leaving now, dreading the thought of having to write one of these. But wait!! I'm going to show you easy methods to make your press release work for you and get the attention it deserves. Ready? Let's go.
We'll briefly go over the basics because of their importance. Editors want to see things done the RIGHT way. I wou More.. |
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| Ten Tips For Budding Authors |
| by: Kevin Hart 1. For me the most important tip is to write, write every day, 365 days a year. Remember practice makes perfect.
2. Very few authors are published on their first attempt; it's a hard slog and you'll often want to pact the whole writing business in. It's then you've got to remember patience and perseverance.
3. If you are serious about writing as a career then treat it as such. If you wanted to be a doctor, lawyer, plumber, chef then you'd expect to have to learn the trade. Why s More.. |
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| Is The Theme Reinforced In The Ending? |
| by: Nick Vernon Creative Writing Tips -
By now you should have an idea that your theme has to reach its conclusion just as your story does. But our theme has to do more than reach its conclusion - it has to be reinforced in the end and by doing this, it will strengthen all that we have said in our story.
So if we took a theme
'Persist and in the end you will succeed'
And I showed my character working hard to achieve his goals, persisting, even if at times those goals seemed unreachable, then More.. |
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| Is The Theme Running Throughout The Story? |
| by: Nick Vernon Creative Writing Tips -
It's no use coming up with a theme and not using it. Short stories are about a character or characters and about one situation or happening in those characters' lives.
By concentrating on that one thing, our stories are focused. You will need to focus to maintain a level of intensity and sticking to the theme enables us to do that.
Let me give you an example
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Scenario One
Let's say your story is about a young man (main character) who i More.. |
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| The Three "Questions" Of Science Fiction |
| by: Steven Barnes There is a great deal of misunderstanding about what that particular branch of literature called 'Science Fiction' actually consists of. Is it space-ships and monsters? Time machines? Galactic empires? Well, its all of those things, and often none of them.
Science Fiction, broadly speaking, is story-telling that deals with the impact of organized knowledge on human beings. Usually, this means technology, and the way it changes us/and reveals about us. After all, most technolog More.. |
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