Tag Archives: writing tips

Body Language

Marie here. Recently I have been reading web comics obsessively. As in, being distracted from my own writing and reading of novels, obsessively. As a lover of art, I spend hours finding new stories on certain sites that catch my eye with their unique style. The art might draw me in, but the story isContinue reading “Body Language”

What Makes a Short Story?

Hello, readers and writers. Tis I, Marie, your friendly neighborhood beta reader/content editor. I wear many hats, but today I am stepping into my role as beta reader to give my fellow novice writers a few tips on writing short stories. As a reader of many genres for many decades, I can safely say thatContinue reading “What Makes a Short Story?”

Writing Believable Women in Fiction

Aurora here.     Many times, men approach me and insist, “I just don’t know how to write women.” I can’t help but wonder why. Surely they know some and associate with them on a relatively regular basis. Is there a certain way they think all women are supposed to behave? If so, that just confusesContinue reading “Writing Believable Women in Fiction”

When the Water is Flowing, Get Out Your Boat

Marie here. I recently began writing again after months of merely doing some edits on older works or attempting to wrap up unfinished projects and failing. You know how it is: you get the idea that you can sit and write but once you are there with that notebook and pen or blank screen inContinue reading “When the Water is Flowing, Get Out Your Boat”

The Basics, Basically

Marie here. How many times have you read a book that spent so much time on flowery prose or psychological musings that the plot was lost? I have read a few myself. It’s like those people, you know the ones, who spend so much time trying to impress you with their extensive vocabulary but aren’tContinue reading “The Basics, Basically”

Artistic Self-Loathing aka Hollow Hills and the Cursed Anthology

Aurora here.     I don’t know if it’s the time of year, or perhaps it’s because I’ve spent a great deal of time discussing in-progress anthology submissions with other authors, but I’ve spoken with quite a few who are not so thrilled with their work. This also includes one visual artist.      Off topic: NowContinue reading “Artistic Self-Loathing aka Hollow Hills and the Cursed Anthology”

Dialogue Tags

Marie here. When I was in school in the 90s, our English teachers were always forcing us to find an alternative to using dialogue tags or attribution. They claimed that “he said” and “she said” became boring and monotonous and they would take points away if we had it in our creative writing papers. WeContinue reading “Dialogue Tags”

Awesome, Great, Amazing…Blah

Aurora here. Awesome, amazing, great, excellent… What do they really mean in the context of a story? We know either the point-of-view character or the author either loves said thing or thinks said thing is better than mediocre. “The ice cream was great.” “The dress was nice.” While these words are fine in dialogue, asContinue reading “Awesome, Great, Amazing…Blah”