Helping you get your message heard
A Quick TEN
Fiction
1. Create a likeable character that has some flaws and inconsistencies.
2. Create a goal or a need for this character.
3. Create obstacles to prevent them from achieving their goal or fulfilling their need.
4. Give your character a strong motivation to overcome those obstacles.
5. Create a plot that has 3 parts. This is the beginning, middle and end idea, but it works more like Act 1, 2, and 3 in modern fiction.
6. Create tension from the beginning. Not empty conflict; it must relate to the character and their goals/needs.
7. Be able to state the plot in one sentence. It will keep you focused.
8. Create scenes that show when you need to develop the story and engage the reader (dialogue). Tell or narrate to offer information quickly (Mary grew up in California), to transition or move the story forward (the whole week was a mess).
9. Maintain your viewpoint. Viewpoint may change in sections of a book or whole chapters devoted to the present, the past, or from one character to another. Be consistent, however, with the voice you choose for each.
10. Know thy audience. Be familiar with what readers are expecting in your genre and give them what they want.
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Developing the Writer in You
The art of writing is a gift. There are writers who amaze us with twists of plot and beauty of words. But it is a gift you can make yourself.
Writing is a skill that is honed by practice. Gifted writers are writers not content with good writing; they attempt excellence.
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