Posts tagged fiction
I've had several people ask me why my fiction story does not have a table of contents. I never really thought about it, seeing as plenty of fiction stories do not have one either. Is a table of con...
Let's face it, I like edgy writing that borders on inflammatory. I read less for entertainment than I do for expanding my world view. I don't have to agree with the points or even like the style of...
I'm in a writing group. I see repeating word-choice patterns among the fantasy writers. Example: frequent use of certain words (like 'utter,' everyone seems to use that word... ), or certain sympto...
I want to root for the protagonist. I want to feel the weight of his burdens so I can turn around and celebrate with him when he overcomes them. However, occasionally I come across a protagonist wh...
I'm an aspiring fantasy and sci-fi writer and I my goal is to write a novel that is to be the first in a series within the same setting. I'm getting to a point where I can feel "the world coming to...
It happens fairly often, that when I get an idea, it seems really good. I start writing it, and midway or towards the end, or sometimes after completing the whole thing, I completely lose trust in ...
I just started a book, but i cant decide if its better to use the present or the past tense (written in the first person)
I have written a long elegy in rhyming scheme. It has many subjects. How can I introduce characters (subjects in elegy) in detail to readers, before they start reading elegy? Are there conventions ...
Rants and ranters are numerous and pretty damn popular, so I'd just like to ask about a formula or general tips for writing them, without making my readers rage.
I have no idea what to write for this certain chapter in my book, and I don't know how to plot it out. I have a general idea that the character somehow betrays another, resulting in him being kic...
I'm new here, so, please, bear with me. I had a look at previous answers to similar questions, but my case is (possibly) a bit different. I am not a professional writer, so I wrote this (long) n...
Is it okay to have cussing, sex, drug use, rape, and brutal violence in a young adult novel? Can you give examples of published YA novels that have these things in them?
I'm writing a book that takes place in modern day but also involves the Greek gods and goddesses and Greek mythology. Is it frowned upon to change a small part of a certain myth to make it fit into...
Deus ex machina is considered by TV Tropes to be a sub-trope to asspulling, and thus, often considered a bad writing trope. Now, unlike most other bad writing tropes, that have their roots in fanf...
I am writing about a person who is transported 10 years into the past, and has the chance to relive their life (actually being able to: 'knowing what I know now I would...') The trouble is I keep ...
Each and every time I read my stories to people, only one comment is usually made, albeit in different ways... I'm just not sure if they're being honest, or if I am actually doing something right. ...
I want to write a novel, but I want to write that novel using my best idea currently... it's just that, I don't have an idea, at least not one that I deem worthy of the time and effort involved in ...
Example from my own writing: I cupped my nose—when I should have covered my ears. To block the wicked mocking of my classmates. I was told by another writer that I should avoid this kind o...
So. I have a project I'm currently working on in which there are a number of characters who are connected to each other by various friendships/familial relationships, although they don't all know e...
We have finished our nonfiction, self-help, book draft. We require finding a mentor for improving the book's structure and for publishing and marketing. How can we find a mentor (not proofreader)?...
I have always wanted to write a story so I finally started to take action rather than just dream about it. I have started writing down characters, their personalities, their roles in the story, a n...
We ordered pork belly, beef liver, and lamb slices—a selection that made our tongues melt and our stomachs heat up. Rattled by a sound or shake that only Sumire had detected, she picked ...
I have observed that I often address the reader in my essays to lay down a point. To give you an example, I'll write: You can utilize every productivity hack that's out there, and still be b...
i'm writing a story and i want to write two prologues the first one when the MC was being born and then later on when the MC is around ten years old before starting the main story. can i do that?
One of the answers to this question movitated me to ask this. I don't agree 100% with the answerer, however, I think he has good points. Do you really weaken the focus if you mix dialogue and acti...
I find myself writing these a lot: "Thanks." She tilted her head shyly to the side. As soon as she did, her chin-length hair slid off her face, revealing the bowl-sized bruise that made her...
I write fiction set in 18th-century England and America. Obviously, they speak English, and equally obviously, they speak it very differently than we do today. For example, I need to know which con...
I’ve compiled material for a book about the economic system for laypeople who consider economics to be a difficult and boring subject. The book describes economic concepts in easy to understand ...
Is 'creative writing' simply a synonym for 'fiction'?
I have always been interested in Irish mythology, especially Fionn Mac Cumhaill. I also like to write in journals. Is there a way of combining the two? In other words, say, for example, the life of...
My question is rather simple. In fact, it's in the title and requires almost no explanation. We can see throughout literature the use of names and title. For example in Of Mice and Men we can obse...
I have this chimera-type character whose name is Ryu, but at this point I think it best to change his name. But I've already grown used to his name, and I've written it all over my book pages. Is i...
There are some people who have read some of my book so far and they think it is childish and then some say it's somewhat morbid. What are your views on what each of those terms means?
I am capable of dreaming up interesting settings and even placing things in a world, but I have trouble dreaming up characters and plot. Example: my first aborted attempt at a steampunk story ended...
By definition, melodrama is a clearly exaggerated drama, in which the characters' actions, reactions and speeches are intentionally very exaggerated. However, through my readings here on Writers SE...
I've always struggled with this. I like to write at the top of my knowledge without leaving those not having the benefit my experience behind. It may sound arrogant but if I write for the lowest c...
In my work, my goal is to show that the hero is a better fit for the heroine, than the two men she married (or agreed to marry) before him. The first husband uses his influence to get the woman a ...
Example: I shook my head unbelieving. Could someone I barely knew know so much about me? No, impossible. Could someone I barely knew know so much about me? The first example uses externa...
I am having a hard time with adding detail, I feel it may leave a good chunk of the story out, but I don't know for sure if I should really add it or not. If I do end up with too much detail, my re...
I have a story I'm writing, and since when I started, it changed many times the route and focus, and in some of these changes, I found two possible paths for the story to advance on, and I already ...
I mean, what exactly defines a flaw for a character? I know that the character's flaws should have at least some impact in the story, instead of being just a mere detail, but what makes flaw X bett...
The question grammar for describing plots had a few comments that touched upon the differences between literary novels and entertainment novel which made me think. So I searched the SE for any prev...
I have a sci-fi technology concept in the work I'm currently writing, and its potential implications for society and for individual characters are quite far-reaching. I want to systematically explo...
I am writing a story for publication that has one of it's key features is these other worlds/universes being the basis of the videos games we see in real life. As such I was hoping to have 2 books ...
In movies and TV shows and the like, there are often details that the writers work in that are hard to catch at first sight, but can be found if you happen to look for those details. For example, C...
How best can I re-write this paragraph to make it more family friendly? There had been a time, barely a month or two ago, when he had sat his face to the storm and grinned with glee as the wind an...
In the publishing industry, is it usual for authors to have a complete prescriptive non-fiction manuscript before seeking an agent, or after seeking an agent? I am a professor interested in writin...
I'm working on a short story that has two characters debating a philosophical view. Other than the inherent conflict built into the two opposing stances taken by the characters on the topic, it av...
A story riddled with flashbacks is a sign of weakness, unless it's a device. But, I'm finding that for my MC, she's flashing back a bit to the past, a bit more than I'd like, and mayhap at too much...
This is not a question asking if I should add more or less to my chapters in terms of descriptions and so on to make them longer or shorter. It's more about grouping an already written story. I'm ...
