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Q&A Should I make up my own names for the days of the week/months

I'm writing a light fantasy book. I think it will end up falling into the YA genre. I'm considering making my own names up for the days of the week/months. The book is set in a fantasy world, so ...

3 answers  ·  posted 6y ago by klippy‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

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Q&A How to end a story without reaching a new status quo?

A popular writing theory states that any story worth telling describes the movement from one status quo to another, and that major uncertainties in the inception and conclusion should be avoided. ...

6 answers  ·  posted 6y ago by Weckar E.‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

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Q&A A critic made a comment that my female character sounds like she was written by a man

I'm a man. Working on my sci-fi novel. It's meant to be a light-hearted heist caper. My main character is a woman. She's a strong and sassy character based on the women in my life, and the story fo...

5 answers  ·  posted 6y ago by Ty_xy‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

Question characters gender
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Q&A What is a good way to handle lengthy monologues/lectures in a novel?

In my novel, the MC is a woman from London who gets divorced and moves to Wales. Here she meets a Buddhist master with whom she has philosophical conversations about Life, Love, Relationships, etc....

3 answers  ·  posted 6y ago by White Cloud‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

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Q&A Quote at the beginning of a chapter, is it advisable for fiction novels?

I have read a few non-fiction works (mostly scientific) where there is a quote at the beginning of each new chapter. Sometimes the quote related to the chapter along with the title, sometimes it wa...

2 answers  ·  posted 6y ago by White Cloud‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

Question fiction quotes
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Q&A Dystopia that isn't cliche

Dystopian fiction is a big thing right now, and YA books like The Hunger Games and Divergent are pretty individual and subsequently are bestsellers. But a lot of stuff is also really cheesy and tr...

3 answers  ·  posted 6y ago by weakdna says reinstate monica‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

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Q&A Character is onscreen for three seconds

I have a character Joe who leads the task force hunting my MC. His reputation is known to the MC and he is well aware of how effective he is. Joe is also a good friend of another character, Fred, a...

3 answers  ·  posted 6y ago by Rasdashan‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

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Q&A How best to have a conversation a character does not overhear?

I have a scenario where my main character, who has considerable training and situational awareness has been captured. He has faith that his people will rescue him when the time is right. He learns...

1 answer  ·  posted 6y ago by Rasdashan‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

Question plot characters
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Q&A Formating of table explanation in email to colleagues

Regularly I find myself writing emails to my colleagues which include some form of "column explanation". Which is the best way to format a HTML email for readability? Example: I send out a link to...

2 answers  ·  posted 6y ago by Sebastian Schmitz‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

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Q&A Character growth when the entire story is actively working to prevent it?

My MC is a woman who is shy, introverted, has a strong sense of right and wrong but also a doormat personality - basically, even if she sees a wrong done she would rather stay unhappy than speak up...

2 answers  ·  posted 6y ago by Bumble Bee‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

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Q&A Not projecting myself onto my characters

I have struggled with mental illness for my entire life. Writing has been an extremely helpful and important mode of self-expression for me, since I was little. But recently, I feel like my writi...

3 answers  ·  posted 6y ago by weakdna says reinstate monica‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

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Q&A A Market For Long Narrative Poetry?

In spirit I have struggled long to find A manner fit to hold my roiling thoughts; A way to slowly pour them to a mold - And happily that manner has been found. A writer long, inclined to stories...

3 answers  ·  posted 6y ago by Jedediah‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

Question publishing poetry
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Q&A The problem of the throwaway boyfriend

In the first 10% of my novel, my MC has a boyfriend. MC is accepted into the Space Corps (or he's summoned to fight Troy - the particulars don't really matter), boyfriend is sure he'll wait the req...

4 answers  ·  posted 6y ago by Galastel‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

Question characters conflict
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Q&A I'm afraid of quashing the hopes of a new writer

I recently agreed to read a new writer's novel and provide feedback. During casual discussion, I learned her mindset is currently in a state of "this novel is basically finished". I've never met an...

2 answers  ·  posted 6y ago by Gwendolyn‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

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Q&A Should I be myself and write what I really want even though it isn't getting much traction? [closed]

Or should I dumb down my writing and pander to what I think most people like to read? (Note: This isn't necessarily about me. It's a general question for many writers facing such a dilemma.) NB: ...

4 answers  ·  posted 6y ago by user394536‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

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Q&A Conflict and antagonist in a certain subtype of erotic novels

In his answer to my previous question, @Standback distinguishes two types of erotic storyline: stories in which the stakes are romantic or sexual stories in which the stakes are neither romantic ...

3 answers  ·  posted 6y ago by System‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

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Q&A Does every story really represent a life-story, as McKee advises?

In Robert McKee's book STORY, he says that a whole life story of a character must become a story well-told. So, it seems that the concept of "story told" is a representation of a "life story" tha...

1 answer  ·  posted 6y ago by M.N.Raia‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

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Q&A I'm afraid that my setups will be overlooked

I have a main character that cannot die. I'm trying to convey this information to the reader, but since my character isn't aware of this, I've decided to leave hints throughout the adventure. This...

4 answers  ·  posted 6y ago by Valrog‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

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Q&A What are some good places to receive feedback? [closed]

A lot of people have been asking for some feedback about their poem/story. In an attempt to help find them a website, I couldn't. I googled feedback for writing however I didn't find any websites w...

0 answers  ·  posted 6y ago by Sweet_Cherry‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

Question feedback
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Q&A The use of footnotes to translate foreign words in a novel

I'm writing a fantasy novel and one of my characters speaks in English, but sometimes utters single words in an ancient dead language, and I don't want to abusively use that language. For example:...

3 answers  ·  posted 6y ago by vanity‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

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Q&A Is it bad to project myself into my story?

After reading that a Mary-Sue often is a projection of the author, I realized most of my stories are. Is it a bad thing? My MC aren't Mary-sues (at least I hope so), they're the opposite of perf...

3 answers  ·  posted 6y ago by Teleporting Goat‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

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Q&A What exactly is a 'series' in indie publishing?

Is it a large seamless novel chopped up into several parts, or is it a collection of independent novels with recurring characters?

1 answer  ·  posted 6y ago by user394536‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

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Q&A Is using too many different metres and rhyming schemes bad?

I have been working on a poem for some time now. It is divided into various "Parts" and it will be a long one when completed. Due to the very nature of what I am writing, I just let my thoughts a...

2 answers  ·  posted 6y ago by Yuganka Sharan‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

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Q&A Convincing argument about something I don't agree with

In my dystopian novel, Day, the son of a fascist dictator, is trying to convince Analise, a young genetic mutant oppressed under said fascist dictator, that the dictatorship's laws allowing censors...

7 answers  ·  posted 6y ago by weakdna says reinstate monica‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

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Q&A If one's first book is one genre, will publishers be less likely to accept books of a different genre by the same author?

I currently have two books, both roughly the same length and at the same point in the editing/rewriting process, and while I would like to eventually publish them both, they are from two completely...

1 answer  ·  posted 6y ago by s.anne.w‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭