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I am an old-school writer without fancy software (I have tried it and don't like it). So if I realize a previous event could have been explained better, I will back up and do it. However, I have a...
This question sounds similar to this but I am asking something different. It is said that Stephen Hawking removed all the formulas except one because with each use of a formula the readers of boo...
Is she supposed to be aware of everything happening around her and to her if I'm writing in the first person? Yes. But she can be aware and not understand. She can see and describe things sh...
Every book is going to play around with reality to some degree, though some do it more than others. Every case is different. Is this a story that would end up on a "I can't believe they survived!...
It's been done a fair few time, I've written a short story this way myself, over two decades ago mind you. It can be done, my recollection is that it came out pretty stilted but I was only 12 so it...
From an analysis standpoint, I'm trying to determine what classification the antagonist and protagonist in my story would fall under in terms of the classic literary labels of "hero," "villain," "a...
Remember the proverb "Everyone is the hero in his own story." They might be evil from your point of view, but you need to make sure that their actions are guided by reason, even if it might be mis...
You needn't reveal that the character has the ability, but you need to reveal the fact that the ability exists. Otherwise, indeed, this is a Deus ex Machina. How you reveal the existence of the ab...
YES, the first page is vitally important. But probably not in the way you think. Don't bring the "thriller" up first. The first page (and first sentence, and paragraph) is important in the same w...
You should definitely tell the story you want to tell, and not some backstory that leads up to it. You are not starting your story at the point that would make sense if you were writing a comprehen...
When asked some variant of "Where do I start?" my mom likes to joke "Start at the beginning, go all the way through the middle, and when you get to the end, stop." In this case, that might make sen...
As far as we know, in our Universe all stories could start from the Big Bang. Or from the primordial soup if we want to stick to living beings on planet Earth. Does it make sense to do so? Imagine...
Yes, please start in the MC's Normal World. The point of beginning in The Normal World is directly related to the inciting incident: Namely, the inciting incident has the potential to change the c...
Humans don't all look the same, dress the same, speak the same language. Why should $FANTASYRACE? So you have Legolas elves. You should also have Rhea Perlman elves. You should have Lupita Nyong'...
A villain has intention -- it's out to cause some outcome, foil the main character (if it's personal), and generally advance its own agenda. The world, on the other hand, just is, barring worlds wi...
As @ChrisSunami says, most non-fiction books are sold before they are written. Typically you have a synopsis, the Chapters and an outline for each, and for some books, a list of people you plan to...
I am writing a book mostly about the history of my local airport. This will include the changes from the earliest airlines and airports til today. What I want to know, for example, I write about th...
The main aspect is tension. Read up on the Three Act Structure, or Save The Cat, which similarly shows the structure of screenplays. You have to introduce characters and their "normal world". Eve...
Every writer should understand the Hero's Journey. Not everyone agrees on whether it describes the archetype of all stories or just a particular genre of stories, but either way it provides a lot o...
The only technique there is really is keeping some sort of "character sheet" for each character. If you can keep them all in your mind, that's great, but I guess you wouldn't have been asking the ...
The kinds of criticisms you are encountering are not aimed against the concept of the hero having a love interest. They are aimed against female characters that that exist only as a motivation for ...
You talk of your characters as one or two basic characteristics, and that's it. That's where your problem is. There is more to a person than a short tag. Think about your friends. Chances are, you ...
I think the textbook answer is: Does the detail contribute to the story? If you describe how a character's house is filled with guns and bombs, that tells us something very different about him than...
I don't think readers notice 3rd person view as another character observing the MC. I have read many books written in 3PL (3rd person limited; narrator only knows the thoughts and feelings of the ...
Have you ever noticed that most main characters seem to be "special" in some way? It might be destiny, super powers, a rebellious attitude, or maybe they're just unlucky and got targeted by the bad...
