Search
Jokes happen when someone is missing the point. Most of the time, a joke happen when the answer (payoff) to a question (setup) is unexpected or out of place. Bonus point if the joke answer is a co...
It happens rarely but it does happen. I remember a few years ago at a writers' conference (Conversations & Connections, organized by Barrelhouse Press) attending a session where two women who c...
Writer's Digest is still chugging away with their Writer's Market series. With more specialities than ever. I found the 2018 (though the 2019 one is out) Poet's Market on Hoopla. (Hoopla is a re...
More than words, toddlers remember actions. What is science boiled down to its core? It's the idea that you can form hypotheses about how the world works, test them, then come to a conclusion. S...
In order to get a foundation for your ideas, I would recommend looking into the mnemonics that science students often use to help them remember certain terms. For example: Kings Play Chess On F...
If they are teens, I'd suggest you make the breakup a clear fault in one of the characters; preferably the more main character. By "clear fault" I mean one that most readers will agree with; a wron...
Honestly, it should be easy for a straight guy. First, pick one of the couple who is the more main character... from which side do we experience the relationship (if the two are both secondary cha...
I suggest breaking the story into smaller scenes which you approach individually one at a time. Make each scene a connection between the characters that grows slowly over time, each scene bringing ...
On-again/off-again relationships don't usually have smooth transitions. Especially not for outside observers (and often not for the participants). Add in that this is a teen relationship, and for...
Personally, I think the emotions of love and romance are one thing and not gendered, that if we could discard the cultural baggage of what other people and institutions expect of us and think about...
It's possible you're tying yourself in knots with Hemingway which is, perhaps, better for prose writers than technical writers. Hemingway themselves state: But what if I want to break the rule...
Voice Making the character tell something in their own voice is generally called a "Voice Journal" or "Voice Journaling" From your question, I understand you don't necessarily mean to use what yo...
It could be that the author is highlighting the similarities between the two. It could be creative provincialism (A U.S. writer not knowing that a British person would not say that, or vice versa)...
If you want to avoid showing a character as "not like other girls" then make sure your "other girls" aren't stereotypical. The trope shows up with female characters who don't fit in. They don't h...
"Strong and independent" does not have to mean "behaves in a masculine way." Strong can simply be "has healthy self-esteem and doesn't rely on third parties for her self-image." Independent can s...
It depends on the tone of your story. Is it humorous? A fist bump explosion is usually a dorky thing, so my first instinct is to describe it in a funny way. However, it also depends on the style of...
When you mention that characters are illiterate, I picture them in some historical/fantasy setting. In such context singing songs to express own feelings seems to be appropriate.
Start by understanding that a girl with super-powers is a girl just like any other girl except with added super-powers. Then understand that it is perfectly normal for girls to be capable and comp...
The thing you're seeking to avoid is creating a character who is nothing but an inverted collection of stereotypes. That's arguably better than just relying on the original stereotypes, but not ...
I imagine the issue is psychological, but not necessarily fear of public opinion. I would pick an endpoint for the post; just basically what you think you want to conclude. The result. The point y...
I think I recently read about a popular series writer employing a continuity proofreader: someone with a good memory that has digged himself into the series and the writer's work so deep to be able...
As far as I remember about story structure and McKee, and as far as a quick search on google yielded, No. Acts are larger than chapters, in most books of medium lenght. Acts are actually a conce...
From what I have read elsewhere, unless they specifically mention that they accept multiple submissions, it is very bad form indeed. The publisher has a process that takes time. If he is impressed...
If it is a well known symbol, I sincerely doubt it; unless you are writing a farce or comedy. The issue is I don't think the reader can divorce themselves from the symbol triggering the well-known...
Reinterpretations of symbols are a common occurence: The letter x given the meaning "hazard": The hazard symbol given the meaning "intoxication" or "death": The christian cross given the mean...
