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Rewrite. I don't think it is a good idea to have a new POV character for one scene. You have control of history, don't injure your hero character, or don't injure her so badly, or go back in your...
Question: What is the difference between an up-front character and an jerk? Answer: For any individual regardless of gender, the difference is between acting in a way that is true to core value...
Random thoughts The old disconnect the cars trick, but the protagonist is on the wrong section. They see their objective slowing down and dropping away from them as they speed off. Realizing the...
Use a definite article (like the word this) prior to a hypernym (like the word thing), where using a more precise sub-ordinate noun (referent) would betray all necessary information to decide if yo...
Another alternative (if you are not afraid to use LaTeX) would be Overleaf. While a learning curve exists you can layout documents beautifully with it. I come from an engineering background where ...
Young adult vs adult fiction isn't about the age of the characters (though that usually does vary too), it's about the age of your readers. If you're writing for adults, then write for adults and ...
It's about marketing. From a purely logical standpoint, you are already a published author, since you did publish a book and you did sell some copies, no matter how few. So, in theory you have you...
Self-publication, alas, often ends up making a black mark on your track record to traditional publishers, as it says the following: I don't want to go through the quality checks required to get t...
Hero-always-wins is a trope I wouldn't call this a plot twist. A twist is a reveal. It changes how events earlier in the story are perceived. This is subverting a trope. The trope is an expected...
The idea that a hero always wins has been used too much and i think anyone who actually tries to break out of this mold is a rather creative and non -stereotypical writer, i.e an awesome writer!. B...
You can definitely subvert expectations like this and still create a great story. However, there's other issues with this story structure that should be kept in mind. You write: My protagonist...
I'd say the list is fine except the last one; she can't help but steal, as it's become part of her routine and she becomes angry and distressed as a result. I have an autistic grandson, 12. He ha...
I wrote this before the poster indicated that this was a speech. My advice still applies, it just needs to be on a shorter timeline. Write what you want, show it to people you trust, revise, then...
You didn't say whether the train itself has to be a train. That is, maybe one or more of the following design points of a "train" could be subverted: The heroine has to perform the heist on a spe...
More explicitly stated, the metaphor is that the trees move to and fro in the wind because God (using the wind) is teaching them Tai Chi. The imagery is the trees of the forest moving in unison li...
Creating fictional places within a real world setting not only works in fiction, but it's extremely common. Creating the the fictional space is helpful because it allows you to flesh it out howeve...
Whether you can do this depends on the nature of the villain's goals and the MC's goals. If the villain seeks power, then even if it costs the MC her life, if she prevents the villain from getting ...
Hi Gunny and it's nice to meet you. Standard exercises--I'd suggest a couple. Join a writing group that shares excerpts. Share your excerpts. You can ask for feedback specifically on your metap...
I'm not sure it's the ebook buyers who are the silly ones here. Of course people judge a book by its cover, as they should. To navigate the thousands or millions of books on a real or virtual shel...
In a script, yes, capitalize anything the Foley artists (makers of common sound effects) would be interested in. Cheering is one of those things; the slamming or closing of doors or lids, thunder, ...
I read somewhere that sounds do not need to always be in caps, but rather only sounds which will add to the experience of reading the script, as if you were watching the film. In other words, it's ...
I think for option 2, the problem is if you research the same things everyone else researches, your fantasy will reflect that, and thus have... unoriginal/boring settings that have been done to...
Starting with a story or event(s) that directly affect the protagonist would make the reader sympathize for the protagonist and every action they take. If you mean to put in an element later on in...
I would not put the homicide in Chapter 1. I believe you are making the mistake of many beginning writers, thinking that you have to get to the action and the main conflict quickly to hook the re...
Warning: this answer links repeatedly to TV Tropes. Don't let this happen to you. Since all three methods you mentioned have drawbacks, I'll try to suggest tweaks to them. Let's start with readin...
