Posts by Daniel Cann
I'm thinking about sending what I've written off to get published soon, but I was wondering how much work I'd have to do after the publisher has actually got the contract with me and we're going to...
Background Woohoo! I literally just finished right now my masterpiece trilogy that I have worked on for what seems like, ages... I'm a bit vexed as to where I should write 'the end'. The epilogu...
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...
Definition I think a good definition of cheesy is this: Something that is low quality, amateur, but is trying really hard to be good. It's a hard word to define for sure. Avoidance Beta ...
Understand what an accent mark is There are many kinds of accent marks. For example, the acute accent in French signifies that the 'e' is to be pronounced at the end of a word. This is the most co...
The choice is stylistic. It's almost always your decision, as the author. Do what you feel would be appropriate and convey your meaning well. However, it goes without saying that some publishers m...
A very short question. I'm writing a trilogy. Book 1 was 88,000 words, but book 2 is probably only going to be 75,000 words. That's over 10,000 words less. Should I find a way to make it longe...
Background I've had this question for a really long time. A lot of my work seems quite 'floaty' and 'old style' because I describe things in a very metaphorical and surreal way. For example: H...
Background So I see a lot of questions on the site like this. They're all about deeply explaining worldbuilding and stuff, doing all of that explaining type of thing. Normally, I just skip that. F...
Background I recently noticed in my latest masterpiece novel there is quite a lot of things happening by chance. For example: The main character just happens to pass by an old, frail warrior w...
You said it yourself. When the reader cannot concentrate on the story because there are so many adjectives and adverbs, and other details and flourishes. Get other people to read your writing, and ...
The structure and complexity depends how intense and deep you want the story to be. However, when planning you must know the following thing: The ending. For when you start work, the key to wor...
Background In a huge amount of the books I read the author has coined a little term to help them describe something, or an onomatopoeia. Like: Kindish (adding -ish to the end of a existing word)...
Background I've planned the chapter I'll write tomorrow. It features a bandit ambush! That's so exciting! Wow! The sickly scent of blood, the glistening blades and powerless enemies. They are noth...
Background So, long ago in my writing I wrote a chapter where a book housing a specific missing chapter was found in a treasury. As you can tell, it's super ultra convenient to just have it in the...
Background When I first tried writing fantasy - a long long time ago - I wrote a book that was meant to be really serious and intense. However, I wrote it in a way where the characters joked aroun...
Don't listen to them There are very few rules to writing and good writers know how to break them. Someone saying 'don't use as much' is totally wrong. They just are. In your prose, 'as' will be us...
At the back. People will notice it if it's at the back, I'm sure they will. Normally, lists of characters are at the back of the book, lists of pronunciations are at the back, and general informati...
So firstly, printing actual copies of your book to give to beta readers is a really bad idea. It costs loads of money when they could be reading it on the internet. When you are actually submittin...
I remember reading a book called A Monster Calls, which had the same thing going on. The original idea was from Siobhan Dowd, but she died, and the book was completed by Patrick Ness. I would do so...
Background So I recently had my first ever issue with the spelling of places in my novel. Someone pronounced a rather illustrious city, Ethil, incorrectly. Ethil is not pronounced with a 'f' sound...
I disagree with what's comment. There are certain techniques used in these speeches that help convey meaning. I'm going to use Martin Luther King's I had a dream speech in my answer. What kinds of...
It's entirely stylistic. In certain books neologisms will not be italicized, in others they will be. It's important to stick to it though and not change what you're doing. If you italicize one, be ...
Background To be honest, I really didn't know how to title this question. Anyway, the background. I was sitting around in front of the plan for the second book of my trilogy. Woohoo! I finished th...
Background Woohoo! The time has come, my first book of a trilogy is one chapter away from finishing. I've done a little editing as I go, clearing up the bad chapters, but haven't properly gone t...
