Posts by Cyn
It depends on your audience and/or publisher. If this is a paper for a class, you're probably fine. But if this is your thesis/dissertation or something you're going to publish, you need to see t...
Do you actually need to write longer narratives? A sparse writing style can often work well. Here, every word is important. You must carefully choose what you say and how you say it because you ...
I just read an article online and thought "this is great, I should forward the link to Phoebe." Phoebe is one of my characters. I've already had characters tell me how they would speak or dress...
There are three possibilities: Your contract addresses this issue. Follow it. If you're not sure, ask a lawyer. Your contract does not address this issue. Go ask for permission. You somehow wr...
The only way to become a better writer is to write. Yes, you can take classes and read and study, and those things will help, but only if you do them in conjunction with writing. What should you ...
In a novel you could make a Book One vs Book Two split. This is a stronger division than a chapter and is common in longer novels. I've seen plenty that change the POV this way. It's also used f...
Every genre has its own style and professional standards. There may be multiple standards for subsets of a genre as well. They don't exist to make your task difficult, even though the learning pr...
The answer I'll give you here is the same as the ones I've already given you and others: write what works for you. If these are who the characters are, then that's who they are. If you're forcing...
I find myself in a similar position with my novel and it's in the modern age (1995, with a couple quick chapters in 1942 and 2020) and in the past in a time and place that actually existed (even if...
You as an author must be aware of race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disability, and other issues that exist in the real world. You as a person need to be aware. How (or if) you depict these th...
It depends on the larger context. I've read your example over and over and don't find it confusing. But the word "therefore" is odd. It implies that there's already a discussion immediately be...
We remember them. A common refrain in Jewish memorials. The idea that a person's existence counted and we will remember the person and focus on that. Say her name. Say his name. A modern, secu...
Create a fictional country if there are no existing ones that meet your needs. Or if you need to change things enough that it would be confusing or off putting to place your characters there. If ...
Legal issues depend on where you live and who your contestants are. In the US, there is a difference between sweepstakes, which are games of chance, and contests, which are games of skill. Your p...
It's impossible to know if you've crossed the line because all we see is a summary. The summary sounds pretty brutal, but it's the execution that matters. Yes, some books are hard to read. So mu...
Yes. If it's done well (which is going to be harder than it looks), it can work. A narrator with opinions isn't so uncommon (The Book Thief is a good example) but characters that talk back, well ...
One of the purposes of punctuation is to tell you when to breathe. Imagine that you are an actor, speaking these lines out loud. Not just the dialogue, but the entire story. Will you speak each ...
It would be a bad thing if you hated the genre overall. Or if you looked down on it. I will never understand people who want to write something they distain because they think it's "easy" or wher...
It's not dissimilar to an employee. If you work for the government or a large entity, you represent them at all times when on the job (and sometimes when off work too). You have a set of beliefs ...
I'm dealing with some similar problems, on a smaller scale. The first third of my novel is composed of short chapters that move the story along. All the emphasis is on getting to the main locatio...
First, I will direct you here, because the questions overlap some (but are not duplicates). How to present an alien culture with different morals, without it coming across as savage? You can't kee...
You have two ways to go here. Add to book notes or social media or whatever you wish that you are open to people creating sequels and will grant permission to do so on a case by case basis. Then...
Anyone can sue you for anything. If you're a regular person being sued by a wealthy one, or a large business, you will be crushed, even if you're in the right. It is legal to say things about p...
Who is telling this backstory? Is it a separate section, set apart from the rest of the book? Or does the narrator tell the story? It's fine to use first person for an entire novel, or for a pie...
They exist. Though it depends where you are. A3 appears to be art book sized. The A3 size print measures 29.7 x 42.0cm, 11.69 x 16.53 inches, if mounted 40.6 x 50.8cm, 15.98 x 20 inches. ...
