Posts by Amadeus
What you describe is not exactly a hive mind; a hive mind distributes the responsibility of "thinking" to multiple potential thinkers. for example, here on StackExchange you have more of a hive min...
The number of pages is as many as are needed. As Bryan shows, a chapter can be as short as a word, or a sentence. it can be very long. In general, most chapters are a continuous narrative (a combi...
I think it is "natural" for us to at times suppress some of our traits and rely on others. Yes, a woman can be intuitive and feeling and empathetic and sympathetic, she can desire fair outcomes. Bu...
If I were writing, they would have to be suspicious, no matter how this affected the story. The only good reason to NOT be suspicious is some form of love, romantic, sibling, parental, etc. For exa...
To me, the biggest components of maturity are a significant level of understanding, based on one's own experiences or what has been observed; control over impulsivity and rash or risky actions. ...
I recommend the Power Thesaurus, which is pretty comprehensive and crowd-voted (like this site). An example here is for vagina. I would say pick median word, or a word that is clear without being ...
Here is an idea. First, I warn you I am a 'discovery' writer, and it sounds to me like you should be too, but your write yourself into corners. A discovery writer (like Stephen King) begins with ...
Nearly all successful stories fall into the three act structure; the first act is the setup and definition of a problem or pivotal change in the characters life. In the first Harry Potter novel, AC...
Stop trying to save characters typed. You can characterize the tone of the sentence with another entire sentence even longer than the uttered words. Bill closed his eyes for a moment, his lips ...
For one, a literal story teller can use all the body language, vocal tones and facial expressions they want to convey what their characters mean, which you must find another way to do in print. One...
I am a professor. Your challenge is difficult, if you haven't taken ANY courses in the subject, it would be hard to accept you over somebody that has proven some ability and interest by taking a co...
+1 Henry's answer. For an alternative approach, rely on the elements of structure; the three act structure specifically, and pace your writing accordingly. Use 30% for the first act. 1500 words. ...
I don't think this negatively affects story progression. It can even be a form of emphasis, that punches the reader. Say Karen and Lyle have been married for ten years, with two children. Karen ha...
+1 Daniel, I'm on board with that. Set an appointment and write. If you are worrying about other things: Write about them. Write what is in your head. If you worry about them every day, write them...
To the specific issue about something technical being boring: It was probably boring because you were bored. Unless you really wanted to inform the reader about the important differences between "l...
Humor has very little place in business writing, just like erotica or violence. The reason for this is people are not generally in the frame of mind, when consuming business writing, for anything ...
I think you can use the traditional ones if you do not stray far from what readers would expect. Don't call them "elves" if they are ogres, or have extra arms. As you note for yourself, when you e...
Since I type at about ten times the rate I write by hand; and my hand gets sore writing by hand for more than a page or so; I opt for typing. Writing by hand is a sensory ritual for some writers. ...
+1 Mark's answer, subplots often provide counterpoint. They can also provide examples of the alternative outcomes for the hero. In the case of Thor and Jane (or Superman and Lois) The subplot adds...
It is difficult to tell from your question and examples, but generally different action lines are similar to paragraphs in prose: There is no hard and fast rule for when they break off; it is basic...
I am not a lawyer, but No, you shouldn't use them. A unique invented name is copyrighted, and no in-story justification matters. The owners of the copyright have all the rights to make a profit u...
The biggest problem I see is that your "prediction" will not be appreciated, and your actual creativity is lost and considered derivative. Suppose I started writing a book about terrorists, hijack...
The current wisdom in marketing books is that the art should give the "flavor" of the book. Check out these Harry Potter Book Covers on google images. Or here is the 15th Anniversary edition of Har...
Another way to get a long story out is to use an argumentative listener. The biggest problem with a long story is that, IRL, nobody sits and listens to a long story from somebody they consider an ...
Practice differently. Go standing. Or go sitting. Being a visual person is fine, I write my stories as visually imagined scenes, full of dialogue (in conflict, dialogue is a form of action). I t...
