Activity for Mark Baker‭

Type	On...	Excerpt	Status	Date
Answer	—	A: Writing Contests For Teens Most writing contests have a fee to enter because they need the fees to pay for the prizes. In fact, a lot of small magazines need fees from their writing contests just to stay in business. A few well funded magazines or publishers may put on contests to find new writers, but this is rare because th... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: When is the best time to add detail? I can't see why, at time of writing, you would ever include a detail that did not seem apt and necessary at the time. Nor can I see why you would ever omit a detail that did seem apt and necessary. It is quite likely that you will decide later that many of the details you thought apt and necessary a... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: How do I write a synopsis? The accepted answer is reasonable, but I would add this angle. Don't write a synopsis of the plot, write a synopsis of the conflict. There can be a lot of business in a plot and it you try to summarize it, you may end up either missing the key points or skipping too lightly over too many plot points.... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: How to navigate potential self-plagiarism when using different online and professional personas? The Web is an open book. If you make a connection between two personas it is there for people to find. How likely are they to find it? That is very hard to say. But if you don't acknowledge the relationship between the two personas, people will be free to construe it how they may. If someone discover... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: How do you write a political debate in a story? The starting point here has to be to ask yourself whether you are writing a novel or a polemic. If your story is just an excuse to make an argument against some form of discrimination, then you are going to be stuck trying to write both sides of a debate where you are on one side and trying to set it... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: What does Show don't Tell actually mean To me, the phrase Show don't Tell can have only one clear meaning, and it comes down to what it means to show. Show means to describe what the reader would see for themselves if they were present in the scene. This means that you can describe action and you can report dialog. You can also describe th... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Question	—	What does Show don't Tell actually mean I am asking this question because I think we need a precise definition of what Show Don't Tell means if we are to decide if it is good advice or bad, or if it is a valid suggestion for certain passages but not a general rule for a whole book. Orson Scott Card was a particular critic of Show Don't Te... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: What's the benefit of inventing a fictional region, if it's based on a real one? I think the most important reason may be that it is one small step into faery. There is always something of faery about every story. Stories take place in a neater, stronger, brighter world than our own, a world in which coincidences are more likely and more meaningful than in the real world, in whic... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: How do I express that a culture has a different standard of beauty? I think this is very much a matter of the overall narrative style of the work. Some narrative styles will give you great liberty to do this, some will make it very difficult or forced. The question then becomes, do you choose a narrative style that makes it easy to deal with your subject matter in th... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: Use of Separating Fiction into "Parts?" Stories are made up of incidents. Each incident is a distinct unit of storytelling. Incidents lead the protagonist closer to or further from their goal. Each incident has a structure of its own, its own build and its own payoff. In long works, incidents may themselves be made up of incidents. Some i... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: Resources for non-technical science writing The best possible sources are the writers you admire. The best possible way to improve as a writer is to read with attention. Good writers read differently, constantly paying attention to the technique of the writers they admire. Writing is a complex activity. You can't write by following a set of t... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: How can we revise sentences so that they remain clear and concise but gain a rhythm of a specific kind? I think there are good arguments to be made that rhythm and clarity are closely connected. We tend to have a very puritanical view of prose preached to us today. It is all spare and bleached and square corners. It is dessicated language. It does nothing to engage the ear or the eye or the senses. It ... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: Writer's Block: How to Stop World-building and Start Writing? Design is the stage. Story is the play. Story is built around desire and the frustration of desire. The stage exists as a place for that desire to be born, to be frustrated, and to be ultimately achieved or denied. Stage dressing without a play in mind, therefore, is apt to be futile. To start the s... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: A creative way to combine two niches? Having your own domain does not force you to have only one blog. You can very easily set up two blogs on one domain. It is likely that you have essentially three audiences: - People who like tech stuff - People who like lifestyle stuff - People who like your writing Combining the two blogs serves o... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: Are there ways to help stick to character traits? The first thing that determines how a character acts in a story is not their personality, but their motivation. In short, what do they want. If your characters all want the same thing, they will tend to seem the same. People with different personalities will definitely pursue their goals in differen... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: How much license is provided by artistic license? Look at it this way: artistic license is granted by the reader. You are not entitled to it in any blanket way. Some readers will grant you more; some will grant you less. Generally, they will grant you more the more you charm or entertain them. If you are trying to write what I like to call diorama ... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: How do I convey messages that are clear, but unspoken? You tell it. Show vs tell has become a monster that is twisting fiction out of any recognizable shape. While it is often good advice for particular passages, telling is a fundamental part of the novelist's art. It it the great privilege we have over the movies. As E. M. Forster pointed out, it is wha... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: PhD thesis: how to visually separate the "general conclusion" chapter from the last part I really don't think there is a reliable way to do this visually in the text simply because whatever visual cues announced to the reader that they have started Part II have long been forgotten before they get to the end of it. You can always do things like devoting an entire right page to "Part I", "... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: Preventing spoilers in a short yet interesting synopsis of the story Millions of people bought tickets to see Titanic even though they knew in a advance that the ship sinks. They went back to see it again and again even though after the first time they knew exactly who lived and who died. Good books do not depend solely on the audience not knowing what happens. Rathe... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: Pitfalls for writing a talkative character? Heed Coleridge's admonition to Wordsworth: "it is impossible to imitate truly a dull and garrulous discourse, without repeating the effects of dullness and garrulity." So this may be one of those time to tell rather than show. That said, it is possible to present a garrulous character who is highly ... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: Can I make a living as a novelist? Is it possible to make a living as a novelist? Yes, a few people do. Is it sensible to plan on making a living as a novelist, the way you might plan on making a living as a dentist or an accountant? Absolutely not. Very few of those who try ever make even pocket money from writing fiction. A realis... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: Press Kit proof-read in exchange for an app license? Places where you can find technical writers: - Society for Technical Communication - http://stc.org - Your local STC chapter. - Technical Writer Mailing List (TechWhirl) - http://techwhirl.com/ - Write the Docs - http://www.writethedocs.org/ - Technical Writing World: - http://technicalwritingw... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: Switching perspectives for a single chapter in a first person POV novel, to do or not to do? To be honest, I couldn't even follow it in the question. I wonder if you may just be trying too hard not to have a narrator. I realize everyone wants to do first person narration these days, but that is a highly restrictive form and often results in false notes even when the protagonist stays conscio... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: Interwoven story arcs (for video) - guidelines so viewers will not get lost? Stories are the way human being make sense of life. They are an attempt to impose order on the chaotic stream of events that we experience day to day. History is the interpretation of the stream of past events as a set of stories. As such, those stories will overlap each other in the time scale. Whe... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: Benefits of Chapter titles in fictional writing? I think chapter titles are one of the elements that contributes to the sense of a strong narrative voice -- that is, the sense that there is a narrator telling the story. This style is somewhat unfashionable today. Many authors like to create the sense of a stream of consciousness narration or to sup... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: How do you force a turning point in a narrative that is supposed to be precisely about the lack of such devices? I hate to try to divine motive, but are you sure this is a story question? It sounds more like you are trying to make an argument than tell a story, more like you are trying to find a way to convince that reader that their lives are not governed by fate than that you are trying to find a convince the... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: How do I gain experience in editing? I believe that many if not all of the small literary magazines are edited by volunteers. How those volunteers are selected I am not so sure, but I would begin by scouring their websites looking for any call for volunteers. Failing that, write to them and ask. Now I would imagine that they will have ... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: Unofficial Fan Fictions - How can I Secure Them? You are worrying about the wrong thing. No one wants to steal your stuff. Unpublished fiction on the web is of zero commercial value. There are far more people writing it than there are reading it. The only people who should worry about being plagiarized are successful authors who are, first, making... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: Habitual use of -ing follows -ed -- is this wrong? I don't see anything wrong with the construction per se. It's just how English works for a structure that is action followed by consequence. It is far more important that your prose should seem natural than that it should be varied in structure. That said, the passage you present as an example strik... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: Using "show not tell" while characters are planning for something that happens Philipp provides a good answer, but I think there is more to say. First, "show don't tell" has kind of become the touchstone of all advice about storytelling but it is good to remember that it originated as a piece of advice for novelists moving to writing screenplays. What is told in a novel must b... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: Why not God as our subject? Because God does not have a story arc. If story is the conflict between desire and what stands in the way of the fulfilment of that desire, God cannot have a story arc because nothing can frustrate the desires of God. There are, of course, stories about gods. But those gods are really supermen. They... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: What do Readers Expect from a Fantasy Novel It is not difficult to think of fantasy novels that don't have big battles (Voyage of the Dawn Treader). The battles, the strange creatures, etc, are set dressing. Sci Fi and Fantasy are often lumped together, and often appeal to the same readers, because they essentially do the same thing. They exam... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: Is there any risk of being published in the wrong genre? Genre is a marketing tool. Publishers are marketers of books. That is why you seek out a publisher rather than publishing yourself -- because you want the services of someone who knows how to market books. So if a publisher says your book is in a particular genre, chances are they are right. (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: Is starting a story with dialogue bad? As you say, there are many stories that work that start with dialogue. Far too much advice about writing is much too mechanical in nature. Dialogue is just a mechanism for telling a story. Rules about which mechanism to use are silly, and usually easy to prove false with counter-examples. What a sto... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: Can a scene be written to be disorienting and not be too confusing to readers? A disoriented character does not have a perspective. A perspective is what you have when the world makes sense to you. When you are disoriented, you don't have a perspective. You have a whirl of sensations the refuse to resolve into a perspective. I seem to remember that it was Dr. Johnson who said ... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: How useful are stock characters in fiction? I think we need to make a distinction between a stereotype and an archetype here. The two are often confused, as illustrated by Wikipedia's unhelpful definition of a stock character: > A stock character is a stereotypical person whom audiences readily recognize from frequent recurrences in a particu... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: The Subplot: What to do when it is only loosely tied to the main plot? The various parts of a novel may be tied together in different ways. They may be connected by the threads of plot. But equally they may be thematically related to each other, or provide thematic counterpoint to each other. The wholeness and integrity of a novel depends on the wholeness and integrity... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: Why does the villain always win right before the hero defeats him? > Is there any other reason to use this device in a narrative, beyond "to build tension"? Yes. In Story Robert McKee describes the structure of a story as a series of attempts at a goal met by increasingly dire setbacks until the protagonist is forced to the limits of human experience and must make ... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: In character development for a screenplay, is it enough to present only a person's most salient characteristics? Characters are defined by what they want and what they are willing to do to get it. The specific details you give about them are there to justify what they want and what they are willing to do to get it. Joe wants X because he was raised by wolves in a trailer park in the 70s. Mary is willing to do Y... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: What is Literary Fiction? I think it is a mistake to try to define literary fiction in terms of themes, language, or the primacy of plot vs character. I would suggest that it can be better understood in terms of the pleasure it gives. Stories can give different kinds of pleasure. Some provide vicarious adventure (you want to... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: Can you make multiple prologues in one book? This strikes me as a semantic quibble. You can have a section in which the stories of various main characters are told before some larger action commences. Lots of novels have multiple parts, often with gaps in time between them. Calling the entire first part, with its multiple chapters, a prolog, ho... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: How much detail should I go into for a character taking advantage of physics expertise? I think it depends on what the main problem is in the novel. If the main problem is technical in nature, the reader needs to have some sense of what it technically possible. If the main problem is psychological or moral, however, what matters is the decision to use or not use the power in question. ... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: Writing a novel largely composed of question-answer sessions Sounds like you want to write a philosophical novel. Two examples that I can think of are Walker Percey's Lost in the Cosmos and Robert Persig's Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. Both of the above are interesting reads, but interesting as philosophical texts, and as approaches to doing philo... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: Can a first person protagonist be the writer's alter ego? It depends entirely on whether your voice is an interesting one. We all tend to believe our own voices are more interesting than they really are. Despite all the talk about expressing oneself, what readers really want is something interesting to them, and there is perhaps a better chance that you wil... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: AmE text for a British literary agent (and viceversa) The best approach is to query the agent first and ask them what their preference is. It is unlikely that they all have the same policy. Asking them first shows them that you are aware of the issue and willing to adjust if required. That shows professionalism, which counts for a lot with agents. (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: Finding the 'voice' of a character Every human being strives to establish a place in the world, to be seen and accepted in a certain way. Their voice, the way they react to each situation, is developed in an attempt to establish and maintain that place. Their way of speaking, their vocabulary, their boldness or timidity, is shaped by ... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: should I use predictable plot elements? Surprise is the cheapest of literary devices. People often reread their favorite books and re-watch their favorite movies. They would not do so if their enjoyment of them depended on surprise. With effective storytelling our hearts can still be in our mouths for a character at a critical juncture no ... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: How to move back to main section after finishing a sub-section There really is no convention for indicating the end of things in text. You are asking for a way to move up the hierarchy of the document without a title to indicate the change. There really isn't a reliable way to indicate that to a reader. Titles indicate the beginning of things not the end of thin... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: Hang on - where's the main conflict? As others have said, the main conflict is what the main character wants and can't get. But I think the point that needs making here is about what plot is. I think it is all to easy to get into the habit of thinking of plot as a kind of history. You can meticulously develop an imaginary history and w... (more)	—	over 8 years ago
Answer	—	A: Does something need to happen in every single chapter? Does something need to happen in every chapter? Yes. Something needs to happen in every paragraph. Something needs to happen in every sentence. The story must advance. A story needs more to advance than physical action by the characters, however. It is the telling that needs to advance. Actions ar... (more)	—	over 8 years ago

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