Posts by Surtsey
There is no correct answer. As some have intimated a character's description is only necessary if it's relevant to the story. My personal technique involves giving a reader a vague enough descript...
I have a series in which one of the main characters dies at the end of book one. From book two the dead character becomes to first-person narrator (Part of the plot - she wonders how she's around t...
There are technical differences between a play and a screenplay. Amadeus has set you on a good path. The, often overlooked, important difference between a play and screenplay is the required loca...
As others intimated you can do pretty much anything you want with ancient / mythological characters. However, what you cannot do is use a representation from a film. e.g. You can use Thor but you m...
Yes. There're a couple of things to unpack here. The general rule is: a new subject requires a new paragraph. A character or person qualifies as a new subject. It is important to remember: dialogu...
The answer is no. Simply because there are no elements that should or should not be included within a novel, mystery or otherwise. There are no correct formulas. This is evidenced by Dwight Swain's...
It is generally taken that if I tell you a joke, then have it explain why it's funny - it's not probably not funny. I continually return to one of my own short pieces. If I submit it I believe it ...
Your question is moot because you're overthinking your issue. There is no 'general reader' because we all live in different bubbles and have different knowledge bases. For example: I'm currently wr...
It alarms me that you've written a novel and then opened a new document to start again. The best advice I can offer is to leave your novel for a month - don't even think about it. If you're itchi...
If English if not your first language the usage of "now" is difficult to fully comprehend. It has many nuanced translations but is most often used to mean "in this moment". It is also used to empha...
There are several adequate answers already provided. However, you are presupposing that their is a way of writing that pleases every reader. There is not. I, generally speaking, do not appreciate...
Because I think you're possibly on the wrong track, I'll weigh in four or five areas for you to think about. (1) Writing your experiences isn't fiction. It may be good practice for writing in gene...
Poetry has no specific definition. In the modern commercial era it has no value. On the one hand it can be described as 'short literary fiction'. The other view is that poetry is simply song lyrics...
Oh God! not the dialogue tag debate . . . again. Firstly, those who believe 'said' is the only valid dialogue tag and dialogue tags should be invisible are misled. It's fine if you don't write a l...
I'm sorry but I don't think your example works. You're in first-person but you're not in the moment. You're switching between an internal and external view of the scene which makes it disjointed W...
Is 'creative writing' simply a synonym for 'fiction'?
As a novelist my preference is for what I call an 'active narrator'. The terminology confuses most as they think I'm talking about sentence construction and the benefits of 'active' or over 'passiv...
Yes, you may use prominent people in history pretty much any way you choose. Obviously libel laws apply. Generally you cannot libel the dead, however some US states permit lawsuits where the descen...
Firstly, you don't say what type of editor you are. Different editors perform different functions. Before continuing with my answer I must admit to my own bias. Based on experience: independent ed...
Yes, I'd pretty much go with your ear. I could explain the technicalities of cadence and pacing but it's pretty much like dancing - if you think about too much while your doing do it . . . it's rar...
I disagree with the first answer. The core of the problem is the writer's individual style. Essentially, we're discussing the well-worn subject of 'show don't tell'. Showing leads the reader to de...
I am not as fantasy orientated as the majority of members. Nor am I a fan of "Disney" plots, stories written for the purpose for being popular. Unfortunately the tribal nature of society does not a...
There are too many of these questions. Chapter length is governed by four elements: scenes, transitions, location switches, time breaks. I have a novel where the shortest chapter is 400 words - a c...
The process isn't the big deal others seem to think it is. I don't believe there are hard and fast rules to writing but I believe an author should apply a set of rules to a particular work. Ask yo...
Dialogue a very difficult subject for a 'typical' writer. Dialogue needs to heard and cannot really be learned from a book. And unless you've a diverse group of friends you've no source material. ...
