Writing a novel is like exploring a forest… There are many different paths, many of them carved out by those who explored before you, and you aren’t quite sure which one to take. Maybe it’s none of them. There’s also a lot of unexplored shrubbery, and you could maybe carve your own way through. You’re […]
Category / Writing Tips/Insights
Writing A Novel: Pacing Like A Pro
Writing a novel is like running a marathon, only… it’s actually ten marathons back to back; the ground on which you’re running is on fire, and so are your shoes. Oh, and you’re not actually running. You’re walking. On your hands. We’re sorry… by pacing, we don’t mean the type you do while waiting for […]
Writing A Novel: Using Settings With A Purpose
Writing a novel is like driving a car, only… The car is low on fuel, it has dodgy steering, and you’re controlling it through the iciness of the Antarctic. Oh, and it has no wheels… Always Used Writers use settings continuously, even when they’re not imperative to the scene in general. Whether deliberately or subconsciously, […]
Writing A Novel: Writing Slow And Fast At The Same Time
Writing a novel is like riding a bull… And you have no saddle, no strap, or no harness. You’re naked too. And the bull is actually a Boeing 747. Purposeful Scene Construction First of all, you’re probably wondering what in the heck we mean by that title. Well, you’ll be pleased to know that it […]
Writing A Novel: No Looking Back
Writing a novel is like baking a cake… for four thousand people in less than an hour, with one hand and zero utensils. It’s A Process There’s nothing quite like the journey of writing a novel. It’s a personal adventure; a seeking of the soul. And it should be regarded with love and respect. The […]
Writing A Novel: How To Skip Ahead In Time Smoothly
Writing a novel is like fishing without a rod or a net or a boat. Or arms or legs or a body. Fishing as a ghost… Nothing You Haven’t Seen Before You might be wondering exactly what we mean by ‘skip ahead’, so we thought we’d clear that up first. We refer to these as […]
Writing A Novel: Don’t Wrestle With Futility
Writing a novel is like navigating the world in eighteen days, on foot, and you’re blind, and you have no feet. Too Much Thought Writers around the world share the exact same problem: they overthink like crazy. It’s no huge secret… the community is filled with this evidence. But, that doesn’t make it an acceptable […]
Writing A Novel: Do You Need A Prologue?
Writing a novel is like journeying the ocean… But in this instance, you’ve no boat, no equipment, and you can’t bleeding swim! (That, our writing friends, is a very English expression…) An Ever-Growing Debate It’s a topic we see a lot in the community: in heated discussions on Twitter, rage-infused debates in Instagram comments, back-and-forth […]
Writing A Novel: Dealing With The Paralysis Of Writer’s Block
Writing a novel is like skydiving. The only problem is, you don’t have a parachute. Where There’s A Will… …there’s an over-stressed writer. Look, we know how it gets. You get a project in your mind, you plan it out, you think it through; you become utterly obsessed with every single aspect of it. You […]
A Poetry Prompt: Smiles
The Purpose This week’s prompt is here, and its mission is to spread the happiest of happy vibes. We’re all about the positivity here, and we wanted to kick things off this week with a truckload of it. From a writing skills perspective, we’re going to use this one to work on our emotive writing. […]