An information dump is exactly what it sounds like: a steaming plop of backstory. It includes facts about characters and events that are relevant to your storyline but predate the opening scene. Often times, these factoids are the very building blocks of your story, but to start with them at the beginning – which is …
Category: Writers
May 21
Abram
After two serious pieces, I was planning on writing a lighter, more humorous blog, this month, something more tied to my first piece which came out in February. That seems so long ago. It’s hard to believe that I once was having a problem thinking of something to write about. Then I reread the comments …
May 18
Lights, Camera, Action: Verb!
I had one of those ah-ha!, slap-your-head-with-the-palm-of-your-hand-*duh* moments recently. This time, that moment was about writing. An article I read discussed ways to improve your writing. In your first draft, the most important thing is to get the words down in whatever perfect or jumbled form you can. The revision stage is where you get …
May 10
Soft, Hard, Harder
When you think romance novel, what’s the first thing that comes to mind? Sex, right? Now don’t get distracted visualizing. As the title suggests, sex scenes come in different levels. They can even lean toward a softer side, the more graphic content eliminated. Each has their place in the pages you write. So let’s look …
May 06
Read, Read, Read
“If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot.” ~Stephen King I met a young man in a critique group who had an excellent premise for his novel. I asked him if he read anything in that genre. His unflinching reply, “Oh, …