How to Write a Book Now RSS Blog

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And please, enjoy the latest posts below.

How can I write this scene?

Question: So I'm writing along, and then suddenly I get to a point in the story that I haven't thought through completely. And I'm stuck. I want to do

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Finding Originality When Even Plot Twists Are Cliched

Hi, I've been trying to finalize the outline of my novel, however I'm skeptical and critical of every plot outline I've come up with. I'm to the point

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Is my plot any good?

Question: I am a young writer and I love wolves, werewolves, sci-fi, and that kind of stuff. But I was wondering if this would be a good plot. By the way

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Trivial chracters

Question: How much detail should be given to trivial characters without overwriting? Answer: You've pretty much answered your own question, as far as

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Showing Not Telling

What is meant by "Showing Not Telling," and when to use it in your writing.

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Unlikeable Protagonists

Question: Is it possible to write about a protagonist that people will not like, who dies in the end and about whom you should feel mixed emotions? Answer:

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Intensifying the Story Problem

Question: During which time in the plot should you add elements to intensify the problem? Answer: Generally speaking, the problem or problems faced by

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Dramatica Software

The pros and cons of the Dramatica fiction writing software program.

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First chapter

Question: In the novel I am writing, I would like to know how to get the reader actually hooked into my book. I have read the other answers to along the

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Transitions

Question: Okay, so I've been working on a novel for quite a while, and I have recently had to start over because the story is too choppy. I have a severe

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Review of Scrivener writing software.

Scrivener is one of the best fiction writing software packages for writers.

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Book Writing Software

The pros and cons of using book writing software to develop your book or novel.

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Use of real people, long dead.

Question: While reading some other answers posted, I came across one talking about libel and mentioning real people in fiction, and it worried me slightly.

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I'm working on an outline that is close to heart...

Question: The little girl is dancer from a vampire/mafia family and I need feedback on my outline and I would like to meet experienced New York writers

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Organization

Question: I’ve been trying to find an answer to this question for the last few years, and I may be missing something obvious, but at this point I’m stumped.

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My characters are just warped versions of myself

Question: My characters are cheesy and unrealistic. How do I make them believable and unique. I'm not very good at observing people and describing their

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Plot is my weakness

Question: Hello. Now that I'm seriously writing more and working on my novel, I'm find out that I'm really good at the creative writing part. But the plot

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Character/Plot Development - 2nd follow-up

Question: Okay, sorry about all my frivolous questions, but here is one more. Thanks to your advice, and your amazing website, I've developed some of

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Character/Plot Development - Follow-up

Question: Thank you so much for your answers to my last quesion. But, I was wondering, about that scene where the main character gets captured, it's where

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Character/Plot Development

Question: Hi. I'm just barely started writing a novel, that I hope will turn into a series. But I haven't figured out much of the plot for the first novel.

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Plot Development

Question: Hi. I am a student at Sol Feinstone Elementary School, and my teacher has asked me to create a powerpoint on how to have a good plot development.

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Writing a Character's Dark Side

Question: I have found myself getting into a character that is coming from a really dark place. When writing a story one wants to keep one's readers interested.

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Book Writers Resources

Our select listing of writers resources we have found particularly helpful for beginning book writers

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Imply this?

Question: I decided that one of my characters is unable to have children. To keep it simple here, magic is behind the reason why she can not. I've worried

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Maps

Question: Are there any tips for creating a great-looking, detailed and informative map for a fantasy novel? Answer: It's not my specialty, but you might

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Narrator And POV

QuestionL I am totally new to story writing and have a novel in mind. My question concerns the narrator and point of view. The POV during the story will

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My character needs to make a love choice but i don't know which character she should pick???

Question: Okay she is a mild-mannered surgeon and there are two choices of guys she could be with. There is Caleb the bad boy with a horrible rep. But

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Book PARTS

Question: As I build my outline (using your INCREDIBLY helpful articles here on this site. THANK you!) I have easily found an overall main character story

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How big a platform do you need?

The key to winning a nonfiction book deal these days is platform. (And it doesn't hurt for fiction either.) Here's what you should be aiming for.

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Questions About Novel Writing

Get your questions about novel writing answered here.

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how to find character names?

Question: I'm having trouble deciding on a character name. I really like unique names, but some of my favorites (such as Ever or Haven from Evermore) are

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The Very First Chapter

Question: Thanks to this website, I now have a solid plotline that I can work off of. I better understand the roles that my characters play, and tweaked

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How do I find an illustrator for my novel cover?

There are a few sites out there that make it fairly quick and painless to find an illustrator for your novel. Here are what I think are the two best: http://www.Guru.com

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Consequence Element

Queston: Consequence Element: Avoiding the consequence justifies the effort required in pursuing the story goal both to the characters in your novel and

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Begining a novel from a secondary character's point of view..

Question: Is it appropriate to start a novel with a scene involving the secondary character? I'm working on Middle Grade novel and my secondary character

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Titling a Novel

Question: Thanks to your website, I've figured out a LOT about my plot and my characters that I wouldn't have otherwise. I have a plot solid enough that

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Writing in the third person

Question: I just read where someone, like myself is writing in the third person. I'm basically doing to the very same thing, although my characters frequently

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How do I get people to care for my characters in the first chapter?

Question: Hi, this is Natalie Danyus again. I'm going to write a story where an angel is a narrator of the story. He is narrating about the little girl

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My genre is "Paranormal Romance" .

Question: I am writing a novel and I'm wondering if the romance between the hero and the heroine should take precedence over the main goal of the story?

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DK about my genre

Question: OK, so my novel is for Young Adults, I know that. The problem is, I don't know the genre within YA... that wouldn't be a problem except for when

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Help with 19th century warfare.

Question: Hello, my name is Michael and I am planning on writing a novel set during the early 19th century; the story is from the viewpoint of two footsoldiers

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the first chapter

Question: How do i get people hooked on the first chapter so they can keep reading??? Answer: Here are 7 general tips. (They have to be general, because

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Two events novel

Question: I'm working on a novel which only has two major events. A guy studies abroad, and gets involved in a human trading crime, a hundred pages are

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Main character

Question: I would like a suggestion on what point of view a book should have when the whole story is across a 10-year timespan and there are many important

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2 Story Goals?

Question: Can a main character have 2 story goals or should there only be one main goal that takes precedence over all others? Answer: In a fully developed

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Why Online Bookstores Make Life Easier And Harder For 99% Of Authors

The search for the level playing field, where books by new authors compete equally with books by established authors remains elusive despite the changes taking place in publishing.

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Nothing anyone has ever done..

Question: I am trying to make up characters that no one else has ever done, because every time i start to write, the characters always sound like the ones

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How do I find an illustrator for my novel series?

Question: Hi, my name is Summer and I'm currently working a novel series of 6 volumes. My books will be aimed at teenagers, so I want an illustrator to

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Character revision

Question: In one story of mine, which I began in 2006 and ended (after hiatus) in 2009, I'm having a protagonist problem. I want to revise and tighten

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