“Great Stories Don’t Write Themselves” – a working author’s review
You sort of expect the author of a book to talk about it on their website. I’m quite aware of the short rope in doing that. But when someone else steps up to review and/or discuss the book – especially as a video in the “how to” realm – that’s a different thing entirely. Especially […]
Your NaNoWriMo Treasure Chest
Pretty much everything and anything you need to know to empower your NaNoWriMo experience. Specifically, today I’m linking you to a roster of 32 NaNoWriMo tutorials, one for each day of the Big Month, plus a final word (post 32). NaNoWriMo is beloved by tens of thousands of writers who want a structured and metered […]
Welcome to the new bright and shiny Storyfix.com!
If you’re reading this via email, then I invite you to CLICK THROUGH to the site and check out the new paint job and some nifty remodeling, including a cool new banner. My thanks go out to the designers and programmers who helped me get this done (which took over three weeks… and we’re still […]
Is Your Premise Strong Enough? Are you sure?
This will help you answer this critical question. But first, it’s helpful — to your story, and your learning curve, and thus, your career trajectory — to understand why this question is critical. Simple fact: a significant reason stories get rejected, or don’t find a self-published readership, is that the story, at its core, doesn’t […]
Storyfix: What’s here… what’s new… what’s next.
That last one is a question I’d like your help in answering. Use the comment section below to tell me what you’d like to see here next. I’m thinking another series that does a deep dive into a critical facet of the novel writing proposition… much like the 19-part series I did in May on […]
When Your Premise Paints You Into a Corner — Part 19 of the GSDWT series.
Sadly, you have no one to blame but yourself. Happily, there is wisdom that can keep you away from that edge. Let’s go back to process for a moment. There is really only one goal for your story development/writing process, even though some claim that “I’m just here for a good time” and they really […]
Pearls, Nuggets and Excerpts… the Series, Part 18
The Two Forms — and Applications — of Premise In the last entry in this series (Part 17), you were introduced to the Eight Essential Criteria for Premise. Premise may begin with a Big Idea, or sometimes premise is what leads the writer to a Big Idea… but in all cases — no exceptions here […]
Owning The Typo
In the post that was distributed earlier today (part 17 of the series) I misspelled the word “essencial” (rather, essential) in the subhead. Happily, I didn’t just misspell the word “misspell” in that first paragraph, or this one, where I’ve unwisely used it twice. Typos suck. We all make them, but saying that doesn’t remotely […]
The Whole Ballgame: Pearls, Nuggets and Excerpts… the Series, Part 17
Introducing the essential magic of PREMISE. This post might change the trajectory of your career as a novelist. It just might be the singular awareness that gets you over whatever lull or hump or wall you believe you are stuck behind. If you are already an experienced writer, your response might be… “well duh….” (which, […]
Pearls, Nuggets and Excerpts… the Series, Part 16
CBD has potential health benefits for just about anyone, including senior adults over the age of 65. But older people can often be skeptical about trying something new. So, how can you convince the elderly person you love that CBD might be good for their health? First, make it clear that CBD is not new at all; […]