While doing research recently for an ESL student, I came across another “rule of writing”, to wit: Don't use gerunds; they make your writing weak. To qualify as a gerund a word must be: a verb with an “ing” suffix that performs the job of a noun. Take these sentences as examples: I like hiking. … Continue reading The Rules of Writing: No Gerunds?
WRITING
Get Smart: How to Tell Good Publishing Contracts From Bad
Excellent advice for first- or any-time authors!
BY AUDREY WICK
Like many new and debut authors, I was eager to sign with a traditional publisher. After the hard work of completing a novel, signing on the dotted line with a publishing house was exactly the reward I envisioned would make it all worthwhile.
Any contract for publishing can, at first, seem like an offer too good to refuse—but that doesn’t mean you should take anything that comes your way.
Publishing contracts are as varied as book genres. It’s easy for an author hungry to be published to be blinded by any contract’s lure, to the potential detriment of their career and their hard-fought creative work.
When I was submitting my debut novel for publication, the first book contract offer I received included bad terms—I’m grateful my agent and a close traditionally published friend helped me know what to look for. They helped me spot the three red…
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Edit or Revise? Why not both?
In the craft of writing, editing is accepted as a necessary evil. We all realize that our sentences must be properly punctuated, our noun/verb combinations must agree, our sentence and paragraph structure must meet certain recognizable norms. Yes, there are exceptions. Books are written in verse. Writers experiment with no dialogue tags, single-sentence paragraphs, and … Continue reading Edit or Revise? Why not both?
Getting back in the swing of things
So, it seems that I managed to take another 8-week sabbatical this holiday season. However, unlike last year, this one was not full of family, friends, and celebrations (although we spent a lovely day at my brother's house on Christmas). At home, we had only one tree instead of our usual five, and only two … Continue reading Getting back in the swing of things
THE RULES vs. Style Choices
In the past few weeks, I've seen too many articles that propound “THE RULES of Writing”. An overabundance, if you will, most of which don't make any distinction between THE RULES and STYLE CHOICES. THE RULES are universal. For instance: a sentence must have a subject and a verb; the subject and verb must agree; … Continue reading THE RULES vs. Style Choices
Those danged IRREGULAR VERBS!
Like “be” and “see”, there are a number of verbs in English grammar that don't follow the standard tense-changing rules. Most of the time we'll take a present-tense verb like “move”, add a “d” to create the past tense (moved) as well as the the part perfect tense (have moved). These, the vast majority of … Continue reading Those danged IRREGULAR VERBS!
PSA: Yes, “Spirit Animals” Are Cultural Appropriation- That Means You
An excellent article on appropriating cultures.
Another important topic has been bought up on my dash, and that is the use of “spirit animals”. Having an animal guide or an animal familiar or an animal you really like is not the same as a spirit animal: and for those of you who are confused, here are several Tumblr posts to help you understand:
[NB: if you (like me) are non-Native and you reblogged agentotter’s commentary PLEASE read sofriel’s refutation below. “Spirit Animal” as a non-Native phrase is SUPER FUCKED UP.]
Petition to start using “patronus” instead of “spirit animal” because not being appropriative is pretty rad.
Okay let’s go through this one more time. Deep breath.
If you think the concept of “spirit animals” comes from Native American religious practices, you are wrong. Also, you’re probably basing your ideas about Native American spiritualism on…
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7 Reasons Why You Should Outline Your Novel DURING Revision
Some absolutely pertinent advice, especially for Pansters like me!
by Kelsie Engen
Today we’re going to talk about how to approach the next revision step: developmental edits. Basically this means addressing the major, structural issues of your WIP before moving on to the minor things.
This step comes after you’ve read your first draft, made some comments or jotted down ideas.
Of course, whether you’ve merely jotted down ideas, or come up with new pacing suggestions, or discovered some character motivations, etc., at this point you should create a new outline.
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4 Reasons Automated Checks will Never Replace an Editor
There is a great benefit to automated checkers, because they'll alert you to the possibility that you're spelling a word incorrectly, using an inordinate number of adverbs, repeating pet phrases. But there's more to good writing than that, and here are four of the reasons that you need a great editor. 1.) SPELL CHECKERS: No … Continue reading 4 Reasons Automated Checks will Never Replace an Editor
To Pants or Not To Pants – 14 Writers’ Opinions
There's a great dichotomy among writers: plotters (those who outline) vs. pantsers (those who write by the seat of their pants). Most writers fall into one camp or the other and sing the praises of their choice. Nothing wrong with that. Everyone's mind works differently, and what works for you may not work for me. … Continue reading To Pants or Not To Pants – 14 Writers’ Opinions
Gifford MacShane, Author 