It occurred to me the other day that the people who propound THE RULES OF WRITING are much more vocal than those of us who do not. Since I was listening to a John McCormack CD at the time (it's almost Paddy's Day, you know, and I'm learning two new songs), I wondered how those … Continue reading At the Intersection of Music and Writing
WRITING
Matching voice in your query and sample
The purpose of the query is to sell your MS. But what should you do if the voice in the query doesn’t match the pages? Source: Matching voice in your query and sample
Twitter for Writers
One of the truths of today's publishing world is that a writer must have an on-line presence. Doesn't matter if you're self-publishing or going the traditional route, writing fiction or non-fiction, poetry or prose, your name has to be out there. Blogging is one way to accomplish that, but it's fairly time-consuming. Readership growth is … Continue reading Twitter for Writers
FAILURE IS NOT FATAL
Just the other day, I posted this quote from Winston Churchill: Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts. Normally, I'd just leave it out there and it would hopefully inspire some other folks the way it inspired me. But I've found that over the past few … Continue reading FAILURE IS NOT FATAL
Monday Minute: You Know You’re a Writer When…
And yes, that’s how we know it!
I’ve seen a lot of funny lists about the habits and traits of writers. Each time I see them, it makes me laugh because I can see some common habit or trait of myself in the list. To have a bit of fun, I decided to compile my own list.
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And more Rules Of Writing
If you've been following me for any length of time, you'll know that I believe most “rules of writing” need a good hard reality check. Many times, when asked for rules, a writer will recommend their writing practices, and that's not at all the same thing as universal rules. I recently read an article by … Continue reading And more Rules Of Writing
GRAMMAR: He had or He’d had?
Question: I was wondering about one thing. In my sentence, would it be “he’d had enough” or “he had enough”? He’d had enough. He could handle his sister's complaining, but... Answer: "He’d had enough" will work better for you. "He had enough" is usually quantifiable, eg: "He had enough breakfast cereal to last for a … Continue reading GRAMMAR: He had or He’d had?
LATER, LOOK BACK: Another Shortcut for Fixing Misplaced Modifiers
Modifiers, as we've discussed, are the words we use to provide additional information about another word. Modifiers include adverbs, adjectives, and clauses. Today the focus is on modifying clauses and how they relate to our stories. The problem known as “misplaced modifiers” occurs when the clause or phrase is not connected to the word(s) it's … Continue reading LATER, LOOK BACK: Another Shortcut for Fixing Misplaced Modifiers
First, Look Ahead: A Shortcut for Fixing Misplaced Modifiers
We've got a fairly complex question this time, with more than one example. A friend of mine, also a writer, is having some trouble with modifying clauses, also called modifying phrases. Modifiers, as you may know, are the words we use to provide additional information about another word. Modifiers include adverbs, adjectives, and clauses. Today the … Continue reading First, Look Ahead: A Shortcut for Fixing Misplaced Modifiers
The Rules of Writing: A Built-In Paradox
The Rules of Writing. So many of them are subject to discussion, if not passionate argument. The Oxford comma, the em-dash, the sentence fragment: you're on one side or the other. Hardly anyone stands on the fence. Two of the most popular and oft-quoted Rules are: 1.) Use a stronger verb instead of a verb … Continue reading The Rules of Writing: A Built-In Paradox
Gifford MacShane, Author 