When you write excellent dialogue, you will simultaneously sharpen the rest of your narrative tools. When you write clunky dialogue, however, it’s unlikely readers will be able to engage with the story on any level. Happily, dialogue is usually one of the most enjoyable and intuitive parts of writing narrative fiction. We all do dialogue […]
May 5, 2017 by 68 Comments NarrativeHow to Write in an Authentic Historical Voice
Let’s say you’re writing a book set in the 14th Century. Naturally, as a diligent and conscientious writer, you want to do your research and write with an authentic historical voice. In fact, you’re so good and so authentic that what you end up with is something like this: Whilom, as olde stories tellen us, ther […]
April 28, 2017 by 51 Comments DialogueHow to Write (and Not Write) Expository Dialogue
Dialogue is one of the most versatile of all narrative fiction techniques. It allows us to characterize, to create both context and subtext, to entertain via humor, and to share some of the best and punchiest prose rhythms in the entire book. Because it is the only narrative technique that is a “true” form of showing, […]
January 23, 2017 by 112 Comments How to Become a Writer6 Bits of Common Writing Advice You’re Misusing
Recently, I found myself reminiscing about some of the early books on writing advice that transformed and molded my understanding of storytelling and writing. They opened my eyes, honed my craft, and changed my life. I wouldn’t be the writer I am today without the solid writing advice I’ve received from the writers who have gone […]
September 12, 2016 by 77 Comments Plotting Your NovelThe Only 5 Ingredients You Need for Story Subtext
If there’s a magic ingredient in writing, it’s story subtext. It’s actually not magic, of course, any more than any of the other demystified techniques of structure, theme, or character arc. But story subtext often seems like magic simply because, by its very nature, it is the execution of the unexplained. Subtext is supposed to be invisible. It lives […]
September 5, 2016 by 63 Comments Most Common Writing MistakesMost Common Writing Mistakes, Pt. 53: No Contractions in Dialogue
What’s the worst writing mistake an author can make? It’s a broad one: doing something you think makes you look sophisticated and clever, when really… it doesn’t. A common manifestation of this is a conscientious avoidance of contractions in dialogue and narrative. I’ll admit I fell prey to this as a young writer (who not […]
April 3, 2016 by 152 Comments Most Common Writing MistakesMost Common Writing Mistakes, Pt. 50: Info Dumps
On its most fundamental level, a novel is nothing more or less than the dissemination of information. As such, the writer who understands exactly how and where to share information is a writer who understands the most fundamental skill of storytelling. That’s why info dumps are such a big, bad deal. They’re peanut butter in […]
November 6, 2015 by 36 Comments DialogueHow to Write Funny Dialogue (What I Learned Writing Storming)
This week’s video shows you the two important (but often overlooked) ingredients in figuring out how to write funny dialogue your readers will love. Video Transcript: Today, I’m excited to welcome you to the first installment in a month-long series featuring important writing lessons that I learned in the past few years while writing my […]
November 2, 2015 by 65 Comments Most Common Writing MistakesMost Common Writing Mistakes, Pt. 45: Avoiding “Said”
What’s this, you say? Avoiding “said” is one of the most common writing mistakes? How can that be? Surely writers overuse this ubiquitous little word more often than not, don’t they? As a matter of fact: nope. Indeed, trying to avoid this hard-working little speaker-attribution tag can, in most instances, lead you into some major prose problems. If you […]
April 22, 2015 by 34 Comments DialogueAn Easy Way to Immediately Improve Your Character’s Action Beats
This week’s video shows you how to take your dialogue’s action beats upon a notch by focusing on symbolism and subtext. Video Transcript: A novel cannot live on dialogue alone. Dialogue may be the most fun part to write; it may be the most fun part to read. But you can’t build a whole story […]
