The organization of a writer’s office, desk, and computer isn’t a challenge just for neatniks. Although there are some arguments in favor of messy desks enhancing creativity, many writers find they write better and more efficiently when they put a little extra time into cleaning up. After all, if you can spend less time trying […]
July 21, 2010 by 31 Comments Outlining Your NovelyWriter Outlining Software in Action
In anticipation of my convalescence from Lasik corrective eye surgery, I skipped the usual how-to video this week and, at the request of a viewer on YouTube, created a short sequel to my popular yWriter tutorial, showing how I use yWriter outlining software once I’ve typed up all my outline notes and am in the […]
July 26, 2009 by 30 Comments Writing LifeScrivener Too Expensive? Try the Free Writing Software yWriter (Video Tutorial)
Over the years, I’ve dabbled with various writing software and have always found them wanting. I’d pretty much given up on the hope of finding a program that would meet my needs as a writer… and then someone introduced me to yWriter. yWriter was designed by author and programmer Simon Haynes, who saw the same […]
January 17, 2009 by 36 Comments Outlining Your NovelOutline Your Novel: The 5-Step Game Plan
Generally speaking, writers fall into two different categories: outliners and non-outliners (or, as my critique partner Linda Yezak has dubbed them, “seat-of-the-pantsters”). I’m an outliner. Mostly, I outline because I’m lazy. I hate rewriting; I hate watching my burst of pride and relief at the end of a novel dissipate in a realization of a hole-riddled […]
September 6, 2008 by 44 Comments Plotting Your NovelThree Easy Ways You’ve Never Thought of to Keep Track of Time in Your Novel
Do you know, without looking, how much time your novel covers? If the question has just pushed you into the predicament of either scrunching up your face or staring at the ceiling in an effort to tally up your various scenes and arrive a reasonable figure of days, then the answer is probably an unqualified, […]
