I like to think of writing as the business of collecting No’s. You can’t be a writer unless you’re willing to be told “No” every now and then. And by “every now and then,” I mean repeatedly–day in and day out. Since I first started writing short stories, I’ve received 173 rejections and 19 non-responses. […]
My most common mistakes and how to fix them
While going back and forth between revising an old novel and writing a new one, I noticed a few things about my writing that really made me cringe. I find that more than a few mistakes I thought I had taken care of have slowly crept back into my writing. So I thought that by […]
Five Common Horror Twist Endings to Avoid
Ever since M.Night Shyamalan unleashed The Sixth Sense onto the world, seemingly every horror movie and short story shares one thing in common: the need for a twist at the end. And now after all these years, I think it’s safe to say we’ve seen them all. Repeatedly. Even M. Night Shyamalan movies appear to […]
My Weakest Link: Describing Stuff
I like to think that when it comes to writing, my strongest points are on action and dialog. I’m okay with pace and plotting. And fifty-fifty with settings and characters (that one kind of depends on the genre, I suppose.) But putting the strengths aside, I also know exactly where I’m at my weakest: I […]
Podcast Episode 10: Five Writing Myths
In this episode of The Write Good Books Podcast, Jason and Scott discuss five common myths about writing, based on the article Five Lies Creative Writing Teachers Tell by David Savill at Writers and Artists. Click the link below to stream the episode. Also available at iTunes, Soundcloud, RSS. About the hosts Jason Bougger lives […]
10 Bite Sized Tips
Hey, sometimes we get so involved in our storytelling and looking at the big picture, that we might forget some of the little things. So here are 10 quick little things to remember. 1. Don’t be afraid to try something new and step out of your comfort zone. 2. Don’t let the fear of rejection […]
Four Things I See in Fiction I Don’t Like
If you’re a writer, chances are you’re a reader too. And as with any type of entertainment, there’s going to be plenty of things you see as a fan that irritate you. Here are four of mine, in no particular order. 1. Arrogant writers Readers can tell when a writer is talking down to them. […]
Quick Tips # 1 : “Was” in the opening
One of the most common problems I see in my Theme of Absence submissions comes in the opening sentence. It’s the unnecessary use of past progressive tense and immediately takes the story down the path of telling instead of showing. Don’t do this: “C-3PO was running away toward the escape pod.” Instead, do this: “C-3PO […]