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Category Archives: Uncategorized
How to Avoid saggy Middles
Middles can be drawn out affairs. The never seem to deliver quite the excitement of beginnings or the satisfaction of endings. Characters don’t appear to achieve anything and the story struggles to get anywhere. This is particularly the case with … Continue reading
Posted in Narrative, Uncategorized
Tagged fiction writing, narrative drive, pace, self-editing
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Plot vs. Story
Confusing plot and story is surprisingly common, so I think a very brief mention of the difference could be useful. Contrary to common belief, plot is not what happens in the story. That is the story. Plot is the structure … Continue reading
“And Then” vs. “But”
Here’ a piece of brilliant advice on how to build your plot, from Trey Parker and Matt Stone, the creators of South Park and The Book of Mormon. Don’t plan out your action linearly: she did this, and then she … Continue reading
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Plot and Story
After a few months off the blog, during which I wrote a two-page monthly column on self-editing fiction in Writing Magazine, I am now ready to resume the instalments with new content on how to edit your own fiction manuscript. This … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
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Here’s a piece of brilliant advice on how to build your plot, from Trey Parker and Matt Stone, the creators of South Park and The Book of Mormon. Don’t plan out your action linearly: she did this and then she … Continue reading
Self-editing videos
We now have a YouTube channel and our first self-editing video is up and running. Quite apart from the fact that I chose the wrong microphone, everything else about it seems acceptable. Please visit our new Videos page (see left … Continue reading
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Stephen King’s On Writing
I’m finally finishing Stephen King’s On Writing, my permanent, it seems, holiday read. One thing struck me as true. When he was about 13 and he started to write horror and sci-fi fiction, Stephen King didn’t just leave it in … Continue reading
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Aston Bay Press to Publish the latest Titanic Tie-in
New publisher Aston Bay Press has acquired world rights to a new Titanic-related historical thriller, due to be published in April 2012. Alan Watts’ Touched by Angels is the story of an extraordinary woman, Lil, and her nine-year-old son, living in early … Continue reading
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Get Readers’ Permission to Sell your Book
The fact that authors are expected to contribute a lot to thepublicity and marketing of their books is reflected in the trend of lower advances and higher royalty rates. Why demotivate the author by giving him alarge advance, so he … Continue reading
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Self-editing Fiction that Sells 