My great Uncle once asked me if I found it satisfying to put pen to paper when I write. I answered with “for the first ten minutes, perhaps, then I get bored”. The truth is, I rarely write on paper, its slow, inefficient and frustrating when you make a mistake. For those who don’t know … More How technology is the BEST aid for writers
Picture this: your staring blankly at your computer screen trying to think of what to put on the end of your character’s speech, you’ve used the dreaded “said” a few too many times, and your head spins with the same words over and over and over. Perhaps you have a few favourite descriptors, but alas … More Dialogue tags to use instead of “said”
Cool droplets of condensation edged down the frozen glass, clutched between my numb fingers. Cautiously I took a small sip of the water. Looking up I could see an impressive chandelier swaying slightly, whether from an invisible gust of wind or my burgeoning headache I wasn’t quite sure. I squeezed my eyes shut at the … More A story extract just for you…
So today I set a goal of writing 1000 words on my project Lucky. That didn’t happen, instead I found myself writing the beginning to a completely new story. I am sure I’m not the only writer who gets distracted by refreshingly new ideas. In the end I had 1400 words for “it” whatever “it” … More A deviation… And story extract
Yesterday was March 1st which marks the start of spring, and for me the time when I have to start revising like crazy. I am feeling the hair frizzing sensation of deadlines; coursework is due, exams are coming up, essays must be completed. However I am concerned with only two deadlines. End of March is … More Deadlines and Competitions
When a writer asks what you think of their manuscript they’re really just asking for advice and criticism. Saying “Yeh its really good” whilst its a nice compliment we want more. Commenting on key points in the plot is great such as “Chapter one is a little slow” or “the ending is a bit predictable”. … More When you read a writer’s manuscript don’t say this:
How to write emotionally The feelings and emotions of your characters are what drive your story; creating poignant moments draws your reader in. The biggest tip about writing emotional scenes, is when you are physically writing, if you feel nothing at all then neither will your reader. For example when writing the climax to your … More Writing with emotion
Yes I know. Its been what feels like forever since my last blog post. I have been extremely busy, during half term I went away, wifi was sketchy and attempting a post just became an endless cycle of loading. I have been working on a few things, I’ve been trying my hand at short story … More Update 21/02/16
Part Four This is the last instalment in my “planning a novel” series, in parts one, two and three, we looked at setting, characters and plots. Today using the plot we have now established we are going to look in detail at the first scene and the climactic scene (which is not always the last). … More Planning a Novel: Part 4
Ugh! I hate editing, reviewing, re-writing; anything like that. The first draft of anything, be it a short story, poem, novel etcetera; is mind-blowingly difficult. The edit is equally demanding; a lot of my friends often say “Surely writing is easy? Get the first draft done and then spend like ten minutes editing?” but they … More Easy Editing
thewanderingwritergirl 