After talking about foreshadowing last week, I can’t help but bring up its counterpart: red herrings. While red herrings are instrumental in thrillers and mysteries, they can also play a big role in other genres. Today, I want to go Read more
Has anyone ever said your story’s ending wasn’t satisfying? Or maybe that the story didn’t hold the reader’s attention throughout? If so, these symptoms could be from a lack of foreshadowing. Today I’m going to go over two types of Read more
In Medias Res is one of those phrases that writers throw around, but not many seem to actually understand. The Latin phrase means “in the midst of things.” There are many different interpretations, but I’ve traced the term back to Read more
A while back I did a post on using sensory details to hypnotize your readers and pull them deeper into your story. Recently, I’ve been analyzing what else makes me feel immersed in a story, and I’ve discovered another way Read more
If you’ve been among writers at all, you’ve probably heard them say “kill your darlings” a time or two. It’s important to realize this is not writing advice. It’s editing advice. When you’re writing, you should follow your passion in Read more
We all know how important a book’s first page is for catching a reader’s attention. It’s arguably one of the most stressful parts of a book to write, but there is no real set way to ensure you do it Read more
After a book has been through critiques and beta readers, it’s usually ready for the public. At this point, once all your edits are completed, you want to have some proofreaders. These readers are people who go through the book Read more
Last week we discussed how to give a critique of a manuscript as a writer, and this week I want to cover how to give feedback as a reader. Beta readers are people who read through the story to see Read more
As writers, we inevitably meet other writers who ask if we can read their manuscript and give them some feedback. If this happens, you need to first establish if they want a critique as a fellow writer, feedback as a Read more
Subplots are like mini stories, but they must support and enhance the main plot. That last point often gets overlooked, but it’s very important. If you have a subplot that does nothing to broaden or deepen your main plot, then Read more