Most Popular
1500 questions
29
votes
7 answers
Is it necessary to use chapters for fiction?
Life doesn't happen in chapters — at least, not regular ones. Nor do movies. Homer didn't write in chapters. I can see what their purpose is in children's books ("I'll read to the end of the chapter, and then you must go to sleep") but I'm blessed…
K Johnson
- 780
- 5
- 14
29
votes
5 answers
Writing garbage to see if the characters do something interesting?
I need a change ~ 80% of the way through my story. At the moment, I'm just throwing my characters into different combinations and seeing if they come up with anything interesting.
Two of my characters don't want to talk at all. I threw them…
SFWriter
- 23,802
- 3
- 47
- 119
29
votes
3 answers
Reasons for confusion over tenses in a story
When writing stories in past tense (which is majority of the time) whether it be an essay for class or an unassembled essay for home and in my own time, I often find myself writing some of my sentences in the following way:
"No!" I yelled, ignoring…
kat
- 291
- 3
- 3
29
votes
9 answers
Is it smart to reserve one's best ideas or to utilise them early in their writing career?
At the very commencement of my writing "career" (I have virtually zero experience), I have an idea I would like to flesh out and turn into a full story. Being extremely proud of the concepts I have developed, I don't want to ruin the story by…
hamish1467
- 391
- 4
- 8
29
votes
7 answers
Using the real world in writing
To what extent can you use locations, businesses, etc. from the real world in fiction? I know someone cannot copyright a city, but what about a particular location in the city that's private. Can I talk about the Denver Convention Center and use the…
way0utwest
- 1,285
- 1
- 11
- 17
29
votes
13 answers
Could I reach the level of good writing style as non-native language speaker?
I currently write in Russian, but I think of switching to English to gain more audience and to play with both languages and linguistics.
So could I ever reach the level of native English writers and maybe even gain some honor as a good one? I know…
Dan Ganiev
- 1,981
- 15
- 26
28
votes
7 answers
Mother is writing a book, thinks writing her life stories is same as telling them
My mother is a celebrity in a small niche world. Her contribution and experiences are wonderful and should be told. She says she can't write a book, so she has settled on a book that is something else, including anecdotal stories from her co-workers…
Perri Teague
- 281
- 1
- 3
- 3
28
votes
13 answers
To what extent should we fear giving offense?
Recently we have seen multiple questions on various aspects of political correctness. They have sparked some measure of disagreement, which is what I wanted to examine here.
To what extent should we fear giving offense with what we write? To what…
Galastel supports GoFundMonica
- 57,847
- 12
- 173
- 301
28
votes
14 answers
What's the point of writing that I know will never be used or read?
Writing can be a very difficult, frustrating, stressful and effortful process. It can also be very isolating to the writer. Given that writing is a form of communication, what is the point of writing material that you're pretty sure no one else…
Chris Sunami
- 56,470
- 5
- 85
- 192
28
votes
8 answers
When do you stop "pushing" a book?
Let's suppose you have finished your novel, through all the appropriate stages of drafting and editing needed. You begin submitting the book to various agents and/or publishing companies, but none of your queries gets answers.
I'm talking about a…
Liquid
- 15,845
- 4
- 49
- 117
28
votes
9 answers
Should I avoid modern words/phrases in fantasy writing?
When writing, I tend to want to use words or phrases that have meaning in the real world, but wouldn't necessarily have meaning in the world in which I'm writing. For example, in a fantasy world, a character can't (metaphorically) "rocket across…
StrixVaria
- 5,943
- 2
- 41
- 44
28
votes
12 answers
Tiptoe or tiphoof? Adjusting words to better fit fantasy races
English is a language invented by humans, for humans. Which means some words don't fit well when you're writing about characters who aren't human.
For example: Suppose I write "The demon tiptoed across the room."
My inner nitpicker complains that…
user36961
28
votes
7 answers
Help! My Character is too much for her story!
A while ago, I started writing a short story for a competition. It was supposed to be about four girls in a shared student apartment. The plan was to have everyone conflict with everyone until they united against a common enemy (the landlord or the…
Galastel supports GoFundMonica
- 57,847
- 12
- 173
- 301
28
votes
12 answers
Should we avoid writing fiction about historical events without extensive research?
I was thinking about writing about the Holocaust, but I am not sure if it's a good idea since I am not sure if people would feel offended if I exaggerate certain events or facts even if it makes the tragedy look more horrible. How can I go about…
Sayaman
- 14,844
- 2
- 69
- 140
28
votes
9 answers
So I finished my novel. Now what do I do?
A few days ago I finished the first draft of my current novel project after a few months of work, finishing at 83,212 words. Now what should I do with it?
So obviously I need to edit it. Should I jump in right away with the editing? Should I let it…
JSBձոգչ
- 6,555
- 33
- 44