Writing Stack Exchange
Writing Stack Exchange

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1500 questions
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votes
5 answers

Is it a good idea to make the actions of my antagonist reasonable?

I'm a good way through writing my fantasy story, and up until now, my antagonist has been portrayed as being a megalomaniac, and my protagonist (and myself) have believed this to be true. However, I have had an idea that has suddenly made the…
Monty Wild
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How do you insert lyrics into a novel?

She suddenly began singing "Cruella De Vil Cruella De Vil If she doesn't scare you No evil thing will To see her is to take a sudden chill Cruella, Cruella She's like a spider waiting for the kill Look out for Cruella De Vil". How do you insert a…
Sayaman
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How much influence do authors have on the titles of their books?

The background to my question: I have always assumed that authors choose their titles, because I consider them an important part of the book, but then I read interviews with some authors who had a fight with their publishers on this subject. Is a…
Phira
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4 answers

How do you vary dialogue within stories?

How do you vary dialogue within stories? I often find myself writing "'sentence/dialogue' said character", and it sometimes gets really repetitive. How is this managed? These are the only words that I can think of that can be used alternatively, but…
JFW
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14
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7 answers

Distorting historical facts for a historical fiction story

So, I'm writing fiction but in it, historical events, such as wars between the French and British, are taking place. But, after doing research, it's looking to be difficult to squeeze my little fiction story into real events and still make sense.…
Becca M
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14
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8 answers

How can I get self-confidence when writing?

I like writing in English (knowing that it's not my mother tongue), but I'm always haunted by thoughts of rejection by readers which makes me hesitate to publish my work and sometimes makes me stop writing, especially since I can't find a partner to…
Nour Fourti
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14
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9 answers

Is it offensive to kill my gay character at the end of my book?

In my novel, while the main characters are building the plot and driving it forward, there is a subplot with a gay couple. One of the gay partners is best friends with the female protagonist. At the end of the story, I plan to make the antagonist…
R.T.
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How do you find your unique style?

Let me preface this by saying I am quite young as writers go, only 20. Oftentimes as I am writing, I find myself simulating the style of whatever I most recently read-- sometimes the clipped and mysterious prose of Murakami, sometimes the very…
temporary_user_name
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14
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10 answers

Is it overkill to follow style-guides for technical writing?

I currently work for an engineering company as an electrical engineer. A good chunk of my time is spent writing testing reports or instruction documents. Currently my company doesn't have any sort of guidelines specifying how to format documents,…
Adam
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If I remove the capacity for one of the primary flaws, is it inevitable I end up with a boring character?

In this world, there are mortals (human beings) and divine beings (gods/goddess). The gods and goddess have personalities, limitations, and what is commonly called "human nature" (they don't know everything, they screw up, etc.), with one rather…
MarielS
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7 answers

Should my main character make a ginormous mistake?

I'm rereading my draft, and there is a part in the book where when the main character is helping others escape prison, she accidentally reveals herself to the prison guards who chase her down and kill one of the people she was trying to rescue. Is…
AnnWriter19
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5 answers

How to clearly distinguish the settings of different scenes from each other, and make them "feel" different?

Background I've been working on doing nitty-gritty editor revisions of my detective novel in preparation for publishing, going over sentences and picking through details. In the course of the story, the detective visits a variety of locations in the…
Sciborg
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14
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7 answers

Would a paid-for review from Kirkus give me real insight into quality of my manuscript?

As an amateur writer who has just finished my first manuscript, I want a qualified, non-biased, and thorough opinion on whether what I've written is any good. I recently heard about a service offered by Kirkus where I can pay about $400 or $500 to…
Shane F.
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4 answers

How to create varying, yet realistic, speech patterns

Different characters speak differently. If someone reads me a letter written by an immediate relative, I can tell right away who wrote it. I believe --and correct me if I'm wrong-- that giving each major character a subtly unique way of speaking can…
Yehuda Shapira
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14
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4 answers

Author changing name

Let us suppose an unmarried female author. She publishes something. Then she gets married, and chooses to change her surname to her husband's. Obviously, she can choose not to change her surname. And she can choose to publish under her maiden name,…
Galastel supports GoFundMonica
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