Writing Stack Exchange
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1500 questions
14
votes
6 answers

Little disjointed scenes

My MC is going through boot camp. Physically and mentally, he goes from high-school boy to soldier prepared for combat. Along the way there's struggles, there's new friendships formed, there's the changing interaction with his family (we're talking…
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14
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5 answers

How to create a memorable line?

I recently re-watched the Overwatch animated short "Honor and Glory". You can tell the writers were proud of the line "Live with Honor, Die with Glory", as the characters say it a fair few times for such a short video. I think it's a good line, even…
user23083
14
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4 answers

How do I successfully structure a long fiction piece?

I’ve ‘completed’ three novels – a thriller, a coming-of-age story, and a mystery. I’ve had expert readers for all three including Sue Grafton who read two of them. All the expert readers have the same reaction. Sue’s, at the halfway point, was ‘We…
mitatur
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6 answers

Why are outlines so essential?

In my writing class, huge emphasis was placed on outlining the entire plot. Yet as I write it, things change dramatically, and I end up not following the outline. Is it bad to just go with the flow?
Penelope Smith
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4 answers

A children's book that takes 25 minutes to read out loud - is it too long?

I've written a 3rd grade level (8-9 years old) children's book that takes about 25 minutes to read out loud. I read it to a 3rd grade class, with a few posters for illustrations, and it actually seemed to keep their attention. Even the teachers…
crj11
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3 answers

What are key features and pacing in a satisfying ending to a science fiction novel?

My novel has been through multiple drafts and beta reads, and by and large is in good shape. I've learned how to cure a saggy middle, how to stay in point-of-view, how to keep the protagonist driving the action by working toward their want. And so…
SFWriter
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14
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5 answers

How to stop rushing writing

I get caught up a lot in what I'm writing and I'm interested in writing a particular scene, but the scene might be chapters away. I don't like writing it before I write the rest and go back to it later, but I often find myself rushing and writing…
Kyl
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14
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4 answers

How do I fill time in my story?

I am writing a short story, and I have some gaps in time I have to fill. In my story, a girl wants to go to a party later in the day, but there are a few hours in between the events. What could I put into the story so that I'm not just skipping…
user32795
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8 answers

I'm not a great pantser; what kind of preparation do I need for NaNoWriMo?

I'm very appreciative of NaNoWriMo's "your first step is writing a crappy first draft" credo, and I like the motivation that NaNoWriMo encourages. I'm precisely at the point where what I feel I need most is some serious butt-in-chair routine, with…
Standback
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4 answers

Is my story too similar to an existing published work?

This is meant to be a canonical question, to which particular cases can be referred. We've had several particular instances of this question in the past - "is my story too similar to specific story X". The older ones got answered, the newer ones got…
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14
votes
2 answers

Is it posssible to find a literary agent if I'm Egyptian but write in English?

Here is my situation: I am Egyptian, my native language is Arabic but I don't want to write in Arabic I want to write in English. Would a literary agent from an English speaking country agree to work with me? especially that I live in Egypt? I don't…
Yostina
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14
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5 answers

Using profanity

I'm working on a war novel (sci-fi). My initial plan was for my MC to start out with a very clean language, almost comically clean, and as the plot progresses and the situation gets more FUBAR, his language would get more colourful. Other characters…
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14
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5 answers

My views on the central theme of my book have changed - how do I bring in that nuance?

I've been working on a fantasy story that explores the creation and evolution of religion. But I'm struggling with what I'm fundamentally trying to say regarding religion. When I first began, I was much more militantly atheist than I am now, and my…
ani ben
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14
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6 answers

Should I focus on ideas which the market enjoys, or ideas which I enjoy?

Two approaches to writing: Writing about ideas that are currently 'hot' in the market (a bit like when the Hunger Games came out, many authors quickly released books which incorporated the same set of ideas) Writing about ideas that you would enjoy…
Adi219
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14
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5 answers

Editing tools on the go

I've just started editing my novel. For the drafting I had done most of the work on a phone, as I wanted to make the most of the daily commute. This worked well enough and the first rough draft is done. However, I'm finding the same approach just…
peanut
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