Mike, police procedurals, draws the short straw, so our critique group acts out his story to find flaws. I hit the john, load my Beretta, ready to raise the stakes. Tessa, horror (writing and life!), joins me enthusiastically. Lona is new, yet, ironically, historical. She’ll acquiesce. Ali, noir, is a guest, so a mystery. Replaces […]
Act I We were in love. Just hadn’t admitted it yet. I arrived on time—that is, early—for her party. Toured her apartment. Her highlight: Chekhov’s gun on the mantle. Certificate of authenticity on letterhead. Act II Twice, we made eye contact across the crowded space. Grinned. In the kitchen, I brushed against her. Power died […]
Excise weak adverbs; insert strong verbs. Did you know the road to hell is paved with adverbs? Stephen King told us that. If you’re ready to punch up your writing, culling out adverbs is a good place to start. (Just like the passive voice, there’s a time and place for adverbs, but generally you can […]
Why “Show, Don’t Tell” is important for a writer The only thing you can’t do to your reader is bore them. They’ll be okay getting confused, assuming you clear things up soon enough. They’ll be fine looking up words they don’t know. They’ll be grateful when you throw them a twist they hadn’t anticipated. But […]
I learned flash fiction through Janet Reid’s contests. Placed in many, earned some finals, even won a few. They taught me the importance of every sentence, every word. Remember Vonnegut: Every sentence must advance the action or reveal character. With 100 words, that rule sticks. Note, Janet was not my agent. That honor (or curse, […]
Compelling Characters, Part II Let’s talk about the motivations for your character. Think about Kurt Vonnegut’s brilliant advice that every character in your scene should want something, even if it’s only a glass of water. If you have someone in your scene and they don’t want something … you might want to write them out […]
I was just a kid when my uncle’s wife went missing one winter. When I got my license, he asks me will I work for him. In his house, there’s two of everything. “His & hearse,” he says. Except there’s only one shovel. “Broke mine,” he tells me. “Ground gets hard ’round these parts.” He […]
Personal example for this week’s tip. When your characters speak, use the attribution “said.” A kind agent who asked to read my manuscript told me I had a character who “uttered” when she should have “said.” The agent was right. “Said” becomes invisible in your story, but “uttered” or anything else calls attention to itself. […]
Writing Rules for you to break. Here’s something I’ve been doing over the past year, and the results have been fantastic. I took a break from working on a novel and cobbled together some short stories. My goal was to finish at least one per month. Attainable and measurable. At the same time, I tried […]
The blustery attorney rolls his eyes. “My client is incapable of perpetrating such a crime. He’s only pleading guilty to save the victim’s family from going through a trial. I’d like you to recognize that in the sentencing, Your Honor.” The judge leans in. “His fingerprints are on the murder weapon.” “Circumstantial,” says the blowhard. […]
JD Frain 