Category: Writing Tips
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Punctuation: The Slash
Definition: a punctuation mark (/) once used to mark periods and commas, the slash is now used to represent division and fractions, exclusive ‘or’ and inclusive ‘or,’ and as a date separator. Note: Do not rely on grammar or spelling checkers to identify missing or misused punctuation. Although a checker may flag possibly missing or…
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10 Tips for Writing Captivating Stories
Capturing a reader’s attention is the goal for many writers. You want them to read and enjoy what you’ve written, but how do you know if you’ve succeeded until the book is out there? Beta readers are the first step, of course. They read your book while you’re still in the editing/rewriting stage, so they…
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Punctuation: Brackets
Definition: a punctuation mark; a pair of square brackets [ ] used to set apart certain words and sentences, mainly in quotations to add extra information that wasn’t in the original quote. Note: Do not rely on grammar or spelling checkers to identify missing or misused punctuation. Although a checker may flag possibly missing or…
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10 Tips for Fantasy Writers
Fantasy is a genre that’s always amazing to read. How crazy is it that a simple block of paper can transport us to a whole other world? You may even want to write your own fantasy story, to build your own world set in the ancient past or the distant future. If you are, here…
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Spelling: Capitals
To capitalize or not to capitalize? The answer isn’t as philosophical as to be or not to be. In other languages, capitalization rules can vary drastically, but the rules for English are, I’ve found, fairly straightforward. Beginning of a Sentence Capitalize the first word of every sentence. *Note: dialogue tags do not count as their…
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D&D Alignments for Writing Characters
Characters are the lifeblood of any story, but sometimes it’s a challenge to breathe that life into them. They need to feel realistic, but how do you do that? There are quite a few strategies out there, and one tried and true method is a fairly simple one: nail their personality. People are shaped by…
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Spelling: Commonly Misspelled Words
Sometimes, when words are spelled wrong, it’s because they’re inconsistent with the book’s dialect, they’ve been incorrectly capitalized, or you’ve mistaken it with a homonym (words that sound the same with different spellings). Most of the time, though, words are just hard to spell. When we read, we don’t usually pay attention to the way…
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Setting Up an Author Website
It’s pretty self-explanatory, but an author website is the webpage for your brand. It will have a page for people to learn more about you, for your books, and for your blog (if you have one). Why Do You Need One? A website is one of the first things that a business needs, especially one…
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10 Mistakes Authors Make When Designing Their Own Book
For indie authors, publishing a book is expensive. First comes the challenge of writing the book, but then, if you want it to be successful, you must invest in it. You pay for editing, cover design, marketing—all of which drain your wallet. It’s understandable to want to save a bit here and there, but the…
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Writing Compelling Villains
Stories always have antagonists, someone (or something) who opposes the main character. However, they don’t always have a villain. But what’s the difference? And, if you’re writing a story with a villain, how do you write them to the best of your ability? What is a Villain? First, what is an antagonist? Defined, an antagonist…