Tipsday: Writerly Goodness found on the interwebz, Feb 9-15, 2020

February 18, 2020February 16, 2020 / Melanie Marttila

It’s that time of the week again, time for informal writerly learnings!

Melinda VanLone offers a quick guide to image copyright issues. On Valentine’s Day, Julie Glover helps you love your writer self. Writers in the Storm

Rheea Mukherjee is writing in a time of global trauma. Jim Dempsey wants to help you create conflict in your characters. Kathryn Craft lists seven ways to overcome story implausibility. David Corbett: if not love … Writer Unboxed

Something just for fun 🙂 Shaelin shares five false writer stereotypes. Reedsy

And then, she shares five true writer stereotypes. Reedsy

Christina Kaye guest posts on Helping Writers Become Authors: four research tips for writing legal fiction.

Laurence MacMaughton offers three rules for raising story stakes. Fiction University

September C. Fawkes explains how premise plays into theme. Brandon Cornett helps you figure out when situational writing works better than plotting. Writers Helping Writers

Jeanette the Writer answers this knotty question: will an editor steal my ideas? Bess McAllister explains how to make your own writer luck. Then, Gabriela Pereira interviews K.S. Villoso about world building in epic fantasy. Anna Thu Nguyenova shares five tips for writing great short stories. DIY MFA

How to write heartbreak. Jenna Moreci

Nathan Bransford suggests you start with the problems before leaping to the solutions in editing.

Chris Winkle shares lessons from the purple prose of The Witcher. Mythcreants

Thanks for visiting, and I hope you’re taking away something that will help you progress in your current work in progress.

Until Thursday, be well!

Tipsday2019

Tipsday: Writerly Goodness found on the interwebz, Dec 15-21, 2019

December 24, 2019December 22, 2019 / Melanie Marttila / 1 Comment

It’s Christmas Eve! Time to unwrap your package of informal writerly learnings.

Erika Liodice suggests a new approach for the New Year: un-resolutions. Vaughn Roycroft: the hygge writer. Dave King goes in search of the story beyond the story. Writer Unboxed

Barbara Linn Probst suggests some visual-spatial tools for mapping—and enhancing—you story. John Peragine: the most difficult conversation for writers. Laura Drake recommends using comparison for power. Writers in the Storm

Is it possible to write an original story? Reedsy

K.M. Weiland shows you how to explore theme through your secondary characters: six important questions to ask. Helping Writers Become Authors

Lucy V. Hay shows you three steps to writing diverse characters. Angela Ackerman wants you to build a roadmap to the author future you want. Writers Helping Writers

Jenna Moreci goes over the pros and cons of past and present tense.

Jeanette the Writer answers an editorial question: how do I use italics? Manuela Williams shares five ways to build your author brand when you’re super busy. DIY MFA

Jami Gold explains how to write a strong resolution.

Chris Winkle: agency is what that sexy lamp is missing. Then Oren Ashkenazi suggests eight holiday presents for the fictional character in your life. Mythcreants

Robert Lee Brewer: should you use e-mail or email? Writer’s Digest

Neil Gaiman on the Tim Ferris show.

Thanks for visiting. I hope you take away something you need for your current work in progress.

Until next time, be well, my writerly friends … and to all, a good night!

Tipsday: Writerly Goodness found on the interwebz, Oct 20-26, 2019

October 29, 2019October 27, 2019 / Melanie Marttila

Counting down to Hallowe’en, NaNoWriMo, and Wordstock Sudbury! Be prepared with this excellent selection of informal writerly learnings 🙂

Jan O’Hara helps you avoid a writing cat-astrophe. Sarah McCoy: confession of a lapsed reader. Heather Webb is writing boldly, without fear. Writer Unboxed

Meg LaTorre catalogues filter words you should remove from your manuscript. iWriterly

Becca Puglisi shows you how to use secondary characters to sway the reader. Eldred Bird explains how to create a multi-use logline. Then, Margie Lawson shows you how to make hugs carry power. Writers in the Storm

K.M. Weiland offers a writer’s guide to understanding people. Helping Writers Become Authors

Bonnie Randall: scaredy-pants! Four breeches—er, breaches—that elicit fear in your characters. Then, Janice Hardy shares two tips that make plotting your novel way easier. Fiction University

Jeanette the Writer shares six things editors want writers to know. Gabriela Pereira interviews Nicole Valentine about pacing, world building, and time travel. Savannah Cordova shares five tips for writing nail-biting suspense. Then, Rayne Lacko offers five ways to write what you want to understand. DIY MFA

Chuck Wendig wants you to find the balance of self-care and tough love. Terribleminds

Chris Winkle: Carnival Row shows us the damage a reveal can do. Then, Oren Ashkenazi analyzes five slow story openings and explains how to avoid them. Mythcreants

Jenna Moreci shares ten tips for creating magic systems.

Christina Bacchilega: how mermaid stories illustrate complex truths about being human. Literary Hub

Thank you for stopping by and I hope you found something useful for the busy writing months ahead.

Until next time, be well!

Tipsday2019

Tipsday: Writerly Goodness found on the interwebz, Aug 25-31, 2019

September 3, 2019September 1, 2019 / Melanie Marttila

Ah. Here we are in September. Back to … all the things. Ease back into your routine with some informal writerly learnings.

Lainey Cameron advises you use a three-tier backup plan. Then Tiffany Yates Martin helps you to reclaim the creative spark in troubled times. Writers in the Storm

K.M. Weiland explains how to use a truth chart to figure out your character’s arc. Helping Writers Become Authors

Julia Munroe Martin wonders, what makes you love your main character? Molly Best Tinsley explains how hearing voice(s) led to order in a previously chaotic manuscript. Barbara O’Neal explains what happens when the book takes over everything. Writer Unboxed

Pathologist Jane Bennett Munro wants to help you explain forensics to readers. Elizabeth Spann Craig

Jeanette the Writer reveals the secret importance of readability. Tess Enterline explains why it’s okay (and sometimes necessary) to step away from our writing. Constance Emmett shares five tips for writing complex, flesh and blood, LGBTQ+ characters. DIY MFA

Janice Hardy doesn’t want you to create cardboard conflicts. Fiction University

Jami Gold explains how sequels make scenes stronger. Then, Kris Kennedy stops by to explain how to avoid info dumping by making backstory essential.

Chris Winkle: how to turn your fanfic into your original fiction. Then, Oren Ashkenazi answers the question, how do cannon affect your naval combat? Mythcreants

Robert Lee Brewer considers OK vs. Okay vs. O.K. Writer’s Digest

N.K. Jemisin, Jasmine Guillory, and Lauren Wilkinson: publishing’s still owned by white men. The Washington Post

Nick Venable talks to the creators of The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance about the challenges of making a puppet series on Netflix. Saw the first episode—love! CinemaBlend

And that was tipsday. I hope you found something to help you progress with your work in progress.

Come back on Thursday for some thoughty goodness 🙂

Tipsday2019

Tipsday: Writerly Goodness found on the interwebz, July 28-Aug 3, 2019

August 6, 2019August 4, 2019 / Melanie Marttila

And here we are in August! It’s time to change direction and indulge in some informal writerly learnings.

Kathryn Craft: where a writer’s story begins. Laurie Schnebly Campbell asks, where, when, why? Writers in the Storm

K.M. Weiland helps you learn five types of character arc at a glance: the two heroic arcs, part 1 of 2. Helping Writers Become Authors

William R. Leibowitz delves into the challenges of believability in writing science fiction. C. S. Lakin

Allison Winn Scotch is writing in the chaos. Meanwhile, Cathy Yardly is addressing anxiety. Writer Unboxed

How to use and eliminate passive voice. Reedsy

Nathan Bransford explains what it costs to self-publish a book.

Sara Letourneau is identifying themes in poetry. Jeanette the Writer extolls the power of punctuation. DIY MFA

Jami Gold: do we know what we’re capable of?

Peter Gelfan explains how to craft engaging dialogue exchanges. Writers Helping Writers

How to write a fight scene. Reedsy

Angela Ackerman is depicting characters held back by fear. Then, Oren Ashkenazi teaches authorial endorsement 101. Mythcreants

Robert Lee Brewer explains the difference between a lot and allot (and that alot is NOT a word!). Writer’s Digest

Cecelia Watson recounts the birth of the semi-colon. The Paris Review

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you found something helpful.

Until Thursday, be well, my writerly friends!

Tipsday2019

Tipsday: Writerly Goodness found on the interwebz, June 30-July 6, 2019

July 9, 2019July 7, 2019 / Melanie Marttila

Another week, another batch of informal writerly learnings 🙂

Jeanette the Writer: forewords, introductions, and prologues … oh, my! Then, Tammy Lough wants to help you create your series bible. DIY MFA

K.M. Weiland wants you to take your writing to the next level: whole-life art. Helping Writers Become Authors

Yi Shun Lai: better your writing by being a beginner—every day. Later in the week, Justin Attis warns against some common pitfalls of trying to make your story “unique.” Jane Friedman

Sophie Masson relates the pleasures and pitfalls of writing a multi-POV narrative. Donald Maass is back to the one-word titles: legendary. Bryn Greenwood explains what a ghost heart has to do with writing fiction. “The difference between the memoir I’ll never write and the novels I can’t stop writing is all about processing personal experience into fiction.” Jo Eberhardt: one story, many paths. Writer Unboxed

Tamar Sloan is digging deep into the psychology of a layered story. Writers Helping Writers

Fae Rowan writes about lost love and using your young adult voice. Later in the week, Janice Hardy stops by to explain how to write an opening scene that hooks readers. Writers in the Storm

David Safford explains how to apply helpful writing feedback (and how to know what you can ignore). The Write Practice

Chris Winkle shows you how to avoid melodrama in your writing. Then, Oren Ashkenazi writes about water travel before engines. Mythcreants

Cory Doctorow: I shouldn’t have to publish this in the New York Times. The New York Times

Open Culture reveals how Jane Austen edited her manuscripts with straight pins.

And that was tipsday. I hope you found something you need to help with your current work in progress.

Until Thursday, be well!

Tipsday2019

Tipsday: Writerly Goodness found on the interwebz, May 12-18, 2019

May 21, 2019May 19, 2019 / Melanie Marttila

And here is your latest curation of informal writerly learnings.

Sophie Masson talks big publishers, small publishers, and contract negotiations. Jim Dempsey wants you to tune out your self-doubt. Julie Carrick Dalton praises the power of writerly kindness. Porter Anderson considers the place of place in our writing. Writer Unboxed

K.M. Weiland shares five ways writers (try to) fake their way to good storytelling. Helping Writers Become Authors

James Navé and Alegra Huston stop by Jane Friedman’s blog: how to plan a book reading that delights your audience.

September C. Fawkes offers story structure in a flash. Then, Sacha Black wants you to nip and tuck your saggy middle with conflict. Writers Helping Writers

Jeanette the Writer covers the stages of editing grief. Later in the week, Gabriela Pereira interviews Sam Sykes about the emotional weight of storytelling. DIY MFA

Jami Gold wonders, are you a pantser, a plotter, or something in between? Click through to the original tweet by Cheyenne A. Lepka—it’s AWESOME! Warmed this old gamer’s heart 🙂

Jenny Hansen shares Brené Brown’s top ten tips for success. Laura Drake follows up on Jenny’s column with this: dare to be vulnerable in your writing life. Writers in the Storm

Chris Winkle wants you to understand exploitative plots. Mythcreants

Guy Gavriel Kay offers some writing advice: don’t take writing advice. Literary Hub

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you found something to help you with your latest creative project.

Until Thursday, be well, my writerly friends!

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