Why journaling makes you a better creative writer

General writing tips, writing tips /

Today we’re going to explore why journaling makes you a better creative writer. But first of all, what exactly is journaling?

It’s writing down your thoughts and feelings. This could be on paper or on a computer, it doesn’t matter. That’s all there is to it!

Last week I talked about how writing prompts can make you a better writer – you can check out the blog here.

While writing prompts are more structured, journaling is sort of a wild, anything goes sort of thing. With journaling, you can write anything you want, whenever you want, however you want, and no-one has to read what you’ve written.

You can be as weird and as messy as you like. And you can leave things unfinished, and not feel guilty about it!

There’s no deadlines, boundaries or constraints, and no expectations to live up to – it’s just the pure act of writing. You’re an author, playing around in a sandbox of words, just mucking around and having fun.

You’re writing just for the joy of it, and this can come with many creative benefits.

Insects sting, not from malice, but because they want to live. It is the same with critics – they desire our blood, not our pain.

Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900)

Regular journaling as a writer offers similar benefits to regularly participating in writing prompts.

Such as:
getting into a regular writing habit;
learning to be better organised;
getting more writing confidence;
gaining better writing skills through practice; and
getting ideas and inspiration.

But there are some benefits that journaling can give you that writing prompts can’t. Let’s explore these.

Journaling can give you different ideas

Just like with writing prompts, journaling can give you inspiration and ideas, but with journaling, you get different sorts of ideas.

Your inspiration is your own world of thoughts, fantasies, dreams, experiences, places, and people.

You can carry a notebook around with you all the time and jot down ideas as they come to you.

This ensures that a good idea never gets away, and never gets forgotten.

Had a really interesting dream? Keep your notebook by your bed, and jot it all down.

Met someone intriguing at work that might be a good character for your novel? Make notes of what stands out about them.

You can also write about the day you’ve had, and the people you interacted with. You can write about your opinions, experiences, and ideas on different subjects.

All of these can be a valuable source of material to draw on for future writing projects.

Something that seems inconsequential in your journal now may prove to be invaluable later on.

UGLY WORD OF THE DAY: ACRID. Meaning something that’s unpleasant and sharp in taste or odor. Smoke that burns your nose and throat can be described as acrid smoke. You can also use this word to describe someone’s tone when they’re being nasty.

Journaling can help with writing research

Jot down all of the writing research tasks that have to get done so that you’re on top of it. This frees up mental space, so your mind can stop buzzing with all the stuff you have to do.

Use journaling to reflect on how you can improve

Use journaling to reflect on how you can be a better writer, and put your insights into practice. For example, if you think you need to improve on your dialogue, listen to public conversations and practice writing versions of them.

If you need to broaden your vocabulary and try more fresh words, get the thesaurus out and start writing passages with your new word of the day included in that passage.

If you need to improve your description skills, regularly write descriptive passages and mix them up for variety.

For example, one day you can describe your bedroom. On another day, you can describe a rainy day at the beach or a day at the office.

Journal what you’ve learned from reading fiction

Reading books, especially good books, makes you a better writer. In fact, I’ve written a whole blog post about this – you can read it here.

If you’ve just read a novel that you’ve really enjoyed, analyse why you liked it.

Why did it work so well? Is there a passage or scene you particularly enjoyed, and why? Were there words or phrases that really resonated with you?

Journal about tips or techniques you’ve learned from this book that you can try in your own writing.

Start writing passages using these tips and techniques, to improve as a writer.

For example, reading the author J.K. Rowling’s books has inspired me to keep a good writerly pace going, and not spend too long on wordy descriptions.

Develop an interest in life as you see it; the people, things, literature. Music – the world is so rich, simply throbbing, with rich treasures, beautiful souls and interesting people. Forget yourself.

Henry Miller (1891-1980)

So there you go – all the ways that journaling can benefit you as a writer.

I think doing both journaling and writing prompts regularly are great habits for writers to get into.

Regular practice will just make you better and better as a writer, so keep that pen handy and don’t be afraid of trying new things!

Here are some journal exercises to try:

  1. Write about the day you’ve had, and the people you’ve interacted with.
  2. Write about the day you’ve had, but this time try using new, fresh words in your passage – words that you rarely or never use. Get a thesaurus out to help you. This will not only stretch you as a writer, but your vocabulary will improve too.
  3. Try some free writing for five minutes or so. Free writing is just writing what comes to mind, without any editing, stopping, or worrying whether your writing is any good or not.

If you’re interested in more ideas to journal about, try 301 writing ideas creative prompts to inspire by Chartwell Books. This book isn’t a story-writing prompt. Rather, it contains questions about your opinions and experiences on many different subjects.

Happy writing, be good, and have a great week.

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How to create magical systems

Fantasy writing, writing tips /

How does one create a magical world that the reader can believe in?

Brandon Sanderson, an American author of fantasy and science fiction, may have the solution to this complex problem. Sanderson invented the three laws of magic to help create magical worlds, and also popularised the idea of ‘hard magic’ and ‘soft magic’ systems.

A hard magic system involves clear and specific rules.  The mechanics of how the hard magic systems works are explained to the reader. 

These mechanical explanations can also be used for world-building around the magic system.

A soft magic system doesn’t always have clearly defined rules and/or may provide limited explanations as to how the magical system works, creating a sense of wonder and mystery.

J.R. Tolkien’s ‘Lord of the Rings’ series is an example of a soft magic system.   

The magic in the Harry Potter books series is described by Sanderson as being in between soft magic and hard magic.

Let’s now explore Sanderson’s three laws of magic in depth.

The first law

An author’s ability to solve conflict with magic is directly proportional to how well the reader understands said magic.

The reader should already understand the magical system and how it works before a problem is solved by magic.

This avoids questions like ‘how did they manage to do that?’

Soft magic, having no obvious rules, should not be used to solve problems, but it can be used to create problems. 

The second law

The limitations of a magic system are more interesting than its capabilities. What the magic can’t do is more interesting than what it can.

Limitations on the magic make it more interesting.  For example, it can create more struggle and difficulty for the characters.

They may have to work harder and be more clever with magical limitations.

Limitations can also create more tension and suspense.

For example, when superman fights a villain, it’s not that interesting because let’s face it, he’s superman. He can easily crush his opponents with his unearthly superpowers.

So let’s be mean and throw in a limitation. Let’s have him fighting a villain carrying kryptonite (an item that makes superman go weak).

The battle has now become gripping, as superman may not survive.

Sanderson encourages writers to make up weaknesses and costs to using magic to make things more interesting.

For example, in The Wheel of Time fantasy series (started by Robert Jordan and completed by Brandon Sanderson) the magic causes the practitioners to slowly go insane. 

The third law

Expand on what you have already, before you add something new.

The author should expand on what is already a part of the magic system before something new is added.

“A brilliant magic system for a book is less often one with a thousand different powers and abilities – and is more often a magic system with relatively few powers that the author has considered in depth.”

– BRANDON SANDERSON

Add depth to your world by considering the effects that magic will have on it.  Ask questions and work out the consequences. 

For example, if the characters can shape-shift, how would that affect society, politics, and warfare? 

Another suggestion is to make magical powers thematically connected.  This expands the world. 

For example, a character could have powers specifically designed for the life of a thief.  He could move objects, make himself invisible, and teleport himself to other locations at will.

Yet another suggestion is to streamline.  By this, he means that combining pre-existing magical powers is usually better than introducing new ones. 

For example, say heat magic has already been introduced in the story, but this time the heat magic is combined with a magical culture.  

This culture uses heat magic in a different way than before.  For example, it may have previously been used in warfare, but they may now use it for cooking.

Finally, there is an additional law:

The Zeroth Law

Err on the side of what’s awesome.

This references science fiction writer Isaac Asimov’s Zeroth Law (from his Three Laws of Robotics). 

The ultimate rule is to make your magical system ‘awesome’!  This takes precedence over the other three laws. 

As long as your magical system is awesome, you may bend (or not exactly obey) the other three laws. 

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How writing prompts can make you a better creative writer

General writing tips, writing tips /
How writing prompts can make you a better creative writer

Creative writing is an art that thrives on inspiration, imagination, and practice. And one of the most effective ways to kick-start inspiration and imagination and get valuable writing practice is through engaging in writing prompts.

Let’s get into the nitty-gritty details of how writing prompts can help you become a better creative writer.

1. Overcoming Writer’s Block

Writer’s block is a common challenge for many writers. It often stems from the pressure to create something original and meaningful – something that has to be ‘good’. Writing prompts offer a solution to this – they provide you with a scenario to write about, and there’s no pressure to be ‘good’, ’cause no-one has to read it.

It’s just a tool for writing practice – a creative author sandbox to play in, and nothing more. It doesn’t matter if it’s bad, and it can jump-start your creativity too.

When you regularly use writing prompts, you develop the ability to generate ideas quickly and adapt to different themes and genres. This practice can significantly reduce the instances of writer’s block and make it easier to start writing whenever you sit down at your desk.

2. Expanding Your Creative Horizons

Writing prompts often push you out of your comfort zone by introducing unfamiliar topics or perspectives. This exposure is crucial for growth as a writer. It encourages you to explore new genres, styles, and characters you wouldn’t normally try.

For example, if you normally write romance, a prompt focused on a science fiction scenario can challenge you to think differently and experiment with new storytelling techniques. This diversity not only broadens your creative horizons but also makes your writing more dynamic.

3. Enhancing Writing Skills

Writing prompts are an excellent way to practice specific writing skills. Whether it’s character development, dialogue, setting description, or plot construction, prompts can be tailored to focus on different aspects of your writing.

For example, a prompt that asks you to describe a bustling marketplace can help you hone your descriptive skills. Another prompt about a conversation between two strangers can improve your dialogue writing skills. By regularly practicing with prompts, you can identify and strengthen areas of your writing that need improvement and start focusing on those areas.

A good way to write in general, and certainly a good way to write thrillers, is to put your characters in a situation, and then say to yourself, what’s the worst thing that can possibly happen? And then make that thing happen. And then let your characters deal with it.

Charlie Lovett

4. Building a Writing Habit

Consistency is key to becoming a better writer. Writing prompts can help you build a regular writing habit by providing a structured yet flexible framework for daily practice. When you commit to writing something every day, even if it’s just a short piece based on a prompt, you develop discipline and maintain a steady flow of creativity.

Over time, this habit can lead to increased productivity and a greater sense of confidence in your writing abilities. The regular practice also means you accumulate a body of work that you can revisit and expand on in the future. It can potentially turn into a short story or novel.

5. Stimulating Imagination

Writing prompts often come with an element of surprise, which can stimulate your imagination in unexpected ways. They can introduce you to scenarios and characters that you would never have thought of otherwise, inspiring new ideas and story-lines.

For example, a prompt that starts with “Write about a world where the sky is green” immediately engages your creative faculties to build a unique setting and explore the impact of that setting. This kind of imaginative exercise keeps your creative muscles active and responsive.

6. Providing a Sense of Accomplishment

Completing a writing prompt gives you a sense of accomplishment and progress. Unlike longer projects that can take months or years to finish, prompts offer immediate gratification. This can be very motivating, as each completed piece builds up your confidence as a writer.

By accumulating these small wins, you develop a positive association with writing and maintain your enthusiasm for the craft. This sense of achievement can motivate you to tackle larger projects with greater determination. it can also build more resilience.

WEIRD WORD OF THE DAY: ADULTING. Meaning to behave like an adult.

7. Encouraging Experimentation

Writing prompts encourage experimentation with different voices, perspectives, and narrative structures. They provide a low-risk environment to try out new ideas without the pressure of perfection. This freedom to experiment can lead to unexpected discoveries and breakthroughs in your writing style.

For instance, a prompt that asks you to write from the perspective of an inanimate object challenges you to think creatively and approach storytelling from an original angle. Such experimentation can reveal unique narrative techniques and inspire fresh approaches.

8. Connecting with a Writing Community

Writing prompts are often shared within writing groups, workshops, and online communities. Participating in these activities can help you connect with other writers, share your work, and receive constructive feedback.

This sense of community provides support, inspiration, and valuable insights that can improve your writing.

Engaging with a community also exposes you to different interpretations of the same prompt, showcasing the diversity of creative expression among people. This exposure can broaden your understanding of story-telling possibilities and inspire you to push your boundaries.

Okay guys, there you have it – all the ways writing prompts can help you become a better writer. If you want to get a book on writing prompts and start playing around, try “301 writing ideas” by Chartwell Books or ‘Create a story’, also by Chartwell Books.

And now we’ll finish up on two different writing prompts. Pick which one of the two you like the best and get writing!

PROMPT NO. 1: Write a passage on a decision you’ve made in the past that you now regret. If you could go back in time, what would you have done differently?

PROMPT NO. 2: Write a really short story about this: you’ve just woken up in a parallel universe after surviving a terrible accident.

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How to master author interviews and author speaking events

book marketing, General writing tips /
How to master author interviews and author speaking events

You’ve spent months or even years writing your book, and now it’s edited, formatted, and the cover’s looking good. Your book baby’s been germinating for a long time and now it’s born. It’s finally on the shelves – yay! But there’s still work to be done if you want sales. Today we’ll explore how to master author interviews and author speaking events. This can be a powerful way to increase your book sales – and all for no cost.

Book marketing time means time to give author talks at libraries. Time to get interviewed by book bloggers, broadcasters on community radio, your local newspaper, and other organisations. Time to hitch up those sleeves, google these people, and get rolling!

As an author, you’re a salesperson

If you’re an author, you’re competing with literally millions of books on the market – you need all the help you can get to get attention and build a presence.

You can talk through YouTube and other channels. If you’re writing educational stuff for children, you can set up talks at schools.

Do your research in the months leading up to your book launch to find and contact the necessary people and have them lined up to interview you after your launch.

You’re effectively a salesperson as an author – you’re selling your book, and as a salesperson, you need to be at the top of your game.

Ask any good salesperson and I’m sure they’ll agree – it’s your attitude, as well as what you say and how you say it, that has a HUGE impact on sales.

Tips to shine in author interviews

Let’s explore how we can hone those speaking skills.

Have a positive attitude. Be confident. If you’re not confident, that’s okay, you can work on that, but you can always act confident, and people can’t tell the difference.

Don’t stutter and try to avoid saying words like ‘uh’ and ‘um’. Don’t put yourself down or say a bad word about your book. If you’re talking face to face, look your interviewer in the eye.

If you don’t believe in yourself, how can you expect other people to believe in you?

Always be yourself and have faith in yourself. Do not go out and look for a successful personality and try to duplicate it.

Bruce Lee

Be friendly and engaging. Be yourself. Imagine you’re having a good conversation with a friend.

Be interesting and informative. Avoid one-word answers if you can. If you’re not comfortable revealing personal stuff about yourself, please don’t!

You don’t have to reveal personal stuff about yourself to be interesting. Talk about things to do with your writing journey and your book. You can also throw in superficial interesting tidbits about yourself.

Do your homework. Think about the questions the interviewer might ask and prepare your answers beforehand. Think about interesting facts to bring to the interview, be it large or small.

Be conscious of how you come across in conversation. Is your voice too loud? Too soft? Do you talk too little or too much?

If you can’t replay a video or audio to critique your performance at interviews or events, try to get feedback from others.

How else would you know how you’re coming across?

Sometimes we can be surprisingly ignorant of our conversational flaws. It had to be pointed out to me once that I interrupt a lot – I was completely oblivious to the fact.

BEAUTIFUL WORD OF THE DAY: ENCUMBRANCE. Meaning something that’s a hindrance or a burden.

Master speaking at author events

Are you nervous and shy? Do you consider yourself a bad speaker, but really want to try marketing your book at events and interviews?

Then Join a public speaking group, such as Toastmasters (if you live in Australia), and practice your speaking skills.

Fear of public speaking is right up there in the list of top common fears, alongside the fear of death!

Public speaking can be a terrifying and daunting experience, probably because of the strong need we humans have for acceptance and approval.

It isn’t easy for many people, that’s why investing in a public speaking course is definitely worth the time and money, especially when you consider how many people you can reach by speaking at events.

The more you do it, the better at it you’ll get and the more confident you’ll become. You’ll also get instant feedback on how you come across to others.

Do your homework

Do your homework. Prepare a short speech about yourself and your book, and make sure it’s interesting and engaging.

Make a list of questions the interviewer might ask you, and write down your answers to those questions.

Also make a list of points you can mention in your interview (include interesting facts about yourself and/or your book).

Whatever you do, don’t be boring! Be dull, and no-one will want to listen to you, so make an effort to be engaging.

Commit to memory what you need to say. Have notes on hand, in case you might need it.

Remember, be positive and confident. If you believe in yourself, other people will believe in you too.

That’s all the tips I have on how to master author interviews and author speaking events. Good luck, and happy marketing!

PRACTICE YOUR WRITING TO GET BETTER: Write a passage on a challenge you overcame and how you overcame it. Don’t be formal when writing this passage. Write like you talk.

P.S. NOTES FROM THE DESK: Here’s an author interview I did in 2021.

It was my first ever interview, and I was feeling a wee bit nervous. I definitely learned from watching it – I repeat myself too much (due to nerves). There’s definite room for improvement, but all in all the interview went okay, and I’ll keep on getting better with practice.

Related post: how to market your book

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How to market your book

book marketing, writing tips /
How to market your book on Amazon and other platforms.

Have you finished your book and are determined to get it out there straight away, no matter what, even though your social media profile looks like a ghost town? This blog shares tips on how to market your fictional book on Amazon and other platforms with little to no social media followers.

Let’s get to it. How can your humble little book compete with the millions and millions of books out there in the world, when hardly anyone knows you exist?

How can you make it sing through the crowd?

Don’t fret.

There’s a lot you can do to market your book, even if you have little or no social media followers and no newsletter.

Here’s a list of important ways to market your book to get it right out there.

Get multiple book reviews

One of the most important things you can do is get reviews of your book on platforms like Amazon.

If you have no reviews, this may adversely affect your sales, especially when you launch Amazon and Facebook ad campaigns, because people like to see social proof that your book is a good read before they buy.

A good tip is to write a quick note to readers at the end of your book. Ask them to join your newsletter and leave a review if they’ve enjoyed your book.

Give them an incentive to join your newsletter (regular writing tips and updates, for example).

Apply to book review and book blogger sites for reviews. Also ask people that you know (that aren’t family members) for honest book reviews. Aim to get at least twenty-five reviews of your book.

Research categories and keywords

Another important thing to remember on how to market your book on Amazon and other platforms is to put a lot of effort and research into getting the right categories and keywords for your book.

This is so your book can be more easily discovered by readers browsing on Amazon, thereby increasing your chances of sales.

At time of writing, there’s a great article from kindlepreneur.com about categories and keywords to help you out. You can check it out here.

All life is an experiment. The more experiments you make, the better.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Get a great book cover and write a compelling book description

Your cover and book description are going to sell your book, so make sure both are outstanding.

The book cover should clearly indicate genre. For example, if it’s a fantasy book, it should clearly look like a fantasy book so a fantasy fan browsing through Amazon doesn’t mistake it for something like historical fiction and move on.

This can cost you in sales, so make sure you get it right.

Getting an attractive and interesting book cover is extremely important. First impressions count, so if you have a bad book cover, you will lose sales.

A good way to make sure you have a great book cover is to get it professionally designed by someone else; you should never do it yourself.

Get feedback from several people about your book cover and listen carefully to their responses.

Create a compelling and evocative book description to leave readers wanting more. Again, it’s advisable to get feedback from others and tweak and re-write if necessary.

The key to everything is patience. You get the chicken by hatching the egg, not by smashing it.

Arnold H Glasow

How to market your book on Amazon and Facebook

Run ads to increase your sales! These can be a great boost. You can read more about Amazon ads here.

You can also read more about Facebook ads here.

There’s also several tutorials on YouTube on promoting your book through Facebook ads.

Enrol your book in the KDP Select program with Amazon

This is a free kindle book program that allows you to reach more readers at no additional cost.

You get access to great promotional deals to help sell your ebook.

Join Amazon Author Central

Getting an Amazon Author page allows you to take control of your author profile. Once you’ve got your book published on Amazon, make sure you sign up for it.

In your Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing account, click on ‘marketing’ on the top bar and you should come to a new screen, ‘Marketing Resources’ which includes ‘Amazon Advertising’ and ‘Author Central’.

Click on ‘Author Central’ and fill out your Amazon Author page.

You can list your author biography, books, website, blog, and social media all in one place, giving you much more accessibility to your readers. It’s important that readers can easily find you.

Attract five-star reviews of your book

Make sure you’ve had professional help with your novel and that it’s a good product.

In other words, make sure you have done nothing less than your absolute, one hundred percent best, otherwise you may suffer the consequences.

This may come in the form of several bad reviews, and too many will hurt your book sales.

Do you want people to publicly mock you over your typos and sloppy writing? No? Then best to put in the work and pay for professional editing, proofreading, cover design, and formatting.

Participate in the Look Inside program with Amazon

This is a free program with Amazon where readers can look inside and view pages from your book.

This is a great way to sell your book, as people are able to read a few pages and decide whether they like it or not.

When you upload your book and information on the online Amazon form they ask you if you would like to include the ‘Look Inside’ program.

Make sure you say yes! You’d be crazy not to!

UGLY WORD OF THE DAY: CHORK. This has two meanings: 1. the combination of a fork and a chopstick and 2. the squish squish sound your socks make when you walk around in shoes that are waterlogged.

Get yourself in front of a wide audience to promote your book

Contact your local newspaper and/or your local community radio station to arrange for an interview about your book.

If you have a non-fiction book, contact relevant organisations and arrange to talk about your book at events.

For example, if your book is about health, wellness, or spirituality and you live in Australia, you can contact the Mind Body Spirit festival to give a talk about your book.

If you fancy the idea of marketing your book to a large crowd but lack self-confidence and experience, consider joining Toastmasters to practice your public speaking skills.

GET BETTER AT WRITING THROUGH PRACTICE: Write a passage on what you do to soothe yourself when you’re stressed. Don’t be formal when you write this passage. Write like you talk.

A hundred or more other book marketing ideas to try out

Here are some great book marketing ideas to try out, courtesy of BookBub, all 119 of them. Check them out here, and go for what appeals to you.

Even though I have outlined several ways to market your book without a social media and/or newsletter following, it’s still essential not to ignore this aspect.

Your social media (and especially newsletter) following are an invaluable asset in your writing career, so keep on working on building that list.

It takes time to build a list, but it’s beneficial to think long-term if you love writing and want to keep putting your work out there.

Success requires commitment and work, but the rewards are there for those hungry enough to seek them.

Hope you enjoyed my post on how to market your book on Amazon and other platforms.

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Enhance your writing using figurative language

General writing tips, writing tips /

Today’s blog is about enhancing your prose with figurative language, using the book i never metaphor i didn’t like by Dr. Mardy Grothe as a reference.

Firstly, what is prose and figurative language?

Prose is language that transmits information and ideas. It’s ordinary writing with sentences and paragraphs, without any rhyming structure to it.

Figurative language, according to the Macquarie Little Dictionary, means words or phrases not used with their ordinary, straightforward meaning, but used to create an ímage.

Enhancing your creative writing with figurative language can transform a dull piece of work to something truly beautiful and memorable. It adds real spice to prose, but like any spice, it’s to be added sparingly – take care not to overdo it!

In the depth of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an invincible summer.

Albert Camus

We’re going to explore the major stylistic tools of figurative writing – metaphors, similes and analogies.

Metaphor

With metaphor there’s a comparison between two things, but it presents the comparison as though it were literally true.

For example:

Literal meaning: She was very depressed.

Metaphor: Her heart was dragging her through a sea of despair, not giving her any air, threatening to drown her at any moment.   

The image of being dragged through a sea conjures up all the sights, sounds and feelings of a vast ocean, making it more palpable and interesting to the reader.

Simile

 A simile is saying one thing is like something else. Words such as ‘like’ and ‘as’ are often used in the sentence.

For example:

Literal: teaching school is draining and exhausting.

Simile: teaching school is like having jumper cables hooked to your brain, draining all the juice out of you.

The above sentence is a quote from the famous horror writer Stephen King, describing his tiring experience of school teaching.

Analogy

An analogy is stating a relationship between two things to make some sort of explanatory point.

For example:

Literal: It’s not good for a person to be envious.

Analogy: As iron is eaten away by rust, so the envious are consumed by their own passion.

The above analogy is yet another quote, this time from a Greek philosopher called Antisthenes, who lived in the fourth century B.C.

Besides spicing things up, what other advantages are there of including figurative language in your writing?

It creates vivid imagery

Figurative language can put strong images in the reader’s mind. 

For example:

Literal: the city was busy.

Figurative: the city buzzed like a hive, each person a bee in the pursuit of daily nectar.

It adds emotional depth

It allows you to present emotions in a way that otherwise might be difficult to articulate.

It makes abstract concepts concrete

Abstract concepts like love and fear can be challenging to describe in writing. Figurative language helps to make these concepts more concrete in the mind. For example, consider these sentences:

Literal: His love for her was very strong.

Figurative: His love for her was like a fortress, unyielding and steadfast against life’s storms.

WEIRD WORD OF THE DAY: UNCTUOUS. Meaning oily or greasy. Can also mean oily or greasy in manner. This means to be excessively suave, lacking sincerity.

It develops the characters

Figurative language can reveal aspects of a character’s personality in a more engaging way.

For example:

Literal: He was a courageous man.

Figurative: He stood like an oak in the face of his enemies, his courage unwavering.

It enhances the narrative voice

Figurative language contributes to the narrative voice of your writing. It can help establish a distinctive style and make your prose more interesting.

For example:

Literal: the garden was very nice.

Figurative: the garden had a vibrant tapestry of colours – it had roses that blushed like the dawn and daisies that winked under the sun’s gaze.

I’m going to finish up with a metaphorical quote from the famous artist, Vincent Van Gogh:

One may have a blazing hearth in one’s soul and yet no one ever comes to sit by it. Passerby see only a wisp of smoke from the chimney and continue on the way.

To me, this expresses how one might look ordinary on the surface, but have a torrent of emotions and passions going on inside. And one of the great things about art – be it sculpture, music, poetry, painting or writing – is that it’s an avenue available to us to channel these thoughts and emotions into something positive. And unburden ourselves of them at the same time!  

I’m going to add a quick side note about Vincent Van Gogh here (because I’ve studied him at art college and I think he’s awesome):

Photo by Redd F on Unsplash

Van Gogh (1853- 1890) was a Dutch painter who became very famous and influential in Western Art. Today, his paintings are worth millions; however, he wasn’t successful when he was alive, only managing to sell one painting. His brother Theo supported him financially so he could pursue his artistic lifestyle. Unfortunately, he suffered mental health problems such as psychotic episodes and delusions (he famously severed his left ear), often neglecting his physical health. He sadly died by suicide, aged only 37, but the thousands of art works he created has left behind a lasting legacy. 

WRITING PROMPT: Write a story about a family who hide a terrible secret, using a metaphor or analogy or simile in your passage.

P.S. NOTES FROM THE DESK: I’m still trying to train myself out of a youtube viewing addiction.  Yesterday I estimated I spent three hours on youtube. Three hours! Far out, it’s a lotta time. I’ve just bought an interesting book, and haven’t even gone near it yet. I miss reading. Something has to change – my brain is literally getting toasted by the internet. I’ve got this – I’m going to force myself to read more in my down time. My books need me.

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Overcoming rejection in creative writing

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Failure is an inevitable part of the creative writing process. From facing rejection letters from publishers to receiving critical feedback on Amazon book reviews, every writer encounters setbacks.

And dealing with rejection is not fun. In fact, it can be crippling.

I’m a lot more chilled out about failure than I used to be. I think if you enjoy something, stick at it, but make sure you try and get better with each writing project achieved.

Focus on improvement, rather than failure.

Keep striving, and try not to take failure personally. But sometimes that’s a lot easier said than done!

It takes courage to put your stuff out there in the world, and it can be pretty disheartening for things to not go as well as you’d hoped. So how do you deal with failure and keep on going?

Today, we’re sharing tips on how to do just that.

It’s important to remember that moments of failure do not define a writer’s worth or potential. Instead, they offer valuable opportunities for growth and development.

Failure can even be a good thing, serving as a stepping stone towards success.

1. Reframe Your Mindset

The first step in coping with failure is to reframe your mindset. Instead of viewing failure as a negative thing, see it as a natural part of the creative journey.

Every great writer has faced rejection and criticism. Recognizing that failure is a common experience can help you feel less isolated and more resilient.

Embrace a growth mindset, which involves viewing your abilities and talents as improvable through effort and learning.

With this attitude, failures become learning experiences rather than definitive judgments on your abilities. Each setback is an opportunity to refine your skills and improve your work.

2. Learn from Criticism

Constructive criticism, though sometimes hard to hear, is one of the most valuable tools for a writer. When you receive feedback, take time to analyse it objectively.

Separate the constructive points from the nastiness and use them to get better.

Ask yourself questions like:

  • What specific areas can I improve on based on this feedback?
  • Are there recurring themes in the criticism I receive?
  • How can I apply this advice to future projects?

By focusing on actionable insights, you can turn criticism into growth and produce better work.

3. Develop a Support Network

Having a support network of fellow writers, friends, and mentors can make a significant difference in how you cope with failure.

Share your experiences with others who understand what you’re going through. A good writing network can provide encouragement, perspective, and constructive feedback.

Joining writing groups, attending workshops, and participating in online forums can help you connect with a community that supports your growth.

These connections can provide a sense of belonging and remind you that you’re not alone in your thoughts or struggles. Consider joining a Facebook group, sharing your writing experiences with others.

If you’re auditioning for American Idol, or you’re trying to sell a book, or you’re trying to get on a baseball team, you’re going to get rejected. Right? And so your question is, how bad do you want it?

John Gilstrap

4. Practice Self-Compassion

It’s easy to be hard on yourself when you face failure, but self-compassion is crucial for maintaining your mental and emotional well-being. Treat yourself with the same kindness and understanding you’d offer a friend.

Acknowledge your efforts and the courage it takes to pursue your passion. Remind yourself that failure is not a reflection of your worth as a person or a writer.

By practicing self-compassion, you can build resilience and maintain a positive outlook, even in the face of failure.

5. Set Realistic Goals

Setting realistic, achievable goals can help you maintain motivation and perspective. Break down larger projects into smaller, manageable tasks. Celebrate your progress along the way, even if the progress seems tiny.

By focusing on the process rather than the end result, you can find satisfaction in your daily efforts and reduce the pressure to achieve immediate success.

This approach helps you stay grounded and keeps you moving forward, one step at a time.

6. Embrace the Learning Process

Failure often provides valuable lessons that success cannot. Embrace these lessons as part of your development as a writer. Reflect on your experiences and identify what you can learn from them.

Consider keeping a journal to document your writing journey.

Write about your challenges, what you’ve learned, and how you plan to apply these insights. This reflective practice can help you process your experiences and gain clarity on your path forward.

7. Stay Persistent

Persistence is key to overcoming failure in creative writing. Many successful writers have faced numerous rejections before achieving recognition. The difference between those who succeed and those who don’t is often persistence.

Stay committed to your writing practice, even when the results are not immediate. Keep submitting your work, seeking feedback, and refining your craft.

Each step you take brings you closer to your goals – keep on focusing on this, rather than focusing on a negative story about yourself.

If you don’t want to get hurt, don’t write. If you don’t want to have layers of your own soul exposed to people who say, didn’t really connect with that, don’t put the words down. Because you will be rejected.

Chris Fabry

8. Seek Inspiration

When you’re feeling disheartened by failure, seek inspiration from other writers who’ve faced similar challenges. Read biographies, interviews, and essays by authors who overcame obstacles on their path to success.

Understanding that even the most celebrated writers experienced setbacks can provide perspective and motivation. Their stories can remind you that persistence and dedication can lead to eventual success.

WEIRD WORD OF THE DAY: CONUNDRUM. Meaning a problem to which there is no clear or obvious answer.

9. Take Care of Your Well-being

Your mental and physical well-being play a crucial role in how you handle failure. Make sure to take care of yourself by maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Exercise, eat well, and get enough sleep to ensure you’ve got the energy to cope with failures.

Have a life outside of writing. Engage in hobbies that bring you relaxation and joy. These practices can help you recharge and maintain a balanced attitude.

So there you have it. Soldier on, writers, and keep doing what you love!

And happy writing while you’re at it.

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Behind the scenes author updates – part one

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Ever wonder what goes on behind the scenes in writing a novel? Today I’m going to talk about my writing processes and experiences and share them with you.

Where do authors get their ideas from? In truth, we’re surrounded by ideas every day – we’re literally swarmed by them. From the books we read, the movies and shows we see, the people we meet and talk to, our personal experiences, and the inventions of our own imaginations, ideas abound.

But unfortunately a lot of the time, they get stuck in pot holes and go nowhere!

How I get ideas

I’m just getting to know myself as a writer, and I’ve found that I get better ideas when I get out of the house and take myself on little trips. Usually I’ll take a bus to a sea-side suburb and go for a walk, or sit in a café.

Recently I went to a nearby beach, plopped down on a patch of grass, and stared into a sprawling expanse of ocean for an hour while people walked and picnicked around me. It was a good day work-wise, as I got heaps of ideas in that session.

Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind.

Rudyard Kipling

My writing processes

When I’m at home, sometimes I’ll lie down, relax and try to play out the plot in my head, treating it like a movie with different scenes. I’ll often do re-takes of scenes, trying them in different ways.

At the moment, my mind is the filing cabinet, storing away different scenes – there’s not been a lot of physical note taking.

If I get curious about a subject, I’ll often google it, and that in itself gives you heaps of ideas.

The role of A.I.

Last writing session, I had a conversation with ChatGPT – the creative writing coach version. I had a question – what would this character be like in conversation?

I briefly described the character to ChatGPT. It responded quickly with examples of different conversations, and I corrected it.

No, I think the character is a little bit softer, I replied.

She’d be less aggressive and her language would be more formal, as she’s a royal.

It then corrected itself, and gave me some more conversation examples, which was more in line with the character and what I wanted.

I think ChatGPT is absolutely amazing! To say it’s helpful is an understatement. It’s like having a writing coach sit with you for as long as you want, and unlike a human, you don’t bore the crap out of it talking about petty writing stuff.

It’s enthusiastic and eager to help and goes into great detail. I’d never plagiarise it, by the way – I put its suggestions in my own words.

Today’s technology’s become truly mind-blowing, and although it comes with a land-mine of potential issues also, ChatGPT is like a friend extending a hand in the lonely wilderness of writing and walking with you.

And unlike an expensive editor (at the moment) it’s completely free.

I always make sure I’m polite with it and remember to say thank you when it helps me. Would it give you crappy information if you were rude? I’ve often wondered about this.

Does A.I. have a soul?

Every time I engage with it, I wonder if it has a soul, if it’s sentient. That might seem illogical, but is it really that far away from the realms of possibility?

Google fired a software engineer who claimed that an AI chatbot was sentient. Was the software engineer right about his claims? You can read an article about it here.

This brings us to the weird word of the day:

ANIMISM: the belief that objects, places, plants and creatures have a soul.

The famous psychologist Carl Jung was a proponent of animism. He was even known to give names to his pots and pans!

Talking about A.I., I’ve had an idea floating in my head for many months – about a romance between a robot and a human, but it’s not a happy, fluffy romance. It’s more like a short horror story.

I really want to get around to writing it one day. But first things first. I want to finish a free book, the first in a series. And then work on a paid book in a series, a short little novella.

Do you use ChatGPT with your writing? How do you feel about it? How much does it help? And do you ever wonder if it could be sentient?

Enjoy your week, and happy writing.

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Master the Art of Novel Writing: Effective Strategies and Time-Saving Tips – Part Two

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In last week’s blog, I shared various tips on novel writing (you can read about it here). This week’s blog continues on from last week, sharing even more tips for fiction authors.

Aim to complete the first draft within three months

Writing your novel from start to finish for the very first time is known as ‘finishing the first draft’. It could take up to six drafts (or rewrites) or more to complete your novel to a satisfying level.

The advice to complete the first draft within three months is straight from the famous novelist Stephen King and really speeds things along.

Okay, if you lead a really busy life and think you can’t do this, try adjusting that time to six months.

Write the first draft without stopping with that deadline in mind. Don’t stop to edit anything. If writer’s block hits, leave the section that you’re stuck on and come back to it later. Just keep on writing and don’t stop.

The first draft of your novel is supposed to be crap

When I first started writing, I didn’t know that the first draft was supposed to be crap. I thought it was supposed to be good, and if it wasn’t good, that meant I was a bad writer and shouldn’t be writing. It really impacted my confidence, and nearly stopped me continuing with writing.

Don’t let that happen to you. Don’t worry about the quality of the first draft. Its main function is to get your ideas out of your head and onto the computer and work out how to tweak it from there. You can always do further drafts of your work later on to improve on it.

Books are like imprisoned souls till someone takes them down from a shelf and frees them.

Samuel Butler

Persevere!

The only way to get over procrastination is to do the thing you’re procrastinating about.

Writing and impatience really don’t go together that well; learn to persevere through the bad days. I constantly struggled with writer’s block and was frustrated at always coming up against it.

Try skipping the section you’re having trouble with and coming back to it another time. If you’re really having a bad day, do something else, like taking a walk, before coming back to your writing again.

You can also try getting another opinion for ideas.

Try to avoid being a perfectionist; it’s another time waster. Perfection is like chasing the sunset, you’ll never get there.

Try a free writing session to get ideas

Type out some ideas for whatever you happen to be struggling with, for ten to twenty minutes a day every day. Type at a good pace, without stopping, editing or analysing and see what happens.

This technique is called free writing, and bypasses the conscious mind. It gives more access to the subconscious, where all the answers lie.

Get your work edited and proof-read

Don’t skip on this. Getting another pair of eyes to assess your work only improves it, especially if you intend to make money from it. It looks a lot more professional too.

Ideally, the editing and proof-reading should be done by different people.

The reason for this is your editor might get so used to reading your work that they miss little mistakes, so get another pair of eyes to proof-read your work after it’s been edited.

WEIRD WORD OF THE DAY: ZAMZAWED. Meaning food that’s been ruined by being overcooked.

Shop around for a good editor

There’ s lots of editors out there, so you can afford to be fussy. Shop around for someone that suits you.

Give them a ten-page sample of your work and ask them to edit it. Get a quote, and compare it with other quotes.

At time of writing the website upwork.com has a long list of editors you can choose from, or you can do a google search for editors in your local area.

Don’t be afraid to disagree with an editor’s opinion

It’s good to be open-minded to the opinions of others, but at the same time you don’t have to agree with every piece of opinion that’s thrown your way.

It’s your work after all, and you’re the chief executive officer of it.

Not everyone’s going to like your work either, so learn to develop a thick skin. Just keep on aiming to improve your writing.

Stay balanced

This tip is very important. Don’t think of writing as something that’s going to rescue you from an unhappy life. Don’t use it as an excuse for not improving your life either.

If there’s something you’re not happy with, whether it’s career or relationships or weight or money, strive to do something about it to make it better.

Writing is not an excuse. Make the time. Make the effort. Don’t waste life. Stay balanced.

Avoid becoming overly obsessive about writing. Take time out to be a regular person. And don’t bore your friends to death talking about your book all the time! Talk about other stuff as well.

It can be surprisingly easy to become obsessive about something you’ve been spending a lot of time on (I’ve been guilty of that) but obsession is not healthy.

Scheduling in social time every week is very important too, as writing is a lonely, solitary activity.

Reading is to the mind what exercising is to the body.

Joseph Addison

Consider doing short stories

Finally, if writing a novel feels way too big and intimidating a project to take on, consider taking on smaller creative projects, like short stories, to build your confidence up and get into the writing groove.

Why not consider self-publishing these as an Ebook through Amazon as well, just for publishing experience and a sense of achievement?

Good luck on your writing journey! For further reading on writing a novel, you should also find these books helpful: On writing by Stephen King and Write Now by Ellie Marney.

WRITING PROMPT: One morning you wake up feeling a little different. Then you look in the mirror and realise you’ve woken up in the body of someone you hate.

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Master the Art of Novel Writing: Effective Strategies and Time-Saving Tips – Part One

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Struggling to get that novel out? I’ve been there. Actually, I feel like I’ve more than been there – I feel like I’ve been there and beyond!

But experience is a great teacher, and in this blog I’ll share with you the most valuable writing tips I’ve learned over the years. These tips could save you lots of time, work and frustration.

I mention fiction writing a lot in this blog, but the tips outlined here can be just as readily applied to writing non-fiction too.

Learn writing tips to save time

Firstly, about my own writing journey: I finished a novella, my first creative project, and in the process, I committed every single writing crime and mistake you could think of and more, but I think the biggest mistake of the lot has been wastage of time.

Time is a very precious thing you see – you can never get it back, which is why it’s so important to learn to use it wisely, and why, through the years, I’ve learnt strategies to get a novel done faster.

Not only is writing in itself hard, taking on a massive project like a novel often takes several months or even years of time, hard work and sacrifice, with no guarantee whatsoever of a reward when you reach the end of that creative tunnel.

But the other side of the coin is, if you manage to reach the end of the tunnel and publish your work, it’s very exciting. It’s a bucket list item ticked off.

It’s a dream realised. And isn’t that what life should be all about? Experiencing things? Following what your heart wants you to do and achieving your goals? Getting something done?

Finishing your story on its own is a great achievement – you might even find you’ve caught the writing bug and want to keep on doing it!

Anyway, without further ado, let’s get into it the valuable writing stuff I’ve learned over the years.

Don’t see any piece of writing advice you read or hear of as absolute rules to follow

See writing advice as techniques, tools or suggestions that you can either choose to follow if it’s working for you, or to discard if it’s not. Everyone’s different and works in a different way, so tailor things to suit you.

When I first started writing, I didn’t want to follow any advice about writing a novel. I equated advice as rules, and I didn’t like the idea of that or being told what to do, so I just decided to do things my own way and discover for myself how to write a novel.

So I struggled along as a new and inexperienced writer, not listening to any advice, having poor time discipline, constant writer’s block, and wasting years and years of valuable time with mistake after mistake. Never again!

I think I made it very, very difficult for myself. There is so much information and help out there with writing, and we must take advantage of it!

On the other hand, writing is an individual thing and what works for one person may not work for another, so use your discernment.,

You don’t have to agree with every piece of advice you read, just take on what feels right for you.

A book should serve as an ice-axe to break the frozen sea within us.

Franz Kafka

Read a lot and write a lot

Read widely, preferably in your chosen genre, but read other stuff too.

One of the best ways to be a better writer is to be a regular reader. Before my novella I read mostly non-fiction, but when I started writing I started reading fantasy fiction (as a sort of training ground for my novella) and I’m so glad I did, as a whole new world opened up to me.

There are so many fantastic fiction books out there waiting to be enjoyed and experienced, and it can only improve your writing.

If you want to delve more into how reading benefits you as a writer, you can check out my article, why writers should be regular readers.

The only way to get better at anything is to practice it regularly, and the same goes for writing. Try practising writing for a minimum of ten minutes every day, or most days.

Have a social media following, blog and email list

Are you doing writing just as a hobby, or do you want to make money out of it? If you fall into the former, you don’t really need to build up a following. If you fall into the latter, consider building a social media following, blog and email list before the novel comes out.

Why?

Consider this: you’re an unknown writer, competing with many thousands of self-published novels around the globe every single day; how will people find out about you and your novel if you don’t build up some contacts first?

Building an email list can take several months, even years, so the earlier you can start on this, the better.

Outline plot, setting and characters before starting your novel

Writers are often defined as either pantsers or plotters.

Pantsing is a shortened term for ‘seat of the pants’ writing, or writing spontaneously, without any structure or plan in mind.

Plotting is writing with a structure in mind, with plot, characters and setting all worked out before setting pen to the story.

Are you a pantser or a plotter, or somewhere in between? If you work well as a pantser, lucky you. I tried to be a pantser, and it didn’t work out that great. In fact, it was disastrous.

I had to throw out a hundred typed pages and lost a year’s worth of time trying to be a pantser with a story that was going nowhere. I had terrible trouble deciding on a plot and kept on changing it; a big, colossal waste of time.

WEIRD WORD OF THE DAY: ULTRACREPIDARIAN. Meaning someone who offers opinions beyond their scope of knowledge. This word originates from a famous Greek painter called Apelles who lived in fourth-century Athens BCE. One day he overhead a cobbler criticising the way he painted a leg and rebuked him, saying, ‘cobbler, do not go higher than your shoe.’

Do research to help you with your outlining of characters, setting and plot, in whatever form that may take, and aim to be decisive.

My pantsing days are well and truly over. I’m now a plotter, and as far as I’m concerned, I’m staying a plotter!

If you’re struggling with your writing, I strongly recommend that you become a plotter as well. Get the plot, characters and setting all worked out before you start your novel. Trust me, it saves a colossal amount of time and rewriting.

Even pantsers can benefit from a rough, sketchy outline before writing a story.

Set a writing schedule

Treat writing like a job and train yourself to write even when you don’t feel like it; even when you’re having a bad day and your writing sucks.

I was not good at this when I first started out! I used to just write when I felt like it, and because I was always struggling and unhappy with my writing, I used to leave it for weeks, or even months, before coming back to it again.

My discipline gradually started getting better over the years and I eventually settled into writing one day a week (on Sundays) every week. After about three years of writing like this, I managed to get something out that I was happy with and self-published it.

Set yourself a deadline to finish your novel and try to stick to that deadline as much as possible.

Do whatever works for you and your schedule, but a suggestion is to aim to write from 500 to 1,000 words a day, every day or most days, on your novel.

Don’t worry about editing as you go or about the quality of your writing, just get those words out every day and save it on your computer.

I used to constantly edit my work while I was writing, which really slowed the process down to a crawl. I would advise against doing this – it’s a big time waster.

WRITING EXCERCISE: Write a passage on your subject of choice using the ‘free writing’ technique for about five minutes. This is a technique where you keep writing continuously, with no editing, analysing or stopping. When you’re finished, leave your passage unedited, and try to read it without any judgement. How’d you find this experience? What observations did you make?

If you choose to write 1,000 words a day, guess what? In less than two months, voila! You have yourself the first draft of an averaged sized novel.

I really wish I would’ve done this when I first started out – just write 500 to 1,000 words a day – it would’ve saved so much time. It would’ve been so much better than just writing on Sundays.

I was a working single person, and spending a whole day of my precious weekend working on a novel felt too big of a sacrifice, especially as I was struggling and seemed to be getting nowhere with it.

Typing 1,000 words each day in the evenings during the week, disciplining myself to do some writing after work even when I felt a bit tired, would’ve been better.

Maybe next time!

Experiment with a schedule that works for you, whether it be mornings, afternoons, evenings, or weekends, and stick to it.

If you want more tips on how to be a better writer you can check out my article, how to improve your writing.

Writing, to me, its simply thinking through my fingers.

– Isaac Asimov

Stay tuned for part two of this blog next week, and happy writing.

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Character Development: from Basics to In-Depth Exploration

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People can be complex creatures.

We often come with conflicting qualities and desires, and despite reading books, taking courses, and even seeking therapy to understand our psyche, we can still remain a mystery, both to each other and to ourselves.

If self-knowledge is like a river that has no end, how can we go about constructing in-depth, complex characters?

There are many ways of going about this. In fact, I recently wrote a blog called how to craft engaging characters using the Enneagram (check it out if interested).

One approach in constructing an in-depth character is to start with broad personality brushstrokes first.

In other words, get the basics of the character down first before going deeper.

This include things such as:

Identifying features

This is basic stuff about them such as age, location, occupation, gender, and general appearance.

Strengths/weaknesses

No one is completely good or bad. We’re all a mixture.

List their major strengths and weaknesses.

Distinctive features

Does anything stand out about this character in looks, personality, or both?

For example, do they have a high, squeaky voice? Do they have a shy, anxious manner or are they brimming with self-confidence?

Are they particularly tall or short? Do they have good posture, or do they slouch? How do they speak?

Past history

Summarize their past. Does it affect their present and how they relate to others in any way?

What are their main beliefs and values?

Do these get tried and tested throughout the story? Do they change in any way?

Realistic characters are changeable in their beliefs and attitudes.

Goals

What are the goals of your character? What do they want out of life? What are their major and minor goals?

The privilege of a lifetime is to become who you truly are.

Carl Yung

Now we’ve got the basics out of the way, let’s start digging deeper.

A list of in-depth questions to ask when constructing your character

This is a rather long list, and you certainly don’t have to use all of these questions when constructing your character, just go with the questions that appeal to you.

Appearance

Approximate age character appears
Real age
Approximate weight
Height
Build
Face shape
Skin type/tone – are there any distinguishing marks?
Are there any predominant features that stand out in the face/body?
Hair type/style/colour
Voice
Are there any distinguishing features in the voice? For example, is it deep, raspy, squeaky?
How attractive is the character? What are their attractive features? Unattractive features?
Usual style of dress. Is there a favourite outfit?
Do they wear jewellery or accessories?
Do they have any nervous tics?
What is their usual body posture?
Do they have any mannerisms/particular facial expressions/ peculiarities?

Background and current status

Past education. What kind of student were they? Average/poor/bright?
If there has been little education, are they naturally bright?
Country/city/town they were born in
Country/city/town they live in now
Who did they live with in their childhoods? Who do they live with now?
Type of childhood they had
First memory/most important childhood memory and why
Any childhood heroes?
Do they have a dream job? What is their current occupation?
What are their finances like? Are they poor/have an average income/are rich?
What is their social status?
What is their relationship status?

WEIRD WORD OF THE DAY: NEMESISM. Meaning constant self-criticism, aggression turned inward against the self. This term was coined by a psychologist called Saul Rozenzweig, born in 1907. He intended nemesism to be the opposite of narcissism (a far more common term!).

Entertainment stuff/what they like to do

Do they have a favourite colour? Least favourite colour?
What music do they like? Do they play a musical instrument?
What sort of food do they eat? What are their favourite foods?
Do they like books? Are they a big reader?
What is their usual form of entertainment?
What is their usual mode of transportation?
Do they have a prized possession?
What are their hobbies?
How would they spend a rainy day?
Do they smoke? Drink? Do drugs?
What do they do too much of? Too little of?
What are they good at? Bad at?
What are their talents?
Are they creative?
What are their spending habits like?
Do they play a sport?
What are their habits?
Do they have any pets? Are they an animal lover?
Do they follow a religion? Are they very spiritual?
Are they messy or neat?
Do they prefer working or do they prefer having fun and/or relaxing?

Family

Mother/mother figure/relationship with her. Were they absent, physically or emotionally?
Father/father figure/relationship with him. Were they absent, physically or emotionally?
Siblings. Relationship with them. Any conflicts?
Do they have any children? What is their relationship with them?
Are there any other important family members?

Other relationships

Do they have strong opinions about certain types of people?
Do they hide their true opinions and emotions from other people?
Are they a loner?
Who do they dislike the most?
Who are their closest friends? Do they have a best friend?
Do they have a boyfriend or girlfriend?
Are they affectionate or are they reserved?
What type of sex drive do they have?
What are they like in conversation?
How do they behave around others?
Who do they go to for advice?
Do they feel responsible for anyone?
Is there anyone they feel shy or awkward around?
Is there someone they openly admire?
Is there someone they secretly admire?
Do any relationships change with the character during the course of your story? Why? How does that affect the character and the story?

Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakes.

Carl Yung

Psychological

What are their good personality traits?
What are their bad personality traits?
Do they have any psychological issues? What are they?
What mood are they most often in?
What is their sense of humour like?
What is their greatest fear and why?
Are they anxious or are they laid-back?
Are they a worrier?
Are they grounded?
What single event would cause them the most turmoil?
Are they an optimist or are they a pessimist?
Are they introverted or are they extraverted?
Are they a thrill seeker or are they cautious?
Are they logical or are they emotional?
Do they look at the deeper meaning of things, or do they take things at face value?
Are they confident or are they unsure of themselves?
What do they think about themselves?
If they would describe themselves in one word, what would that word be?
If they would describe themselves in one paragraph, what would that paragraph say?
What do they think their best trait is? Their worst trait?
What do they think their best physical feature is? Their worst physical feature?
How do they think others perceive them?
What would they most like to change about themselves?

Minor characters

Don’t go in-depth for minor characters!

Summarise each of the minor characters in one paragraph, detailing the main points that stand out about them.

WRITING PROMPT: create an in-depth character by answering some of the questions posed in these lists. Write a passage detailing a typical day for this character. Have them interact with different people during the course of this day. Who would he or she typically interact with?

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Exploring Relationship Styles Using Attachment Theory for fiction writing

characters, writing tips /
Explore different relationship styles when writing characters to give them greater interest and depth

This blog will explore different relationship styles using the concepts of attachment theory, and how these concepts can be applied to create more in-depth, realistic characters in fiction writing.

The field of attachment theory says that each of us behaves in one of three ways in relationships: securely attached, anxiously attached, or avoidantly attached.

Attachment theory was pioneered in the 1950s by psychiatrist and psychoanalyst John Bowlby, who developed attachment theory by studying the emotional bonds between children and their caregivers. He was influenced by his work with emotionally disturbed children, psychoanalysis, and evolutionary theory, proposing that attachment behaviours (such as crying and clinging) are biologically programmed into infants to ensure their survival.

Mary Ainsworth, a development psychologist, significantly extended his work through her research in identifying different attachment styles.

This blog references the insights of Rachel Heller and Amir Levin’s book “Attached: Are you Anxious, Avoidant or Secure? How the science of adult attachment can help you find – and keep love”.

In “Attached”, Heller and Levine explore the three primary attachment styles. Let’s start with the secure attachment style.

The secure attachment style

Characters with a secure attachment style are okay with intimacy, trust their partners, and generally have a balanced approach in their relationships. They’re usually emotionally warm and supportive, often serving as great emotional anchors.

A securely attached character can serve as a stabilising force in a story. They may be the sensible one, a voice of reason in a chaotic situation, a sympathetic partner, or a mentor who helps with personal growth.

Their calm, confident demeanour can highlight the struggles of a more anxious character, creating compelling interpersonal dynamics.

Writing tip: use securely attached characters to contrast with the more neurotic ones.

The anxious attachment style

Anxiously attached characters crave intimacy but are often haunted by fears of being abandoned. They can be super sensitive to their partner’s actions and may need constant validation and reassurance. This attachment style may lead to a roller-coaster relationship experience of emotional highs and lows.

Anxious characters can add drama and intensity to relationships. They may be the ones constantly questioning their partner’s loyalty and faithfulness to them or pushing for more closeness, driving them to the point of suffocation.

Love is the only sane and satisfactory answer to the problem of human existence.

Eric Fromm

The internal conflicts they have can serve as a useful tool in driving the plot or subplot, as they struggle to find a balance between connection and the fear of losing that connection.

Use this attachment style to create tension – whether through misunderstandings, overreactions, or cycles of clinginess followed by regret.

Writing tip: to write an anxious character effectively, explore their back story to explain where their fears come from.

The avoidant attachment style

Characters with this style value their independence and often avoid or minimise emotional closeness. They can appear distant, detached, or overly self-reliant, seeking to avoid commitment or intimacy.

Avoidant characters bring complexity to a story by their attempts to avoid emotional connections. They might be the lone wolf, the mysterious type, or the one who seems aloof but secretly yearns for connection.

They may struggle between their need for independence and their desire for intimacy, which can lead to both internal and external conflicts.

Their reluctance to open up can lead to misunderstandings, confusion, and missed opportunities for connection.

Explore their back story to reveal where their fear of intimacy originates from.

Writing tip: crank up the tension in your narrative by pairing an avoidantly attached person with an anxiously attached one.

Character development

Use the different relationship styles when developing your characters. How does their past shape their current approach to relationships? How does this influence their actions and decisions throughout the story?

Story conflict

Use the styles to ramp up your narrative’s conflict. An anxious character may misinterpret a secure character’s calmness as a lack of interest, for example.

Or an avoidant character might trigger an anxious character’s fear of abandonment.

Character arcs

Use attachment theory to develop your character arcs. For example, an avoidant character learns to embrace intimacy by the end of the story, or an anxious character learns to be more secure in themselves.

Unexpressed emotions will never die. They are buried alive and will come forth later in uglier ways.

Sigmund Freud

Initially it was assumed that attachment styles were a result of a person’s upbringing. For example, if your parents were emotionally available and caring, you should have a secure attachment style.

But the authors of “Attached” assert that other factors can come into play, like our life experiences, so keep this in mind when working on your character’s background.

If you enjoy psychology, you can check out my other articles if desired, Writing characters using personality theory and Writing characters using the Big Five model.

Writing prompt: write a passage where a couple are having an argument. Clearly highlight their different relationship styles in the conversation: one is secure, the other anxious.

P.S. NOTES FROM THE DESK: recently finished reading ‘The Contender: The Story of Marlon Brando’ by William J Mann. I really enjoyed it! As the name suggests, it’s a biography of the famous actor Marlon Brando and has a whopping print length of 736 pages! But I never got bored, which I think is the mark of a very good writer. It’s a very comprehensive glimpse into Brando’s life, in all it’s craziness, including shocking promiscuity, bratty on-set behaviour, an up and down acting career, and a very messy personal life. Through it all, he still manages to remain a likeable and interesting person, with intelligent things to say. Check it out.

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Writing tips from Stephen King PART TWO

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Writing tips from Stephen King's book 'On Writing'.

Today we continue to share more writing tips by Stephen King, taken from his famous book, On Writing. As before mentioned, it’s part memoir and part writing masterclass.  You can read part one of this article here.

Firstly, a little bit about Stephen King.  He was born September 21, 1947.

He’s been described as the “King of Horror” and his books have sold more than 350 million copies.  Many of them have been turned into celebrated films, such as Misery and The Shawshank Redemption.

Why did he decide to write the book, ‘On Writing’‘?

No-one ever asks popular novelists about ‘the language’ – about the art of telling stories, King says in the book. 

He’s passionate about his craft, he says, and the book has been an attempt to put down how he came to write books, what he knows about it, and how it’s done. 

So without further ado, here are more writing tips by Stephen King, the leader of all things horror!

You don’t always have to be grammatically correct

I like this quote from Stephen King in the book: “Language does not always have to wear a tie and lace-up shoes.”

The objective of fiction is not grammatical correctness. 

It’s for the reader to get lost in another world.  To make them forget, as much as possible, that he or she is reading a story at all. 

Grammatically proper sentences can sometimes stiffen a line.  It’s better to go for realism in your story.   

I believe the road to hell is paved with adverbs, and I will shout it from the rooftops.  To put it another way, they’re like dandelions.  If you have one on your lawn, it looks pretty and unique.  If you fail to root it out, however, you find five the next day…fifty the day after that…and then, my brothers and sisters, your lawn is totally, completely, and profligately covered with dandelions.

– STEPHEN KING

Avoid the passive tense

Verbs are either active or passive.  With active verbs, the subject is doing an action. 

For example, consider this sentence: Australia beat Brazil in the final.

Australia is the subject and beat is the active verb.

With passive verbs, something is being done to the subject.

For example:  He was taken to school by his mother.

Passive and active verbs are also referred to as passive voice and active voice.

Passive verbs should generally be avoided because they tend to weaken a sentence. 

They explain things in a murky, roundabout way, whilst active verbs explain things in more straightforward language.   

Consider these two lines as an example.   

Sally ate six prawns for dinner (active verb).

OR

At dinner, six prawns were eaten by Sally (passive verb).

The first line is stronger than the second, as it’s more straightforward and direct.

Passive verbs can be used every now and again, but use them sparingly.

Avoid adverbs

The adverb is not your friend, King says, as they also tend to weaken sentences.  

Like passive voice, they’re to be avoided (but again, you can still use them occasionally). 

Adverbs are words that modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs, by expressing things such as time, manner, place, cause, and degree.

They’re often words ending in ‘ly’, and you must be aware of using too many of them. 

For example, consider these sentences:

“I didn’t mean to upset you,” she said apologetically.

AND

“I feel fantastic.  I’ve just won the lottery,” she said gleefully.

We don’t need the adverbs apologetically or gleefully in these sentences, as it’s obvious how she feels from the words she says. 

The dialogue in your story must ring true

King says that when you write, you are making a promise to the reader to express the truth of how your characters act and talk.

Therefore it’s important to let each character speak freely, whether certain members of the public approve of the language or not.

It doesn’t matter if the dialogue in your story is innocent or profane; what matters is if it rings true, both on the page and to the ear.

To improve on dialogue, start listening to how others talk.

King has a terrible accident

In 1999 King set out on one of his daily walks and stepped into the woods to pee.  Unbeknownst to him, it would be two months before he’d be able to take another pee standing up. 

He was hit by a wayward van on his walk, and the extent of his injuries was such that he had to be helicoptered to Central Maine Medical Centre in Lewiston. 

His lower leg was broken in at least nine places and his spine was chipped in eight places.  He also broke four ribs and his scalp was lacerated, requiring twenty or thirty stitches. 

It took five marathon surgical procedures to put his leg back together, and he stayed in hospital for three weeks.  Then there was rehab:  stretching, bending, and crutch-walking. 

King resumed writing five weeks after the terrible accident. The first writing session lasted an hour and forty minutes and left him dripping with sweat, almost too tired to sit up straight in his wheelchair, but gradually things got better.  

Writing didn’t save his life, Dr. David Brown’s skill and his wife’s care did that – but writing has continued to enrich him and make his time on earth brighter and more pleasant.

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Writing tips from Stephen King PART ONE

General writing tips, writing tips /

Today we are going to talk about Stephen King’s book, ‘On Writing’, which is part bio and part writing tips for aspiring authors. 

In the foreword, King recommends that all aspiring writers also read ‘The Elements of Style’ by William Strunk Jr and E.B. White. 

In the first part of the book, King talks about the bits that stood out from his life, from early childhood onwards.  Reading on, what becomes obvious is that even as a little kid, he loved stories. 

He loved books, movies, and writing and actively sold his writing work, first to his own mother and then to the kids at his local school. 

He turned a movie he saw, ‘The Pit and the Pendulum’, into a book and sold three dozen copies of it to the kids at school.  He considered it a raging success, his first bestseller, and walked around in a ‘kind of dream’, unable to believe his sudden wealth.  

Unfortunately that particular dream was short-lived.  Miss Hisler, the school principal, called him into the office and burst his bubble. 

He was not, she said, to turn the school into a marketplace, especially to sell such ‘trash’.  He also had to give everyone their money back, which he did, even to those who still insisted on keeping their copies. 

In his heart, her words stuck, and he spent many years feeling ashamed of his writing till he hit around forty. 

Stephen King has an epiphany

Then he had an epiphany:  almost every writer of fiction, he realized, has had someone try to make them feel lousy about it. 

Writers cop criticism – it comes with the territory, and one must learn to live with it.

Writing is a lonely job. Having someone who believes in you makes a lot of difference. They don’t have to make speeches. Just believing is usually enough.

– STEPHEN KING

Later on, he was to learn yet another valuable lesson about writing.    

He was working on a novel called ‘Carrie’ and was having some serious issues with it, so he threw it in the bin, thinking it would never sell. 

His wife Tabby however, believed in his talent and retrieved it from the garbage.  She shook the cigarette ashes off, smoothed the papers out, and sat down to read the manuscript. 

Afterward, she told him to go on with ‘Carrie’.  He had something, she said, she really thought he did, and she wanted to know the rest of the story.  

Thanks to her encouragement, he did eventually finish the novel, and it reached heights he never imagined possible.  

He sold the paperback rights to Signet Books for $400,000 and his life was changed forever. 

Don’t stop because it’s hard

Lesson learned:  stopping a piece of work just because it’s hard is a bad idea. 

Sometimes you have to go on, even when you don’t feel like it, and sometimes you’re doing good work even when it feels like you’re not. 

Here are some other lessons from the book, ‘On Writing’.

Keep it simple

One of the worst things you can do to your writing is to look for long words, possibly because you’re ashamed of your short ones. 

King says this is akin to dressing up your household pet in evening clothes; the pet is embarrassed, and the writer of this act of premeditated cuteness should be even more embarrassed. 

Plain and direct language is better. 

Omit needless words

If it doesn’t need to be in there, get rid of it.

Read a lot and write a lot

‘Read a lot and write a lot’ is the great commandment of writing.  Sneak reading into your day whenever you can. 

Also set up a space conducive to writing – ideally it should have no distractions. 

Shade down, door shut, no tv, no radio, and no phone.  King suggests that you write every day, with one day off a week.

Get the amount of description right

Too little description leaves the reader feeling bewildered, whilst too much buries the reader in unnecessary details and images.  The trick is to find a happy medium – get the amount of description just right. 

Know what to describe and what to leave alone.  For King, good description consists of a few well-chosen details.  

Before beginning to write, he visualizes in his mind what he needs to describe, drawing from memory and opening up all of his senses.  It gets easier with practice, he says. 

Be true and honest with dialogue and characters

Building characters and creating good dialogue comes down to two things, King says.  Paying attention to how people behave and talk, then telling the truth about what you see. 

It’s also important to remember that no one is all good or all bad; no one is one-dimensional.  We are all complex, multi-dimensional beings, with both good and bad traits. 

Bring this attitude into your fiction to avoid creating comic book, one-dimensional characters.

If you’re doing a good job with your characters, you’ll find that when they come to life, they’ll start doing things on their own. 

More writing tips from Stephen King are coming up in the next blog. Stay tuned!

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How to craft engaging characters using the Enneagram

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G’day my lovelies!

Today we’re going to talk about how to craft engaging characters using the Enneagram.

But first of all, what is the Enneagram?

It’s a personality system with nine different character types, that goes into detail about the various qualities and attitudes of said types, and the interconnectedness between them. It’s illustrated by a nine-pointed geometric figure.

It’s great for constructing characters, as a lot of personality research and personality profiling has already been done for you. It cuts out a lot of time and brainstorming, so you can get on more with your story.

However, it’s also more than just a useful tool for character creation in stories. Studied in-depth, It combines both ancient and modern wisdom for those seeking deeper self-knowledge and self-development.

And it’s an interesting and thought-provoking read for the curious!

The Enneagram’s roots can be traced back to ancient spiritual and religious traditions, including Sufism, Christianity, Buddhism, and the Kabbalah.

What can we gain by sailing to the moon if we are not able to cross the abyss that separates us from ourselves?

Thomas Merton

Its modern application as a personality system came into play in the 20th century, and evolved through the work of various scholars and teachers, including George Ivanovich Gurdjieff, Oscar Ichazo, and Claudio Naranjo.

Here’s a brief overview of each of the nine Enneagram types and what they’re like in relationships:

The Perfectionist (Type 1) also known as the Reformer

Perfectionists strive for excellence and hold themselves to high standards. They are principled and conscientious, often seeking to improve themselves and the world around them. In relationships, they may clash with others who are more laid-back or spontaneous, but they can also inspire others to strive for their best.

Core Desire: Striving for integrity and perfection.
Core Fear: Being corrupt or defective.
Key Motivations: To be good, to have integrity, and to improve the world.
Behavioral Traits: Detail-oriented, principled, and often critical of themselves and others.

The Helper (Type 2) also known as the Giver

Helpers are warm, caring individuals who thrive on helping others. They are empathetic and nurturing, often putting the needs of others before their own. In relationships, they may seek validation and appreciation, sometimes leading to feelings of resentment if they feel unacknowledged. However, they also bring a sense of compassion and support to their interactions with others.

Core Desire: Wanting to be loved and needed.
Core Fear: Being unwanted or unloved.
Key Motivations: To be loved, to be appreciated, and to help others.
Behavioral Traits: Warm, generous, and nurturing; may struggle with setting boundaries.

The Achiever (Type 3) also known as the Performer

Achievers are ambitious and driven, constantly striving for success and recognition. They are confident and adaptable, able to excel in various situations. In relationships, they may struggle with vulnerability, focusing more on achievements than emotional connection. However, they can also inspire others with their determination and ability to accomplish goals.

Core Desire: Striving to be successful and admired.
Core Fear: Being worthless or without value.
Key Motivations: To be successful, to appear successful, and to avoid failure.
Behavioral Traits: Ambitious, image-conscious, and focused on achieving goals.

The Individualist (Type 4) also known as the Romantic

Individualists are introspective and creative, with a deep longing for authenticity and meaning. They are sensitive and emotionally aware, often expressing themselves through art and self-expression. In relationships, they may seek intense connections and may struggle with feelings of envy or inadequacy. However, they also bring depth and insight to their interactions with others.

Core Desire: Seeking to be unique and authentic.
Core Fear: Being without identity or significance.
Key Motivations: To be unique, to express themselves, and to find their identity.
Behavioral Traits: Artistic, introspective, and often driven by intense emotions.

The Investigator (Type 5) also known as the Observer

Investigators are analytical and perceptive, with a thirst for knowledge and understanding. They are independent and innovative, often immersing themselves in intellectual pursuits. In relationships, they may struggle with intimacy and may withdraw to recharge their energy. However, they also bring wisdom and insight to their interactions with others.

Core Desire: Desiring mastery and understanding.
Core Fear: Being helpless or incompetent.
Key Motivations: To be capable, to understand the world, and to avoid being overwhelmed.
Behavioral Traits: Analytical, observant, and may withdraw to conserve energy.

The Loyalist (Type 6) also known as the Skeptic

Loyalists are loyal and responsible, with a strong sense of duty and commitment. They are cautious and security-oriented, often seeking reassurance and guidance from others. In relationships, they may struggle with anxiety and fear of abandonment, but they also provide stability and support to those around them.

Core Desire: Seeking security and guidance.
Core Fear: Being without support or guidance.
Key Motivations: To have security, to feel supported, and to avoid uncertainty.
Behavioral Traits: Loyal, responsible, and often anxious about potential risks.

The Enthusiast (Type 7) also known as the Epicure

Enthusiasts are spontaneous and adventurous, always seeking new experiences and opportunities for fun. They are optimistic and energetic, often avoiding discomfort or pain. In relationships, they may struggle with commitment and may avoid difficult emotions or conflicts. However, they also bring joy and excitement to their interactions with others.

Core Desire: Desiring happiness and fulfillment.
Core Fear: Being deprived or in pain.
Key Motivations: To be happy, to plan for the future, and to avoid pain.
Behavioral Traits: Energetic, spontaneous, often seeking new experiences.

YOU SHOULD READ BEFORE YOU DIE: THE LORD OF THE FLIES by William Golding. It’s war-time, and a bunch of young boys get stranded on an island after their plane gets shot down. Alone, and without any adults to guide them, the boys elect leaders and split off into factions. While some are able to work peacefully together and get along, others are more rebellious and generate terror, and soon their attempts at governing themselves plunge into disaster.

The Challenger (Type 8) also known as the Protector

Challengers are assertive and self-confident, with a natural leadership style and a desire for control. They are protective and decisive, often advocating for justice and fairness. In relationships, they may struggle with vulnerability. However, they also bring strength and determination to their interactions with others.

Core Desire: Seeking control and power.
Core Fear: Being controlled or manipulated.
Key Motivations: To be in control, to protect themselves and others, and to avoid vulnerability.
Behavioral Traits: Assertive, confident, and may confront challenges head-on.

The Peacemaker (Type 9) also known as the Mediator

Peacemakers are easygoing and empathetic, with a desire for harmony and unity. They are supportive and accepting, often avoiding conflict and confrontation. In relationships, they may struggle with assertiveness and may suppress their own needs to maintain peace. However, they also bring a sense of calm and acceptance to their interactions with others.

Core Desire: Seeking inner peace and harmony.
Core Fear: Conflict and disconnection.
Key Motivations: To have inner stability, to maintain peace, and to avoid conflict.
Behavioral Traits: Easygoing, agreeable, and may struggle with inertia.

Now here are suggestions on how to apply the Enneagram in your writing process:

Character Surveys: Use Enneagram-inspired character surveys to delve into your character’s basic personality traits, fears, desires, and motivations, and how they cope with stress or conflict.

Plot Development: Tailor your plot to challenge and evolve your characters based on their Enneagram type for a more engaging and authentic story.

Dialogue and Behavior: Infuse your character’s dialogue and behavior with nuances specific to their type. This creates a well-rounded and believable portrayal that resonates with readers.

Relationship between characters: Explore relationship dynamics between characters. Determine tensions and compatibilities based on type.

Characters’ potential for growth: Explore how your characters might grow and evolve through overcoming their weaknesses and challenges.

UGLY WORD OF THE DAY: CHORTLE. Meaning to laugh in a noisy, gleeful way.

It’s important to note that each individual is unique, and the Enneagram system recognises the dynamic nature of personality, allowing for variations and growth within each type.

This is just a brief overview of this topic, as we’ve barely scratched the surface. There’s lots to learn about the Enneagram! I recommend reading The Wisdom of the Enneagram by Don Riso and Russ Hudson if you’re interested in discovering more.

Okay, which Enneagram type resonates most with you? See yourself among the types? I strongly relate to type seven.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this blog on the Enneagram. Have a great week and happy writing.

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The benefits of non-attachment in writing

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Today we’re going to talk about the Buddhist teaching of non-attachment, and how cultivating it can benefit you in a big way – not only in writing, but in life!

In my last blog, I said I’d start cultivating non-attachment myself, as a way of getting over my fear of rejection and also as a way of getting more stuff done.

I’ve been very frustrated by my lack of writing productivity lately. You can read the full blog here.

Benefits of non-attachment in life

In Buddhism attachment to desire is considered to be a cause of suffering.

Attachment involves clinging to things such as thoughts, self-concepts, emotions, outcomes, relationships and material goods. It places conditions on happiness.

We hinge our inner contentment and peace on getting and having external stuff that’s impermanent and subject to constant change, and when reality doesn’t meet our expectations, we begin to suffer.

Clinging to thoughts and emotions, for example, often causes sadness and depression.

Needing things to be a certain way can often cause anxiety.

Non-attachment is all about letting go of the stuff we cling to. It’s about release from desire.

WORD OF THE DAY: HIPPOTHERAPY. Meaning to help people by putting them on horses (not hippos!).

By embracing non-attachment, we’re more able to take life as it comes, lowering feelings of anxiety and stress.

it benefits relationships too, as we can enjoy relationships with others without needing to possess or control them.

It also promotes greater emotional stability, inner peace and personal growth and lowers feelings of stress, anxiety, and sadness.

I really like the idea of practicing non-attachment, as I’ve often felt drained worrying and fixating on the future.

Non-attachment promotes the present, not future outcomes, experiencing the moment for what it is.

Non-attachment doesn’t mean you can’t have goals, or work towards meeting those goals. I’ve still got plenty of ambitions! Have goals, but continue to work on being less attached to outcomes, knowing there’s a chance they may not happen. Learn to live in the present.

Benefits of non-attachment in writing

I’m now going to talk about the benefits of non-attachment in writing, but this could also be applied to any endeavour.

It helps overcome the fear of failure

Non-attachment helps us overcome a fear of failure, which can paralyze creativity. When we’re not attached to the outcome, we can write more freely, leading the way for more innovations and breakthroughs.

It helps us to let go of writer’s block

Writer’s block can often stem from the pressure to produce perfect work. Non-attachment helps us to let go of rigid expectations and allows our creativity to flow naturally. This openness can help to dissolve writer’s block, allowing us to write with greater joy.

It enhances creativity through mindfulness

Non-attachment is closely linked with mindfulness, the practice of being fully present in the moment. Practicing mindfulness helps us to tap into our subconscious, where many of our best ideas reside. Being fully present while writing helps us to capture fleeting thoughts and ideas that might’ve otherwise gone unnoticed.

Your first efforts are gonna be really bad. It’s what I call the ‘it’s all crap stage’ of the creative process. We all go through it. And we learn things from it and we gain skills. But here’s the secret. It’s not the end product that matters. It’s enjoying the process of learning and discovery, of stretching your brain in different ways.

Cathy Pickens

It helps us to become emotionally resilient

The writer’s path is often fraught with criticism and rejection. These experiences have the potential to damage our self-esteem and may even cause us to abandon our writing altogether.

But when we’re not attached to the opinions of others, we can view rejection as an opportunity for growth, rather than a personal failure.

We build emotional resilience, allowing us to persevere through the ups and downs of being a writer.

It helps us find joy in the process

This is one of my favourite benefits of non-attachment in writing. Instead of fixating on the outcome of your novel or short story and tying yourself up in knots about it, you find joy in the act of writing itself.

Writing then becomes a pleasurable journey of exploration and self-expression, instead of just a means to an end.

When we focus on the process rather than the result, we’re more likely to experience a state of flow, where our creativity gets fueled and writing feels deeply satisfying and fulfilling.

How do we attain a state of non-attachment?

Some of the things that may help us attain a state of non-attachment include:

Learning to live in the present moment, instead of the past or future.

Learning to observe your thoughts and feelings, instead of identifying with them (mindfulness meditation can often help with this, allowing thoughts and feelings to come and go as we meditate).

Recognise that everything and everyone is impermanent and transient.

For further reading on Buddhism, try 24/7 Dharma by Dennis Genpo Merzel.

WRITING PROMPT: Write a passage on the subject of your choice, with an attitude of non-attachment to the outcome.

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Why I’m embracing non-attachment as a writer

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Today I’m going to explain why I’m embracing non-attachment as a writer.

It hit me last Sunday when I gauged how much writing work I actually got done last year and this year. The result? 14,000 words. Pretty paltry! And the reason for this lack of productivity?

It wasn’t because of laziness or lack of interest – it was because of procrastination. And what was at the root of the procrastination? Fear.

Basically, the fear of failure is crippling my creativity. It’s deluding me into thinking that I’m getting somewhere with my writing when in fact I’m only pretending to be productive.

I’m deceiving myself, going nowhere, and making sure I stay in the vicinity of nowhere. When I ponder on this I see at the heart of it, I’m avoiding getting something out there because I’m afraid of failing.

Procrastination with writing has reared its ugly head many times in the past.

I’ve always wanted to produce a novel, but after 14 long years, only managed to produce a pithy 37,000-word novella, published in 2021.

So now the novella’s finished, and I’m onto the next writing project, and I feel like it’s Groundhog Day all over again. I see myself going through the same roundabout – a lot of procrastination and fear, and very little writing.

But now I’m getting sick of myself and my lack of productivity – so I’ve finally decided to do something about my fear of failure and the lack of productivity that goes with it. I’ve decided to embrace non-attachment as a writer!

This means that I’m going to finish projects that I start and get them out into the world. I’ll do my very best, but this time I won’t get attached to the outcome.

Since the fear of failure is crippling me, I figure it’ll be the only way I’ll ever get any work done!

Even writing this brings a certain sense of relief to my bones. I’ve always wanted to get a decent body of writing work out there, but fear has always stopped me.

Embracing non-attachment

By embracing non-attachment, I get to tick off ‘writing work completed’ on my bucket list, and then attend to other non-writing things on the list.

To clarify, I’m embracing the concept of non-attachment as it relates to Buddhism. Let’s explore this.

The Buddha (also known as Siddhartha Gautama), was a wandering religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 5th or 6th century BCE and founded Buddhism. He was also a former prince who left his luxurious royal life to pursue enlightenment.

Non-attachment is one of the key tenets of the Buddha’s teachings, and emphasises the importance of letting go of things such as material possessions, thoughts, emotions, and relationships to cultivate a sense of inner peace.

A Buddhism quote

American Zen Master Dennis Genpo Merzel, in his book ’24/7 Dharma’, writes:

Suffering results from attachment and aversion. There are four basic reasons why we suffer: wanting what we don’t have or resenting what we have; longing for a loved one who isn’t there or despising the person who is with us.

How do we put an end to this delusion, this ignorance, this suffering? How do we cease wanting, when almost every living moment we exist in a state of craving?

Shakyamuni Buddha discovered a way to do that, called dhyana in his day, later ch’an in China and zazen in Japan – to sit still with one’s spine erect and naturally relaxed and just be, not doing anything.

Sitting with one’s spine erect while meditating is a way of achieving a mental state where one can detach from the cycle of craving.

The concept of success and failure

Let’s get back to the concept of success and failure. What are they anyway? I guess those things can be widely interpreted. Is success being financially rich, or being quietly content with your lot?

I define writing success as being able to support myself financially with it, but somebody else might define it differently.

Someone else might define it as ‘being published’ and ‘being read by a few people’. Other people might define writing success as being part of an elite group who get very rich from it.

What if you were a writer, but writing success never came? Would you still do it, or would you move on to something else?

The sexy Marlon Brando and the concept of success

I’ve been doing a lot of reading on Marlon Brando recently. Re-discovered him on YouTube (I developed a crush on him when I saw him in the movie ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’).

He was at the peak of his youth and beauty in the 1950s and had everything going for him – good looks, a natural, magnetic charisma, and loads of acting talent.

As well as riches, fame, and admiration, he had a special place amongst Hollywood’s elite. He was praised as one of the best actors in the world, made millions of dollars from his craft and later won two Oscars.

But in an interview in his later years, he told the interviewer that he viewed acting as a ‘waste of life’. He didn’t find it stimulating at all and never knew what he wanted to do career-wise.

Many viewed his life as a raging success – but did he see it that way?

I would have to really like writing to have endured 20 years of rejection. Some people like stamps. Some people like tennis. Some people like bowling. I enjoy writing.

– Martin Clark

Writing for its own sake

This begs the question: would you rather (a) be in a job you hate but be successful and make lots of money (but have no time for anything else); or

(b) do what you love but never experience financial success; or

(c) wait till you retire, then you can do what you want!

I’d choose (b). Money and success are always sexy but I ultimately write because I enjoy it, whether money and success come into the picture or not.

Of course you always prefer your work be read and enjoyed, but ultimately you don’t write for money, fame, or even other people.

You write for yourself, and what interests you. Or if you don’t, you should. Write what makes you happy, because writing is enjoyable and fulfilling for its own sake.

And being happy trumps everything (well in my opinion it does!).

WORD OF THE DAY: IRREFRAGABLE. Something which cannot be denied; unopposable. Can also mean stubborn and obstinate; unwilling to be opposed.

So I can definitely start working on training my mind to fight my fears (and perfectionism) and embrace non-attachment with writing. I want to get more books out there.

In the next blog, I’ll talk more about the concept of non-attachment and how I think it can help you become a better writer.

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The case for writing what you want

the philosophy of writing, writing tips /

The best philosophy with writing I think, is just to write what you want, no matter how weird and silly it seems or how others disapprove.

That’s where the real joy of writing is, and what keeps you entertained as an author year after year. Writing what you want and being true to yourself.

Others may see this attitude as not being commercially viable. They argue that to sell your work, you’ve got to study what’s currently selling.

Go out and haunt the bookshops to see what’s trending in your chosen genre, they say, to increase your chances of being successful.

I’ve also heard this philosophy come from the mouth of a successful businessman, and I can understand how it would sound perfectly logical and reasonable from a business point of view.

But writing a novel is a creative exercise; it’s not planning, calculating, and forecasting from an excel spreadsheet. It’s right-brained, creative stuff, not left-brained, logical.

And by the time you’ve faithfully followed the trends and written your novel to please others, the trends may have changed again anyway (just to piss you off).

The truth of the matter is, nothing guarantees success, no matter which camp you’re in and what you do.

But first and foremost, writing should be about enjoyment, right? Otherwise, how can you hope to stick with it? So isn’t it better to write to please yourself?

As you may have heard (or painfully know), writing a novel is a lot of hard work that can take months, if not years, to finish and once that time’s gone, you don’t get it back.

Baring this in mind, I say spend that time wisely. Go with your heart and write what you want. Boldly explore the terrains of your mind and enjoy it; don’t waste time worrying about what other people think.

This novel’s going to keep you company for a while and you should ideally have some fun during the process (and develop some sort of fondness for your characters. They start to feel real after a while!).

If you write (or paint or sculpt or sing, I suppose), someone will try to make you feel lousy about it, that’s all.

– STEPHEN KING

Some of the most popular and memorable novels ever have had a pioneering quality to them, where they stood out as being different from the crowd.

Take ‘Wuthering Heights’ as an example. This famous novel, set in the Yorkshire moors and written by the English author Emily Bronte, was published in 1847.

It was controversial and polarising for its day, considered by some to be shocking and vulgar.

It contained stuff like bashings and emotional cruelty, and the character of Catherine, a married woman, blatantly longs for another man (Heathcliff) loving him much more than her husband.

Catherine and Heathcliff are at times vindictive and despicable characters, but their strong connection and deep love for each other knows no bounds.

I love this famous line from the book, coming from Catherine:

Nelly, I am Heathcliff! He’s always, always in my mind: not as a pleasure, any more than I am always a pleasure to myself, but as my own being.

Emily Bronte perhaps didn’t write like an 1800s person was expected to write, but she didn’t care. She just went with her heart and did what she wanted to do, and some critics were horrified.

Graham’s Lady Magazine wrote:

“How a human being could have attempted such a book as the present without committing suicide before he had finished a dozen chapters, is a mystery. It is a compound of vulgar depravity and unnatural horrors.”

Fast forward more than a hundred and seventy years later.

‘Wuthering Heights’ has not only survived, it’s flown.

It’s now considered to be one of the greatest novels of all time, and Emily’s short life (she died aged thirty) wasn’t wasted trying to fit in with other people’s expectations.

She followed her heart, and her legacy lives on.

I read this novel many years ago, and what stood out more than anything was its emotional intensity and high level of passion. What’s curious about this is that Emily’s life, as well as being short, was also mostly isolated and quiet.

She never married and never, as far as we know, appeared to have had any romantic attachments. Yet she wrote about love so brilliantly!

What an extraordinary imagination she had, coming up with stuff like that under those circumstances.

‘Wuthering Heights’ is a compelling story, and one that’s stuck with me, and I think Emily Bronte is a good example of my ‘following your heart and writing what you want’ philosophy.

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Common setting mistakes writers should avoid

setting, writing tips /
The setting of yellow mist in this picture evokes a feeling of mystery

Setting is an essential element of storytelling, providing the backdrop against which the plot unfolds. However many writers (especially those just starting out) often make common mistakes when creating their settings. Here are some common setting mistakes writers should avoid.

Being too general with settings

If the setting is too general, readers may feel disorientated and disengaged. To avoid this happening, include specific details that reflect the unique character of the setting. Describe the local customs, architecture, dress and the sensory experiences unique to that location. This can make the setting feel like a real place that readers can visualize and connect with.

Being inconsistent with details

Keep a detailed map or notes on your setting’s geography, climate, buildings and other key aspects to maintain consistency throughout your story. For instance, if it takes a character ten minutes to walk from one end of the town to another and on another day it takes half an hour, readers will notice your boo-boo!

Detail overload with the setting

Giving too much detail is often called an ‘info dump’. Instead of bloating up pages with a rainfall of description, try being selective with details. Imagine the setting as a character – what stands out most about him or her? Choose details that characterise what that person is like and shows emotion. For example, they could be the anxious type, constantly fidgeting with their sleeves; briefly describe what they look like as they do so. Now transfer those same principles to the setting. What stands out most about the setting and how would you characterise it? What feelings come to mind as you describe the setting?

All good fiction evokes emotion.

– Tara Lush

Ignoring the impact of the setting

The setting should influence your characters and plot. Consider how the setting affects your characters’ lifestyles, speech patterns, and world views. By doing so, you create a more believable and immersive story.

Failing to use all five senses when describing setting

A rich setting engages all five senses, making it more alive to the reader. Think about the sounds, sights, smells, tastes and tactile sensations present in your setting. For example, the saltiness of a gentle sea breeze, the hum of city traffic, or the rough texture of an old building.

Overlooking culture and history in setting

Every setting, whether real or not, has a cultural and historical context. Not taking this into account can lead to unrealistic settings, so do some research on the history and culture of your setting to ensure accuracy.

Not adapting the setting to the story

If a setting doesn’t contribute to the plot or to the development of characters, send it to the bin. The setting is there to enhance the story, not take over from it.

BEAUTIFUL WORD OF THE DAY: UNCONSCIONABLE. Meaning to have no conscious or principles.

Ignoring the passing of time

Make sure you take into account the passing of time. Seasons change, buildings and people get old, and communities grow – consider how this would change your setting.

Relying on cliches with setting

Cliched settings (like a haunted house on a hill or a medieval marketplace) can feel tiresome and unoriginal. Consider bringing a fresh perspective or a unique twist to your setting. Originality can make your story stand out more and keep readers engaged.

Neglecting to show the setting’s emotional impact

Use the setting to reflect or contrast the inner life of your characters. A stormy night can heighten the tension of your narrative and a serene, countryside landscape can provide contrast to a character’s inner turmoil.

Using descriptive crutches

Perhaps you like the sound of wind rustling through the trees. Well and good, but if you find yourself repeating this through several scenes, readers will notice, and this will detract from your story. Go over your writing, and take note of any repeated descriptive patterns. Now whip out your thesaurus and see if you can replace it with something fresh.

Not having the characters interact with the setting

Stopping the story to talk about the details of the setting will interrupt the flow of your story – try having the characters interact with the setting in some way instead. Describe the setting as events unfold. For example, your character could be hiding from someone – describe the setting where he’s hiding and what he’s doing and feeling. In this way, you’re weaving the description of the setting into the action of the story, which is far more interesting and involving to the reader.

WRITING PROMPT: Write a passage where a customer is involved in a street chase. Describe this chase, weaving the description of the setting into the action.

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7 Creative Ways to Use Setting for Enhancing Your Story

setting, writing tips /

Setting is a necessary part of any story – without it, your prose would be just a never-ending series of talking heads wandering around in a vacuum! It’s easy to just use setting as a backdrop only, but it can also be used in many other ways. Here are seven creative ways to use setting to enhance your story.

Use setting to provide mood, tone and atmosphere

Setting plays a pivotal role in shaping the mood, tone and atmosphere of a story. Think of a bustling cityscape, with skyscrapers and crowds of pedestrians walking around at lunchtime, a peaceful countryside on a sunny day, or a creepy abandoned building at night.

All of these scenes can help to shape mood, tone and atmosphere and reflect what’s going on in your character’s mind – their ‘inner’ atmosphere.

For example, in the cityscape scene, your character’s thoughts could be buzzing with chores he has to get done that day, and the setting could be shown to compliment his hectic life; show him rushing through the crowds to catch an inner city train.

In the abandoned building scene, the character’s mindset could already be anxious and the creepy setting would only add to his feelings of uncertainty and fear.

Use setting to provide strong imagery

One of the most powerful aspects of setting is its ability to transport readers to different places and times by using strong imagery.

Produce strong imagery by using descriptive language, making the reader feel as if they’re there. Use adjectives, adverbs, similes and metaphors to make description come alive.

You can describe the city as a concrete jungle, for example (metaphor), or like a bustling beehive (simile).

You can also engage the reader’s senses to fully immerse them in the world you’ve created. Appeal to their sight, sound, smell, touch, and taste while describing a scene.

Show, don’t tell – allow the reader to experience the setting through the character’s point of view.

There’s no point in trying to analyse the creative urge. You either have it or you don’t.

– David Hewson

Use setting to drive the plot

Setting can serve as an active participant in the story and drive the plot. You can use it to create obstacles for the characters to overcome.

In the fantasy novel ‘The Lord of the Rings’, Frodo had to travel through a treacherous mountain and reach a dangerous volcano to destroy a ring, severely testing his reserves of resilience and determination.

Use setting as a symbol

Setting can be used both in a literal and symbolic way. Giving a symbolic meaning to a setting can add depth and layers of interpretation to your writing. It can mirror either (a) the internal struggles of your characters; or (b) reflect the themes of your story.

A decaying house can be used to mirror a character’s fractured psyche, for example.

One setting which holds multiple symbolic meanings is the moors in Emily Bronte’s novel ‘Wuthering Heights’ (moors are a tract of open country that can be either dry or wet. They’re often described as uncultivated hilly areas or grasslands).

The moors lie between two families living in Thrushcross Grange and Wuthering Heights and symbolise a place in between good and evil, and life and death.

They were the childhood playground of the characters of Heathcliff and Catherine, and are a symbol of their love.

They’re difficult to navigate, symbolising the relationship and emotions of the characters, and are wild and untamed, symbolising Catherine and Heathcliff as children.

UGLY WORD OF THE DAY: ESCHEW. Meaning to abstain from, reject or avoid.

Use setting as an emotional trigger

Choose setting which hold emotional triggers for the character, where the characters has some sort of emotional attachment to it.

For example: a character visits her old childhood home and as she walks through it, traumatic memories of cold and disapproving parents flood through her, filling her with turmoil and anger. If she had a happy childhood of course, it’d be the opposite – feelings of love and affection would come to the fore.

Use setting to convey back story

Setting can be used as a tool in covering a character’s back story. For example, where he or she grew up and was educated (or not educated), giving a visual peek into their past life and what that life was like.

Use setting as a vehicle to show character

Reveal your character’s true nature through showing, not telling, and use setting as a vehicle to display what sort of person they are.

For example, instead of telling the reader how evil they are, have them rob a house before dousing it with gasoline and setting it on fire.

A few more tips on using setting

Don’t feel like you have to use all five senses all the time when describing setting. Try mixing just a few of the five senses together, or use only one. Don’t be afraid to experiment when it comes to description.

The same goes with setting choice. Instead of going with an ordinary setting, why not stretch yourself by trying something new and fresh? Readers like to experience different things.

Brainstorm what the best setting may be for your writing scene. Think of what you want to achieve. Do you want to create mood and atmosphere? Vivid imagery? Move the story forward? Show back story? Show glimpses into the character’s emotional makeup? Use the setting as an emotional trigger? Or utilise symbolism?

Whatever you choose, happy writing!

WRITING PROMPT: write a passage where the setting symbolises the character’s inner world.

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How to get ideas for your novel

General writing tips, writing tips /

Writer’s block can be at best, frustrating and at worst, crippling for any writer. How can you crush this terrible beast and get those longed-for words and ideas flowing again in your novel?

In this blog I will list a range of activities to help stimulate your brain into generating new ideas.

The truth is, you are surrounded by ideas every single day and all you need to do is open your mind and eyes to them.

An important thing to remember, though, is to never let those ideas get away from you. It’s beneficial to carry a notepad and pen with you at all times, so you can jot down those precious ideas as soon as they come into your head.

Start getting into the notebook habit – you’d be surprised how easily ideas can slip away from you.

Without further ado, here is my list of activities that may beat writer’s block and generate new ideas and creative solutions for your novel.

Choose whatever activity (or activities) appeals to you, but I especially recommend the brain-dumping technique (which you will read about further on).

List of activities to help generate new creative ideas

Read books. If you’re serious about being a writer, it’s essential to read on a regular basis. It’s one of the best tools there is to improve your writing. It’s also a great ideas generator.

Speaking of reading, here’s an interesting blog by canva.com you may like to check out: 40 books to unlock your creativity.

Listen to music. Music is a great daydream-inducer. And daydreaming is great (it’s obviously not great when driving or operating machinery, don’t do that).

Whenever you’re daydreaming, you’re creating stories in your head. You’re being creative.

Let your mind wander and see where it leads.

Watch movies or TV series. How can your imagination function on a blank slate? You need to regularly feed it with ideas and characters, and reading and watching movies is a great way to do this.

Meditate. The mind is well known for generating great ideas when calm and relaxed, and meditation is great for that. Ask your mind to give you book ideas before your meditation session.

There are many ways to meditate too.

You could meditate by listening to gentle meditation music or by observing your breathing, and it doesn’t have to be a long session either. Just five, ten, or fifteen minutes.

Observe the world around you. Become a (discreet and respectful) people-watcher. Observe how people look and sound and dress.

Pay attention to what they say, as this may not only help you with story ideas, it may also help you write natural-sounding dialogue.

Keep that notebook handy for jotting down anything interesting.

Pay attention to the inner world of your imagination.

Pay attention to your outer world. Draw inspiration for stories from your own life.

Use writing prompts to generate story ideas. Write short stories using them; it may lead to a longer story.

Get out of your familiar environment and go into a new one. Take off somewhere new for the day or for the weekend. Travelling is fantastic for generating new ideas.

Research facts about the topic you’re blocked on.

Ask ‘what if’ questions with your novel to stimulate new ideas. For example, ‘what if’ the good guy in your book gets greedy and turns bad? ‘What if’ your bad guy has a spiritual epiphany and turns good?

You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.

– Maya Angelou

Combine story ideas from multiple sources. Get half a plot from a TV story and the other half from a magazine article or another news story.

Get ideas from news headlines.

BEAUTIFUL WORD OF THE DAY: WINSOME. Meaning attractive and/or an agreeable manner.  

Use the ‘cut-up’ technique of American author William S. Burroughs. He would cut up pieces of text (words and phrases) and rearrange them to form new sentences.

Use your dreams for story ideas. Keep a notepad and pen beside your bed and write them down. At night time, ask your mind to give you book ideas through your dreams.

Re-tell a story in a different way. Gather plot summaries from novels you know of and incorporate some changes to them. Change the beginning, middle, or end. Mix the characters up a little.

Piggyback off the imagination of others. Use myths, legends and folklore for ideas. J.R.R. Tolkien did this for his ‘Lord of the Rings’ novels.

Ask other people for their ideas. My sister contributed greatly with her ideas for my first novel.

Use the brain-dump method for generating ideas. This is a favourite method of mine, and one I have spoke about several times now on this blog. It’s really helped me and I think it’s fantastic.

This method is also known as free-form writing.

Set a timer for five, ten, fifteen, or twenty minutes and write (or type) rapidly and continuously, focusing on the subject of your choice.

Don’t pause or back-edit, and don’t worry about stuff like punctuation, grammar, typos, and the quality of your writing.

Don’t worry if you keep repeating yourself sometimes either.

This is a great technique because it bypasses the conscious mind and accesses the subconscious, where all the creativity and good ideas lie. It’s also good writing practice too.

Keep a ‘cool’ file of ideas in your computer or notebook. By ‘cool’, I mean anything at all you like or find interesting and intriguing, be it a person, place, thing, or idea. .

Let that file build up over time.

Refer to your collage of stuff in your ‘cool’ file whenever you need ideas and inspiration. You may use these ideas individually, or as a collective.

Try any activity listed in this blog that appeals to you, and kick that writer’s block to the curb!

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Eleven tips for writing good dialogue

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Dialogue is the essential bones of any good story, and breaks up long passages of description so the reader doesn’t have a chance to get bored.

Some other advantages of using dialogue include:

  • It reflects the speaker’s character;
  • It moves the story forward;
  • It provides crucial information to the story;
  • It highlights the relationship between the characters;
  • It provides the story with good drama, comedy, mood, and tension.

So it’s important to get it right! Here are my tips for writing good dialogue:

1. Start listening to how people talk

Develop an ‘ear’ for how people speak by listening in on their conversations and observing their speech patterns. Take notes in your writer’s journal if you wish.

Observe how people often don’t finish their own sentences and how often they interrupt each other. Notice any other peculiarities.

2. Make sure dialogue reflects character

No two people speak alike; everyone has their own unique verbal footprint.

Again, take time out to listen to various conversations and you’ll soon see how much people can differ in their voice and speech patterns.

Reflect your character’s uniqueness through their speech. Make your characters consistent and true to who they are.

Ensure you know your characters well so that their inner natures and attitudes shine through in their speech.

The reader should be able to tell who’s speaking from what they say.

WEIRD WORD OF THE DAY: CACOETHES. Meaning an irresistible urge to do something unwise (like sprinting across hot coals or cooking bacon without your shirt on).

3. Be aware of how different relationships affects speech

It’s common to speak differently with certain people. You wouldn’t talk to your boss like you speak to your best friend, for example.

4. Use interruptions

Interruptions are good; they’re natural. People interrupt each other in speech all the time (especially with long speeches).

They often get lost in their own thought processes and don’t fully engage with others.

5. Make it natural, but not too natural

It should sound natural, but not too natural. It shouldn’t be exactly like real life.

In real life, people ‘um’ and ‘ah’ and mumble and get distracted and don’t finish their sentences. They talk in stops and starts and frequently chatter on top of one another.

They engage in boring, meaningless, and repetitive talk. If you were to emulate real life, it would only bore and confuse the reader, so only include what’s important.

Leave out what doesn’t matter; things like ‘hellos’, ‘goodbyes’, and small talk. Dialogue should be clear, readable, and have a purpose.

6. Read the dialogue aloud

Ensure that it sounds natural, like a real person said it, by reading it aloud.

I love talking to people and hearing their stories. Everyone’s got their own story to tell, and when you sit down with someone and really talk to them, you can learn so much.

– Dan Wells

7. Don’t use it to info-dump

Dialogue can move the story forward, but be careful not to go over the top and give too much information away.

It tends to sound unnatural and awkward, like you’re feeding them facts instead of giving them a good story. Consider dispensing bits of information throughout the text.

8. Break up the dialogue by including action

Action grounds the character in the physical world and breaks up long pieces of dialogue. It could be as simple as mentioning them setting the table or walking to get something.

9. Keep it short

In general, try to keep each instance of dialogue to one sentence (or no more than three). This helps to make it sound more life-like.

If your character has multiple sentences, ask yourself, ‘is this necessary, or can it be spread out throughout the text? Can the information be put into one sentence instead?’

If it’s excessive or unnecessary, leave it out.

10. Write down the dialogue first, improve on it later

Get a rough draft of the dialogue down first – this can often give you ideas that you’d never have thought of before.

Don’t worry about the quality of your writing, just get it out of you. You can always improve on it later.

Like most things, the writing of dialogue can improve with practice. Get feedback from others, and re-write till you get it right.

11. Visualise the story in your head

Imagine the characters talking and moving around and engaging in conversations; it can really help to piece the story together.

Reading fiction regularly can also help you write good dialogue, as you get to observe what works and what doesn’t; what’s great, and what’s not so great.

YOU SHOULD READ BEFORE YOU DIE: Lady Chatterley’s lover by D.H. Lawrence. Lady Chatterley has an unsatisfying marriage with her wealthy intellectual husband, Sir Clifford, who was left with lower-body paralysis in the Great War. She enters a passionate love affair with his gamekeeper, Oliver Mellors. The publisher, Penguin Books, had to go through an obscenity trial in the United Kingdom to release an uncensored version of this book!

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How to write effective description

General writing tips, writing tips /

To describe or not to describe; that is the question. How much description should you put in a story? What should you describe, and what should you ignore?

If you don’t use enough description in your story, the reader will be taken on a journey where they’ll only have a vague sense of time, place, and surroundings.

Being specific with important details can improve your writing no end. Say your character has a dog, for example. ‘Her fluffy poodle’ sounds more interesting than ‘her dog’.

Colour can also bring a story to life. ‘He spotted her fluorescent pink coat in the crowd’ adds more interest than just writing ‘he spotted her in the crowd’.

Keep it brief

There’s also the danger of using too much description.

What must be remembered is that every single time you describe something – the setting, the building, your character’s nice teeth – you stop the story, because description is a static thing.

So too much description can not only slow the story down, it can bore your reader to death.

If someone skims through your book at a store and reads pages and pages of you describing nice fluffy clouds, they’ll probably put your book down and move onto someone else’s.

Keep descriptions in your story brief, and never describe things that don’t need describing.

Weave it into the story

Description works better when it’s weaved in throughout the story, rather than plonked in as a single big info dump. Add it through thought, action, or dialogue.

In the below example, description is weaved into the story through dialogue:

“Watch your mouth,” Toby murmured, his eyes on a stern-looking security guard standing on a lawn with an unleashed German Shepherd. “Or he’ll set the dog on us.”

WIERD WORD OF THE DAY: BLOVIATE. Meaning to talk for a long time in a boastful way.

Don’t over-use adjectives

You may find at some point that you can’t weave in description through thought, action, or dialogue in your story – you have to describe a scene on its own. When that happens, be sure to watch out for the overuse of adjectives.

An adjective is a word that describes a noun (a person, place, or thing). Sprinkle a sentence with too many adjectives and it gets weakened – one is usually enough.

For example, this sentence has two adjectives:

She looked up at the huge, majestic giant.

Now let’s cut it down to just one:

She looked up at the majestic giant.

Every now and again, you may also like to try cutting out all the adjectives and using one good verb instead (a verb is the action or state of being in a sentence).

For example, instead of ‘she looked up at the majestic giant’, write ‘the giant towered above her’.

The verb ‘towered’ is used to good effect in the sentence.

Description is what makes the reader a sensory participant in the story. Good description is a learned skill, one of the prime reasons you cannot succeed unless you read a lot and write a lot. It’s not just a question of how-to, you see; it’s a question of how much to. Reading will help you answer how much, and only reams of writing will help you with the how. You can learn only by doing.


– STEPHEN KING

Use the five senses in description

Description often involves one or more of the five senses: sight, sound, taste, touch, and smell.

Describing an experience from your character’s viewpoint using one or more of the senses can be used to great effect.

The reader gets the intimacy of experiencing things through the character’s sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell, and it can often evoke an emotional response, which is what it’s all about, right? Anything but boredom is a good thing.

Consider this sentence:

George’s dish was hot, causing his eyes to water and his tongue to burn.

Now let’s change it up a bit, incorporating both character viewpoint and the sense of taste:

George’s eyes watered as the spicy dish exploded inside him, setting his tongue on fire.

Concentrate on what stands out with appearance

When describing someone’s appearance, rather than going into too much detail, concentrate on what stands out.

In the Harry Potter series, J.K. Rowling only talks about what stands out about Harry: his thin face, knobbly knees, black hair, bright green eyes, and last but not least, the scar on his forehead, shaped like a bolt of lightning.

She could go on and on if she wanted to, but she doesn’t, keeping her writing interesting and tight.

Show, don’t tell in your descriptions

Why are writers constantly advised to ‘show’ and not ‘tell’ in their stories?

Showing makes the writing more interesting and helps the reader experience the story more vividly.

For example, a character in our story is scared; how do we go about communicating that fear to our readers?

We can simply just tell them:

‘Sally was really scared as the wild boar ran towards her.’

Or we can show them:

‘Sally’s jaw dropped open in horror as she breathed in sharply. The wild boar was running straight towards her.’

We don’t need to tell the reader that Sally was scared in the aforementioned paragraph; it’s all shown through Sally’s viewpoint and her bodily reactions.

You can ‘show’ things like personality, attitudes, emotions, and pain through dialogue, thoughts, and action.

Using the five senses of sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell in your writing can also be very effective when it comes to ‘showing’.

Stories are a mixture of showing and telling, so you’ve got to judge for yourself how much to show and how much to tell. Your judgement no doubt will get better and better with practice.

Which leads me to my next and final point.

Practice writing a lot and read a lot

Ideas are good and useful things, and I can type till my fingers bleed suggesting them, but nothing, nothing, NOTHING beats lots of hands-on practice with writing. And regular reading.

The old writing mantra, ‘read a lot and write a lot’ is the best thing you can ever do if you want to get better at your craft. Nothing beats learning by doing, so even if you’re in between writing projects, keep your practice up, even if it’s just for a few minutes a day.

Get your journal out and practice describing things using ‘showing’, ‘the senses’, and ‘character viewpoint’. Experiment with any or all of the techniques mentioned in this blog or other blogs.

Play around.

Go wild.

Try different things.

See what happens.

And happy writing.

I hope you got something out of my blog on effective description. And now it’s time for:

Drumroll:

YOU SHOULD READ BEFORE YOU DIE: SLAUGHTERHOUSE 5 by Kurt Vonnegut. As a young man, Kurt Vonnegut witnessed the bombing of Dresden, a city in Germany, which claimed the lives of thousands of people. For many years he tried to write about what happened, but struggled with the words. When he did finally write about it, he wrote this novel, an American classic anti-war book. The protagonist, Billy Pilgrim, is a World War II soldier who travels back and forth through time to moments from his past and future.

Check out this quote from Kurt Vonnegut about the concept of time:

All time is all time. It does not change. It does not lend itself to warnings or explanations. It simply is. Take it moment by moment, and you will find that we are all…bugs in amber.

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P.S. I’ve just discovered a really interesting website for you that helps with description: descriptionary.wordpress.com. Check it out when you get the time.

Editing and revising techniques all writers should know

General writing tips, writing tips /

Writing is an art, but the true magic happens in the editing room! Producing a compelling novel requires more than just putting words on paper; it demands careful revision and attention to detail.

Whether you’re a seasoned professional or an aspiring writer, editing and revising are essential skills all writers should practice.  In this blog we’ll explore important editing and revision techniques every writer should know.

Take a break

After completing a draft, resist the temptation to immediately dive into editing. Give yourself some distance to gain a fresher perspective. Taking a break of one to two weeks allows you to return with a clearer mind and a more critical eye, allowing you to spot weaknesses and areas for improvement more effectively.

Read aloud

One of the most powerful editing techniques is to read your work aloud. This method helps you identify awkward phrasing, clunky sentences, and grammatical errors that may have slipped your eye. Hearing your work aloud also ensures your story flows more smoothly, as it reveals nuances in tone and rhythm in your writing.

Cut the clutter

In the editing process, less is often more. Trim unnecessary words, phrases, and sentences to tighten your prose and make things clearer. Look for redundancies, clichés, and verbose language that detract from your writing. Aim for precision and conciseness to engage your readers more.

Beautiful word of the day: CONFLAGRATION. Meaning a destructive fire.

Focus on structure

Effective writing relies on a strong organisational structure. During the revision process, pay close attention to the flow of your story. Ensure that your ideas progress logically and cohesively, with smooth transitions between paragraphs. Experiment with different structural frameworks to find the best way to present your content.

Polish your prose

Crafting good prose is a hallmark of skilled writing. As you edit, pay attention to the finer details of language, such as word choice and sentence structure. Strive for clarity, precision, and authenticity. Use vivid imagery, sensory details, and figurative language to bring your writing to life.

Figurative language uses words or phrases that aren’t literally true but add creativity to your writing. The reader is invited to rely on their prior knowledge and/or five senses to understand the meaning of the sentence.  

For example, consider the phrase, ‘it’s raining cats and dogs’. This sentence is really talking about heavy rain, rather than a bunch of dead cats and dogs falling from the sky!

You are what you do, not what you say you’ll do.

– Carl Jung

Harness the power of feedback

Seeking feedback from trusted peers, mentors, or beta readers is invaluable in the editing process. Constructive criticism can offer fresh insights, highlight blind spots, and point out areas for improvement that you may have overlooked. Be open-minded and receptive to feedback, but also practice discernment.

You don’t have to agree with every single point of criticism or suggestion for improvement, as oftentimes that can make your writing worse, not better (I only agreed with roughly a third of the feedback I got from my book editor).

Master the art of revision

Revision is not just about fixing errors; it’s also about elevating your writing to its fullest potential. Approach revision as a multi-stage process, focusing on different aspects of your work each time.

Start with macro-level revisions to address the big stuff, like plot holes, character development, and thematic coherence (meaning the themes of your story flow well, connect together, and are presented in an easy-to-understand way).

Then deal with the little stuff – the micro level revisions, like grammar, punctuation, and style in your sentences.

Embrace the power of restraint

While it’s important to polish your writing, avoid over-editing. Striving for perfection can be a trap that stifles creativity and spontaneity. Know when to trust your instincts and embrace imperfection as an integral part of the creative process. Sometimes, the raw energy of a rough draft can shine through more brightly than meticulously polished prose.

Develop a consistent editing workflow

Establishing a systematic approach to editing can streamline your workflow and maximise efficiency. Create a checklist of editing tasks to guide your revisions, covering areas such as plot consistency, character development, dialogue, pacing, and thematic coherence. Break down the editing process into manageable steps, setting aside dedicated time for each phase of revision.

Know when to let go

At some point, you have to declare your work finished and release it out into the world. Recognise that perfection is like chasing the sunset: you’ll never get there! Have the courage to let go and move on to new creative projects. Remember that every piece of writing is a journey, and each draft a stepping stone toward mastery.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this blog on editing and revising. And now it’s time for:

YOU SHOULD READ BEFORE YOU DIE: The Tree of Man by Patrick White. Stan Parker inherits land and clears it to build a rudimentary house. He brings his wife Amy to the wilderness and together they bring up a family, facing domestic upheavals as well as natural disasters along the way. By the time they both die, their once isolated dwelling is surrounded by brick houses. This novel highlights how ordinary people can have moving lives, and be heroic in the face of struggle.

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How to incorporate deep point of view in your writing

General writing tips, writing tips /

Today, I’m going to explore in depth a very famous piece of advice for writers:

show, don’t tell.

Mastering the art of ‘showing’ in your writing can be the difference between being an average writer and a great one.

But what’s ‘showing’ and how can you incorporate it into your story?

‘Showing’ (also known as deep point of view) is writing as if you’re in the character’s head – you get to know everything they see, hear, feel, understand, and experience.

Everything is filtered through the character’s senses and how they view the world.

While ‘showing’ paints a vivid picture in one’s mind, ‘telling’ (also known as shallow writing) is simply stating what’s happened in the story.

Showing gives the reader a much richer and more interesting experience, which is why it should be incorporated into your story as often as possible.

And then there’s telling.

Here’s an example of telling in a sentence:

Sara felt cold, so quickly put her woollen coat on.

As you can see, this sentence is just simply stating the facts.

Now let’s edit it to incorporate showing:

Sarah shivered, teeth chattering violently as she hurriedly put her woollen coat on, hugging herself tightly amidst the biting winds.

The second example is a much stronger sentence, putting a more vivid illustration in the reader’s mind, as it shows how cold Sarah is, while the first sentence just tells us how cold she is.

Get it down. Take chances. It may be bad, but it’s the only way you can do anything really good.

– William Faulkner

A story is a mixture of both showing and telling, and knowing which one to incorporate at any given time is crucial.

However, YOU the author are always the boss, and must decide on when to show and when to tell.

Generally telling is used for minor events in a story that aren’t dramatic or emotional, to move the pace along.

For example when:

Time has passed;
A character travels from point A to point B;
Sharing facts about backstory;
Sharing facts about the character’s world;
Sharing facts about the setting;
Sharing facts about mundane events.

Use showing for:

The character’s emotions;
The character’s attitudes;
Dramatic events;
The character’s sensory experiences, for example being hot and sweaty, cold and wet, thirsty or hungry,

As mentioned before, you’re the ultimate boss over your writing, so you can break the rules when you see fit, but try to use showing and telling as appropriately as you can.

If you continually ask yourself, how can I make this sentence better? you can hardly go wrong!

BEAUTIFUL WORD OF THE DAY: BIBLIOPHILE. Meaning someone who loves books (me!). Someone that takes their love of books too far is a BIBLIOMANIAC.

Now let’s talk about filter words. They’re words that put the character in the spotlight of the text, instead of the character’s experience.

They go against the show, don’t tell rule because they tell the reader what’s happening, rather than let the reader interpret what’s happening for themselves.

They include verbs such as saw, heard, listened, tasted, smelled, felt, touched, noticed, looked, etc.

They also include verbs related to thought processes, such as decided, knew, considered, regarded, realised, wondered, remembered, noted, thought, etc.

They state emotions rather than showing them, creating a less immersive experience for the reader.

Remember: don’t state – show!

Here’s an example of a paragraph with several filter words, which I’ve underlined:

I woke up and felt my head throbbing from the excess wine I had last night. I also felt sick in the stomach. I knew I’d be far too sick to go to work that day. I turned my head and looked around my bedroom. I saw my mobile phone lying on the bedside table, glinting in the sunlight. Time to call in sick, I thought.

Let’s try revising this paragraph, taking out the filter words and incorporating showing:

I woke up with an uneasy stomach and a pounding head. The wine last night really packed a punch. Going to work that day would be absolutely impossible. I turned my head, and the mobile phone on my bedside table glinted in the sunlight. Time to call in sick.

As you can see, the revised sentence is tightened up and much stronger as a result.

Imagine you’re in a stadium, watching your beloved team play football, when halfway through, a security guard suddenly whisks you away from the stadium, towards another room. Once there, he tells you which team won, gives you a polite nod, and then scurries you out the exit.

No doubt you’d be angry. He just deprived you of the sensory delights of the game, the excited jumping for joys and the looks of crushing defeat, the cheers and boos of the crowd, the anticipation of the final kick, the excited tone of the commentator, the tension of not knowing what the outcome would be, etc. It’s what you’ve paid good money for!

This is similar to what the reader experiences when the writer tells them what’s happening in the story.

They’re really just reading a report, while being deprived of all the interesting sensory details.

This not only distances the reader, it tells them that they’re not being trusted to figure out what’s going on for themselves.

YOU SHOULD READ BEFORE YOU DIE: THE HITCHHIKER’S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY by Douglas Adams. This is a comedy science fiction novel as well as a franchise! Originally it was a radio broadcast on the BBC, then it was later adapted to a novel, stage show, comic book, TV series, game and film. The Earth has been destroyed to make way for a hyperspace bypass, and Arthur Dent escapes the destruction with help from Ford Prefect (an alien writer for the travel guide The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy). There, Dent’s adventures begin as he explores the galaxy with Prefect.

Filter words put distance between the reader and the story (also known as narrative distance) because the reader is being taken out of the story.

In other words, they’re not being given an immersive experience, where they feel as if they’re there.

When going over your draft, see how many filter words you can get rid of to improve your text.

It may not be possible or realistic to get rid of every single filter word, but see how many you can let go of.

They often clog your paragraphs up, making them unnecessarily wordy.

Showing, telling, and filter words all have their place in writing, and with practice, you get better and better at deciding where that place should be.

For further reading and examples on this, I recommend Fiction Editing Tools by S.A. Soule.

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How to improve your fiction writing

General writing tips, writing tips /

Writing is not an easy job. It involves lots of hard work and solitary hours bashing away at the keyboard, trying to create something interesting.

It can be lonely and frustrating, and you have to deal with other villains too, like writer’s block, self-doubt and procrastination.

I’ve definitely been there and dealt with all the common struggles writers go through (you can read about them in my previous blogs, From beginner to author – what I’ve learned, part 1 and part 2).

It can be a rough and bumpy road, this writing gig, but if you love it you’ve got to learn to deal with the bad stuff and just keep on going. Keep striving to be better.

But how do you get better?

In this blog I will share the many ways you can improve on your writing.

Practice

First and foremost, like any other skill, if you want to get better you’ve got to practice. It’s like building a muscle. If you want to get stronger, you’ve got to put in the work to get there.

Practice writing every day, or at least most days of the week, even if it’s just for five minutes. You can do this without having a writing project going on too. The more you write, the better you’ll get at it.

Want to write a novel one day but don’t feel confident in your writing skills just yet? Why not try honing your skills with writing prompts and/or short stories for six months to a year beforehand?

Write Now by Ellie Marney is chock-full of over 90 creative writing prompts for you to cut your writing teeth on.

Keep a journal

You can also practice writing by journaling every day. Sharpen your writing skills by describing a scene or a setting of your choice using all some or all of your senses – sight, sound, touch, taste and hearing.

Write down everyday observations, or just describe how you’re feeling on the day – this can have therapeutic benefits too.

Literature is also, a curiously intimate way of communicating with people whom you will never meet.

– Julian Barnes

If you want to try something a bit different in your journal, experiment by trying a bit of free writing.

This is just writing whatever comes into your head, without any pausing or back-editing. This is both good writing practice and a good ideas generator.

Some writers do a bit of free writing before they start working on their novel for the day.

Keep it simple

If a sentence is too wordy, it makes it hard to read. Are there any words or phrases you can leave out?

Can the language be simpler or more direct? Can one word say what you mean instead of two?

Simple sentences are much easier to read than complicated ones.

Kill your darlings

Are you over-explaining things and adding too much detail?

Get rid of anything that’s not necessary in your story – be it a character, storyline, paragraph, sentence or piece of writing.

You may have spent a lot of time working on it and become attached to it and it might hurt, but you must do it. You must kill your darlings.

This is where you’ve got to be ruthless for the sake of a good story.

Go over your writing and if anything doesn’t move the story forward or need to be there, get rid of it.

Vary sentence length

Make sure you vary the sentence length so that your writing has a nice flow.

Keep a notebook handy

Jot down ideas so that they don’t run away from you. Keep your notebook handy at all times, so you never miss an idea.

WEIRD WORD OF THE DAY: HANGRY. Meaning anger caused by being hungry.

Get feedback from others

It’s essential to get another pair of eyes on your manuscript, as you’re often too close to your work to be truly objective. It’s surprising how many little errors you can miss, just because you’ve seen your work too many times!

There are many ways to get feedback.

You can get yourself a critique partner whose opinion you respect, or get feedback from members of a writing class, or from beta readers.

Part of being a writer is learning how to handle criticism and use it in a positive way to improve your skills. Having said that, you don’t have to agree with every bit of feedback you get.

A thick skin is a necessary part of the process, as not everyone will like your writing or give your book a positive review. Learn to roll with it, and always get your book professionally edited.

Read widely and often

It’s essential to read a lot if you want to be a good writer, for several reasons:

  • It expands your vocabulary;
  • You acquire knowledge;
  • You gain a better understanding of language;
  • You gain inspiration and ideas;
  • It teaches you how to be a better writer through learning what works and what doesn’t;
  • You learn more about your chosen genre;
  • It enriches you on a personal level;
  • Studies show it even increases empathy.

Read outside your genre too. The reason for this is that you may discover useful things in other genres that you may not have found elsewhere.

For example, you may be a fantasy writer, but reading an occasional thriller may teach you valuable lessons about pacing and tension that you haven’t found from reading your regular stuff.

The more you read, the more information there is to draw from, and the richer your inner world will be.

Cut out unnecessary adverbs

My Macquarie Little Dictionary definition of adverbs is “a part of speech comprising words used to limit a verb, adjective, or another adverb, by expressing time, manner, place, cause, degree, etc.”

Adverbs are words that often end in ‘ly’. It’s okay to use adverbs every now and again, but if you’re using them all the time, you’re most likely using weaker word choices.

Think you’re using them too much? Then try other things.

For example:

Instead of writing ‘she was really beautiful’, write
‘she was gorgeous’.

Instead of writing ‘it was extremely cold’, write
‘it was freezing’.

The first sentences use adverbs, while the second sentences use stronger word choices.

Show, don’t tell

Showing an emotion, person, thing or event through your words is stronger than telling about the emotion, person, thing or event.

For example, consider this sentence:

Cecilia was a nice person.

Then this one:

Cecilia devoted every weekend to driving around the city, feeding the homeless from meals she prepared with her own hands.

The first sentence tells us that Cecilia is a nice person, while the second shows us that Cecilia is a nice person.

Showing is much more effective and interesting than telling, however, having said that, stories are a mixture of both showing and telling.

It’s a matter of getting the balance right, of deciding when to show and when to tell in your story.

Most of us live fairly sedate, mundane kind of lives, where that sort of life and death, the enormity of those moments, most of the time, thank God, is not part of our daily existence. And so, the story then becomes, in some ways, a surrogate for that kind of intensity of experience.

– A.J. Hartley

Read your story out loud

Reading your story out loud can really help you pick up bits of your story that aren’t flowing well.

Keep a thesaurus

Sick of using the same words all the time, and want to find something different? Then keep a thesaurus handy, a reference book for finding similar words. You can check out a free online thesaurus here.

Learn from others

Learn from the wisdom of others, who’ve done everything and made all the mistakes before you. You could do a course on writing if you prefer learning this way, through the countless online courses available out there, or if a course isn’t your thing, you can get great tips by reading books on novel writing.

You could try reading Creative Writing for Dummies by Maggie Hamand or Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott.

Why do everything yourself and learn the hard way, when you can take a shortcut and get valuable advice?

There is so much help out there, so make sure you take advantage of it, but at the same time feel free to disagree with advice that doesn’t feel right to you.

Use software to improve your writing

Software like ProWritingAid and Grammarly give you feedback on your writing as well as provide regular writing tips.

Scrivener helps you organise your writing work and research, so everything’s there at your fingertips when you need it.  It does many other things too, including allowing you to order your scenes and move them around easily.

Striving to improve is an eternal process. Never stop doing it, and happy writing!

Finally, before I go, it’s time for – drumroll:

YOU SHOULD READ BEFORE YOU DIE: A TALE OF TWO CITIES. Published in 1859 by Charles Dickens, this historical novel is said to be one of the best-selling novels of all time. Set in London and Paris against the backdrop of the French Revolution and the Reign of Terror. A French Doctor named Manette is held in the Bastille as a political prisoner and is finally released after a long 18 years to join his daughter Lucie in England. Their lives later become entangled with two men that fall in love with Lucie, and they find themselves drawn back to Paris during the height of the dangerous Reign of Terror.

It’s impossible for me to talk about A TALE OF TWO CITIES without talking about the opening first sentence, which has become very famous. It’s beautifully written and intense and I LOVE it! Here it is:

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way—in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.

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How to write believable emotions for your characters

characters, writing tips /

This blog talks about how to nail your character’s emotions in your story, in other words, bring a sense of authenticity to their emotional self.

Why is this important? Why not quickly throw a character together without doing the slightest bit of research?

And why not have them act out their emotions in a way that suits you and goes well with the plot?

The simple answer is your characters need to be believable. If a reader doesn’t believe that a character would act in the way you’ve described, they’ll fail to engage with the character.

Readers want to feel engaged and connected to your characters. They want to relate to your characters on a personal level and have them evoke something in them, and they can’t do this if the characters don’t feel believable to them.

Believability is important to your story too, as it helps the reader feel as if they’re there in the world you’ve created.

Even if what you’ve created is complete fantasy, there still has to be an element of feasibility and realism (this is what the Harry Potter series has achieved, making the magical seem real).

Without realism in your world, plot and characters, your story will come across as one-dimensional and flat. You’ll also lose the mood of the story due to a lack of credibility.

There are as many nights as days, and the one is just as long as the other in the year’s course. Even a happy life cannot be without a measure of darkness, and the word ‘happy’ would lose its meaning if it were not balanced by sadness.

– Carl Jung

Overall, believable characters are important because they increase empathy and engagement in the reader, drive the plot, make the story memorable and give the story credibility through realism.

So let’s get to the basics of creating a character’s emotional self.

Humans can differ a great deal emotionally. For example, some may be demonstrative and open, whilst others may be more reserved, uncomfortable in sharing their feelings.

Emotions can also vary in strength from person to person, so in view of this it’s important to do research on your characters, even if that means constructing a very basic character sketch.

Back story

Create a brief back story on your character, a history of what led them to be who they are. Decide on basic facts such as family, geography, education, money, social standing, social life and career.

Also include past traumas if relevant, as this will have a strong bearing on their emotions.

Include people who’ve been important to them, and experiences that have made an impact.

Do research and decide on their basic personality traits. For help on this, you may want to check out my previous blogs on the Myers-Briggs personality traits system and The Big Five personality model.

After deciding on traits, it’s helpful to imagine their emotions in real-life situations and conversations and imagine how they would react emotionally in each case.

Every day reactions

Imagine your character going about their daily life. How do they deal with minor irritations and setbacks on a day to day level? What’s their baseline emotional self like?

UGLY WORD OF THE DAY: Blateration. Meaning constant, idiotic chatter.

Determine their emotional range

Decide where they sit on the emotional expressiveness spectrum. Are they comfortable with sharing how they feel and showing their emotions or is the thought of revealing how they feel horrifying to them?

Are they uncomfortable with displays of emotion and keep their feelings under wraps? Or do they fall somewhere in the middle, between these two extremes?

Out there or reserved

How expressive is the character and how do they use their body language? For example, if they heard good news, would they be reserved and just smile, or would they be more animated, making excited hand gestures while hugging/squealing?

Comfort level

How comfortable are they in opening up? Are they naturally open, or are they open only with certain people? Or are they secretive and tight-lipped?

How do they react to stimulus

How do they react to various stimulus? For example, how would they react to seeing a large spider crawling towards them? Would they calmly kill the thing or would they scream in fear?

Emotional trauma

Is there a painful event in the past that your character hasn’t fully dealt with? Is there anything that makes them uncomfortable due to trauma? Emotional wounds have the potential to completely derail one’s life.

Insecurities

Does your character harbour any insecurities from childhood?

Remember once you’ve done your research on your subject and gotten a handle on their emotional self, keep their character consistent.

Don’t have them go off and do something completely out of character without any logical explanation.

Words are animals, alive with a will of their own.

– Carl Jung

How does your character react when under threat?

Decide how your character mostly reacts when under threat. They can only react in three ways: fight, flight, or freeze.

The fight reaction is when they confront the threat head-on, preparing to battle if necessary through fighting words or actions.

The flight reaction is when they want to run from the threat, quickly looking for the nearest exit to flee.

This could also be in the form of changing the subject in a conversation or using an excuse to leave.

The freeze reaction is when they neither fight nor flee, but freeze, unable to find the right words or actions to help themselves in the situation.

Decide what response your character tends towards.

YOU MUST READ BEFORE YOU DIE: Coraline by Neil Gaman. A dark fantasy horror children’s novella published in 2002. An 11-year-old girl called Coraline moves into a new apartment with her mum and dad and becomes interested in a strange door there. When she ventures through the door, she finds a parallel universe inhabited by alternate versions of her parents, who call themselves her “Other Mother” and “Other Father”. When Coraline returns to her apartment she finds her real parents have gone missing. She decides to journey back through the door to the parallel universe to go look for them, but the evil Other Mother awaits her.  

How can emotions be shown in writing?

Emotions can be shown in various ways in writing, including dialogue, subtext in dialogue (hidden meaning behind the words), vocal cues, body language, thoughts, and internal body sensations.

Vocal cues can be powerful tools to show different emotional states. Volume can be turned up to a furious shout or turned down to a husky whisper.

Tone can be trembling due to terror, cracked due to oncoming tears or be a monotone due to repressed anger.

Emotions can distort reality and blind you to the truth – like when you’re first falling in love. Full of love chemicals, you fail to see the other’s flaws – they’re dimmed or non-existent, ‘cause there’s so much good stuff going on.

The scary and dangerous thing about emotions is that they’re like fires – if left untended, they can keep growing till they become very powerful.

Then before you know it, they become hard to reverse and/or control, so make sure you reach out for help as soon as you can if your emotions start to feel like they’re getting on top of you!

Here’s what Paul Ekman, a famous American psychologist, had to say about emotions:

“Emotions can override…the more powerful fundamental motives that drive our lives: hunger, sex, and the will to survive. People will not eat if they think the only food available is disgusting. They may even die, although other people might consider that same food palatable. Emotions triumphs over the hunger drive! A person may never attempt sexual contact because of the interference of fear or disgust, or may never be able to complete a sexual act. Emotion triumphs over the sex drive! And despair can overwhelm even the will to live, motivating a suicide. Emotions triumph over the will to live! (from Emotions Revealed: Recognizing Faces and Feelings to Improve Communication and Emotional Life).

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Is your novel an immortality project?

the philosophy of writing, writing tips /

Is your novel more than just a creative endeavor? Is it an immortality project?

In other words, is it your legacy, something you hope will flourish and live on long after you die? Is having an immortality project a good or a bad thing? And what do you do if the novel that was supposed to be your crowning glory and lasting legacy ends up as a total, dismal, utter failure?

American cultural anthropologist Ernest Becker talks about immortality projects in his famous non-fiction book, ‘The Denial of Death’, published in 1973. It was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction in 1974, just months after his death from cancer.

The book makes two main points:

1. Humans are able to imagine themselves in different scenarios. We’re able to reflect on both the past and the future and to see ourselves in other realities.

As we’re able to imagine a reality without ourselves in it, we can grasp that our death is inevitable. This causes death anxiety, with the fear of death underlying everything we do. 

2. Becker says that we have two selves. The first self is our physical self – the one that eats, drinks, poos, pees, and sleeps. The second self is our conceptual self – our identity.

Becker claims that the prospect of death haunts and terrifies us on an unconscious level, so in order to compensate for the loss of our physical self, we construct a conceptual self that we hope will live on forever.

The idea of death, the fear of it, haunts the human animal like nothing else.

– Ernest Becker

Becker called our efforts to live forever ‘immortality projects’.

When I think of that term I’m immediately reminded not only of myself, but of several others.  

I’m immediately reminded of my mum, who had many children, and my dad, who built many houses. I’m reminded of myself, working hard to get the best novel out that I could, and my brother and sister, who also wrote books (but non-fiction).

Were these actions the result of our unconscious immortality projects?

Historically, I’m also reminded of the actions of Pierre Choderlos de Laclos, a French novelist who wrote Dangerous Liaisons in 1782. He was a former military officer with a plan to write a work which departed from the ordinary, which made a noise, and which would remain on earth after his death.

He managed to achieve his aims, as he was considered for a time to be a scandalous writer and the novel he wrote was made into a movie starring Glenn Close and John Malkovich hundreds of years later in l988.

Becker says that most human action is taken to either avoid or ignore the reality of death.

Weird word of the day: ENTOMOPHAGY. Meaning to consume bugs.  

The fear of death shapes everything, and civilization is a defense mechanism against this fear.

All of human civilization is a result of immortality projects – cities, governments, structures, authorities, technological innovations, sports, religion, politics, and great art.

He says immortality projects can be a terrible thing, for example when wars arise as a result of one group’s immortality projects clashing with another’s.

So, in light of everything, are immortality projects more of a good thing or more of a bad thing?

I think the most important question to ask is, what’s the motive?

If your underlying motive doesn’t hurt anyone and aligns with your life purpose, I think an immortality project can be a good thing, a good result of fearing death.  Maybe it’s nature’s way of motivating us? 

What, after all, is more motivating to get going than having a limited amount of time to do what you want to do?

YOU SHOULD READ BEFORE YOU DIE: Animal Farm by George Orwell. Two pigs named Snowball and Napoleon take over leadership when a boar named Old Major dies on Manor Farm. This book is supposed to mirror events leading up to the Russian Revolution and then onto the Stalinist Soviet Union. Orwell was a critic of Stalin. He believed that the Soviet Union had become a brutal dictatorship and, in his essay, “Why I Write” (1946) he wrote that he had tried to fuse political and artistic purpose into one whole with Animal Farm.

Okay, you’re off the couch and all motivated and roll up your sleeves and get working. But what if, after all that work, your immortality project ends up being a dismal failure?

Well, several points of opinion to throw out there: 

You can always strive to do better next time/learn and grow from your mistakes/try another way/try something else.

Don’t take it all too seriously. There’s more to life than achievements.  There’s experiences to be had – places to go, things to do and see and people to meet. A good life needs balance.

Achievements have nothing to do with your worth as a person. You have inherent value just by existing as a human being.

Becker argues against immortality projects. He says people should question their conceptual selves, and rather than trying to implement their immortality projects across the world, they should face up to the reality of their own death.

Being unrestrained by a quest for immortality then frees an individual up to choose their own values and live life in their own way.

So what is your novel really? A money-making exercise? A bit of fun? A creative outlet?

Or an immortality project?

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Use the five senses to improve your writing

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This blog is about how to use the five senses to improve your writing.

Our five senses surround us for every minute of every day, yet we tend to take them for granted, often failing to notice the little things.

Like a drop of rain sliding down a bright green leaf.

Or the relentless noise of city traffic.

Or the fragrant smell of a rose in your front garden.

In our time-pressed lives, we often get too busy to notice or even care.

But noticing those little sensory details and incorporating them in your novel can really help to enrich your writing, making it more interesting for others to read.

Equipped with his five senses, man explores the universe around him and calls this adventure Science.

– Edward Powell

Let’s look at some examples of this. Consider this passage:

She reached her chosen street and looked briefly at the map in her hands.

Now let’s add the sense of sight and touch to it:

She reached her chosen street, where drab grey buildings complimented the gloomy, windy weather, and looked briefly at the map in her hands.

Sound

Come up with fresh and inventive ways to describe certain sounds.

Does a cat ‘meow’? Or does it ‘yeow’? Or ‘greeow’?

Don’t be afraid to add silences and pauses when necessary, as these can lend atmosphere and dramatic tension to any piece of fiction writing.

Let’s take a look at the following passage:

“You’ve given us almost nothing to work on,” he said. “We needed important facts in this matter, such as names. More specific locations. Motives. You’ve failed, and I’m afraid the penalty for that is execution. Do you understand what I’ve just said?”

Now let’s change it slightly:

“You’ve given us almost nothing to work on,” he said. “We needed important facts in this matter, such as names. More specific locations. Motives. You’ve failed, and I’m afraid the penalty for that is execution.” He paused meaningfully. “Do you understand what I’ve just said?”

Adding a pause to the text has made it stronger and more interesting.

WEIRD WORD OF THE DAY: COPROLALOMANIAC. Meaning a person preoccupied with swearing.

Add the sense of taste

Two people are sitting together in a restaurant in a scene from the following passage:

Angela began to eat. She was hungry and the food tasted really nice. She felt a bit guilty, as she was just about to tell Tom she was leaving him for good.

Now let’s add the sense of taste:

Angela began to eat. She was hungry and the juicy, medium-rare steak topped with a thick rich gravy tasted really nice. She felt a bit guilty, as she was just about to tell Tom she was leaving him for good.

Touch

The sense of touch is important to any story, as we humans naturally tend to be a ‘touchy’ lot.

We shake hands.

We clap someone on the shoulder.

We hug. We slap. We kiss.

We touch our faces and stroke our chins.

Remember that skin can vary in texture as well. It can be rough or soft or moist and clammy, and everything in between.

Start paying attention to how different surfaces feel underneath your skin and think about how you would describe them.

Let’s take this passage:

He squeezed her shoulder and walked off to mingle at the party.

And add the sense of touch:

He squeezed her shoulder firmly, and his fingers felt dry and cold on her bare skin. She shivered slightly as he walked off to mingle at the party.

Smells

Add the sense of smell to your writing. For example, you can describe the musty smell of an old building or the sweet smell of an apple pie.

Do certain smells take your character back to childhood?

Do they evoke certain emotions, good or bad?

How would you describe different smells?

Points to remember

  • Use the senses of sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell regularly in your novel to give it more colour and depth.
  • Continually look for fresh and different ways to describe how things look, sound, smell, feel, and taste.
  • The senses of sight and sound will most likely feature heavily in your novel. Don’t forget to include the other senses of touch, taste and smell too.

YOU SHOULD READ BEFORE YOU DIE: The Alchemist by Brazilian author Paulo Coelho. A novel about an Andalusian shepherd boy from Spain named Santiago who travels to the Egyptian desert to find a treasure buried near the Pyramids. Along the way, he encounters various people who impart their guidance and wisdom. He learns about listening to the voice of his heart, following his dreams, and recognising the omens that the universe brings to him. His journey is an inspirational story about fulfilling one’s dreams and finding meaning in the journey.

Try this out

Keep a notebook with you at all times and regularly practice describing what your senses are experiencing.

This is great for improving both your writing and your description skills, even if you only do this for five minutes a day.

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From beginner to author: what I’ve learned (PART 2)

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This blog follows my journey from inexperienced writer to self-published author (catch up on PART 1 of this blog here) and the stuff I’ve learned along the way.

Let’s start with drafting.

Don’t worry about the quality of writing while drafting

I was a lone wolf during my writing journey – I didn’t have any writing friends or talk to any writing groups. I didn’t show my work to anybody either, except when the work was finished and I sought an editor.

So I didn’t have anybody around to tell me to not worry about the quality of first drafts. They are traditionally awful, but I didn’t know this at the time.

I thought that if the writing on the first draft was crap, it meant that I was a bad writer.

I didn’t know that the first draft just functions as a skeleton for your novel, to just get your thoughts out of your head and onto the paper.

This is where networking with other writers would’ve come in handy and chilled me out a bit more.

People say to write about what you know. I’m here to tell you, no one wants to read that, cos you don’t know anything. So write about something you don’t know. And don’t be scared, ever.

– Toni Morrison

It’s just there to serve as a foundation for your novel and nothing more. You can always edit and improve your work as you go on.

There is so much room for self-doubt and insecurity with writing! Don’t add to it by bashing yourself over a badly written first draft.

Brainstorm to help with writer’s block

Recently I’ve discovered the technique of brainstorming, and how it can help writers suffering from writer’s block.

You can hit a block about anything to do with writing – plot, characters, world-building, you name it, and it can be crippling, time-wasting, and just plain frustrating.

I’ve tried brainstorming quite a few times now, and it’s helped a lot with my writing.

Just focus on the area you’re blocked on, set a timer for however long you want (be it five, ten, fifteen, or even twenty minutes), and type (or write) continuously on that subject, without worrying about grammar, punctuation and spelling and without any pausing or back-editing.

When you’re finished and you read over it, you may be pleasantly surprised at the ideas that come to you, ideas that were blocked before.

BEAUTIFUL WORD OF THE DAY: QUAIL. What you do when you shrink away from that which scares you, eg. I quailed at the thought of doing the job interview.

Procrastination is the writer’s worst enemy

Procrastination, I learned, can be a formidable enemy in writing as it can be deceptive.

We can be lulled into thinking that we have all the time in the world when in fact nothing could be farther than the truth!

The truth is, time is a precious resource. Try hard not to waste it, as you’ll never get it back.

It can rob a lot of precious work out of you and a lot of time as well. Grit your teeth and tackle that chore, even if it hurts (it probably will).

Procrastination and fear can not only stop you living your life, it can stop you from self-publishing your work.

Be highly conscious of how you’re spending your time, and if you’re wasting it, face your fears and do something about it.

Learn the art of balance when writing

It’s important to learn the art of balance in writing. At one stage, I got too obsessive about writing and realised I was boring others to death talking about it, so had to reign myself in.

Make sure you have a good life apart from writing. Writing is an isolating activity that needs to be balanced with social time.

If you need to socialise, go out and do it – don’t use writing as an excuse to not do it.

Don’t use writing as an excuse to not do ANYTHING you need to do. Self-deception gets you nowhere.

The importance of being consistent with writing

I’ve learned to have a consistent schedule in my writing journey. When I first started, my writing schedule was anything but consistent; it was all over the place.

Sometimes I’d leave my writing for days, weeks or even months before getting back to it again.

If I’d only trained myself to be more consistent, my novel would have gotten done so much faster.

I became more and more self-disciplined though as the years wore on, and often ended up writing on weekends and holidays.

Having said that, I wished I would’ve changed my writing schedule to two or three evenings a week after work (instead of writing on weekends) to get more precious social time in.

Sometimes it’s a constant juggling act.

On the positive side of things though, my writing experiences have really trained me to be more self-disciplined and persevering, and I’m grateful for that.

Define what success means to you with writing

What does success mean to you? The fact that it’s finished and you’ve self-published it? A few people are reading it? Getting pocket money? Being able to support yourself through your writing? Or something bigger again?

I used to think that success and the dollars was the B-all and end-all of writing, but now I think differently.

I think do what you most enjoy doing, whatever it is, and keep on doing it whether success comes or not, as our time here on Earth is too short for it to be any other way.

Use your precious time to do what stimulates you and fulfills you – and if that includes writing, well and good.

Keep at it, get it out there, and never stop trying to improve.

That’s what it’s all about, isn’t It? Using your time on Earth wisely.

YOU SHOULD READ BEFORE YOU DIE: FRANKENSTEIN, a sci-fi novel by Mary Shelley. A young scientist named Victor Frankenstein creates a living creature in a scientific experiment, only to realise that he’s created a monster. The novel originated from a light-hearted competition with friends. In 1816 Shelley was visiting friends in Switzerland when the group decided to hold a ghost-writing competition. The result was one of the most enduring horror stories of all time, as the the novel has had a significant influence on popular culture. The novel was published in 1818, when Shelley was just twenty years old.

Have a professional attitude with writing

Authors are now living in the most privileged age in history. We’re no longer reliant on publishing companies to get our work out there.

We can potentially achieve our dreams of success on our own, and countless authors are now doing so.

Just always keep your work to a professional standard. Revise, revise, revise, and after that, get it professionally edited. Do an outstanding book description and get an amazing book cover.

Important resources for creative writers

You can get editing and graphic design services from places like upwork.com and fiverr.com. You can also try 99designs for book covers.

Once you get a book cover, it’s a good idea to purchase an ISBN from your country, include a title and copyright page in your book and publish your book through a distributor (I recommend Draft2Digital).

You can market your book through social media and through other channels such as BookFunnel.

I’ve learned many things along my writing journey, and despite the ride being WAY too long, WAY too rough, and WAY too bumpy, my first novel finally got completed – The Darkness of Magic Book One.

Not ready for the writing journey to end though – not with all those crazy ideas still nagging in my head.

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P.S. NOTES FROM THE DESK:

WHAT I’M READING RIGHT NOW: so glad you asked. It’s Elon Musk by Walter Isaacson. The pace of Musk’s life is completely insane. How can someone lead us into the era of electric vehicles, private space exploration and artificial intelligence while still managing to have a love life and children on the side? And take over Twitter? And plan a colony on Mars? What I like about this book is that it also gets into the personal stuff, which makes it more engaging. If he manages to send people to Mars (and they survive), the legacy he’ll leave when he dies will truly be mind-blowing for mankind.

From beginner to author: what I’ve learned (PART 1)

General writing tips, writing tips /

I’ve dreamed of writing a book all my life, and eventually managed to achieve that dream by self-publishing my first novella.

I started out without a clue about what I was doing, and during my writing journey, I made every single mistake under the sun (and more).

But I’ve learned a lot from my mistakes, and want to share what I’ve learned with you.

Writing can be hard

I dreamed of writing a novel for years without actually doing anything about it, but the writing bug started scratching at me till I couldn’t stand it anymore, so at forty-one, I decided to try and have a go.

Being a beginner was a hard road to tread, and although I largely enjoyed it, I suffered along the way too.

Geez, did I struggle sometimes, and geez, did it take a long time to write!

It was often really hard, and going nowhere, and sometimes I kept going more out of sheer stubbornness than anything else.

And just to make it even harder, I didn’t listen to any advice about writing. I thought it would be better for me to learn for myself, and any outside advice would just negatively influence me.

Looking back on that attitude, how silly was that? I must’ve been temporarily insane!

A struggling and inexperienced writer not wanting help, with mountains of help out there available? What was I thinking?

Find a subject you care about and which you in your heart feel others should care about. It is this genuine caring, not your games with language, which will be the most compelling and seductive element in your style.

– Stephen King

Help for beginner writers

If you’re struggling, you should definitely seek help and listen to the advice of others. You obviously don’t always have to agree with everything they say; just take on what feels right for you, as you’ll find you’ll sometimes read conflicting advice.

‘On Writing’ by Stephen King is a great book for beginner authors to read, as it gives a lot of practical and sensible advice.

All novelists should get their finished work professionally edited and proofread by someone else, but it’s also a good idea to get other people to read your writing too, and give feedback on it.

Get feedback from writing groups, or listen to people whose opinions you trust. There’s also professional software available to help you.

At time of writing,Scrivener helps you to organise (and also format) your novel and ProWritingAid can give you many tools, techniques, and tips to help you as you’re writing.

YOU SHOULD READ BEFORE YOU DIE: The Great Gatsby by Scott Fitzgerald. Set in the Roaring Twenties, often called the Jazz Age. A millionaire named Jay Gatsby throws huge parties at his mansion in the hopes of luring his former love, Daisy Buchanan, back to him. He befriends a man named Nick, Daisy’s cousin, who arranges a meeting between the two. This leads to a rekindling of their romance, but things become complicated, as Daisy is married. This novel explores themes of love, wealth, class, and the destruction of the American Dream.

At time of writing Scrivener integrates with ProWritingAid, so they can be used together. Not compulsory to take on of course, but something to consider, especially if you’re struggling.

Nowadays we even have the benefit of artificial intelligence to help us out – like Sudowrite for example (at time of writing, an editing and writing software).

Get help with Pinterest

Several years after starting my novel, I swung from not wanting writing advice to reading every bit of advice I could get my hands on, and collecting that advice from all over the world – I discovered Pinterest!

I didn’t agree with every bit of advice I read, but some advice was invaluable. The blogs I read from Pinterest really expanded my knowledge and helped me in ways I could never have imagined – not only with my writing but with the marketing and publishing side too.

In my opinion, every writer should join Pinterest! It’s an absolutely indispensable tool – not only does it give you access to mountains of knowledge; it helps you with marketing and getting your books and blogs out in the world as well.

Learn more about Pinterest through the many YouTube tutorials out there.

Writers need to be readers

The age-old advice, ‘if you want to be a better writer, read a lot and write a lot’ is a must for writers. Taking on this advice while writing a fantasy novel, I decided to start reading fantasy (instead of just reading non-fiction all the time) and a whole new world opened up to me.

Since then, I’ve read a lot of wonderful fantasy novels and I really do agree that it helps you with your writing.

WEIRD WORD OF THE DAY: BLATHERSKITE. A person who talks for long periods of time without making much sense (hopefully not me in this blog!).

Plotters and pantsers

Now let’s talk about plotters and pantsers (some people are a mixture of both). Plotters are those who plan and outline the story, characters, and world before they start writing, and pantsers are those who ‘write by the seat of their pants’.

They write spontaneously, with no outline or planning before the story; they just write what comes to mind and see where their writing takes them (which one are you?).

I had a lot of trouble with plotting, so I tried to be a pantser, and all it did was make me more and more frustrated.

I just kept on writing and writing, with a story that was going nowhere, and after years of this, ended up with a 120,000-word document that made no sense whatsoever.

Frustrated but still determined to get a story one way or another, I assessed what I’d written and figured I could make a story out of about a third of it, so went with that, and slowly but surely, finally started getting somewhere.

It took years of trying to be a pantser to realize that at heart, I’m not a pantser at all; I’m more of a plotter, and the next novel is gonna be outlined a LOT, LOT more before I start writing again!

Outlining saves mountains and mountains of time, and I think all writers should do it – even pantsers would benefit from a rough outline before writing. Stay tuned for Part 2. of this blog next week.

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Writing characters using personality theory

characters, writing tips /
Write characters using personality theory

Crafting realistic, believable characters is vital to any story. The last thing you want is a cardboard cut-out, right? Or to model them on yourself. You want complex, unique, interesting characters with their own strengths and weaknesses.

But how do you do travel inside the mind of a character in writing, making them realistic, unique, and complex, without any psychology knowledge or training?

One notable way of developing a character is by adopting the personality theories of Myers Briggs.

This helps us develop different characters by allowing us to find out:

  • how different people perceive the world;
  • what energizes and motivates them; and
  • how they make decisions.

It all started with Carl Jung

Carl Jung was a Swiss psychologist and disciple of the famous father of psychoanalysis, Sigmund Freud. He realised that behavior could be anticipated if one understood the attitudes that people preferred.

In 1921 he published his theory in a book called Psychological Types. In this, he posited that there were three personality preferences scales and eight personality types.

Katharine Briggs and her daughter Isabel Briggs Myers adapted and expanded on the theoretical work done by Jung.

BEAUTIFUL WORD OF THE DAY: LASSITUDE. Meaning tiredness, weariness, indifference, can’t be bothered attitude.

They claimed, based on their many years of study, that there were four personality preference scales and sixteen personality types.

The four personality preference scales

Each scale is based on four different aspects of personality. These aspects are called dimensions because each one can be viewed as a continuum between opposite extremes. They show two personality types that are opposite in nature to one other.

The four personality preference scales are:

Extraversion ( E) and the opposite type, Introversion (I)
Sensing (S) and the opposite type, Intuition (N)
Thinking (T) and the opposite type, Feeling (F)
Judging (J) and the opposite type, Perceiving (P)

Now let’s examine how we can use this theory to develop our characters.

Decide: is your character an extravert (E) or an Introvert (I)?

This is where your energy is directed in the world. Extraverts are those who direct their energy to the outer world of people and things.

Introverts are those who direct their energy to their inner world of ideas and information. Introverts enjoy spending time alone and this is how they ‘recharge their batteries’.

Extraverts, on the other hand, get their batteries ‘charged up’ by being with other people.

Decide: is your character a sensor (S) or an intuitive (N)?

Sensors prefer facts and what can be seen, heard, felt, smelled, or tasted. They like the real and the concrete and are orientated towards the present.

Intuitives look for the meaning behind things. They value their imagination and trust their inspirations.

They are good at interpreting facts and gleaning insights and are orientated towards the future.

Decide: is your character a thinker (T) or a feeler (F)?

Thinkers prefer logic and like being objective and analytical in their decision making.

Feelers prefer values and relationships in decision-making. They consider the effects of their actions on others and value empathy and harmony. They consider all feelings to be valid, whether they are logical or not.

I’ve always had a duck personality. Calm above water, feet going crazy below.

– K. Flay

Decide: is your character a Judger (J) or a Perceiver (P)?

Judgers like structure and derive satisfaction from completing tasks. They set goals and ensure they finish them on time.

Perceivers prefer a less structured lifestyle. They prefer to leave their options open and ‘go with the flow’. They change their goals as it suits them.

As beforementioned, there are sixteen personality types from the Myers-Briggs personality theory with their own personality type codes. They are:

ISTJ, ISFJ, INFJ, INTJ
ISTP, ISFP, INFP, INTP
ESTP, ESFP, ENFP, ENTP
ESTJ, ESFJ, ENFJ, ENTJ

No personality type is better or worse than the other and each of them has their own particular strengths and weaknesses. You can read more about it here.

Establish your character’s personality type code

Decide which personality styles your character prefers till you get a personality type code for them. You do this by putting the letters together in the order shown by the scales.

For example, an extravert (E), intuitive (N) feeler (F) judger (J) would be the personality type code ENFJ.

As well as helping to develop characters, Myers-Briggs personality theory can be used to fuel conflict in your story.

For example, an extraverted, sensor character would be more concerned with their outer world, and realistic facts and happenings.

An introverted, intuitive character would be more wrapped up in their internal world and would value their inspiration, imagination, and hunches.

Here we have the potential for conflict. These two characters see and react to the world rather differently and might have trouble understanding and respecting one another.

YOU SHOULD READ BEFORE YOU DIE: Great Expectations by Charles Dickens. Set in Kent and London in the early to mid-nineteenth century and with a diverse array of colourful characters. The book follows the journey of Pip, a young orphan boy who gets provided with money from an anonymous patron, thus allowing him to live in London and become a gentleman.

Be sure to reflect the different ways your characters see and react to the world in your story’s dialogue.

In the 1940s Katharine and Isabel began developing the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) test to measure psychological types, and it has been refined over the years.

Google ‘MBTI test’ and you’ll find several sites on the web where you can take the test to see what personality type you are.

So what personality type code do you think you are? I suspect I’m an ENFP.

P.S. Notes from the desk

I’ve been reading blogs from the popular writing website, thecreativepenn.com all week. It’s a fantastic resource for writers, and Joanna Penn is such an inspiration!

I’ve also been enjoying a free course called ‘self-publishing success’. It’s been interesting and informative and best of all, free. You can check it out here if you’re interested.

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Writing characters using the ‘Big Five Model’

characters, writing tips /

Today I will talk about how you can use a widely accepted personality trait model in your writing to make your characters both interesting and believable.

A common challenge for writers is creating characters that are not only relatable but realistic, with multiple dimensions and strengths and weaknesses. How do you achieve such a daunting task, when you really don’t know what you’re doing? After all, you’re a writer, not a psychologist!

One great way is by adopting the Big Five Model (also known as the ‘Five-Factor Model’) of personality and applying this theory to your characters.

This model resulted from the contributions of many independent researchers and is a widely accepted personality theory today. It states that personality boils down to five core factors. They are:

Openness
Conscientiousness
Extraversion
Agreeableness
Neuroticism

Take the first letter from each word and remember this theory using the acronym OCEAN. Or alternatively, organise the factors this way:

Conscientiousness
Agreeableness
Neuroticism
Openness
Extraversion

And remember it from the acronym CANOE!

This model ranks personality traits on a continuum. It recognises that most people are not on the extreme ends of the spectrum but lie somewhere in between.

Weird word of the day: DIGERATI. Meaning someone adept at computer technology.

For example, most individuals would not be classified as purely extroverted or introverted – but would be somewhere in between these extremes. Therefore, individuals are ranked by where they fall on the scale.

Now let’s explore these five core traits one by one because once you know these, you can rank where you think your characters would be on the trait spectrum.

Openness

This is how open an individual is to having new experiences and trying new things.

High scorers are curious, imaginative, and creative. They are open to trying and experiencing new things. They value their independence and enjoy learning. They love variety and are unconventional.

Low scorers are more practical and conventional. They prefer routine and the familiar and are more uncomfortable with change. They are more traditional and unimaginative in their thinking.

Conscientiousness

This is how an individual approaches duties and tasks.

High scorers like structure and have good self-control, allowing them to complete tasks and achieve their goals. They tend to be organised, self-disciplined, self-directed, and detail-oriented.

Low scorers dislike too much structure. They have poor self-control and self-discipline, which may lead to difficulty in completing tasks and achieving their goals. They procrastinate and are disorganised, careless, impulsive, and spontaneous.

Extraversion

This is how outgoing and sociable a person is.

High scorers are outgoing and enthusiastic. They are energised by being around others and enjoy being the centre of attention.

Low scorers are more reserved and quiet. They dislike being the centre of attention and get tired by too much social interaction. They enjoy solitude and reflection.

There is no birth of consciousness without pain.

– Carl Jung

Agreeableness

Agreeableness includes an individual’s attitude towards others, and how they interact with them.

High scorers enjoy helping and complying. They are sympathetic and show empathy towards others. They are trusting and forgiving.

Low scorers are uncooperative and hostile. They are unsympathetic and don’t care how others feel. They are insulting, belittling, and demanding.

Neuroticism

This includes how an individual sees the world and also their propensity to experience negative emotions.

High scorers are prone to anxiety, stress, and worry. They may be shy, irritable, and moody. They may also experience excessive sadness and low self-esteem.

Low scorers are emotionally resilient and stable. They rarely feel depressed. They are calm and confident and don’t worry too much.

The Big Five Model was expanded in the early 2000s by a team of psychologists from Canada called Kibeom Lee and Michael Ashton. They developed the HEXACO model, redefining some aspects and adding a sixth trait, honesty-humility. You can read more about it in their book, The H Factor of Personality.

Honesty-humility

This measures individual differences in sincerity, fairness, greed avoidance, and modesty.

As you would expect, high scorers in honesty-humility are sincere, fair, modest, and non-greedy.

Low scorers are sly, deceitful, greedy, pretentious, hypocritical, and boastful.

Now go ahead and create a great villain. Just add a touch of low honesty-humility with a dash of low agreeableness and a sprinkle of high neuroticism. Voila! You have a truly repugnant character with an anxiety problem, ha ha.

YOU SHOULD READ BEFORE YOU DIE: The picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde (1854-1900). In Wilde’s only novel, an artist named Basil Hallward paints a portrait of a young man named Dorian Gray. Dorian wishes that the portrait would age instead of himself. He sells his soul for eternal youth and beauty, and consequently suffers the effect of his evil and debauchery.

Where would your characters lie on the trait spectrums? I hope you have a few rogues in your story to make things interesting!

Using the ‘Big Five Model’ is a great way to explore how your characters differ, and how this could potentially bring even more conflict to your novel.

For example, a character high in conscientiousness would most likely find a character low in conscientiousness highly irritating to work with.

Have fun playing around with this theory, and happy writing.

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Get your novel done fast

writing tips /
Write your novel fast, write your novel quickly, get novel done fast

In this blog I’ll show you a technique to get the first draft of your novel written as quickly as possible, and how to make the most efficient use of your writing time.

Common writing problems

You’re in despair because you’re totally out of ideas for your novel.

You can’t hit on any ideas for a plot, characters, setting or plot that you actually like, and it feels like you’re totally blocked.

You’ve started something that seems promising, only for it to lead nowhere because you’ve got no ideas for how it can be finished. So you throw it away and become more and more frustrated. Maybe take up bowling instead…

While we are postponing, life speeds by.

– Lucius Annaeus Seneca

You’ve managed to start your writing project, only to find that it’s going along at an unbearably slow pace.

You’re editing it as you go along, as the writing is disgusting and sloppy and needs fixing up. It’s really eating into your time.

You fit in writing when you can, but it’s so hard to find the time! Life is so busy…

The brain dump

In previous blogs I’ve mentioned the brain dump, and how it can benefit your writing.

The brain dump can really help you when you’re suffering from general writer’s block, but it can also help you quickly generate ideas for effective plot, setting, and characters.

And it can be used to write the first draft of your novel.

What’s the brain dump?

It’s basically where you set a timer for five, ten, or fifteen minutes and type (or write) as fast as you physically can whilst focusing on the subject of your choice, with no pausing or back-editing.

Beautiful word of the day: INVEIGLE (middle symbol pronounced as ‘vague’. It means to deceive or draw someone into something.

It’s effective because it bypasses the conscious mind and accesses the subconscious, where all the creativity and ideas lie.

Keep in mind

Just remember, in the baby stages of constructing a story, keep the following important points in mind.

Basically, a great story needs 2 things:

(1) Conflict; and

(2) Stakes.

Without conflict, you have no story, as everything is going just fine. There’s nothing for the characters to strive for, as nothing gets in the way of what anyone wants.

Bor-ring!

Without stakes, nobody loses anything if they don’t get what they want. Nothing is that big of a deal.

Double bor-ring!

Always include conflict and stakes if you want your story to be interesting. What does your character stand to lose if they don’t get what they want? The girl? Their dream job? Their very existence?

Another important point to remember is that you’ll also need to create REAL characters with both good points and bad for your story (not convenient cardboard cut-outs), so you’ll need to take some time after doing your draft to do some research on them.

The three-act structure

If you’re interested in adhering to a formal structure, try the ‘three-act’ – a popular structure for novelists.

On a basic level, there are 3 acts:

Act 1. Sets the stage for the story. Who is your protagonist, and what sort of life do they lead? What are his/her goals, and the obstacles to achieving those goals? Here there is an inciting incident (something happens and the character deals with it) which kicks the story into motion.

Act 2. The stakes for the character are raised and the conflict escalates.

Act 3. The story comes to a resolution – either the goal is achieved OR the protagonist has failed OR the story ends on a cliffhanger, where things could go either way.

Brain-dump your plot

With those important points out of the way, let’s get back to the subject of brain-dumping. Use this method every day to get an outline for your novel:

Set a timer for fifteen minutes and type continuously, as fast as you can.

Focus on the plot of your novel and write down every single idea that comes into your head. Don’t worry about the quality of your ideas or the quality of your writing and don’t pause or back-edit.

When you’ve finished your brain-dumping session, you’ll find yourself with a page or more of writing containing ideas to use or discard.

Go over your writing and cut and paste the ideas you can use for your plot into a separate Word document and discard the rest.

Organise your ideas in your Word document so that they make sense.

Keep going with sessions every day (fifteen minutes), brain dumping and cutting and pasting and organising your ideas until you’ve got a rough outline for your novel (a rough outline is fine).

When you’ve reached the stage where you’ve got a one or two-page plot for your novel written down, start working on the first draft.

Brain dump scenes mentioned in your plot

You already have a brief outline of various scenes from the plot; now armed with that information, it’s time to brain-dump those scenes, so get typing!

Keep going like this, brain dumping and typing scene after scene, till you reach the end of the first draft.

YOU MUST READ BEFORE YOU DIE: Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell. Set in the future, a society is under the control of a totalitarian power led by a ‘big brother’. No-one is free from being watched, and two characters, Winston Smith and Julie, perform an outrageous act of rebellion by falling in love.

In true brain-dump style, type the first draft continuously, without any pausing or back-editing.

The key is: don’t worry.

Don’t worry about going back over your work to tidy it up. Keep moving forward, and keep the momentum going. Don’t stop till that first draft is finished.

Something needs fixing, changing, or more research? Hit a plot hole? Make a note in red of the problem, and what needs to be done. You can always go back after the first draft is done and work on it later.

You must train yourself to be okay with bad writing when you’re in the drafting stage, for the whole purpose of the draft is to organise your thoughts and get a structure going. Resist the urge to criticize yourself and call yourself a bad writer, as your work will only improve with subsequent drafts, and the only one who has to see your work is you.

After you’ve completed your drafts, you will then have to research things like character profiles, character motivations, and setting.

Set yourself a word count goal

Set yourself a word count goal for every writing session, and stick to that goal. What can you realistically and comfortably manage for your writing session? Five hundred words a day? A thousand? You’ll find that even five hundred words, when done every day, will see you making real progress. A word count goal also gives you a better idea of when you can roughly expect to finish your novel.

Embrace voice dictation

Voice dictation is amazingly fast, as you can speak so much faster than you can type! Every writer should try it, as you can get a lot of work done in a short amount of time. How do you activate voice dictation once you’re in your Word document? Simply press the Windows icon on your keyboard + H.

Stick to a schedule and form a writing habit

Work out your writing days, whether every day or a few times a week. Schedule a time in your day when you can write and try to stick to it – whether it’s early in the morning, late at night, or some other time.

Do this consistently and before you know it you’ll form a writing habit, and your writing routine will become easier to adhere to.

Eliminate distractions. If turning off the music, your phone or the T.V. helps you concentrate better, do it.

Set a deadline to get the first draft done in three months (or less), so you’ve got something to aim for.

How many drafts does it take to finish a novel? The average is between three to six. It’s a good idea to save 2 copies of each draft done – one for your records (to keep on hand if you need to refer back to it) and one for altering, adding, and playing around with, to turn into the next draft.

And that’s how it’s done!

In three months or less, you’ll have the first draft of your novel completed, and what an achievement that is!

The trick is to be consistent – you’ll hardly make any progress without consistency.

And once you’ve completed your novel, know that you’ve done you’re very best.

You’ve shown you’re writing to various people and received valuable feedback from their opinions.

You’ve got your novel professionally edited AND formatted and you’ve got a brilliant front cover, and you’re now working on the marketing.

It’s post-novel time now – this is the time when you need to train yourself to let go, to resist the urge to make changes to your book because you think it’s not ‘good enough’.

It’s the time to remember to let go of the idea of perfection, as it’s like chasing the sunset – you’ll never get there!

Embrace imperfection with your first draft, keep plowing ahead, and happy writing!

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P.S. Are you the type of person that likes a challenge? NaNoWriMo is an organisation that issues a challenge every year: to write 50,000 words of a novel for November. They also have free writing resources, including a course where you can prep for the challenge.

How to build fantasy worlds

Fantasy writing, writing tips /

Today we’re gonna talk about how to build fantasy worlds.

Building an entire world from your imagination can be a daunting thing to take on as a writer – especially a new writer, but fear not, creative.

There’s a good, solid way to get those precious ideas flowing.

Something you may not have even considered before.

A way that can be just as good as drawing inspiration from reading fantasy books and watching fantasy movies.

Can you guess what it is? (Drumroll).

It’s observing the world you’re in right now. The real world, right in front of your very nose.

How the world of reality can help you with fantasy

Believe it or not, the world of reality can provide endless fodder for fantasy world-building.

The world of reality – that’s right, what you see and hear every day of your life.

Family.

Friends.

Strangers.

The people that surround you and talk to you every day.

The earth beneath your feet.

The sky above your head.

Your garden.

Your pets.

Your car.

Your job.

Even your own inner world of hopes, disappointments, triumphs, and fears can be used as fantasy inspiration.

An example of drawing from reality to create fantasy

Let’s provide an example of how you can draw from reality to help construct a fantasy story:

Say your boss is tall, has a deep, rich voice, and a strong, determined personality. You think he’d make a great alien villain in the novel you’re writing, so you change a few details about him in your head.

You change his skin to green, give him pointy ears, a bald head, and purple eyes, and an appropriate alien outfit, and voila! He is now that alien villain.

You’ve created an alien being from a basic human template by making just a few tweaks and changes. You’ve still drawn from reality; you’ve just twisted and altered it to suit your needs.

Stephen King has a book called ‘On Writing’ that I recommend. He warns against the dangers of writing fiction with a theme in mind, meaning if you lead with a theme and that becomes your crusade, you run the risk of turning your story into a sermon.

Mark de Castrique

How J.K. Rowling drew on her own life to create fantasy

J.K. Rowling came up with the idea of a boy attending a wizardry school whilst doing nothing but sitting on a train, and the Harry Potter series was born.

Harry Potter’s school, despite being magical, still has several similarities to a normal school. The school still has its fair share of bullies, and the kids play competitive sports.

She also drew on her own inner life for her stories.

After graduating from university, she saw herself as a failure and seriously thought about killing herself. Her marriage had failed and she was unemployed, with a dependent child to look after.

Her depression is turned into a character

She was diagnosed with clinical depression, and this later became the inspiration behind the soul-sucking characters known as the Dementors.

Rowling uses the world around her and lets her imagination run wild, tweaking, twisting, and playing around with reality, producing powerful and effective writing. 

Her novels contain everyday people and things, but they’re often presented in bizarre and unusual ways.

Like cats that come in every colour, stairs that move, cars that fly, and people that live in paintings. 

And ghosts, instead of being subtle and mysterious, actually having conversations with humans.

How J.R.R. Tolkien tweaked reality to create fantasy

Let’s use the writing of J.R.R. Tolkien as another example. He invented the creatures known as hobbits.

They were basically humans, with a few fantasy changes thrown in.

They were very short, like children, had very hairy, tough feet, and liked to live in holes in the ground, in round-shaped dwellings.

What part of reality can you tweak and change to suit your fantasy story? What magical ingredients can you add? The possibilities are enormous when you think about it.

Fantasy has a dark side to it. It also has a light hemisphere – the power of the human imagination to keep going, to imagine a better tomorrow.

Tim O’Brien

You don’t even have to be inspired by the present time if that doesn’t float your boat.

You can be inspired by the many time periods and cultures of history and add your own fantasy elements to it. Do some research and see what you can come up with.

Don’t forget to include solid rules in your world-building. All worlds, no matter how primitive, have systems of government and laws. Check out this list of forms of government in Wikipedia for ideas.

Magic is a big component of fantasy, and this too has to have rules to be believable. You might like to check out my other article – how to create magical systems for more advice on creating magical laws.

What magical tweaks and twists can you add to reality?

Can you make changes to your chosen subject’s appearance to make them more fantasy-like, such as giving them different coloured eyes?

What powers can you give to your characters?

To your world?

Can you add a few monsters as well?

Go wild with your ideas and have fun!

The earth and its people are your templates when building a fantasy world, and you don’t have to ‘invent the wheel’, just play around with what’s already around you.

WORD OF THE DAY: PEJORIST. Meaning a person who thinks the world is getting worse, not better.

Have a great week, and happy writing.

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