HELPFUL WRITING

HINTS

1. Don't use adverbs that end in -ly. That is a huge no-no these days. (Yup. It will feel like you're walking on one foot.)

2. End a quote with simply "he said", "she said" NOT with "said she", "he quipped", or any other effort to change "he said". Remember, the word "said" always comes last. ( One of your biggest jobs as a writer is to know what editors want RIGHT NOW, and I’m giving you up-to-date information on

their current pleasure.)

3. Work descriptions into the story, such as, “I love your blue eyes," or "She envied his naturally curly hair.” 

4. Internal dialogue (thoughts) should always be in italics. Only use “he said” one time. After that the reader will know they are his thoughts.

5. Use your speal chacker! Check your punctuation,

6. To edit - let your work lay for two days until it gets cold.

7. Can’t think of a story? Use the DeBowen method: First, think of one exciting central scene. Then think of a good ending, and twist it. Lastly, develop the beginning.

8. Never begin a story with the weather. Your first line should be a real eye-catcher: “Bruce entered the room carrying a bloody knife.”

9. For short stories, third person, past tense is what editors like most now.

Cut every word that doesn't point to a necessary fact in the story.  Good luck!

WRITING  RIGHTS

From Betsy's literary page

http://www.juliekcohen.

com/rights.html

This is a list of the Rights owned by an Author. Each of these Rights can be offered for sale together or separately. When negotiating with an Agent or Publisher or when Self Publishing your work you must protect these rights.

REJECTION LETTERS

Rejection slips give writers a hard time. After all, our written words are our babies, and how dare anyone criticize them or try to change them! Right? Wrong. That is a beginner's point of view (and, of course, you may be a beginner). But you will be light years ahead when you can accept and actually use constructive criticism to your advantage.

One of the best ways to do this is to join a writing club. There are dozens of them, but the one I like the best is Writing.com. You have the opportunity to publish your stories on site and let other writers read them. They will rate your article from one to five stars. Then it’s your turn to visit their port to read and rate their articles.

I will admit that there is a very small percentile of nasty people who take pleasure in jabbing newbies, and one such encounter is enough to cripple you for a long time, but always report such things to the Story Master. He deals with riff-raff appropriately.

As an example, I had one story that consistently drew a five-star rating and one day a woman rated it with one star and wrote this: “If you really want to be a good writer, you need to read good authors so you’ll know what good writing is. I rated your story one star, and I would have rated it less if I could have, but I admit I only read the first paragraph.”

Whoa! Talk about someone running over you with cleat shoes! I felt like a squished woolly worm. But that was a valuable lesson. I learned to find nuggests of wisdom in even the nastiest people. (I also learned to write snappy first paragraphs!)

After that, I held my defenses up for a long time, but the day came when I grew up. I laid my feelings aside and began to heed all my critiques. From that day on, I used 95% of the critiques I received. My rating soared, and I began to sell a lot more.

Dealing with rejection is a part of every writer’s life. Don’t let family members or friends (who are not published writers) read your work. They don’t know what they’re talking about, but they will try to teach you how to write. It is truly easier to learn from strangers.

When you try to sell your stories or articles, you are sure to receive rejection slips, but save them. Some day you will put them into the album that holds your published clippings.

CONVENIENT

PAYMENT  PLAN

NOW  OFFERED

Creative Writing Institute now offers a convenient payment plan. Any Tutored class. Just four weekly payments of $50 each, with NO additional fees (or, you still have the option to pay in full). Click HERE to take advantage of this outstanding sale. Please note - payments will NOT be automatically deducted and you do not have to have PayPal. Just follow the prompts.

Don't make yourself wait another minute. Writing education is not a luxury. For writers, it is an absolute necessity.

Register me now

TRANSITION SENTENCES CAN BE A PAIN

Transition sentences can be a pain, especially when you are trying to join two different subject together. But, this is a learned skill that is not hard to master.

When you hop from one topic to another without a transition sentence, you "jar" your reader. Although sentence transitions may be the last line in a paragraph, they are more commonly used as the first line in a new paragraph. They are like a bridge, connecting one idea to another.

Warted characters are memorable. The warts help the reader identify the characters in their minds.

Huh? What happened to the discussion on transition sentences? Were you trying to figure that out? If so, now you know how a reader feels when you don't make a smooth transition. But we could relate warted characters to transition sentences like this: 

"While sentence transitions may be the last line in a paragraph, they are more commonly used as the first line in a new paragraph. They are like a bridge, connecting one idea to another.

[transition sentence]

We could even compare sentence transitions to 'warts' on characters. Just as a 'wart' will blend reader's minds with the character's identification, transition sentences will blend readers minds to the change of topics."  

See? That wasn't so hard. Put a little of the paragraph above and a little of the paragraph below into one sentence. That is your transition!   

      Dear Darla

  Send Writing Questions to:

        darla@cwinst.com

Dear Darla

Rejection slips make me cry. I had three this week. I feel like my writing is worthless. What am I doing wrong?  Sierra

Dear Sierra

Did you know that the new vampire series by Stephanie Meyer was sent to 15 editors? Nine rejected it, five didn't reply at all, and ONE wanted to talk to her. Later, it hit the top ten list in New York. And that's how it goes, honey.

You may need a class in short story or article writing to help you find your problems. Also, you can submit 1,000 words for a free evaluation. Write it in past tense, third person and send it to our CEO, Ms. Deb, deborahowen@cwinst.com. She will tell you exactly where your problems are.

Send your question to:

darla@cwinst.com

TRANSITION 

WORDS to USE

Good transition words are: further, besides, in addition to, instead of, specifically, to sum up, although, beyond, close, for instance, again, moreover, accordingly, as a result, during, to illustrate, finally, on the contrary, to compare, consequently, if, then, meanwhile, but, nevertheless, therefore, subsequently, otherwise, so, formerly.

Deb's Corner

The computer ate my old picture, so this will have to do for now. I loved resizing it. Now I don't look so fat!

In reflecting on how I got where I am today, I see that every step, no matter how small at the time, played a huge part in it. There were lots of tears and bitter disappointments, but if not for them, I wouldn't be here with you now - and I love being here with you. It is my choice. Not my job.

So, as you go through the reshaping of life, don't fight it. The pain means you are growing.

Writer's Prayer

Lord, bless my efforts to use the gifts that you have endowed me with. Give me wisdom. Show me how to craft the best phrases. Teach my willing heart. And when I know I have written well, Lord, remind me that I didn't do it by myself.