Howdy all! I am embarking on a new novel project and am interested in reading some other books to think about the craft of flashback. The structure I want to pursue is that the fictive present takes place over the course of one day, but you learn about the character's past gradually as well. I want to keep the flashbacks rooted in the present (these things come up in the narrator's interiority because of the events around him) rather than having separate timelines. Any books that do something like this, or play well with memory?

I’m writing a character who was subjected to sexual abuse and after she escapes without money and warrants out for her arrest is coerced into prostitution and drugs. I have read advice on how to write a character who has experienced sexual trauma and a tiny bit on how to write about drug addiction but I haven’t found anything about how to write about how drugs, criminal convictions, sexual trauma or poverty play into each other or the mindset of someone going through those things. Any advice is welcome.

Everyone tells you to write "good" but what the hell does that mean? Clear? Concise? Funny? Sad? It's not possible to understand good writing - it's too vague; it's not actionable. But there is obviously good and bad writing, so how do we learn how to write well and not crap that no one -not even your own mother- would want to read? We'll learn by comparing two pieces of writing that are good and bad. (And while this example is more academic, it's still meaningful even if you're a fiction writer: good writing is good writing.)

Read this:

Then, in October 2006, a company named Providence Service Corporation bought out Maximus, acquiring all of the assets of the correctional services business affiliated with Maximus (Providence Service Corporation, 2006). Providence Service Corporation noted that its annual revenue was estimated to be around $8 million, and the chief executive officer for that company, when commenting on the acquisition of Maximus, stated that “this acquisition further expands our human services delivery platform and will enable us to introduce probation services in those states where we operate that have privatized probation,” adding... [and it continues on]

Is this a good paragraph? Do you understand the subject? Who's doing what? Maybe. Do you know why it's important? No. And another question, is it a good read? Hell no. When I read through this, I struggle. Not because the content and depth of it is difficult, but because it's just simply hard to say. "Providence Service Corporation," "Providence Service Corporation," "Providence Service Corporation." This garbage writer wrote the full name of the corporation 3 times. Is this an easy name to say out loud? No, it's a mouthful. Try saying it out loud.

He also wrote Maximus twice in the same (first) sentence. Why??? And notice how long and unwieldy that final sentence is. It still doesn't end by the end of the quote. Bad writing. Boring to read without value or merit.

Now read this:

If the US constitution bans unreasonable searches and seizures, then how do investigators get necessary information from offenders? The key word is “unreasonable” searches and seizures. Police therefore can make invasions into one's privacy if it's deemed reasonable. Reasonableness was defined as assessing the degree to which it intrudes on an individual's privacy in contrast to the promotion of legitimate governmental interest (United States v. Knights 2001). By definition, reasonableness is elastic (Sussex Land & LiveStock Co. v. Midwest Refining Co., 1923), not extreme nor arbitrary, capricious or confiscatory (Public Service Comm’n v. Havemeyer, 1936), and that it must be fair, proper, and just reasoned. Reasonableness means a justification that is sensible and rational, and therefore such a justification allows police to search and seize.

Is this a good paragraph? Do you understand the subject, why it matters, and what should you get from it? Yes. If you're not a lawyer or interested in police work, this probably isn't interesting. But do you understand it. It's clearly structured, starting with the subject and defines the problem: how do investigators get evidence if the constitution ban unreasonable searches and seizures. It's far from a perfect paragraph, but it's much more worthwhile that the first.

Are there any wasted words? Words that you can take out that don't change the content and fundamental meaning of the text? There's a lot less than the first. Are the sentences readable, more coherent, varied and interesting than the first? Yes.

Now, after you've compared and contrasted, take the bad paragraph and make it good. Make it clear, concise, and precise. Cut out all the crap and get to the point.

Here's what my student wrote:

In October 2006, Providence Service Corporation (PSC) bought out Maximus. PSC estimated its annual value at $8 million, and the CEO stated that the acquisition of Maximus “further expands our human services delivery platform and will enable us to introduce probation services in those states where we operate that have privatized probation”, adding,

A lot better. It got the same point across while also cutting out the crap. But here's what I wrote:

PSC’s annual revenue was ~$8 million, and the acquisition of Maximus, as its CEO said, expanded their probation services into states with privatized probation.

This gets the same idea across and it saves you, the reader, a whole lot of time and effort.

Get to the fucking point. You're not Faulkner - most of you don't understand basic grammar. Wordy, long sentences can be beautiful only once you know how to write clear, concise, and precise sentences first. Get to the point then add the flair.

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Now, your job as an aspiring (good) writer: take a paragraph (fiction, academic, business) that you absolutely hate and compare to one that you love. Write it in the comments for everyone to see. Then see if you can make the bad paragraph better

Like for example I’m writing a story about a character getting out of his father’s shadow and control, and also liberating himself from other people around him. So this relationship between father and son is not the main plot but is a very important subplot. His father is abusive, manipulative and controlling I want to make all these points clear in the scenes between them. Show how their relationship is and also demonstrate how it changes and how it concludes. So my question is how many scenes to make these points clear ? I know I can make one whole scene to show how the relationship goes, another between them with how it has changed and one final between how it ends, but don’t want to make it seem shallow or just superficial. Like I think three scenes between them wouldn’t be enough for the reader to actually care about this guy getting out of his abuse and control. And make us desire a cathartic moment

Short version:

-Main character is a serial killer

-He murders a dozen of random people in various cities to cover up a single murder of someone he knew

-After every murder he hides in the local sewage system for 2-3 days

-All murders are commited with the same knife, with various degrees of damage (some victims were stabed in the neck, while others were torn apart)

-Never stays in one place, always on the move

Now I need to find a way to get him caught, he can't be caught during a murder or fleeing the scene. Any other method will do.

I've had a long and successful career in marketing...was an advertising copywriter for a decade, worked in marketing for another 15 years and eventually wrote a well regarded non-fiction business book.

After nearly 30 years I've come to the realization that fiction is where it's at for me and am looking forward to a second career writing a book. I do, however, feel like I need a reset and something to refocus me on this new path. I've been poking around at MFA's, but everyone attending seems awfully young and I'm not entirely sure if they're relevant for me (maybe they are and my skepticism is unjustified?)

Any ideas about a good MFA program that would work in a case like mine?

Really appreciate any thoughts!

How does one choose a pen name?

I am currently almost done with one book and realized I have to figure out what name to choose when publishing it. Are their any legal issues I need to worry about (besides copy right)?

How do I come up with ideas for one (I can write a book but not decide on a name… yes I know that sounds bad lol)?

Any other ideas, thoughts, or things I should know when coming up with a pen name would be greatly appreciated!

Hi all.

I’m a new aspiring author who’s been working on a lengthy fantasy series for around eight years now. The premise of the story is devastating, in which the characters must trek through many harrowing stages to defeat the big bad and save the entire universe.

The series is currently sat at ten books long, the first acting as a standalone novel months before the deadly prophecy that takes the characters nine books to complete, and the final book is split into two parts.

The characters are currently sat at fourteen, each with their own unique backstory, arcs and goals, whilst also having a line of the prophecy dedicated to them.

I have tried narrowing the book/character length to 6/7 respectively, however I really just don’t think it will do the series justice. The plan is to write the ten book series and the final word be the end of that story for good.

Of course, there is a main character who will be the bulk of the story, yet I also wish to incorporate the others to fulfil the time where the protagonist would not be present, such as having two characters bond or when the protagonist is split from them, and exploring different stories and obstacles that are not essential to the protagonist such as gender, religion and sexuality.

I have written, edited and polished the first book as it is the one I will query with, naming the chapters after the characters, and it is to be sent off to my editor for proof read next week before sending off the script.

My question is; Would you read a fantasy series ten books long? Would you be interested in fourteen compelling character and their storylines throughout this series?

If yes, amazing!

If not, I will make a minor edit to my manuscript before sending it off and only include the main protagonist.

I know a lot of people will say ‘you should do what you want to do. It’s your story. write it the way you want to.’ And I appreciate that, however I am looking for your own opinion and I am open to the majority vote.

As a side note: If anyone would like to beta read the first chapters of the manuscript, I’d be delighted to send you a link.

(also, yes, the query mentions that the novel is a standalone that can be sold as a series if need be.)

Thank you for your time :)

I'm in a psychiatry atm and I've started to write things. English isn't my main language so I'm kinda struggling to find the right words. I've been writing a poem and wanted to ask for opinions and criticism here? It goes like this:

I want to say hello, I want to say goodbye I want to live but I also want to die I want to be alone but I want to be with you I want so many things that I just can't do

I want to scream, I want to feel the pain I want to feel the sun but I just can feel the rain I show them my smile and I hide my tears I talk about strengths but not about fears

I take my pills and I drink my wine So if anyone asks I can say I'm fine I want to talk but my mind is a mess So I stay silent and let people guess.

That's it, what y'all think?

As someone who often jumps between my computer, laptop, phone, tablet, etc, for my writing, I've been using google docs for it's cloud service. However on google docs i've noticed it's a lot harder to track just how much i'm writing and even if i write five pages, it ends up feeling like i've done nothing.

So I wanted to find an alternative that would have slightly different UI with a better focus on the word-count and pages but none have cloud support, and the ones that do are paid.

Anyone got any apps/websites they use? I was going to try and set up a network on my tablet as it's always on but an app with cloud storage would be easier. Thanks!

Obviously it's not a good idea to surround a story with a lot of tropes (like fandom/fanfic ones). I use tropes as a foundation but sometimes if they have something infuriating then I subvert them majority of the time. Like love corners/"triangles", I have a minor antagonist who is set up in a way I'm sure people will interpret with the MC and her LI but they only have eyes for each other.

I do utilize some goofier ones as plot points but I'm having trouble with giving them realism and logic (I'm neurodivergent so I'm already struggling to create dimensionality with my characters)

→ For example, my first character's main relationship with her LI + lifestyle is based on a double identity. If you watched Hannah Montana you understand what I'm getting at. I think one could have some suspension of belief if one could understand her motivations for doing so: for Hannah, she wants a normal high school life, which is what my main character wants. The MC suddenly became famous overnight and had paparazzi chasing her, so she becomes really anxious at being seen in public doing regular things. She's also a young teen so her "irrational" line of thinking makes perfect sense to her (people say that teens would do stupid things cuz they're immature or their brain isn't developed)

I rounded it out a bit more because I want her thoughts to be rational/convincing enough to other characters too. Obviously in the long run her plan will never work, and she has had her friends saying it's a dumb idea. But hey, it fooled a lot of people!

This world is also a fantasy world, so while I'm sure this Hannah Montana stuff would never work in real life, I thought it would definitely work in a fantasy world. Maybe wearing disguises is black magic lol (metaphorically)

I'm just struggling to add dimensionality because it seems to be a recurring thing when I write and I don't want my story to be vapid.

(Face to face)

Your bangs look beautiful, like a curtain. I just want to… peak behind

(Lifts up my hand, brushes your bangs aside and through your hair as we both lean in)

I’m in the process of briefly outlining a thriller novel, and it’s got a ton of plot twists. I’m wondering if that’s okay. I sometimes feel like I’m overdoing it, it’s a bit tough to answer but I just need an idea of how much will be too much?

Hey y’all! I am working on a piece that involves magical-ish books, diaries and/or libraries. I’m looking for some books to read for inspiration, and was hoping to crowd source some ideas.

A few titles that immediately jump to mind are: • Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr (one book connects three different plot lines, all relating to libraries)

• Stories of Eva Luna by Isabel Allende (technically doesn’t include a book, but her stories ultimately impact reality)

• The Book of Form and Emptiness by Ruth Ozeki (self explanatory)

• Harry Potter - Half Blood Prince (Tom Riddle’s diary is so cool!)

If y’all have any other thoughts or suggestions, I’d appreciate it!

i’m not sure if it’s because i’ve reread it so many times that i’m just processing it a lot quicker, or if my pacing is just too fast and i really don’t know how to tell. is this common? how to tell?

For some context, I've written a soon-to-be published novella which is very much in the literary fiction vein. While I have some aspirations to continue to write literary fiction, I also have a passion for fantasy books and I have made a ton of progress on a fantasy novel that I would love to also get traditionally published one day.

However, I keep going back and forth on whether or not to use a pen name for my future fantasy submissions. In my mind it will allow the work to live in distinct, discrete worlds, and maybe would make more sense to publishing/marketing folks, as well as future readers.

So as I mull that over, I thought I'd ask: does anyone here have experience publishing work (through a traditional publisher specifically) under a pen name? If so, what was the submission process like? Do you submit under your own name, and if accepted, let the publisher know you intend to use a pen name..? How did you find the process?

(Hopefully) Probably above average, but I was wondering how much. If you‘re bi-/multilingual, does your score vary?

Mine:

- German: around 420 cpm/66 wpm

- English: around 360 cpm/62 wpm

- Typewriter (German): around 30-40 wpm

An example of this is America the motion picture on Netflix where it’s back in the 1700’s but there’s funny examples of modern day things like raves,rap music,and vehicles like jet skis where that stuff definitely wasn’t invented back then but is still in that story during that time period. I’m asking this because I’m thinking up a dnd world where there’s examples of that sort of stuff,like the party starts in a Wendy’s basically before goblins start to raid the town.

What if I create a character based off someone with EXTREME resemblance. How they dress, act, sound, talk, except they're their own original character, with a different name, that has nothing to do with them past their traits. If I then portray them in disgusting scenarios (Murdering somebody, committing crimes of war, etc.) can I get in trouble?

I've been writing for a content mill and am looking to write some stuff that'll actually have my name out to it.

Anyone here written for an outlets that focus on history? That's my passion but I'm not an academic, so a proper journal is out of the question.

I've got a list of physical magazines I've contacted, and on the lookout for more.

Hey all,

I am trying to make a career in creative writing, and I am really struggling deeply with building an audience. It's hard to get heard, be seen, and get attention.

How do you recommend ways in which we can do this? I've realized now, as I've gotten older, that this really is what will make or break your writing career: the amount of exposure one gets because exposure really is "brand."

Thank you.

Whenever I write, my chapters just feel too short. When I am thinking of what is going to happen in the chapter, it seems longer in my head. My prologue is one singular page, when I imagined it as 3-4.

Ive been having writers block for a few months now. And while I have the entire story mostly planned out, when it comes to actually writing it, I'm completely stumped.

I remember when this story of mine was just a pet project I did for fun. I had this idea in my head and I just had fun writing out the story the way I would of told it to myself in my own head. This was all before I got into studying the art of writing and all the technicalities and nuances that come with it.

After studying the craft, I've noticed my ability to write has actually decreased. It feels like Im limiting myself into writing in a way that goes against how I would write things. I see these tips and pieces of advice on how you should write scenes and such but when I try to emulate that, I just end up writing at a snails pace. On many days I'd end up writing less than 500 words. But yet, if I were to write anything else whether it be an essay for a school project or a reddit post such as this one, the words come easily. I could go on and on about whatever and I'd have no issue writing about it.

So to all my fellow writers, have any of you experienced this? What have you done to overcome it? Do you obsess over your prose just like I do to the point it limits your ability to storytell in a way that comes natural?

I have a lot of story ideas and have trouble focusing on one. I’ll pick one, get to plotting and writing, and then all of a sudden one of my other stories will become more compelling and I’ll either switch to working on that one or end up not writing at all bc the original story I was working on doesn’t appeal to me anymore.

How do y'all choose between your stories/story ideas?

Edit: Thanks for all the replies! Since it seems discipline fs the main issue, I think I'll just pick my simplest story isea and keep writing until i'm done. Even if i'm not happy with he story, hopefully just having something I completed will help me move past this mental black.

So, imagine. You've finished the first draft of your story (whatever that is). What do you do next?

Do you wait and let it simmer for a while? Do you instantly re-read it? Or go into re-writing? Or editing instead? Do you write something else for a while? Take the time to read more than usual? What is your personal process after the first draft?

Just finished mine, and I'm taking Stephen King's advice from On Writing and leaving it for a few weeks now, but I'm curious what others do!

I think a lot about what the perfect world would look like or what things would be if magically humanity decided we were above the issues that plague us now and began unilaterally cooperating.

I often think I’d love to read a book in a setting like that, but when I think about how conflict is what drives a plot and develops a character, I realize a Utopian setting would probably be really boring. Are there any books that prove me wrong here or advice or thoughts on this topic you have?

So I’m trying to write a protagonist who is a complete apathetic, disrespectful, jerk. But I’m worried people will absolutely hate him before I get to his character arc. I’m also concerned that I’ll execute it wrong and such. What do y’all think

If you go with the standard narrative arc of Exposition => Conflict => Rising Action => Climax => Falling Action => Resolution, I feel like I am pretty good at the first couple of parts – within my genre I can easily come up with dozens of different characters and inciting incidents. Where I struggle is making a solid climax to a story. Part of it is that I grow very attached to my characters, and I naturally shy away from putting them in those “all is lost” situations, but a bigger part is that my brain doesn’t construct those situations. My default is problem solving, and so I tend to keep them out of harms way as I write (pantser).

Is anyone aware of any resources that can help me with those parts that I’m weak in, and help train my brain to think in those new ways?

My wife has written a book. Several actually. She queried and queried, and one of the books finally caught an agent's attention. The agent wanted a major rewrite as part of taking my wife on as a client. My wife did the rewrite and waited for feedback for 4 weeks. Waiting drove her crazy, but she was so excited. Then her agent missed the deadline for feedback that her agent initially provided. Then she missed the next. Until 6 weeks in total had passed. This frustrated my wife.

When my wife finally got the feedback, there were some good notes and lots of notes hinting at another major revision. My wife is very much a words of affirmation person, so the negative feedback really got to her. At first she was heartbroken. Now she is angry. She keeps telling me that she is going to ignore the majority of the negative comments and only implement small changes. She will then tell her agent that she's not willing to make any more big changes.

I'm worried that my wife is sabatoging her writing career before it begins by being so obstinate to feedback. I've been supportive, and been open to whatever direction she wants to take, but feedback is a necessary part of any professional career, and I believe that most of the feedback is at least worth considering after reading through it. I want to help her realize her dreams of being an author, but I'm worried she won't get there if she isn't able to accept the bad feedback and build off of it.

How do I best help her emotionally and professionally?

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