At The Write Practice, we publish a new article each day designed to help writers tackle one part of their writing journey, from generating ideas to grammar to writing and publishing your first book. Each article has a short practice exercise at the end to help you immediately put your learning to use.
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How long does it take to write a book? Writing the first draft of a book is a grueling, intimidating process. But it doesn’t have to be a slow process.
Ask one hundred writers how long it takes them to write their first drafts and you’ll get one hundred different answers. There is no perfect length of time to spend on a first draft.
You will find, though, that the writers whose answer is closer to a couple of months than to a couple of years are most likely more successful.
How do you tell a story? Not how do you construct a story, or how do you structure and plot a story? How do you tell a story?
When I think about storytelling at its most basic, I think about our earliest ancestors, sitting around a campfire, sharing stories about their lives, the adventures they’ve been part of, and the history of their people.
This is what narrative devices are about, how you tell the story, and if you’re a writer, the method and perspective of your storytelling is something you must consider.
In this article, we’re going to talk about narrative devices, what they are, the different types found in the best books, plays, films, and serials, and how to use them to tell a powerful story.
Fantasy as a genre includes a wide range of characters, quests, mythical creatures, and fantasy worlds. I love to escape everyday life in fantasy stories where there’s powerful magic coupled with compelling storytelling.
Here are twenty fantasy short story ideas to help you create your own!
The best way to immerse your readers in your fantasy story is through world-building, which can be an arduous and intimidating process. After all, to create an entire world is no easy task.
But what if you don’t want to spend a lot of time world-building? The key lies in lore. Lore is defined as “a body of traditions and knowledge on a subject or held by a particular group, typically passed from person to person by word of mouth.”
Today, we’ll look at the difference between polysyndeton vs asyndeton, share some examples, and explain how and when to use them both in your writing. Let’s get started!
One thing writers have told me consistently is that knowing story structure and the major plot points—or points of a story—makes writing great stories easier. But what are the main points of a story? How can you get them into your books?
I’ve personally found story structure to be incredibly helpful, not just in writing novels and screenplays, but also in memoir and even, sometimes, writing nonfiction books.
In this guide, we’re going to talk about the basic points of a story and how to use story structure to make your writing easier and more effective. I’ll share the six major plot points and talk about a few other points you might look for when writing a book that will give you a general roadmap to writing your story.
We all long for independence. It’s hard-wired into the human spirit.
Perhaps this is because we all know what it feels like to be trapped. Have your circumstances ever penned you in? Have you ever been forced to look to something or someone else for sustenance, when you would rather be standing on your own feet?
That’s what today’s writing prompt is all about.
Fall is in full swing here in the United States. If you are looking for some inspiration to take you through the month, check out our new list of October writing prompts!
First person and third person—you’ve been there, done that. But what about writing in second person? It may seem strange, unconventional, or confining, but playing with point of view is one way to transform a story.
Point of view affects a story in that it allows readers to gain a very specific perspective. The second person is no different. Here are three reasons why you should try writing in second person:
Getting an audiobook produced for your book opens up a whole new group of readers. In fact, about 26 percent of readers only listen to audiobooks, according a study done by the Library Journal. Which means, if you don’t have an audiobook, you’re losing readers. But how do you get an audiobook produced, and how do you choose the best audiobook narrator for your book?