The Write Practice: The Online Writing Workbook

Why Is Dialogue Important? 7 Roles Dialogue Plays in a Story

If you’re looking for a surefire way to improve your story, you’ll be happy to know there’s a fast-acting method at your disposal. According to writing expert James Scott Bell, it’s “the fastest way to improve any manuscript.”

I’m talking about dialogue.

But here’s the thing—dialogue is more than just the words you put in your characters’ mouths. On screen and stage, it’s the actor’s job to take his lines and infuse them with meaning, expression, emotion, and so on. On the page, that’s your job.

7 Keys to Write the Perfect First Line of a Novel

by Joe Bunting | 373 Comments

Earlier this week, I read “Poppies,” a short story by Ulrica Hume, one of our authors on Story Cartel. Initially, I had only planned on skimming a few pages, but the first line hooked me. Before long, I was finishing the last page.

Great first lines have that power, the power to entice your reader enough that it would be unthinkable to set the book down. How, then, do you write the perfect first line?

Em Dash Shortcut: What Is an Em Dash and How Do You Use It?

by Liz Bureman | 48 Comments

An em dash is a versatile punctuation mark that looks like an extended dash. It is used to break up a longer sentence, usually to insert a phrase into the middle or end of a sentence, to add modification phrases to a list, and sometimes to show a break in narration or conversation. Let’s look at when to use an em dash, and learn the keyboard shortcuts to make them!

How to Write a Good First Chapter: A Checklist

by Joe Bunting | 2 Comments

For the writer, there’s nothing harder than writing the first chapter and final chapter of a book. It is here that all of your perfectionism rears its ugly head calling for a full halt to your progress.

I’ve written and rewritten my first chapter dozens of times, and I’m not alone. Most writers struggle figuring out how to start their novel, and it makes sense. Your first chapter can make or break your book: with readers, agents, and publishers.

So then how do you do it? How do you write a good first chapter? In this post, I’m going to walk you through the ten things you need to accomplish in your first chapter, and give you a checklist that you can use in your novel.

Book Writing Software (2024): Top 10 for Writers

by Joe Bunting | 23 Comments

Writing a book is hard. I’ve written seven books and at some point during each one I had the thought, “There has to be a tool, a piece of book writing software, that would make this easier.”

Bad news/good news: writing a book will always be hard, and the best piece of writing software in the world won’t write your book for you. But the good news is there is book writing software that can make the process a little easier.

In this post, we will cover the ten best pieces of software for writing a book and look at the pros and cons of each.

14 Valentine’s Day Writing Prompts

by Sue Weems | 0 Comments

Valentine’s Day has a complicated history depending on who you ask. It’s been called a celebration of a martyr, a festival heralding a coming spring, and a holiday for lovers.

But you don’t have to frame it as a romantic holiday to have fun with one of these fun writing prompts today.

Author Email List: How to Sell Books Through Email

by Joslyn Chase and Sarah Gribble | 0 Comments

Whether you’re self publishing or you have a traditional publisher, it’s up to you to sell your books. Email marketing is the number one way to sell books. But in order to use email marketing effectively, you first have to gather a list of email addresses, a group of readers who want to hear from you.

Struggling to build your list? Try this.

Anachronism Examples: How to Avoid Time Inaccuracies in Your Story

by Robert Harrell | 0 Comments

Imagine writing a story set in Dickens’ 19th century, Victorian England, and your Scrooge spin-off answers his cell phone, “Wassup?” Or your knight in 13th century France uses phrases like, “spilling the tea.” Those are anachronisms, and they would likely startle contemporary audiences out of the story.
Let’s look at the definition of anachronism, types of anachronism, and anachronisms in your story.

Write a Great Memoir: How to Start (and Actually Finish) Your First Draft

by Joe Bunting | 1 Comment

What does it take to write a memoir? Not just any memoir—a great memoir, one that people love and talk about and share with their friends?

In this guide, I want to talk about how you can start writing your memoir, how you can actually finish it, and how you can make sure it’s good.

If you read this article from start to finish, it will save you hundreds of hours and result in a much better finished memoir.

February Writing Prompts

by Sue Weems | 0 Comments

The shortest month of the year is here, and with it we have some creative writing prompts to keep you warm and writing all month long. Check out our February writing prompts today.

Here to learn? You’re in the WRITE place!