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Does proper grammar give you a headache? Do you throw your pen down when frustrated with thinking of the perfect word? If you answered yes then you need to Jargon Buster from Oxford Dictionaries.
This quick reference list is alphabetized and includes nouns, verbs, adjectives, articles, forms of verbs/moods, sentences, clauses, speech, other parts of speech and dictionaries.
If you are a frustrated writer this list is perfect for you!
On October 30, 2013 Amazon.com announced that it would begin offering a digital literary journal weekly. Their plan is to publish fiction-including work from debut authors and stories from around the world translated into English-and poetry. Day One will showcase one writer and one poet per week. Day One will be priced at $19.99 a year and publish direct to Kindle or the Kindle app. You can learn more about this brand new literary effort by Amazon here.
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Are you sitting and staring at a blank notebook on your desk? It’s a common problem among writers. You’ll find lots of advice on how to outwit the dreaded writer’s block but here’s an idea that may be new to you. Instead of starting at the beginning of your book start at the end. Pretend your book is in your publisher’s hand and they are asking you to write the book jacket copy. You’ll need to write something concise and intriguing to get readers to buy your book. You might want to do some research first by reading the jacket copy of books in your genre. Don’t agonize over this exercise… it’s meant only to stimulate you to write a brief outline of your plot. Once you have this done go back to that blank notebook and use this copy to outline your book. You’ll find it much easier to get started in outwiting writer’s block.
“People talk about books that write themselves, and it’s a lie. Books don’t write themselves. It takes thought and research and backache and notes and more time and more work than you’d believe.”
― Neil Gaiman, Smoke and Mirrors
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Thanks to Daily Writing Tips and author Ali Hale we have an excellent article about 25 different writing software packages for writers. It’s true that you can use your pen or pencil and paper or your laptop but writing software offers so many perks that it may be worth your time and/or money. Read “25+ Pieces of Writing Software You Should Know About“!
Watch this video from award-winning author, and master writing instructor Mary Carroll Moore. She teaches the storyboarding technique. You’ll learn:
How a storyboard designs your book’s flow of chapters and ideas
How to handle your book’s creative tension
—and avoid writer’s block
Why you can throw away your outline
—random writing leads to perfectly linked chapters
November is “National Novel Writing Month”. If you have been struggling to finish your novel then this month is the time to do it! Not only can you finish your novel but if you finish in November you can have it up on Kindle and Nook for Christmas. If you need some help sign up for “NaNoWriMo“. You’ll get daily reminders and lots of encouragement for FREE! You can’t beat that with a stick! Click the link to join.
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Thanks to Daily Writing Tips we have a great article “7 Types of Headline Headaches“. Authors often spend more time on creating their headlines or chapter headings than they do while actually writing. News sites are particularly guilty of using confusing or inaccurate headlines. In his article Mark Nichol says “However, in publications that are not carefully edited, especially on post-it-right-now websites, headlines can invite the wrong kind of curiosity, combined with confusion or derision, when they’re published with errors. This post examines various types of common mistakes.” To read the entire article click the link above!
The author says “Do you struggle to write every day? Many people dream of becoming a successful author, but can’t *find* the time to write. The truth is this: Great writers don’t have more time than you do. They make time to write. Not only do they make time, they also follow specific routines that help them avoid writer’s block altogether. By developing the “writing habit” you’ll have the confidence to sit down in front of a computer every day, knowing the words will come.”
Click the book image to learn more!
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Kanyakrit Vongkiatkajorn has written an article from information included in Stephen King’s book “On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft“. He offers seven tips from King including “Everything Begins With Rejection”, “Master the Fundamentals Of Writing” and “Always Be Honest”.
Our favorite quote from the article is “To be a good writer, you must master the fundamentals of vocabulary, grammar, and style. Use only the vocabulary that you feel most comfortable with. Know your grammar.” Too many authors forget the basics of good writing because they see badly written books like “50 Shades Of Gray” selling millions of copies and getting made into a movie. This book was the exception to the rule and writers need to understand this.
