oldtimer

Backstories Help Create Believable Characters

Which is more important: a good plot or great characters? Whilst a humdinger of a plot will add zest to the story, it may all be wasted if your characters are flat and uninteresting. An excellent way to avoid this is to use backstories to make your characters live and breathe like real people. A character's backstory is important whether you are writing a short story or a novel. With a short story it can... (posted by oldtimer 2 years 40 days ago.)

Successful Plot Construction with This Simple Formula

Every short story writer wants his story to go with a zing; to give the reader a satisying ride. Here's a simple formula that has been tried and tested to construct a plot that will hit the spot! Let's be clear: you don't have a lot of time to get the story going, develop it and produce a satisfying ending. So things must move along without much waffle or padding. The first thing is to get off to a... (posted by oldtimer 2 years 73 days ago.)

Suspense is the Ingredient That Keeps Your Readers Turning Those Pages

Whether you're writing an action thriller, a short story, or anything in between, a carefully placed piece of suspense will keep your readers turning those pages wanting to know the outcome. But my non-fiction book on vegetable gardening, or my personal biography doesn't require the suspense element, does it? Oh, yes it does. But more about that later. Let's take a look at the two... (posted by oldtimer 3 years 250 days ago.)

Understanding Parts of Speech for the Adverbialy Challenged

Warning! The knowledge in this article could seriously enhamce your writing cred. Exposed, demystified and laid bare at last! Here is the Parts-of-Speech For Mannequins explanation you've secretly been waiting for. Wait no more as all is revealed... 1. Adjective. This is a word that adds a description to an object, person, place etc. Example: 'Mary's house had a lovely blue door'. 'Door' is the... (posted by oldtimer 3 years 260 days ago.)

Using Dialogue to Good Effect in Your Story

Use the magic of dialogue to grip your readers and keep them turning those pages. OK, you've got to have a good story too, but even a good story can be degraded if your characters don't speak up to good effect. Get this technique right and your readers will come back for more. I'm not decrying narrative description, which is essential, but it's far better to show the reader what's happening through your... (posted by oldtimer 3 years 345 days ago.)

How to Strike the Right Balance Between Dialogue and Narrative

Striking the right balance between dialogue and narrative is essential if you are to capture and hold the readership of your particular genre. Modern readers in general prefer a story that moves along with a fair degree of alacrity. If not, they soon get bored, and when that happens your novel is history. That's today's book reader for you; spoon fed on fast action films and TV with perhaps... (posted by oldtimer 3 years 356 days ago.)