The human mind is a powerful tool, as long as you give it a little guidance. Many of you have heard the phrase “Show, don’ tell,” with regard to your writing. This is a critical concept for an effective writer to create feeling in the reader. You remember, that our principle task as writers is to write in such a way that we create a desired feeling in the reader. That being said, do you...

There are writing tools out there for those who look for them. If you are a Windows Vista user, this may be a great writing tool for you. I just recently started using a sidebar tool called Activity Tracker. You download the widget into your Windows Sidebar and it allows you to “punch in” and “punch out” of a particular activity. Think of it in the traditional sense of clocking in and...

Have you ever thought about what type of language you should use in your writing? What about the style? If you haven’t, you should. Consider the following sentences: Dick, the local high school quarterback, was recently killed in a car accident. The town was left in sorrow today as Bronson High’s starting quarterback lost his life in a tragic car accident. Dick left behind a wife and two brand...

So, you want to write. That is a noble thought. However, have you ever stopped to think about what it takes to write? Do you know what you are getting yourself into? You might think that is a silly question, but really, it isn’t. For example, think of the last time you went camping. Did you just jump in the car and go? You may have approached it this way, but not likely. You probably realized you were...

photo credit: Elrenia_Greenleaf You want to write, but how do you decide what to write? Perhaps you have sat down and tried to convince yourself that you were going to write non-stop for the next ten minutes. Ten minutes went buy, and you didn’t write much, or maybe you didn’t write anything at all. Has this ever happened to you? It has to me, and I know you feel horrible. So where do we start?...

Writing fiction is a lot of fun. Well, its a lot of things. One thing that can be particularly challenging about fiction writing is writing about magic, or some equivalent power or ability. Its not the dreaming up of special abilities or effects that is particularly difficult, but making those unique powers relevant to the story, and a meaningful part of the conflict within the characters. There are various...

Are you writing as often as you like? Are you sitting down and putting your hands on your keyboard, but not getting anything written? Well, if that’s the case, you may want to consider your writing space. In some cases an afterthought, writing environments are critical to your ability to write productively. Here are a few writing tips about creating a writing environment that you can work in: Free...

One great way to help you through writer’s block is to try to mind map, or cluster. In this effort youare trying to write down a word that is important to your story, or to your writing in general. Then, you associate the various factors that touch that key word. This should aid you in writing thoroughly. For example, let’s say I am starting a novel about a haunted house. I might start the mind...

All good writing needs a good plan. Good writing is an exercise in higher thinking, and takes time, review, and revision. Just like a contractor wouldn’t dream of building a house without plan, you shouldn’t consider writing for pay without a detailed plan either. Who would buy a house that wasn’t put together properly? Likewise, writing that is poorly done is just as likely to go unsold. There are several...