Writing Tip Index

Writing Tip Index

So I realize most of my Tumblr followers just follow me on Tumblr, which I’m cool with, but since I’ve been working really hard on updating my website, I still wanted to share it with everyone. If you have visited it recently, you’ve probably noticed quite a few changes. You can check it out here.

One of the new features is that I’ve compiled an almost complete list of my writing tips by topic. I’ll be updating it regularly here.

Below is the list as of my posting this. There are also a couple of articles that aren’t mine (noted) that I refer other writers to.

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Beginning

Coming up with a Good First Sentence

Tips on Starting a Story

How to Start Writing When You Have No Idea Where to Start

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Brainstorming

The REAL Key to Brainstorming: Restrictions

Flipping Story Stuff

Stacking Your Brainstorming Ideas

Coming up with a Plot (from scratch)

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Breaking Writing Rules

Breaking Writing Rules Right: “Show, don’t Tell”

Breaking Writing Rules Right: “Don’t Use ‘Was’”

Breaking Writing Rules Right: “Don’t Use Adverbs, Adjectives”

Breaking Writing Rules Right: “Only Use ‘Said’”

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Characters

Complex Characters and the Power of Contradiction

Making Unlikeable People into Likeable Characters

Character Traits that Hike Up Tension

Creating Stunning Side Characters (and Why They Matter)

Relationship as a Character: Crafting Duos, Trios, Groups that Readers can’t Resist

Pairing Behaviors with Odd Demeanors for Originality

“The Emotional Range of a Teaspoon”: Your Characters’ Spectrum of Emotions

Considering the Irrationality of Your Characters

How to Pick the Right Character Names

The “Twins as Clones” Writing Epidemic

What You Need to Know Most About Character Voice

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Conflict

Coming up with a Plot (from scratch)

Are Your Conflicts Significant?

Keeping Conflicts Unresolved

The Oft Forgotten Conflict and How to Make it Work: Man Vs. God

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Context

Context vs. Subtext (Context Should Not Become Subtext)

Making Strengths into Weaknesses (and Vice Versa) through Context

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Description

Picking the RIGHT Details

Three Tweaks that Keep Details Interesting

Breaking Writing Rules Right: “Don’t Use Adverbs, Adjectives”

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Dialogue

Writing Realistic and Complex Dialogue

Kicking “Great” Dialogue up to “Killer” Dialogue

Breaking Writing Rules Right: “Only Use ‘Said’”

Generic Dialogue—Staaaahp

(Don’t) Tell Me How You Really Feel

Emotion

Writing Empathetically vs. Sympathetically and Sentimentally

Let Your Reader do the Work

Raw vs. Subdued Emotions: Getting them Right in Your Story

“The Emotional Range of a Teaspoon”: Your Characters’ Spectrum of Emotions

Gaining Incredible Emotional Power by Crossing Opposites

Choosing Relatable Descriptions to Power up Empathy

Selecting the Right Sentence Structure for the Right Emotion

Dealing with Melodrama: What it is, How it Works, and How to Get Rid of it

The Emotion Thesaurus by Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi

Feedback

The Real Reason You NEED to Give Positive Feedback!

Feeding us Criticism

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Foils

Playing with Foils

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Grammar and Punctuation

Dangling Modifiers and How to Correct Them (Purdue OWL)

Punctuation in Dialogue (The Editor’s Blog)

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Humor

15+ Tactics for Writing Humor

Guardians of the Galaxy and the Art of Constructing Jokes (Film Cit Hulk Smash)

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Micro-Concepts

Writing Micro-concepts

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Mystery

The Mechanics of Rendering Mysteries and Undercurrents—How to Withhold Info Right

Keep reading