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Writing Tips / Aids - Blog Posts
This is an ultimate masterlist of many resources that could be helpful for writers. I apologize in advance for any not working links. Check out the ultimate writing resource masterlist here (x) and my “novel” tag here (x).
✑ PLANNING
Outlining & Organizing
For the Architects: The Planning Process
Rough Drafts
How do you plan a novel?
Plot Development: Climax, Resolution, and Your Main Character
Plotting and Planing
I Have An Idea for a Novel! Now What?
Choosing the Best Outline Method
How to Write a Novel: The Snowflake Method
Effectively Outlining Your Plot
Conflict and Character within Story Structure
Outlining Your Plot
Ideas, Plots & Using the Premise Sheets
✑ INSPIRATION
Finding story ideas
Choosing ideas and endings
When a plot isn’t strong enough to make a whole story
Writing a story that’s doomed to suck
How to Finish What You Start: A Five-Step Plan for Writers
Finishing Your Novel
Finish Your Novel
How to Finish Your Novel when You Want to Quit
How To Push Past The Bullshit And Write That Goddamn Novel: A Very Simple No-Fuckery Writing Plan
✑ PLOT
In General
25 Turns, Pivots and Twists to Complicate Your Story
The ABCs (and Ds and Es) of Plot Development
Originality Is Overrated
How to Create a Plot Outline in Eight Easy Steps
Finding Plot: Idea Nets
The Story Goal: Your Key to Creating a Solid Plot Structure
Make your reader root for your main character
Creating Conflict and Sustaining Suspense
Tips for Creating a Compelling Plot
The Thirty-six (plus one) Dramatic Situations
Adding Subplots to a Novel
Weaving Subplots into a Novel
7 Ways to Add Subplots to Your Novel
Crafting a Successful Romance Subplot
How to Improve your Writing: Subplots and Subtext
Understanding the Role of Subplots
How to Use Subtext in your Writing
The Secret Life of Subtext
How to Use Subtext
Beginning
Creating a Process: Getting Your Ideas onto Paper (And into a Story)
Why First Chapters?
Starting with a Bang
In the Beginning
The Beginning of your Novel that isn’t the Beginning of your Novel
A Beginning from the Middle
Starting with a Bang
First Chapters: What To Include @ The Beginning Writer
23 Clichés to Avoid When Beginning Your Story
Start Writing Now
Done Planning. What Now?
Continuing Your Long-Format Story
How to Start a Novel
100 best first lines from novels
The First Sentence of a Book Report
How To Write A Killer First Sentence To Open Your Book
How to Write the First Sentence of a Book
The Most Important Sentence: How to Write a Killer Opening
Hook Your Reader from the First Sentence: How to Write Great Beginnings
Foreshadowing
Foreshadowing and the Red Hering
Narrative Elements: Foreshadowing
Foreshadowing and Suspense
Foreshadowing Key Details
Writing Fiction: Foreshadowing
The Literary Device of Foreshadowing
All About Foreshadowing in Fiction
Foreshadowing
Flashbacks and Foreshadowing
Foreshadowing — How and Why to Use It In Your Writing
Setting
Four Ways to Bring Settings to Life
Write a Setting for a Book
Writing Dynamic Settings
How To Make Your Setting a Character
Guide for Setting
5 Tips for Writing Better Settings
Building a Novel’s Setting
Ending
A Novel Ending
How to End Your Novel
How to End Your Novel 2
How to End a Novel With a Punch
How to End a Novel
How to Finish a Novel
How to Write The Ending of Your Novel
Keys to Great Endings
3 Things That End A Story Well
Ending a Novel: Five Things to Avoid
Endings that Ruin Your Novel
Closing Time: The Ending
✑ CHARACTER
Names
Behind the Name
Surname Meanings and Origins
Surname Meanings and Origins - A Free Dictionary of Surnames
Common US Surnames & Their Meanings
Last Name Meanings & Origins
Name Generators
Name Playground
Different Types of Characters
Ways To Describe a Personality
Character Traits Meme
Types of Characters
Types of Characters in Fiction
Seven Common Character Types
Six Types of Courageous Characters
Creating Fictional Characters (Masterlist)
Building Fictional Characters
Fiction Writer’s Character Chart
Character Building Workshop
Tips for Characterization
Fiction Writer’s Character Chart
Advantages, Disadvantages and Skills
Males
Strong Male Characters
The History and Nature of Man Friendships
Friendship for Guys (No Tears!)
‘I Love You, Man’ and the rules of male friendship
Male Friendship
Understanding Male Friendship
Straight male friendship, now with more cuddling
Character Development
P.O.V. And Background
Writing a Character: Questionnaire
10 Days of Character Building
Getting to Know Your Characters
Character Development Exercises
✑ STYLE
Chapters
How Many Chapters is the Right Amount of Chapters?
The Arbitrary Nature of the Chapter
How Long is a Chapter?
How Long Should Novel Chapters Be?
Chapter & Novel Lengths
Section vs. Scene Breaks
Dialogue
The Passion of Dialogue
25 Things You Should Know About Dialogue
Dialogue Writing Tips
Punctuation Dialogue
How to Write Believable Dialogue
Writing Dialogue: The Music of Speech
Writing Scenes with Many Characters
It’s Not What They Say …
Top 10 Tips for Writing Dialogue
Speaking of Dialogue
Dialogue Tips
Interrupted Dialogue
Two Tips for Interrupted Dialogue
Show, Don’t Tell (Description)
“Tell” Makes a Great Placeholder
The Literary Merit of the Grilled Cheese Sandwich
Bad Creative Writing Advice
The Ultimate Guide to Writing Better Than You Normally Do
DailyWritingTips: Show, Don’t Tell
GrammarGirl: Show, Don’t Tell
Writing Style: What Is It?
Detail Enhances Your Fiction
Using Sensory Details
Description in Fiction
Using Concrete Detail
Depth Through Perception
Showing Emotions & Feelings
Character Description
Describing Your Characters (by inkfish7 on DeviantArt)
Help with Character Development
Creating Characters that Jump Off the Page
Omitting Character Description
Introducing Your Character(s): DON’T
Character Crafting
Writer’s Relief Blog: “Character Development In Stories And Novels”
Article: How Do You Think Up Your Characters?
5 Character Points You May Be Ignoring
List of colors, hair types and hairstyles
List of words to use in a character’s description
200 words to describe hair
How to describe hair
Words used to describe the state of people’s hair
How to describe your haircut
Hair color sharts
Four Ways to Reveal Backstory
Words Used to Describe Clothes
Flashbacks
Using Flashbacks in Writing
Flashbacks by All Write
Using Flashback in Fiction
Fatal Backstory
Flashbacks as opening gambit
Don’t Begin at the Beginning
Flashbacks in Books
TVTropes: Flashback
Objects in the Mirror Are Closer Than They Appear: Flashback Techniques in Fiction
3 Tips for Writing Successful Flashbacks
The 5 Rules of Writing Effective Flashbacks
How to Handle Flashbacks In Writing
Flashbacks and Foreshadowing
Reddit Forum: Is a flashback in the first chapter a good idea?
Forum Discussing Flackbacks
P.O.V
You, Me, and XE - Points of View
What’s Your Point of View?
Establishing the Right Point of View: How to Avoid “Stepping Out of Character”
How to Start Writing in the Third Person
The Opposite Gender P.O.V.
LANGUAGE
How To Say Said
200 Words Instead of Said
Words to Use Instead of Said
A List of Words to Use Instead of Said
Alternatives to “Walk”
60 Synonyms for “Walk”
✑ USEFUL WEBSITES/LINKS
Grammar Monster
Google Scholar
GodChecker
Tip Of My Tounge
Speech Tags
Pixar Story Rules
Written? Kitten!
TED Talks
DarkCopy
Family Echo
Some Words About Word Count
How Long Should My Novel Be?
The Universal Mary Sue Litmus Test
Writer’s “Cheat Sheets”
Last but not least, the most helpful tool for any writer out there is Google!
Questions to help develop your otp. Pt2
How would they prefer to spend time when out and about?
What signal do they give when they need some space ?
In which setting do they best play off each other ?
What is a moment when each character is vulnerable?
How does each character react to the other being vulnerable?
How do they communicate reciprocated feelings?
What do they disagree on and how did they deal with differing opinions ?
What sort of things do they get into fights over ?
How do they reconcile after arguments ?
How do they each show affection?
At what time do they usually/ mostly have their conversations ?
How honest are they with each other?
How open are they about their current feelings ?
How do they compromise?
In what ways are they in tune with the other's feelings?
How do they show sympathy?
In what ways do they pressure the other or consciously avoid applying pressure?
What topics are the most painful to each other ?
What topics always leads to a fight ?
Is one character too sensitive about something?
What do they want to be resolved the most ?
How do they hold each other accountable?
How do they react in times when they can't cheer the other up ?
What are their plans for the future ?
What plans have they built together ?
If any, what's the biggest threat to their relationship? Are they aware it exists ?
Do they want to have children? If so, how many? Do they agree about this? What gender do they most want ?
Have they discussed the future? Why or why not ?
Where would their dream be located?
Where do they think they'll be in the future together?
How does each want their dream home to be like?
How do they behave or act when they're upset or angry with each other ?
How would each character want to better themselves for the other ?
What would each character appreciate the other doing for them ?
What little things remind them of each other ?
How do they think the other is unique ?
What negative traits do they see in the other and how do they deal with it ?
What might they like to change about the other?
What would each be willing to change in him/ herself for the other and what wouldn't they change?
How did each character come to trust the other ?
What are their shared background experiences ?
What are the differences in their backgrounds ?
What was one moment when one side was weak and the other had to be strong for both ?
When are they jealous for the other ?
When have they let the other down ?
When have they betrayed each other ?
What are the most difficult situations they've faced together so far? How did they overcome them ?
What are their best memories together? What are their worst ?
What's one moment one character felt proud of the other?
What were their first impressions?
When did they realize they were attracted to the other and how did they deal with it?
When was the first temptation to kiss?
When they actually kiss ?
At what point did they realize they might be in love ?
At what point in the story do they most depend on the other?
What are their mannerisms when walking side by side ?
How do they sit when they talk?
How do they respond to physical closeness?
How do they each act ( physically)when confronted with conflicts?
What secrets does each character have? and what secrets would they hate for anyone to discover?
Questions to help develop your otp. Pt1.
I present a list if questions to help gain insight into your precious fictional couples.
What real couples could they be compared to ? Why ?
What fictional couples could they be compared to ? Why ?
Who normally cooks ?
What do they do when they're away from each other ?
Do they have nick names for each other ? What ?
Who's more likely to pay for dinner?
Who steals the covers at night ?
Who remembers things ?
Who cusses more ?
Who kissed who first ?
Who made the first move ?
Who started the relationship ?
What would they do if the other was hurt ?
How did they both meet ?
What are their common interests ?
What's the individual goal for each character ?
What are their common goal ?
Do their goals conflict ?
What's the core for each character ?
How do they reveal their core to the other character?
What are their relationship expectations ?
Does either have an addiction?
In what areas do they worry about each other ?
How would each character feel if they had to leave for a time ? How would they react if they divorced or broke up?
How do they handle dividing up chores and household duties ?
Who's the breadwinner of the house ?
Do they ever resent each other ?
What activities do they enjoy together ?
What activities does one enjoy that the other doesn't ?
How do they fight or defend the other ?
How do they express love for each other ?( Eg acts of service, physical touch, words of affirmation, quality time, giving gifts ? Etc)
What values do they both share ?
Who takes more responsibility for their actions?
Who's more likely to give in and compromise?
Do they feel the same way about money ?
What habits do they have that makes the other unhappy ?( Eg: angry outbursts, annoying behaviors?etc )
What do they find the physically attractive about the other ?
What accomplishments do they most admire in each other ?
What small physical details does each love the most about the other ?
In what little ways did they disappoint each other?
How does each behave differently around the other ?
How does love make each character act irrationally?
How can each character tell how the other is feeling? Are they good at it or bad ?
How does being around each other change their thought process?
What do they share and talk about the most ?
What do they do in silent moments? What are they thinking about?
How do they spend time together usually?
What habits do they have that annoy the other ?
How do they react when the other is hurt or upset ? Do they try to help and how ?
How do they spend time on each other's hobbies or interests ?