Author: wildsoundwritingfestival

by Suzanne Purkins Did you know that when you use more words than necessary to express something (like blowing windor frozen ice), you are committing a pleonasm, which is the fancy Greek way of saying you’re being redundant? Redundancy in writing sounds like a simple thing to spot—and sometimes it is. But some types of… Continue reading Get Rid of Repetition: Pleonasms in Your Writing — A Writer’s Path

by Drew Chial The gatekeepers who once decided what art was worth publishing are losing relevance. We need not kneel at their feet to gain entrance to the public square. There are paths in everywhere. Director J.J. Abrams told the audience at the Anaheim Star Wars Celebration that they could all be […] via How Writers… Continue reading How Writers Can Make Gatekeepers Work for Them — A Writer’s Path

by Doug Lewars A member of a writers’ group to which I belong woke up one morning with a fully formed story in her head. She had to do a bit of background checking to make sure some elements of the setting were accurate but the basic plot was all there. I’ve […] via The Value… Continue reading The Value of Dreams For a Writer — A Writer’s Path

by Richard Risemberg I recently saw an ad for the Freewrite, a “distraction-free” portable word processor–that is, one with no Internet capability. I immediately recognized it as something inspired by the old Alphasmart Neo, but hipsterized a bit with an e-ink screen and a bit morte of a Dieter Rams styling. I knew […] via Managing… Continue reading Managing Distractions as a Writer — A Writer’s Path

by Ryan Lanz You’ve got your idea. Your characters are fleshed out. The setting is crystallized in your mind. You power up the laptop, and you place your fingers on the keys. Chapter one. There’s a magic in that. You can practically feel the readers forming an orderly line to purchase your book, […] via Avoiding… Continue reading Avoiding First Chapter Blunders — A Writer’s Path

by Doug Lewars You most certainly can judge a book by its cover and most of us do it on a regular basis. We may not judge very well but we most assuredly do it. Think how often you’ve walked through a library or bookstore without any particular book in mind and selected […] via How… Continue reading How to Catch the Reader’s Eye With Titles — A Writer’s Path

by Cátia Isabel Silva In the previous post, we talked about how important the first page is to the success of your book. A good first page is, without a doubt, the difference between someone actually buying and reading through your whole book or merely picking it from the shelf, opening it up […] via Five… Continue reading Five Tips For Your First Page — A Writer’s Path

by Michael Mohr A-number one advice for new writers especially: Don’t rush the process. Man oh man. How many writers approach me who think they’re going to hand me their first or second draft of a novel and after one developmental edit they’re going to be done? Far too many. In this new landscape […] via… Continue reading How to be Edited as a New Author (Or at Any Level, Really…) — A Writer’s Path

Crispina Kemp has many talents. As well as an accomplished writer, prehistorian and photographer, she can now add self-published author to her resume, having just made her five book fantasy series – The Spinner’s Game – available for pre-order on Kindle. Today, in the first in a series of posts, she tells of the series’ […]… Continue reading Guest post: Author Crispina Kemp — Word Shamble

by Daniel A. Roberts The ability to write a novel from start to finish doesn’t own any kind of magical formula. Like anything we try to accomplish in life, certain things can hinder the process. Some of them can’t be avoided, like the condition of your own health. If you’re coughing, wheezing, taking […] via From… Continue reading From The First To The Last Chapter – 5 Things To Keep In Mind — A Writer’s Path