Avsnitt
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A strong way to make a character likeable, and to have the reader root for her, is to have the character experience "otherness." She's out of place. She doesn't fit. Here are techniques on how to do so. Also, how F. Scott Fitzgerald worked. And, no whining.
Blue Grit Podcast: The Voice of Texas Law EnforcementHost: Clint McNear and Tyler Owen discussing topics, issues, and stories within the...
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Contrast is among the strongest tools we writers can use. It's magic. Here is a discussion of how and where to use contrast. Also, Henry Miller's rules of writing and how John Grisham works.
Blue Grit Podcast: The Voice of Texas Law EnforcementHost: Clint McNear and Tyler Owen discussing topics, issues, and stories within the...
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Saknas det avsnitt?
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We can show (as opposed to tell) about a character's personality by describing the character's face and body, so that our physical description does double duty. Jonathan Franzen's ten rules of writing. And techniques to add atmosphere to our scenes.
Blue Grit Podcast: The Voice of Texas Law EnforcementHost: Clint McNear and Tyler Owen discussing topics, issues, and stories within the...
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In our novel should we leave plot questions unanswered so we have compelling questions for a sequel? Here are thoughts on how we can approach it. Also, Hilary Mantel's ten rules of writing, how Anne Rice worked, and techniques for writing in the active voice.
Blue Grit Podcast: The Voice of Texas Law EnforcementHost: Clint McNear and Tyler Owen discussing topics, issues, and stories within the...
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Why do readers put down a novel for good before they reach the last page? Here is a reason, maybe the main reason, and how we writers can avoid it. Also, examples of failed showing, as opposed to telling. And Margaret Atwood's rules of writing.
Blue Grit Podcast: The Voice of Texas Law EnforcementHost: Clint McNear and Tyler Owen discussing topics, issues, and stories within the...
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Here is a list of the top ten writing techniques in order of their importance, as best I can figure them out. Also, good comments from a book coach. And Zadie Smith's rules of writing.
Blue Grit Podcast: The Voice of Texas Law EnforcementHost: Clint McNear and Tyler Owen discussing topics, issues, and stories within the...
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Here are Kurt Vonnegut's eight rules of writing. Also, why reading an Andy Weir novel is such a good writing lesson. And; character descriptions should do double duty. Here is how, with examples from legendary writers.
Blue Grit Podcast: The Voice of Texas Law EnforcementHost: Clint McNear and Tyler Owen discussing topics, issues, and stories within the...
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Here is a scene with a strong plot point important to our story. It should be powerful but it isn't because of technical mistakes in the writing. Can we spot the mistakes? Also, George Orwell's six rules of writing. And a review of how and why to avoid filters.
Blue Grit Podcast: The Voice of Texas Law EnforcementHost: Clint McNear and Tyler Owen discussing topics, issues, and stories within the...
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What if we get the sense that our story is a trope, that the plot is a cliche, that it's been done before? Here are thoughts on cliched stories. Also, Christopher Vogler's twelve steps for plotting our story.
Blue Grit Podcast: The Voice of Texas Law EnforcementHost: Clint McNear and Tyler Owen discussing topics, issues, and stories within the...
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Classic novelists knew the strong technique regarding plotting and it's a terrific lesson for us: go big or go home. And what if we want to ignore a proven technique? And: thoughts on a character's stream of consciousness thinking. Also, how to avoid overthinking our writing project.
Blue Grit Podcast: The Voice of Texas Law EnforcementHost: Clint McNear and Tyler Owen discussing topics, issues, and stories within the...
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When can a book coach help us and when can a coach not help us? Here are thoughts on book coaches. Also, the master George Orwell on describing a character. Plus, improving our sentence-by-sentence writing by 1) showing, 2) offering details, and 3) avoiding summary words: three big techniques in one.
Blue Grit Podcast: The Voice of Texas Law EnforcementHost: Clint McNear and Tyler Owen discussing topics, issues, and stories within the...
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Sometimes we don't need to use the standard and strong writing technique, and we can deviate from the proven technique. When? We'll talk about it here. And here are some fun writing quotes. Also, an example of how interior monologue deadens a scene, and how to change it to a scene that will engage and entertain the reader.
Blue Grit Podcast: The Voice of Texas Law EnforcementHost: Clint McNear and Tyler Owen discussing topics, issues, and stories within the...
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Blake Snyder's famous Save the Cat plotting--where he describes fifteen beats a movie screenplay should have--is useful for us novelists. And wonderful setting descriptions from Willa Cather. Also, what's wrong with this sentence: He scrunched his eyebrows in confusion? And Neil Gaiman's eight rules of writing.
Blue Grit Podcast: The Voice of Texas Law EnforcementHost: Clint McNear and Tyler Owen discussing topics, issues, and stories within the...
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How can we submit a manuscript that meets the industry's format expectations and so avoids an amateurish look? Here's how to do it. Also, how the best-selling novelist Elin Hilderbrand live and work? And a few comments on pumping up our creativity.
Blue Grit Podcast: The Voice of Texas Law EnforcementHost: Clint McNear and Tyler Owen discussing topics, issues, and stories within the...
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We aren't villains, and we likely don't have the background and personality of a villain. How can we get inside the mind of a villain for our story, so the villain engages the reader? Here are techniques to do so. Also, big and small things in a novel should be foreshadowed. I'll mention why and how to use foreshadowing to give clues and red herrings to the reader, focusing on small things we might otherwise forget to tie up. Also, here are my favorite funny titles of novels.
Blue Grit Podcast: The Voice of Texas Law EnforcementHost: Clint McNear and Tyler Owen discussing topics, issues, and stories within the...
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Sometimes new writers have a strong plot idea and they begin writing without learning much about fiction writing. Here are the ten most common mistakes new writers make, mistakes that are often prospect killers. Also, how does Kristen Hannah work? And: maybe the best way to learn how to write a novel.
Blue Grit Podcast: The Voice of Texas Law EnforcementHost: Clint McNear and Tyler Owen discussing topics, issues, and stories within the...
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We learn many techniques to improve our fiction writing. Is there one big thing we should think about first, the most important element? Yes, and we talk about it here. Also, avoiding mixing up the grammatical person and the point of view. How William Faulkner worked. And; making a direct connection between our hero and the reader by showing kindness.
Blue Grit Podcast: The Voice of Texas Law EnforcementHost: Clint McNear and Tyler Owen discussing topics, issues, and stories within the...
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Here is a technique--it's magical--to make our sentence-by-sentence writing instantly stronger; avoiding qualifiers. And how to use good dialogue tags so the reader hears the dialogue rather than the clunky tags. And important tips regarding back-story.
Blue Grit Podcast: The Voice of Texas Law EnforcementHost: Clint McNear and Tyler Owen discussing topics, issues, and stories within the...
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Naming our story's characters is fun but there is a big technique involved, which we talk about in this episode. Also; the iceberg theory of writing, and the story framing device. Plus, examples of showing rather than telling about characters' moods.
Blue Grit Podcast: The Voice of Texas Law EnforcementHost: Clint McNear and Tyler Owen discussing topics, issues, and stories within the...
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It's critical for us writers to make multiple simultaneous submissions. Here are some thoughts on why it's so important. And I mention a wonderful but counterintuitive technique that makes our dialogue smoother. Also: the importance of a scene playing out minute-by-minute, without time skips.
Blue Grit Podcast: The Voice of Texas Law EnforcementHost: Clint McNear and Tyler Owen discussing topics, issues, and stories within the...
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- Visa fler