Story Development

Hello, readers.

We're in the last week of August. September is just around the corner. This year is going by fast.

Following are some articles from Writers Digest. They explain much of  what I tell book and script writers when reviewing their material. Read the articles. You'll find the experts in the field will give the same advice.

7 Steps to Creating a Flexible Outline for Any Story Let's take a look at how to get the most out of the outlining process, beginning with the shaping of your premise and working all the way through to a complete list of scenes. (Note: Although this outlining method is one I use myself and highly recommend, keep in mind that there is no right or wrong way to outline a story. The only requirement is that you find the groove that works for you. If you start outlining and begin to feel the technique isn't working for you, rather than denouncing outlines entirely, consider how you might adjust the process to better suit your personality and creative style.) Read more ... Self-Editing Advice: How to Tackle Character Consistency Keeping your character('s) traits consistent is very a important step in polishing your manuscript, especially if it's written from multiple points of view (POVs). For example, if you have one character who constantly swears, and has a tendency to lose his/her temper at the drop of a hat, you do not want your other characters behaving in the same way. If this happens, your characters will blend together, and your readers will have trouble being able to tell them apart. You don't want your readers having to back track to be sure they have understood who is speaking/narrating. They should just know. And readers know by identifying your characters from the way they speak, move, and behave. For instance, if you are familiar with The Lord of the Rings, you definitely know when Sam's talking, and you never confuse him with Pippin or Merry even though they're all Hobbits ... Read more ... The Difference Between Voice and Style in Writing  Here’s a simple breakdown explaining the difference between an author’s writing voice and writing style. Read more ...