All Write - Fiction Advice

As writers, we all aspire to be published, so when it finally happens, whether it’s a short story, a poem or a novel, you will find yourself working with an editor. We’ve all heard stories about dealing with editors, but whatever you think about them, they are there to assist the writer, not make their life unbearable. The role they play forms an important part in the writing business.   Without them, there would be certain chaos, because then every amateurish, badly written story would make it into print.   Of course, getting on the published ladder is not always a smooth process.   You may be lucky enough to receive an acceptance; however that doesn’t mean to say that your masterpiece is perfect, because it won’t be. The editor may want to change some aspects of the piece. This is quite common, so that doesn’t mean the writer should act like a stroppy teenager and stamp their feet. To coin a well-used cliché, working with editors really is a two way street. Write...

Dramatic dialogue can create the right atmosphere for the reader, whether it’s action or emotion, or it can fall flat, depending how well the writer has structured such dialogue. Effective dialogue in a story is one thing, but dramatic dialogue is somewhat different. It should create an edge, a sense of presence.   It should hold the reader’s attention for several reasons: to impart necessary or critical information, to create character-reader immediacy, to create tension and conflict and to move the story forward. The most common problem with dialogue is that writers tend to write lots of ineffectual and unnecessary dialogue in order to pad out the narrative, but most of it is rubbish.   It’s just not necessary.   Every writer should learn that dialogue must have meaning for both the characters and the reader. Dialogue should only contain information necessary to the story arc, otherwise it becomes unnecessary padding. The knack to writing great dialogu...

Following on from part 1, we’ll take a look at the remainder of simple punctuation, such as Semi Colons, Colons, Question and Exclamation Marks, and Dashes, and how to use them effectively in fiction writing. Semi-Colons These are useful little things, and often underused. There are those who argue against their use, however, when used correctly, they add so much to the readability of a story and can alter a sentence dramatically. They can separate two independent clauses that are too closely linked for a full stop to interrupt the flow and pace, for example: He barely had time to digest her news; she broke it to him, gleeful. The light flickered; she knew she was in trouble. Semi colons can be used to introduce an independent clause preceded by an adverb, such as then, so or however. For example: John thought she’d forgotten, as always; so he left it. He wondered why she hadn’t showed; then he remembered. While they are very useful, try not to overdo them. One thin...

Some things might seem simple to most writers, but sometimes the prospect of executing correct punctuation can bring many writers out in a cold sweat. We all have different abilities and weren’t all born with the ability to execute perfect written English. That said, there are plenty of writers who have fallen into bad habits with their punctuation and wrongly assume an editor will correct all their mistakes for them. They won’t. That’s the job of the writer, so it pays to get on top of punctuation. This simple checklist below is there to help those writers who struggle with punctuation. It shows how and when to use it, with examples of correct usage. Full Stops/Period It’s the single most important punctuation mark and yet the least understood by many writers. That’s because they don’t fully understand its significance to sentences, or how to use it to their advantage. Full stops in the right places can not only change the tone of sentences, but they can alter the p...

As writers and creators, we love to see our characters win the day (well, most of the time), and it is very satisfying seeing the end result after weeks or months or even years of writing a novel. That’s because we start our characters on a path, we push them into an unknown journey and we play God with their lives – that’s the power at our fingertips. But writers shouldn’t be too kind to their characters. In fact, they should be mean to them. Why?   Because it makes for a better story.   Think about real life. It’s not all flowers, rose-tinted clouds and pretty rainbows. We face upheaval all the time; we face dilemmas, we have to make difficult decisions, we have to meet problems head on and solve them somehow. Ordinary life can be tough sometimes, and so it is true of your main characters.   In a sense, what happens in real life can merge with fictional life in order to create a sense of reality. Problems, dilemmas, stress and all manner of difficulties...

After a much needed vacation in sunnier surrounds, it’s now back to business.   We’ll continue our look at how ways to suspend a reader’s disbelief and get them believing in your story and characters.   Writers can do this by focusing on several elements, so we’ll focus on the remaining pointers noted in Part 1 - Believable Character Goals, Immediacy, Eliminating Uncertainty, Subplots and the Right Setting. Believable Character Goals This is pretty self-explanatory. If your characters don’t have much to strive for and achieve by the end of the story, then why should a reader be bothered about what your characters do?   Your main character’s goal forms an important crux to the story arc. Their struggle to achieve that goal, and all the obstacles they face in doing so, is what keeps the reader invested in the outcome, so give the characters believable goals rather than outlandish ones, such as saving the world from imminent disaster (one of the worst clichés)....

We’ve all heard about suspending belief, but where stories are concerned, what if you’ve written something that defies belief?   What if you have an outlandish plot and characters that can do amazing things or have brilliant skills (all without experience or the right training)? The truth is, every story requires the reader to suspend their disbelief and start believing totally in the story, whether that is a thriller story, a romance, a horror or a science fiction story.   A writer somehow has to make the unbelievable believable. But is it as easy as it sounds? One of the most common rejections from editors and publishers is that a story isn’t credible or plausible. The plot is ‘too far-fetched’, or the characters are simply not believable. This can be hard to digest, particularly when you see so many books on the shelves with ridiculous plot lines. It can be done, but this is all down to the ability of the writer to make the reader eventually suspend their di...