Ruining Your Book At The Last Minute

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  Hello from novelist Gail Gaymer Martin. Once again I’m here to share some information with you about the art and craft of good fiction writing. Earlier this year I read an article written by Agent Erin Buterbaugh on Chip MacGregor’s Blog.  The article talked about what happens when you don’t understand how to end a novel successfully. I’ve written numerous articles on the final act of a novel, Act III (you’ll find more info on writing the last quarter of the book on my website under Plotting, but Erin made reference to the denouement, a French word meaning the last…

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Proofreading Pointers #46

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Hi! I’m Kathy Ide. In addition to being a published author, I’m a full-time professional freelance editor. For CAN, I’m blogging about tips for writers based on the most common mistakes I see in the manuscripts I edit.

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Stories, Parables & Movie Scripts Basic screenplay writing excerpted from HOW TO SUCCEED IN HOLLYWOOD (WITHOUT LOSING YOUR SOUL) Part V The Premise

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A great story goes somewhere. It tells us something. That something is a premise. A poor story wanders about, gets lost and bores an audience. In a baseball game, the team with the most runs wins. You watch the game to see if the team that you like can get the most runs and win the game. Imagine how boring baseball would be if there was nothing to win: if “games” were like practice sessions where players just hit and fielded balls without a clear purpose. No one would want to pay to watch. A premise says, “To win, I…

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Proofreading Pointers #45

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Hi! I’m Kathy Ide. In addition to being a published author, I’m a full-time professional freelance editor. For CAN, I’m blogging about tips for writers based on the most common mistakes I see in the manuscripts I edit.

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Ten More Tips on Writing for Children

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Hello from Crystal Bowman! In my twenty-plus years of writing for children, I have met many writers who want to write for children because they think it would be fun. Yes–it is fun, but far from easy. It’s a craft that needs to be mastered just like anything else. The more you know about writing for children, the harder it gets. It is very difficult to break into publishing with a children’s book, so the more you know, the more you increase your chances. In January I posted seven tips on writing for children. Today I am offering ten more….

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Stories, Parables & Movie Scripts Basic screenplay writing in the context of HOW TO SUCCEED IN HOLLYWOOD (WITHOUT LOSING YOUR SOUL) Part IV Where do you begin scriptwriting?

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Where do you begin scriptwriting? Fifty years ago 20th Century Fox released Rogers and Hammerstein’s THE SOUND OF MUSIC. It remains a favorite of millions of moviegoers. Rodgers and Hammerstein ate, slept and dreamt their craft. It drove them. Both saw their work as something they had to devote their life to. It was their passion. Both demanded of themselves exemplary work. In a world filled with would-best they succeeded because they were creative, innovative and persistent. Before their big success with OKLAHOMA there were years of study, struggle, rejections, failures, disappointments and growth. Their passion drove them through many…

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Proofreading Pointers #44

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Hi! I’m Kathy Ide. In addition to being a published author, I’m a full-time professional freelance editor. For CAN, I’m blogging about tips for writers based on the most common mistakes I see in the manuscripts I edit.    

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Proofreading Pointers #43

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  Hi! I’m Kathy Ide. In addition to being a published author, I’m a full-time professional freelance editor. For CAN, I’m blogging about tips for writers based on the most common mistakes I see in the manuscripts I edit.  

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Stories, Parables & Movie Scripts — Basic screenplay writing excerpted from HOW TO SUCCEED IN HOLLYWOOD (WITHOUT LOSING YOUR SOUL) — Part III — For Better or for Worse

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Stories, Parables & Movie Scripts Basic screenplay writing excerpted from HOW TO SUCCEED IN HOLLYWOOD (WITHOUT LOSING YOUR SOUL) Part III For Better or for Worse Communicating effectively requires learning and applying the basic principles of language, grammar, rhetoric, technique, and general rules that govern each genre and medium. There are three levels of such principles: general principles (which apply to most communications), genre specific principles, and media specific principles. There are also several steps involved in producing powerful communications, including movies and television programs. Here is a brief outline of the most important foundational steps in preparing your communication….

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Short But Sweet: The Romantic Novella

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May  has opened our eyes to the beautiful of creation—flowers peaking above the ground, trees leaving and sprouting blossoms. Earth’s beauty abounds and we look forward to summer, the time of vacations and outdoor living. One thing many of us love to do in summer is sit in the shade on our porches or beneath a tree and read. Many people like shorter readers so today I’m talking about novellas, full-length stories but in a shorter format. Romantic historical and contemporary novellas are popular among readers. They are short novels, running from 20,000 to 40,000 words, yet are complete stories…

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