SUBPLOTS: The Why, What, and How – Part II

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Wishing you a sunny Friday from Gail Gaymer Martin. Last month I talked about Subplots: The Why, What and How.  Part I on subplots covered the purpose for using a subplot and information about both internal and external types of subplots. Today the topic extends to Part II on Subplot Ideas.   Simply in review, the purpose of a subplot is: 1. Make the story more real. 2. Add greater conflict and tension. 3. Add interest by giving variety to the story —keeping this unpredictable. 4. Add texture by adding story layers — see the characters interacting with new characters and in…

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Conference Blessings

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Aloha from the CAN Treasurer Karen Whiting          I recently returned from the Florida Christian Writer’s Conference and know many friends will be leaving this week for the Mount Hermon Writers Conference in California. These are two large conferences with many editors and writers attending. Conferences have shaped my writing career.

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Essential: Writing Nonfiction with the Reader in Mind

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Jan here, enjoying a beautiful fall afternoon in the foothills of the Sierras. Today I’m considering the readers of the books we are writing–the essential person that we must keep in mind. Over the years I’ve critiqued quite a few nonfiction proposals and manuscripts. The writers pored out their souls in their manuscripts, sometimes to the point of (figuratively) bleeding on the page. Each hoped their story would make a difference in the lives of others who had experienced similar struggles. I found the ideas of many of the stories compelling. And yet, for some, the delivery left me feeling alienated from or…

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