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10 Requirements for Writing a Publishable Novel by DesdemonaDeBlake, literature
Literature
10 Requirements for Writing a Publishable Novel
PLEASE NOTE THAT WHILE THIS PAGE WILL REMAIN ACTIVE FOR PURPOSES OF EDUCATION AND RECORDS, IT IS OUTDATED. CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE NEWEST VERSION.
10 Requirements for Writing a Publishable Novel
Today, I would like to announce a project that I hope all of you will be as excited to be a part of as I am. As you all know, my writing guides and tutorials have been rather random, as I was still testing the waters of the internet. I wanted to know if anyone could possibly be interested in what I had to say about the craft of writing, and I was overjoyed to see all of your enthusiasm. And so, I would like to announce that I will be shifting gears
7 Steps to Creating a Great Protagonist by DesdemonaDeBlake, literature
Literature
7 Steps to Creating a Great Protagonist
PLEASE NOTE THAT WHILE THIS PAGE WILL REMAIN ACTIVE FOR PURPOSES OF EDUCATION AND RECORDS, IT IS OUTDATED. CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE NEWEST VERSION.
7 Steps to Creating a Great Protagonist
Anybody Can Write a Novel
Chapter 3 “Characters” – Section 3 “The Protagonist”
With Links to Supplementary Material
So I've talked about a couple types of protagonists, and how to create them: Heroes and Antiheroes. As well as what types of Character to Use or to Avoid. But not every Protagonist will be a hero or antihero. Today, I'm going to discuss what universal attributes make a great protagonist, that will drive your
9 Steps for Adding Genuine Depth to Your Story by DesdemonaDeBlake, literature
Literature
9 Steps for Adding Genuine Depth to Your Story
9 Steps for Adding Genuine Depth to Your Story
(Or Ridding Your Story of Pseudo-depth)
When writing a story, one of the most important aspects to the writer will be the themes. In other words, the message you want to tell the world through your characters, plot, and struggles. However, even stories with a good message often fail on a number of levels, or else try to be deep but come off sounding ridiculous. Today, I'm going to talk about how to create genuine depth in the themes, characters, and dialogue of your story, without turning it into a sermon.
Step 1: Focus on the story and perfect it, long before you worry about the themes.
Th
6 Steps to Creating Your Plot Premise by DesdemonaDeBlake, literature
Literature
6 Steps to Creating Your Plot Premise
PLEASE NOTE THAT WHILE THIS PAGE WILL REMAIN ACTIVE FOR PURPOSES OF EDUCATION AND RECORDS, IT IS OUTDATED. CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE NEWEST VERSION.
6 Steps to Creating Your Plot Premise
Anybody Can Write a Novel
Chapter 2 “Creating a Plot” – Section 1 “Plot Premise”
Unlike what I once thought, plot is not a natural result of telling a story. Plot, like all other parts of writing, is a craft that must be studied and then designed with purpose. That being said, there are many different ways that one creates a plot—and countless theories as to how they can be created with the most efficiency. Over the ne
6 Steps to Crafting Each Chapter of Your Novel by DesdemonaDeBlake, literature
Literature
6 Steps to Crafting Each Chapter of Your Novel
PLEASE NOTE THAT WHILE THIS PAGE WILL REMAIN ACTIVE FOR PURPOSES OF EDUCATION AND RECORDS, IT IS OUTDATED. CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE NEWEST VERSION.
6 Steps to Making Every Chapter of your Novel Most Excellent
The number one reason for people refusing to read a book is boredom. And no matter how much good content can be found if one just “sticks it out,” it will never be found if your readers have to drudge through even a single boring chapter. So, for both writing and post-draft editing, here are 6 steps to making EVERY chapter most excellent.
Step 1: Create a three-act plot structure for each chapter.
Every chapter of a novel
7 Suggestions for Mapping Your Fictional World by DesdemonaDeBlake, literature
Literature
7 Suggestions for Mapping Your Fictional World
PLEASE NOTE THAT WHILE THIS PAGE WILL REMAIN ACTIVE FOR PURPOSES OF EDUCATION AND RECORDS, IT IS OUTDATED. CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE NEWEST VERSION.
7 Suggestions for Mapping Your Fictional World
Anybody Can Write a Novel
Chapter 1 “World-building” – Section 3 “World Mapping”
With Links to Supplementary Material
So you now know what sort of Story you want to create, and have written a Timeline for the History of your world. Now, you must decide what parts of that created world you want to use. This step can be as specific or general as you would like—from creating a cartographic masterpiece, to sketc
7 Considerations for World-building with Purpose by DesdemonaDeBlake, literature
Literature
7 Considerations for World-building with Purpose
PLEASE NOTE THAT WHILE THIS PAGE WILL REMAIN ACTIVE FOR PURPOSES OF EDUCATION AND RECORDS, IT IS OUTDATED. CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE NEWEST VERSION.
7 Considerations for World-building with Purpose
“Anybody Can Write a Novel”
Chapter 1 World-building – Section 1 Story Types
With Links to Supplementary Material
When crafting a novel, the first thing you need to know is what type of story you are writing. I'm sure that anybody reading this has a pretty good idea of what they want their story to be about. But for writing with strategic purpose, it is important to answer a few specific questions. Doing so will allow you to
8 Tips for Plotting a Fictional World Timeline by DesdemonaDeBlake, literature
Literature
8 Tips for Plotting a Fictional World Timeline
PLEASE NOTE THAT WHILE THIS PAGE WILL REMAIN ACTIVE FOR PURPOSES OF EDUCATION AND RECORDS, IT IS OUTDATED. CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE NEWEST VERSION.
8 Tips for Plotting the Timeline of Your Fictional World
Anybody Can Write a Novel
Chapter 1 “World-building” – Section 2 “World History”
With Links to Supplementary Material
Once you have established what Type of Story you want to write, you have created the cornerstone of your story—an idea or a blank page of the exact size and shape and color that you want. The next step is to start the sketch by creating a historical foundation for your story. Now, I'
7 Steps for Ridding Your Story of Melodrama by DesdemonaDeBlake, literature
Literature
7 Steps for Ridding Your Story of Melodrama
7 Steps for Ridding Your Story of Melodrama
Melodrama, strictly defined, means a “song drama,” of the French tradition. The tradition of this story was characterized by over-the-top emotions, to the point that the character's emotions were unintentionally funny, or ridiculous. Melodrama in modern literature, is a term used for when the emotions of your characters are absurd, petty, beyond control, and seem to overshadow the story; and today I'm going to talk about overcoming the melodrama in your story. Please note that this is something to be considered in the editing process, not in the first draft. There will be melodrama̵
6 Ways to Add Mystery to your Story by DesdemonaDeBlake, literature
Literature
6 Ways to Add Mystery to your Story
6 Ways to Add Genuine Mystery to your Story – With Reference Material for the Rules of Mystery
One of the most common and most annoying things that I come across, when editing manuscripts, is when there is a vague mention of the protagonist's back-story or mission. I ask the writer why they don't clarify, and they tell me that they wanted to leave a mystery for the audience. This is not mystery, that is leaving the audience in the dark. Today, I want to talk about the difference between this cheap ploy, and creating genuine mystery in your story. But before we begin, let me share the first rule of creating mystery:
The first rule of m
3 Tips on Writing a Novel that aren't Complete BS by DesdemonaDeBlake, literature
Literature
3 Tips on Writing a Novel that aren't Complete BS
3 Tips on Writing a Novel that aren't Complete Bullshit
Today, I spent a good many hours scouring the internet for tips on improving my writing. You know, useful and practical suggestions for someone who has actually written a bit and wants hints on some of the finer points of writing—you know, as opposed to just wanting to learn how to get publishers interested in the latest Hunger Games or Twilight knock-off. Well, other than the two masters of storytelling—Stan Lee and Stephen King—I found nothing. I thought to myself, “Blake, even you could offer better writing advice than this!” And so I have. Here are thre
7 Guidelines to Carefully Craft Story Paragraphs by DesdemonaDeBlake, literature
Literature
7 Guidelines to Carefully Craft Story Paragraphs
PLEASE NOTE THAT WHILE THIS PAGE WILL REMAIN ACTIVE FOR PURPOSES OF EDUCATION AND RECORDS, IT IS OUTDATED. CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE NEWEST VERSION.
7 Guidelines to Carefully Craft Every Paragraph in your Story – With Reference Links
One of the most unexpectedly difficult tasks in writing is learning how to craft paragraphs. It's simply not a skill that we learn in most schools, and mostly relies on our reading and slowly learning the skill from those authors who have mastered it. However, from what limited resources exist on the internet, we can build a checklist to make sure that all of our paragraphs have a solid foundation, as we
9 Traits that Readers Want in Your Story's Hero by DesdemonaDeBlake, literature
Literature
9 Traits that Readers Want in Your Story's Hero
PLEASE NOTE THAT WHILE THIS PAGE WILL REMAIN ACTIVE FOR PURPOSES OF EDUCATION AND RECORDS, IT IS OUTDATED. CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE NEWEST VERSION.
9 Traits that Readers Want in Your Story's Hero
Today, I will conclude the trio of character types that I started with Villains and Antiheroes, by discussing what readers want from your story's Hero. Please note that I am speaking specifically about a heroic protagonist, not just any protagonist for any sort of story. Also remember that it could be the case that a story is about the protagonist BECOMING the hero. In this case, the story should be about learning or gaining these traits as they ma
7 Tips for Editing a Novel by DesdemonaDeBlake, literature
Literature
7 Tips for Editing a Novel
PLEASE NOTE THAT WHILE THIS PAGE WILL REMAIN ACTIVE FOR PURPOSES OF EDUCATION AND RECORDS, IT IS OUTDATED. CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE NEWEST VERSION.
7 Tips for Editing a Novel
Once you, a friend, or a client have finished the first draft of any type of work, you reach the editing stage. Unfortunately, I have found very little literature as to the editing process, save for grammar tips and some technical clean-ups. For this reason, I am writing a few quick tips for editing the first draft of a written work—particularly works of fiction.
Tip 1: Let the story sit.
I have heard that C. S. Lewis let his stories sit an entire year after th
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5 Lessons in Storytelling from *Preacher* by DesdemonaDeBlake, literature
Literature
5 Lessons in Storytelling from *Preacher*
5 Lessons in Storytelling from “Preacher” the Graphic Novel
Any professional writer has one universal and fundamental truth to share when it comes to learning how to write—and that is that you must read. This is one of the primary rules of Stephen King, John Green, and most writers kind enough to pass on bits of advice to the rest of us. And so, I will be focusing on things that one can learn from specific stories. Today's story? “Preacher” the graphic novel by Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon.
Lesson 1: The best stories contain everything they are within an overarching plot.
“Preacher” is a story abou
6 Tips for Writing and Storytelling from Stan Lee by DesdemonaDeBlake, literature
Literature
6 Tips for Writing and Storytelling from Stan Lee
6 Tips for Writing and Storytelling from Stan Lee
Recently, Stan Lee made a Youtube video in order to help along writers and storytellers of all types. And there is something wonderfully simple about how Stan Lee perceives writing. The following are the 6 tips that I picked up from listening to his lecture.
Tip 1: Accept commissions as boundaries meant to challenge your creativity.
Chances are that your writing dream will not take off with your book or comic becoming an instant hit. You will have to work for companies, accept commissions, and bide your time until you publish your masterpiece. When you do accept commissions and have to work
Past and Education by GameUniverso, literature
Literature
Past and Education
“Past and Education” Do you know what happens when society always gives you new ideas? When society always gives you new ideas, you soon become uneducated. You lose the education from the past of your childhood and teenage years. People get older and older and become less and less able to keep records. New ideas usually do not become records at all; new ideas usually “fly”. How do we catch the new ideas that “fly” away from us forever? What makes modern experts assume that people can just “keep up”? I don’t really find good sense in any of this at all. We need old ideas from time to time so we can follow the footprints. If modern experts keep erasing the footprints, we will be falling out of it. The records are very necessary for us to look back and say we did it. Sure, some new ideas are pleasing, but I need to remember my birthday! I need to remember my old schools, old papers, old lessons and such. From my philosophy, I “study” what kindness is. I do not walk around with ignorance
7 Tips for Reading Like a Writer by DesdemonaDeBlake, literature
Literature
7 Tips for Reading Like a Writer
PLEASE NOTE THAT WHILE THIS PAGE WILL REMAIN ACTIVE FOR PURPOSES OF EDUCATION AND RECORDS, IT IS OUTDATED. CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE NEWEST VERSION.
7 Tips for Reading Like a Writer
So I've repeated a few times that one of the most important steps to being a writer, is to be a reader. And so, before I continue with my step-by-step process so that anyone can write a publishable novel, I want to give you some tips to make you an active reader. And yes, I'm also stalling with my articles a couple days until I get back to my giant, wonderful computer and stable internet—so sue me ;) haha. But seriously, some important info here.
Tip 1: Ge
8 Tips for Having Your Story Critiqued by DesdemonaDeBlake, literature
Literature
8 Tips for Having Your Story Critiqued
8 Tips for Having Your Story Critiqued
Today I want to talk about the critiquing process—mainly, how to prepare for and deal with another person test-reading your story. With these suggestions, I hope to prepare writers for critiques of multiple calibers, how to interpret them, how to deal with the person giving the critique, and how to handle the suggestions that are given. It sounds simple but it may, in fact, be the most difficult part of the writing process to learn. But remember, I have faith in you, or I would not be writing this! :)
Tip 1: Remember that the critic is your best friend.
No matter if you are dealing with a very l
Three-Act Outline Template by DesdemonaDeBlake, literature
Literature
Three-Act Outline Template
PLEASE NOTE THAT WHILE THIS PAGE WILL REMAIN ACTIVE FOR PURPOSES OF EDUCATION AND RECORDS, IT IS OUTDATED. CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE NEWEST VERSION.
6 Steps to Compiling Your Novel's Three-Act Outline
Anybody Can Write a Novel
Chapter 2 “Creating a Plot” – Section 2 “Compiling a Three-Act Outline”
With Links to Supplementary Material
Part 2 of 2
Joseph Blake Parker's Very Original and Super Complex Three-Act Outline Template
(Not really—this is all standard and basic stuff with no original thought other than my self-indulgent title, and the explanations. I honestly only made this because I couldn't
