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6 Reading Tips for Improving Your Writing Anybody Can Write a Novel Version 2.0 Chapter 1 “Beginning to Write” – Section 2 “Constructive Reading” (Previous Tutorial)              (Next Tutorial) “That's when I started being a writer. I got the Tarzan books and studied how Edgar Rice Burroughs kept the pace going, because he was really good at that. And I studied Stephen King. Although Burroughs wasn't that great on character, he was great on pace and adventure, and King is very good on character as well as pace. I read the same book over three times to see how it was put together. That's how I trained

You know that you have a Mary Sue when she upsets the monochromatic color scheme of my Writer's Guides. Mouse over blue text to see a note. Internet communities often lash out at writers who create Mary Sues. Declaring the writing to be below their standards, they proceed to punish the creators. They mock the characters, verbally abuse the writers, and write hyperbolically about how much they wish the characters would die. Bullying writers (who may be very young) is only going to make them afraid to write—and therefore improve—or share their work. Not only that, but it discourages other writers from speaking for fear of public

These creepypastas were made years ago when I was very young! Because of that, they are old, terribly cliché and outdated. I keep them posted because some people still enjoy reading these. Whether you're reading these for laughs, or because you legitimately like them, I hope you enjoy! I was introduced to the video game realm a tad late than most other people. For most, if not all, of my early childhood, I was isolated from other kids and I had next to no social interactions. My days were spent in a prison-like school and my nights rotted away with mind numbing TV. Life was dull and boring, all I had were my stuffed animals and cheap pl

“[Name], can you keep a secret?” your friend asked you in a hushed whisper; though you had glared at her with the utmost distaste, she released a carefree laugh at your silent anger. “I knew you could!” A soft mewling erupted from your friend's bag, and she pulled it open, lifting up a ball of matted raven-black fur. “I found this little guy wandering the headquarters in the rain, and I just couldn't leave him out there!” You stared at her with your classic 'are you an idiot' look. The consequences of your punishment if someone was to catch you two in the hall with this feline was staggering, but being th

  15 Tips for Writing Horror Chapter 2 “Genres” – Section 6 “Horror" Anybody Can Write a Novel 2.0 (Previous Tutorial)             (Next Tutorial) “[Horror fiction] shows us that the control we believe we have is purely illusory, and that every moment we teeter on chaos and oblivion.” ― Clive Barker Horror is a genre which plays upon the emotions of the audience, but it does so for very specific reasons. We may not always analyze why we are made afraid by a sotry, but there are usually specific reason for our fears, a specific nature to them, and a specific way in which we can make fear more eff

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

Update notice as of January 17, 2013: I have given this guide a MAJOR overhaul. It was originally written over a year and a half ago, and since then my own views and understanding of copyrights has changed. I felt that this guide should reflect those changes, so if you read this guide in the past, please take a moment to look through it again as I have added MANY new topics, information, and sources. Unlike my first draft, I have also changed my viewpoint to neutral throughout this writing. Update notice as of July 17th, 2015: Check out DeviantArt's new article on art theft, fanart, copyrights, and other relevant topics! http://protectart.de

Is it really worth it chasing after that meaningless "page view" count? Or is page views a synonym for popularity? Sure, we all want more watchers, but how much more? If you type the word "popular" in the DA search engine you will get a long stream of deviations bashing popular artworks and artists. I mean hey! It's easy to say "My art is 10 times better then that crap on the front page!", and it's okay to say that funnily enough, because art is subjective.  But what's not okay to say is "I deserve to be more popular then them it's unfair!" the reason why they are more popular than you is because they know the "method". Everybody's method is

Tips for Artists

Huge character profile of completeness    This character profile template was made by compiling a whole lot of templates made by other artists that I felt were not specific enough and adding many more questions to make everything more specific. The links are in the description, please visit their versions too. This profile is ginormous, not every question may be relevant to your character. The main goal is to have a profile that is as complete as it can get, so not every question will need to be filled in. Add and remove as is needed as there's only few characters every question is relevant for. If you think questions should be added, commen

You raced down the alleyway, as fast as your little seven year old legs could take you, away from the older boys yelling mean things to you and laughing about it as you ran. They had their pet pitbulls with them on leashes, helping track you down and adding to their noise. Your leg muscles burned but you couldn't stop. If they caught you, they wouldn't let you go so you just ran. "(name)! (name)! Get back here ya little bitch! Come on! We just wanna play with you! The dogs do too! They're growling with excitement!" Your eyes stung from the threat of more tears but you shook your head. You pushed trash cans down to try and slow them but nothi

Master of Ravens 1 My little brother is nine years old the first time I decide to kill him. During the night, snow fell over the jagged wreckage of our land. In the morning I realize he will follow me outside if I call to him. Like an awkward-limbed colt he'll stumble through the snowdrifts, and I can leave him to the ice and wind in the shadow of a three-walled building. No one will see me. Our father will think he has gotten lost on his own. I too will cry when they find his body. When the mourning is done, however, I will be my father's true and only son. 'Cam,' he will call to me, and I'll kneel down before him. My father. Master of

Sentences—if the plot is the backbone of a story, then sentences are the muscles and tendons keeping it glued together. Unfortunately, writing solid sentences isn’t easy for everyone. As Human beings, we don’t speak the same way we write. Unless you do a lot of writing, you may have trouble putting together even the simplest of sentences. The last time you took a good look at a sentence and broke it down into its individual parts was probably around 3rd grade. Don’t worry—I’m here to help. There’s More Than One Type of Sentence There are (roughly) four different types of sentences, and we’re g