23.8K results

1. Know what you're writing. It's easy to get off track while you're writing. Thus it's always a good idea to know what you're writing. As soon as you have a good grasp on what your story is about, you'll find yourself writing quicker. This includes the main plot, a majority of the subplots, and where all the vital plot points are going to be. 2. Know what inspires you and stay around it. Now this doesn't mean that you should go through an entire personal evaluation. It just means to keep track of where you get inspired and what caused the inspiration. For some, it could be listening to music of some sort, while for others, it could be w

-----Original Message----- I want to write a story. I have a couple of ideas, but no idea what to do with them, or even how to begin! Help?! -- Newbie Writer So when you wanna write a story, where do you begin? With your PASSION! Write what you KNOW & LOVE What do you KNOW, really? What do you love to Do, to Study, to Think About, to Talk About...? Whether it's cave-diving, model trains, skate-boarding, sewing, horses, mythology, ghost legends, or particle physics your passion is where you will find your most unique and powerful work. Make a list of all the things you know well and all the things you've done -- seriously! Mythology

8 Tips for Composing Each Chapter of Your Novel Anybody Can Write a Novel 2.0   Chapter 7 “Editing” – Section 1 “The Chapter”  “Many first-time novelists end up rewriting their first two or three chapters, trying to get them 'just right.' But the point of the first draft is not to get it right; it's to get it written - so that you'll have something to work with.” -Matt Hughes Recently, we've been working on all of the plot-points contained within a story and what function they serve to the overall plot. And if you've been following along with the “Write-A-Novel” exercises, and writte

I recently solicited my watchers to ask me writing questions that I would then attempt to answer in a writing guide such as this. This article is my first response, and there will be many more to come. I've been asked to give advice on ways a writer can begin to put words on a page. The bottom line is as simple as this: sit your butt down and write. Duh, right? It's the only way I know to actually write. Sure, sitting your butt in a chair is easy, but getting your fingers to move and stay moving is a challenge. Here are three things that have helped me. 1) Have a goal. Your goal can be as simple as "describe the person in this picture" o

Accents, Foreign Languages, and Regional Dialects There are times when your story may have one or more character speaking a different language, or with a different accent than the rest. There are many different ways a writer can go about presenting this to the reader, and before we go any further, I will concede that some of it is a matter of personal taste, and on this particular matter, you won’t be able to please everybody. So, consider this bit not so much a lesson, but rather a series of guidelines. Accents Everyone has one. Even if you think that you don’t, there’s someone, somewhere in the world who would disagree wit

 First of all, I freely admit that what I say isn't gospel. I am a total amateur at art and writing. I've learned everything that I know via the internet and a few drawing books. It's just that I appreciate all of the tutorials here on dA that have helped me out, and I want to put a little bit of my own methods back in. In my experience, style will either be one of the easiest or one of the hardest things for you to develop as an artist.  I've been there, there is no worse feeling than the crushing realization that your art looks an awful lot like everyone else's.  The weirdest part is that it's really difficult to develop a style of your ow