Sometimes it’s the little things that can make writing seem unprofessional. In this video I wanted to run through some relatively small writing mistakes that can make your writing seem amateur.
Month: August 2017
How to Convey Emotion Without Being Melodramatic or Cliche [Novel Boot Camp 10]
Conveying the emotions of characters is challenging. It’s easy to fall back on cliches or melodrama, even when trying to avoid them. In this video I go over how to convey emotion without the need to overly rely on showing or telling (which helps prevent cliches and melodrama) by focusing on introspection instead.
7 Common Reasons for Bad Similes [Novel Boot Camp 9]
Similes are notorious for being unintentionally humorous or melodramatic. In this video I run through the most common reasons similes suck and then provide examples of bad similes from my childhood writing so you can see amateur similes in action.
How to Tell If Your Novel Idea is a Good Idea [Novel Boot Camp 8]
Writers often ask if their idea for a novel is good enough or strong enough. In this video I wanted to go over some misconceptions about novel ideas and what it takes to get published.
Peer First Page Critiques – Submission Form [Novel Boot Camp]
Welcome to the second workshop of Novel Boot Camp!
This workshop will focus on peer critiques, but I will jump in with my own thoughts and comments if anyone has any questions or if I feel I can offer additional assistance.
Each participant will be given their own page and comments section for their work. You will be able to link to this page to ask friends, family members, etc. to leave critiques. I will post a master list of all the novel openings as a blog post this Friday (August 18).
First Page Critiques: YA Fantasy & SciFi [Novel Boot Camp]
Publishers, agents, and readers all make quick decisions about what they want to read. Below are my first impressions of ten novel openings written by Novel Boot Camp participants.
I stopped reading (and ended the excerpt) at the point that I was no longer interested in continuing. I also included comments about why the story didn’t catch my interest.
First Page Critiques: Adult Fantasy, SciFi, Horror [Novel Boot Camp]
Publishers, agents, and readers all make quick decisions about what they want to read. Below are my first impressions of ten novel openings written by Novel Boot Camp participants.
I stopped reading (and ended the excerpt) at the point that I was no longer interested in continuing. I also included comments about why the story didn’t catch my interest.
First Page Critiques: Young Adult [Novel Boot Camp]
Publishers, agents, and readers all make quick decisions about what they want to read. Below are my first impressions of ten novel openings written by Novel Boot Camp participants.
I stopped reading (and ended the excerpt) at the point that I was no longer interested in continuing. I also included comments about why the story didn’t catch my interest.
First Page Critiques: Adult Realistic Fiction [Novel Boot Camp]
Publishers, agents, and readers all make quick decisions about what they want to read. Below are my first impressions of ten novel openings written by Novel Boot Camp participants.
I stopped reading (and ended the excerpt) at the point that I was no longer interested in continuing. I also included comments about why the story didn’t catch my interest.
10 Common Problems with Worldbuilding [Novel Boot Camp 7]
Today’s video is a little bit different. I’m going to go over the most common worldbuilding problems I see with my clients in a variety of categories (food, religion, history, technology, etc.) and how to avoid them.
Ellen Brock 