[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””] An absolute freedom exists on the blank page, so let’s use it. -John Updike. [/perfectpullquote]
WRITING
7 Other characters to consider when you write a book | WRITERS WRITE
7 Other characters to consider when you write a book | 
Here are a few kinds of characters I consider flexible and interchangeable.
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- What exactly makes a damn good story? | TERRIBLE MINDS
What exactly makes a damn good story?Tha
t’s the hard part, this humanbot is right. Story is an unruly beast.
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- How writers can bring setting to life through personification | LIVE WRITE THRIVE
How writers can bring setting to life through personification | 
Settings can be tricky for authors. In our desire to firmly ground readers in the scene, we often write too much, adding way more details than are necessary. We also tend to write our settings in somewhat bald terms, keeping them simple so readers can easily envision the time and place.
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- Emotional Wounds Entry: Being Stalked | WRITERS HELPING WRITERS
Emotional Wounds Entry: Being Stalked | When you’re writing a character, it’s important to know why she is the way she is. Knowing her back
story is important to achieving this end, and one of the most impactful pieces of a character’s backstory is her emotional wound.
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The Emotion Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide To Character Expression
- How to find The End | BOOKS BY WOMEN
St
arting things is easy, right? Relationships, diets, runs, New Year’s resolutions – we dive in, full of enthusiasm. Of course we’ll stick to it. Of course we’ll see it through. Sadly, the finishing bit is not so easy.
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- Writing Fantasy: How to write fresh when following a recipe | WRITER’S DIGEST
Writing Fantasy: How to write fresh when following a recipe | Authors are inspired by a variety of sources and then mash-up different ideas to create interesting new concoctions. Some work, some don’t. We explore and play with many. I’ve always liked to 
push and test myself to do something nontraditional. So how do I make it easy for readers to swallow?
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- How to start your book or movie with a bang | PAT VERDUCCI
One of the most common problems with early book and screenplay drafts is that the 
story takes too long to get started.
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+ Related books:
- How to write dazzling dialogue
- Writing success: Your book from start to finish to publication
- Outlining your novel
- Writing deep point of view
- The art of memoir
- Reading like a Writer
- Rock your revisions
- The Emotion Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide To Character Expression
SCREENWRITING
- Writing may be rewriting, but how do you do it? | GO INTO THE STORY
Let’s face it: Rewriting is a bitch. Or a bastard. Pick your gender specific invective. Doesn’t matter. The process is a pain no matter how you shake your fist and swear at it.
- Writing stories for every season | LA SCREENWRITER
Summer is often associated with a time when people vacation, both physically and mentally. If we are going to take a chance or do something risky, chances are we will do it in the summer so we can “put things back together” in the more respectable fall season. In films that take place in school settings, summer represents the deadline of all deadlines.
- WRITER’S EDGE: Drama defined: Why drama genre is a tough sell? | SCRIPT MAG
Of all the genres, drama has the most emotional impact on screen. Think about it. Virtually every memorable film is a drama. Examine the American Film Institute’s “100 Best Films of All Time” and at least ninety percent of them are in the drama category. So why are dramas so difficult to pitch?
- LEGAL: Protecting your stories–Borrowed elements or stolen idea? | SCRIPT MAG
When writers submit their work, they become vulnerable to theft. As an entertainment attorney I often hear from writers who believe that they have been ripped off. Usually the writer is a novice without representation who submits a script to an established production company.
Does Hollywood have a sequel problem? | GO INTO THE STORY
“Sequelitis,” the entertainment industry equivalent of the Zika virus, has gripped major studios. Its symptoms include sluggish box office, feverish critical take downs and disdainful social media reactions.
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- Super Structure: The key to unleashing the power of story
- Screenplay: The foundations of screenwriting
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- 33 Ways to sell your screenplay
- The eight characters of comedy
SELF-PUBLISHING
- 5 Reasons Google + can rock your search rankings (and your world) | WRITERS IN THE STORM
We always try to bring you information on the most useful technologies here at WITS and there’s a gaping hole in the Google+ category.
- Book Marketing: Facebook Advertising for authors with Mark Dawson | THE CREATIVE PENN
Facebook advertising is a core part of my business now, and I only started using it because of Mark Dawson.
How to choose a domain name for your author website | THE BOOK DESIGNER
I don’t think there’s any doubt at this point that every author needs a website. Publishers recommend them for their own authors, and self-publishing writers know that, for most of us, our natural home is online.
Self-publishing vs Traditional publishing, and money | JUST PUBLISHING ADVICE
Readers are making the decisions now, and it is clear that they see little difference between traditionally published and self-published titles.
An alternative to ACX for audiobook production and distribution | JANE FRIEDMAN
Audiobooks are experiencing some of the best growth in the book publishing industry; sales were up by more than 24 percent in 2015 according to the Audiobook Publishers Association.
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- Self Publishing: My rules to staying alive and making money
- How I sold 80,000 books
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- The Self-Publishing Road Map