Quote of the day
Scientists have known for a long time that our body language will mirror that
of someone we are attracted to. Our pupils will become dilated, the words we use in conversation will adjust to mimic the language patterns of the other person, and our laughter will begin to synchronize. All of this happens within a matter of minutes, and all of these signs can be used to quantitatively define a connection between two people.
~HANNAH FRY, author of The Mathematics of Love: Patterns, Proofs, and the Search for the Ultimate Equation (TED Books)
WRITING
- How writers can seek and destroy banal and obvious dialogue, Live Write Thrive | Tweet
The problem is that dialogue needs to sound realistic, but you don’t want it to be realistic, for one very good reason—realistic dialog is boring.
How to Write Dazzling Dialogue: The Fastest Way to Improve Any Manuscript
- First Draft Checklist, Writers Write | Tweet
Visual aids are a great way to help keep you on track. They also act as a safety net when you veer off course. This worksheet will help you with that.
Fast Fiction: A Guide to Outlining and Writing a First-Draft Novel in Thirty Days
- The Importance of Psychological Development in Character Growth, Writers Helping Writers | Tweet
As writers, we struggle to get our characters right. We examine personality types and create dossiers trying to figure out what makes them tick, but there’s another factor we need to consider: the impact of psychological development.
3 Reasons Novel Writing is Like Building a Start Up, The Write Practice | Tweet
But as my friend began to talk less about gadgets and more about the daunting experience of starting a business, I found myself suddenly able to relate. That’s when I realized it- writing a novel is basically like building a start up.
SCREENWRITING
An award-winning playwright and screenwriter explains why you shouldn’t follow the rules.
- Great Scene: “The Elephant Man”, Go Into The Story | Tweet
It’s one of the most poignant, sad, and beautiful movie moments I can remember: The ending of The Elephant Man (1980).
Save the Cat!® Story Structure Software 3.0
SELF-PUBLISHING
7 Things to Do Before You Get Published, Writer’s Digest | Tweet
After getting published, I realized there are some really important things to do before toy actually start the publishing process. Once you’re there, it’s a crazy world of marketing, promo, edits, deadlines, and a lot of regrets about what should have been done beforehand. Learn from some of my mistakes with these top seven things to do before you get published.
Ditch the Publisher: 40 Indie Authors on Their Unique Self-Publishing Journeys
7 Tips for Proofreading Your Book, The Book Designer | Tweet
Do you proofread your book after it’s been laid out for print or formatted for e-reading? You should. Proofreading is the last stage of the editorial process and its goal is to catch any errors that the writer, editor, and book designer or formatter have missed.
McGraw-Hill’s Proofreading Handbook
HEALTH
- New sugar substitute: Nanoparticles of sand coated in sugar, Popular Science | Tweet
Sugar is dietary enemy number one at the moment. The delicious compound can be found in many foods and beverages (even those that don’t taste sweet) and has been blamed for the obesity epidemic in the U.S. and beyond.
Sugar Nation: The Hidden Truth Behind America’s Deadliest Habit and the Simple Way to Beat It
RELATIONSHIPS
In an article at Huffington Post Highline, Eve Fairbanks traces the development of the “Gottman Method” from research lab to business plan, tries out their couples workshop, and considers whether lasting love can really be boiled down to a series of simple steps inside a manual.
The Mathematics of Love: Patterns, Proofs, and the Search for the Ultimate Equation (TED Books)
PSYCHOLOGY
The more psychologists learn about how rudeness spreads, the more workplaces need to adjust to defend against it.
The Civility Solution: What to Do When People Are Rude
READING
It’s not the e-reader that will be driving future books sales, it’s the phone; how publishers are rethinking books for the small screen
SCIENCE
Stephen Hawking may have just solved one of the most vexing mysteries in physics — the “information paradox.”
A Brief History of Time