Fantasy

 

Have you ever considered writing Fantasy?

Here are some tips to help you write a short story or novel about fantasy.

1             Plot your story

Even though you have to create a new world, creatures and other imagery you must make sure that your writing is good and that your characters are interesting and motivated. Make sure your plot is interesting and unfolds in a logical and engaging way and that your description is vivid so the reader can feel as though they are there.

2            Setting

If you’re having trouble finding a setting, look for a time in interesting that excites you and add some magic.

3            What sort of Fantasy story are you writing?

Some fantasy stories start with a character/s in the real world and  go into another world and come back again like The Fairyland Series. Other fantasy stories are in a fantasy world from the first page and the storyline is based in that world like The Lord of the Rings. These are only two examples of what fantasy stories are like. Yours may be different.

4            Dialogue

Make sure your characters’ dialogue matches the society live in.5

5            Magic

Using magic is a challenge. The trick is not to overuse it. Remember a genie grants three wishes? Don’t overload your story with magic.

I hope the above information helps you.

Happy writing!

Advertisements

Memoir

So you want to write your memoir. Here are a few tips to help you.

First of all, memoir is autobiographical, but it’s not your life story.

An autobiography is your birth to the present whereas a memoir draws on selected anecdotes from your life to that are around a theme that make a point. For example, if you came from a broken home and became wealthy, you would choose scenes from your life to support that. You could start your memoir showing what things were like for you in the beginning and then show the following:

• pivotal experiences
• people who helped you transform
• what you learned
• how you changed

If your story is interesting, the better your memoir will be. Memoirs succeed when they resonate with readers because readers identify with truth. When you write a memoir always remember this: it’s not about you, it’s about what readers can gain from your story. If your story doesn’t enrich and entertain readers they won’t keep reading it or recommend it.

It must have a theme

All people, regardless of age, ethnicity, location, and social status, share certain needs, for example, food, dwelling and love. Most people fear dying, abandonment, loneliness losing a loved one. It doesn’t matter what your theme is because if it touches on any of those wants and fears, readers will identify with it.

Remember, no one has written your story/memoir your way so don’t be frightened that people have heard your story before.

Anecdotes

Let the reader see themselves in your story so they can identify with your experiences. That way they can apply to their own lives the lessons you’ve learned.

If you’re afraid to mine your pain deeply enough tell the whole truth, you may not be ready to write your memoir. There’s little less helpful — or marketable — than a memoir that glosses over the truth.

Anecdotes need to support your theme. If you are introspective and vulnerable your memoir will be more effective.

It’s written like a novel

If you’re writing about yourself it should be written in first-person point of view.

Remember to show don’t tell, just like you would if you were writing fiction.

What you learn along the way is your character arc. There should be a marked difference between who you were in the past and who you are now.

I hope that helps.

Happy writing!

Freewriting

So you want to write but don’t know what you want to write about. Here’s a way to help you find a topic. It’s called Freewriting.

 

I think Freewriting can be summed up like this: don’t think, just write sentences and paragraphs without stopping. It will increase your flow of ideas and your ability to write them. Don’t worry about accuracy, just write. The idea is not to think about what other people will say about your writing because they won’t see it. Just write. It doesn’t matter what it’s about. You can read it later. Don’t focus on grammar. If you can’t think of something just keep writing a word that comes into your head. For example nothing to write, nothing to write, until an idea flows. Believe me, something will eventually come.

 

Keep writing for 30 minutes. Next, read what you’ve written and see if you can build on it. Try doing this every day, starting with a new idea that comes to mind. Repeat the process until you find something that makes you want to keep writing. Read it and see if you can refine it and keep going.

Writing a Short Story

Here’s some tips I hope you’ll find useful about writing a short story. If you are writing to guidelines always make sure that you adhere to those guidelines. Don’t kid yourself and think but it’s me, they’ll accept my 200 extra words. No they won’t.  Keep to the theme that the guidelines stipulate. Writing sci-fi for romance isn’t going to work.

Entering competitions and anthologies will test your writing skills. I’ve entered short stories, poetry and flash fiction for many anthologies and had plenty of rejections as well as acceptances. It’s a good way to see what other people think of your writing.

• Start with an idea/theme for your story
• Who is your protagonist?
• Think of a hook for your first line
• List your scenes
• Research is optional. It depends if you know enough about what you’re writing about
• Write a draft in one sitting if you can. Then rewrite, edit, edit and edit some more.
• Put the draft away for a day or so.
• Read your story again. You may need to add/edit some more.
• Get someone else to read your story and give you constructive feedback.

Then publish your work on a blog or enter a competition or anthology.

Poetry

If you are writing a poem about an experience you’ve had practice writing it in different ways to capture the feelings that the experience evoked in you.

Poetry speaks to the soul of the reader and evokes feelings in the reader that they may or may not relate to.

Here are some things that will help you:

• Have a theme. For example, bedtime
• Avoid cliches
• Use images, metaphors and similes
• try and see things differently from the way everyone else sees the theme
• use words that people experience with their senses. For example: hot, cold, warm, smell, touch, sound etc.
• Read your poem out loud and see how it sounds. Remember it doesn’t have to rhyme.

Here is an example of a poem I’ve written:

Dreaming of characters in my book

I’m part of the landscape

pulled in by a hook

don’t try and wake me

I want to stay for a while

I’m back in time

reliving it all

wanting to remember everything

when I wake

I’m the protagonist

my life is at stake

Artwork: Christian Schloe

Flash Fiction

Flash fiction is not part of your novel or a summary/synopsis of your novel. Flash fiction is a short story with a beginning, middle and end that is usually 1,000 words or less. Here’s what you’ll need to craft a well-rounded story:

• a hook
• conflict and tension with your characters
• wrap the story up fast

Remember:

• Don’t confuse your reader. You need to get into the story and get out.
• When you’ve finished your story give it to a friend to read before you submit for publication.
• it can be in any genre.

Happy writing!

Synopsis

A synopsis demonstrates your ability to craft a good story and should make the agent/editor want to read your whole manuscript.

Many authors loathe the synopsis, I know I do. The novel must be condensed and you can’t leave anything out, including the ending. If an editor/agent has given you guidelines as to how long the synopsis should be make sure you follow their instructions. Don’t think they’ll accept more or less words/pages. You need to show the agent/editor that you can craft a well-rounded story. They will be able to pick out any flaws that you’ve made.

Remember a movie that you’ve seen where you were hooked in straight away? You need to do that so that the editor/agent will give it the publisher to have a look at. The best thing to do is use emotive language that makes your manuscript standout.