www.1001TopWords.com |
How to Create Stories that Sizzle
How to Start Your Story with a Bang The purpose of creating a story is to create a world that will draw the reader away from their own. In order to do this one must create suspense, drama and mystery. Your reader must absolutely need to get from page to page, to find out what happens. There are several simple techniques to get your story going and draw the reader in. Here are just a few: 1) Start in the middle of a problem. Ex. A lover's quarrel, a murder, a personal dilemma 2) Start with an unusual environment Ex. Alice in Wonderland, the beginning of the final frontier, a journey to a new world 3) Start with action Ex. A gun has just been fired, A woman is deciding whether to jump or not, A hospital ER being mobilized 4) Start with a feeling Ex. The soft silk slid across her skin, as she finally slid into his bed. Hot coals burned his stomach as the bullet tore through him. The rich velvety feel of chocolate on her tongue was the perfect end to a dreadful day. Don't spend the first day bogged down on details, unless they are absolutely crucial to understanding your story. Even then, save descriptions for later in your story, if you can. Get the reader hooked first, then you can describe the rich incandescence of his eyes or the exact color of her house. Remember your story should be like life, fast paced, even at a standstill, and utterly surprising. About The Author Caterina Christakos is the author of several how to books, children's stories and countless articles. To view more writing tips and get some homespun advice visit: http://www.howtowriteachildrensbook.com
|
RELATED ARTICLES
The Run-on Sentence: From Here To Eternity If you find your sentences filled with commas, and they wend from one topic to another, then you, like many people, may be guilty of writing run-on sentences. Vital Verbs Remember back in the dark days of your school years when you had to learn the parts of speech? A noun is the name of a person, place, or thing. When asked what a verb was, you smugly answered, A verb is a word that indicates action, or some such definition. Fine. You got that straight. Since then, you've uttered or written verbs in the hundreds of thousands. How NOT to Get a Freelance Writing Job In the business of freelance writing, it's not enough to be good at writing. You also have to be good at finding work ? and selling yourself when you do. Persuading a new client to let you write for them, rather than one of the hundreds of other writers out there, can be an art in itself. Here's how not to do it? Write Your Way To A Better Brain Boost Brain Power Through Writing Character Motivation - Always Ask WHY For many years, I've been a tutor for students undertaking courses in writing romance, crime or children's stories. In that time, I've marked thousands of assignments. I've seen hundreds of plots, thousands of scenes, millions of words. And if I had to give writers one piece of advice after seeing all those millions of words, it would be this: always ask 'WHY?' The Writing Life In the 7th grade I wanted to be an architect but it turns out math is involved. Who knew? My 8th grade English teacher talked me into working on the school newspaper and I was hooked. It seemed like easy lifting compared to architecture. Increase Your Chances Of Winning Writing Contests Winning writing contests can provide several advantages to writers. For starters it's a great way to get your name in print and in front of potential readers. It can also provide professional credits foryour writing portfolio, and prize rewards to augment your income. Understanding Editorial Guidelines Editorial guidelines, also known as writer's guidelines, are the rules set forth by publishers for contributing authors. In order to have your article taken seriously you must review the guidelines prior to submission. It is also recommended that you review previous editions of the publication to get a better feel for the types of articles favored by the editor(s). How To Publish Your Own Newsletter With the expansion and diversion of businesses, manufacturers, and even hobbyists into more and more specialized areas of endeavor, there is an increasing need for information. And newsletters are the high profit way to cash in on the market for specialized information. Creative Problem-Solving: Following Your Stream of Consciousness Having trouble finding a solution to a nagging problem? Try a well-known journaling technique called stream of consciousness--you may be surprised at the creative messages you receive from your inner self. How to Finish Your Self-Published Book Fast Started a book and then got bogged down? Like many of my bookcoaching clients do you say, "I have so many other demands, I just can't get to the book." The Myths Of Writing: Have You Bought Into These? There is an image most people carry of the artist (think Van Gough's self-portrait, the one with his ear bandaged), working in solitude in a barren garret in a dark corner of the city. Everyday is a struggle. He continually walks between moments of brilliance and moments of insanity. It's a romantic image, I suppose. Built around the belief that an artist must suffer for his art. Write For Yourself First It would be very selfless or noble of me to tell you that I have created my web site only to help you and the rest of humanity. The reason for me spending so much time and energy into my writing and this site is selfish. And I must remind myself of that from time to time, especially when I move into a down period and I am asking myself "why." Writing the KAIZEN Way Over the past eight years or so, I have tutored thousands of writing students. They come in all flavours: retirees who at last have time to satisfy a dream; young mothers who want a job they can do at home; bored workers who feel their creativity is being stifled by their existing careers. Money Trails for Writers I'm willing to bet that quite a number of you once had to debate (or discuss) the saying: "The pen is mightier than the sword." If you were arguing 'for', you would have been able to come up with many examples of how words triumphed over muscles. How to Outline your Book and Chapters with Mindmapping Mindmapping is better than linear outlining because authors can use flexible thinking and relativity in writing their book. One can add and subtract a thought or phrase from a mindmap easily. Mindmapping is an excellent way to start, organize, and finish your book. A Writers Inner Battle There is a psychological nuisance so powerful that can deflate the drive, self-esteem, and human spirit of many aspiring Writers of any age. These Writers are faced with an obstacle that make them stop, think twice and question their right to be a part of a respected community. This even leads them to doubt their ambition of pursuing their literary or journalistic calling. Open a Vein If you want to be a writer, you must write and that requires sitting at your typewriter or computer and writing although it may not be easy. That also means avoiding all distractions that will keep one from writing-visitors, friends, relatives, television, radio, and anything that will keep the writer from concentrating on the task. Graphology - Unleash Inner Personality & Talent of Child || Graphology & Graphotherapy || 6 Ways to Leverage Technical Articles Technology vendors often contribute bylined articles to trade journals. The articles are great exposure for these companies but they don't come cheap ? the trades rarely pay for these articles but the vendors spend time and resources to assign pieces, write them, approve them and submit them. Your PR agency can help your clients leverage their investment by wringing top value out of these articles. Here are some possibilities: |
© Athifea Distribution LLC - 2013 |