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What do Charles Dickens and Beverly Cleary have in common?Three things: They both wrote for the audience of their day. They both were prolific writers. And they both wrote books that are sympathetic toward children—the kinds of children they themselves were. Take a look.
Your Story's True NorthThat idea is what you need to have in mind from the very beginning. That idea is to your story like the North Star is to someone trekking through a forest at night. It is a guide to keep you heading in the right direction, to keep your story off those slippery side roads of pointless scenes, meaningless dialogue, and extraneous details. The more you can craft the plot, the setting, the characters’ interaction, and the imagery in your descriptions to point to that single idea, the more unified and powerful your story will be. We call the single idea that shines through a story its theme. The most memorable stories have strong themes, but they never state them directly. They merely hint at them through the telling of the story. The best stories convey a powerful, universal theme that all readers can relate to, a theme that leaves them feeling a little wiser. Let’s examine the way a famous short story does this. Read on...
“Putting Words in Your Character’s Mouth”Pick up a novel. Open it anywhere and flip through six pages. Within those six pages you will probably see chunks of dialogue. Â Dialogue is simply two or more characters talking. Dialogue should give the reader insight into your characters, the way that communicating with your next door neighbor tells you something about his personality. Young writers sometimes underestimate the power of their characters’ words. If your dialogue is clunky or stiff, it can ruin the effect of your story and detract from your plot and characters.
Using Your Character’s Five SensesThink of our five senses: taste, smell, sound, sight, and touch. Now look around the room. Do you know what everything tastes like? You might, partly because of your sense of smell, but also because years ago when you were a baby, you probably tasted plastic toys, cloth, sticks, dirt, and rubber. Remember, tastes can be an important part of your character’s fictional life. Maybe your character tastes the dirt when he gets knocked down or tastes blood from a cut lip or tastes the ash in the air after a fire.
Boost Your Word Skills with Games!As video games can increase hand-eye coordination, so word games can stretch your mind. To increase your thinking skills, check out http://dictionary.reference.com/fun/ for lots of games, from crossword puzzles to cryptograms to mazes and hangman. Much fun! Another enjoyable word-related website is Wordle.net.
Don't Forget the Short Storyby Liz Rogers Edgar Allan Poe wrote in his essay “Philosophy of Composition” that a literary work should be short enough to be read in one sitting, “for, if two sittings be required, the affairs of the world interfere,” and the story’s effect is ruined. Poe mastered the short story, and his works are still famous for their intrigue and literary value.
Why I Am a Creative Writing Majorby Liz Rogers I get asked a lot why I’m a creative writing major. Actually, I don’t get asked directly. I get the raised eyebrow and the skeptical question: “What do you plan to do with that?” I don’t mean to be pert. It’s just that the only honest answer I can think of is, “Write!” The truth is, I tried a really practical course of study. For two and a half years I worked on a degree that would prepare me for a lucrative, stable job.
Happy EndingsBy Eileen Berry Are you ever tempted to sneak a peak at the last page while you’re reading a good book? Sometimes we have a hard time waiting to find out if the hero turns out to be the rightful king or if the good side wins the battle. We writers are all very interested in endings. When it comes to writing, there is an “end” that is important to keep in view.
“Grammar the Write Way”In 2011, Inscriptions will be featuring several articles on grammar and its importance to good writing. To introduce this theme, the following selection was adapted from the article “Grammar the Write Way” by Dana Gage, originally printed in the Homeschool Helper newsletter from BJU Press. Since I hold both a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in English, my friends are often surprised when I tell them I started out as a math major.
“Sweat the Small Stuff!”This month, author and editor Nancy Lohr discusses the importance of even the smallest words. Grammar books put it this way: “One type of adjective is the article. A and an are indefinite articles, and the is a definite article.” [yawn] Small stuff without a doubt. Short words. Puny words. Insignificant words. Right? Wrong. These little articles can make a big difference in your writing, and it all comes down to understanding the nuances.
Writing a Novel in a MonthHave you ever written a novel in a month? November is National Novel Writing Month—a time for writers everywhere to challenge themselves and exercise their talents. During National Novel Writing Month, participating writers are encouraged to write a short novel of 50,000 words in just 30 days. This might seem daunting to many of you.
Overcoming Writer’s BlockIt’s no shame to suffer from writer’s block. Most good writers face it at some point. Writer’s block is not necessarily a lack of ideas—you may have a dozen brilliant ideas for a story or poem, but you just can’t get past the first paragraph—or the first word. Or maybe your novel has been flowing along beautifully; and then about halfway through, your mind goes blank. You have no idea what to write next, and your inspiration seems to have died completely. This month, we asked several professional writers to share their tips for moving past writer’s block. So the next time your creativity stalls, try one or two of these suggestions. Dawn Watkins—author of the novels Shield, Medallion, Zoli’s Legacy, and Jenny Wren, as well as several picture books including The Cranky Blue Crab, Very Like a Star, and Pocket Change. When I have writer’s block, I:
Fantasy: Part IILast month we talked about the fantasy genre, and how many fantasy novels communicate some deeper meaning—some truth about life or human nature. The Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan is a famous book that uses many fantastical elements to depict the life of a Christian. The main character, named Christian, goes on a journey from the City of Destruction to the Celestial City. Through realistic characters and events, the author shows the need for salvation and the importance of staying on the path of faith and right living.
Fantasy: Part IWhen you were younger, did you enjoy stories like Sleeping Beauty, Jack and the Beanstalk, and Rumplestiltskin? If you did, you might enjoy reading fantasy novels. Fantasy can be defined as a genre or type of literature in which one or more of the following characteristics exist: > the setting is a nonexistent or unreal world
Mysteries Part II: The “Red Herring”Do you know what a red herring is? No, it isn’t a crimson-colored fish. A “red herring” is a false clue that a mystery writer includes to throw his readers off track and keep them from guessing the truth. Here’s an example.
Mysteries Part I: The Surprise EndingHow many of you love a good mystery? Maybe you have read the Nancy Drew or Hardy Boys books or some of the Sherlock Holmes mysteries. Maybe you hope to write a great mystery novel someday. A good mystery is difficult to develop. In general fiction you have to maintain consistency with your viewpoint, your characters, and your tone. You must make sure that the plot develops at the right speed and that you provide enough description without overwhelming your reader. On top of all that, if you’re writing a mystery, you have to be sure that you give the reader enough clues to keep him fascinated without giving too much away too soon.
Writing a historical fiction novel or short story is like time-traveling for a writer. Maybe you have never tried your hand at historical fiction—maybe your favorite kind of writing is fantasy or modern mysteries. If so, keep writing what you love, but consider venturing into the realm of historical fiction at least once. It can broaden your mind to so many possibilities.
In False Coin, True Coin, by Lois Hoadley Dick, seventeenth-century England comes to life. Cissy Nidd lives in her father’s jailhouse, feeding the prisoners, cooking and cleaning for her father and brothers, and wishing for a better life. Her family is deeply involved in the counterfeiting business—a crime which could get them all hanged if they are caught. But although Cissy fears the consequences of counterfeiting, she does not dare leave her father’s house.
What if you had to be careful every time you spoke, for fear that someone you cared about might be arrested? What if you could not speak about God or church or your beliefs without fear of being turned in to the police? Today I want to introduce you to one of my favorite novels from JourneyForth Books—Careful Enough by Dillon Forbes.
Characters: The Seeds for Growing a PlotOur last article focused on plot structure—how to get your story from one point to another until it reaches a climax and then resolves the major problem. But often the seeds of a plot go back even further than the outline or the map that you make to order your story’s events. The seeds of a plot come from your characters. Your main character, after all, is the one who will confront the story’s problem. Often the problem he faces in the story grows out of who he is: his personality, abilities, and circumstances. Conflict results when he is placed in a situation that he cannot immediately resolve because of his personal limitations. Read on...
Plotting Your StoryBefore you write a story, you need to have a plan. Not just an idea, but a plan. There’s an important difference. An idea could be one major event that’s going to happen in the story, or a hazy sense of how things are going to come out in the end. A plan is like a road map of the story. A plan tells the writer what will happen in the beginning, the middle, and the end of the story, and it will lead you from one part to the next. The plan you make for your story is called the plot. When we read the opening lines of a short story, what makes us decide to stick with it and read on? Something needs to be happening to capture our attention right at the beginning. Very near the beginning of the story, we need to be introduced to some sort of problem (often called a conflict) that the main character or characters are trying to solve. The beginning of the story doesn’t need to be long. It simply needs to introduce the characters and their problem. Then it’s time to move on to the middle part. Read on...
The Power of FormSometimes writers think that if there were no rules, writing would be easier! And to be sure, having limitless freedom to ramble about on paper (or computer screen) does seem appealing. However, if a person really wants to get somewhere, rambling about is not useful. He must have a destination and a way to get to it safely and efficiently. When the somewhere a writer wants to get to is a reader's heart and mind, following a map is a good idea. In poetry, maps are called forms. A sonnet is a form. A haiku is a form. A sestina is a form. Even—yes, it's true!—free verse is a form. Read on...
Burying the GemIn one of her poems, Emily Dickinson wrote: “Tell all the truth, but tell it slant.” She goes on to say that the truth is like lightning, and the poet needs to come at his theme from an angle rather than “blinding” his readers with an abrupt, blunt statement of the truth. Dickinson was right. Part of the delight we experience in reading poetry comes from discovering the poet’s meaning for ourselves—a meaning that lies beneath the surface of the printed word. A good poem treats its reader as much more than an unsuspecting target for a lightning bolt. Read on...
Creating CharactersAre you a people watcher? Every good writer is, to some degree. God has filled His world with people of every size, shape, and personality. When we see the boundless variety among people around us, we get a glimpse of His creativity. He has made each person unique! Most writers are fascinated with people and what makes them tick. We are interested in people because we populate our stories with characters—people, animals, or even robots—with personalities as unique as the people in the world around us. What should a writer who wants to develop good characters notice about people? Here are a few ideas... Read More...
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