By Erin Bauer
I just renewed my membership with RWA for the first time. An easy choice, when I think of all the wonderful advice I’ve picked up at meetings and conferences over the past year. Here’s a list of the top ten tips:
1. Find the material that showcases your voice best. Don’t change or repress your individual voice – find the right frame for it. (Jane Porter)
2. Look for a critique partner who’s good at the things you’re weak at. (Tessa Dare)
3. Writer’s block is a step in the natural growth of an author, the process of gaining new mastery. Authors who work through their writer’s block think they are better writers when they get to the other side. (Dennis Palumbo)
4. Novelty is not the selling point of your book. It might catch someone’s attention but it won’t keep their attention. (Zoe Archer)
5. Every scene must have a goal. (Carol Hughes)
6. Dialogue is faster paced than narrative. Don’t bog down a conversation too much with musings or unimportant actions. Important details about where your characters are and what they are wearing go before or after. (Joan Johnston)
7. Think of characters and setting like an iceberg. Only 10% of what you know about them may show in the book, but you need the other 90% in your mind. (Terry Irene Blaine)
8. Adverbs allow you to be lazy when choosing verbs. When an adverb crops up in your writing, locate the verb it modifies and try to think of a different word that conveys just the right meaning. (Anne Frazier Walradt)
9. Take the tangent. If your story veers off in an unexpected direction, find out where it’s going. (Leanne Banks)
10. Readers may love or loathe a character that is done right. Indifference is the response you should worry about. (Tessa Dare)
Author Details
Marianne H. Donley writes fiction from short stories to funny romances and quirky murder mysteries. She makes her home in Tennessee with her husband and son. She is a member of Bethlehem Writers Group, Romance Writers of America, OCC/RWA, and Music City Romance Writers. You can find Marianne on social media: www.facebook.com/mariannehdonley, www.mariannedonley.com, and https://twitter.com/mariannedonley
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Marianne H. Donley writes fiction from short stories to funny romances and quirky murder mysteries. She makes her home in Tennessee with her husband and son. She is a member of Bethlehem Writers Group, Romance Writers of America, OCC/RWA, and Music City Romance Writers. You can find Marianne on social media: www.facebook.com/mariannehdonley, www.mariannedonley.com, and https://twitter.com/mariannedonley
1 Comment
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Anonymous
on August 2, 2011Great post Erin – thanks – I'm saving it!
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