writing tips – Page 56 – Jean's Writing

Quick Tips to Beat the Repetition Blues

Published on June 18, 2015June 18, 2015 by Jean M. Cogdell6 Comments

Get Rid of Repetition: Pleonasms in Your Writing

Ple… what?

Oh, redundant. Duh. Do it all the often, all the time. LOL

Ryan, over at A Writer’s Path, sent out a good reminder and a great tip for those dreaded editing days. Thanks.

And for 50 more Redundant Phrases to Avoid by Suzanne Purkis, head over to Apoplectic Apostrophes.

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Tips to Improve Your Odds

Published on June 17, 2015 by Jean M. Cogdell7 Comments

Sorry, I’m running late this morning. The rain pounding against my windows convinced me to snuggle down for a lazy morning. My choice was to snuggle down and enjoy the morning storm or get up and check my email for another dreaded rejection notice. I pulled the cover over my head.

When I finally finished a long, lazy morning of coffee and toast, read the newspaper – cover to cover, I opened my email. And what a pleasant surprise!

Only great tips waited on me. Thanks everybody!

Low and behold, one of them was 9 Secrets for Publishing By Andrew Winch.

As a senior editor for Splickety Publishing Group, Mr. Winch explains the process he goes through when selecting a story. Focusing on submission tips-n-tricks as well as a few elements specific to flash fiction.

Seems as if there’s a lot more to submitting than “just follow the guidelines.”

For instance, Mr. Winch recommends, in Flash Fiction, as a guide– One character and one scene for every 300 words.

Hop over and read the entire article for inspiration and let’s make something happen.

write

I love comments, almost as much as I love clicks, so after you pass this on to your Facebook and Twitter pals tell me what you think.

If you’re not already, please follow me @jeancogdell on Twitter or jean.cogdell on Facebook!

Start Every Story With A Bang

Published on June 16, 2015June 15, 2015 by Jean M. Cogdell

Are you stumped?

A scene too slow? Too much back story? Is it putting you to sleep?

Does your writing need a jump-start?

I’ll admit, I’m bad. As a reader, if the story doesn’t grab me I don’t keep reading.

And damn it, I confess, I’m also as bad as some writers who write too much back story.Sometimes I get fall into the telling trap instead of showing.

When this happens, I get stumped. So don’t feel like you’re all alone.

I recently read a couple of great posts on grabbing your reader and keeping their attention. If I can build momentum and keep my attention while writing then maybe just maybe I can keep a reader’s attention too.

So if your interested in some good writing tips to spice up your writing with action —

Begin with How to Start Your Novel By Chuck Sambuchino posted at Writers In The Storm Blog then —

click on over to Darcy Pattison’s Fiction Notes and read Find Your Novel Opening: Quickly, Efficiently–and with MORE Creativity next–

head over to Blake Synder’s Save The Cat Beat Sheets and learn how screen writing can improve your story.

I love comments, almost as much as I love clicks, so after you pass this on to your Facebook and Twitter pals tell me what you think.

If you’re not already, please follow me @jeancogdell on Twitter or jean.cogdell on Facebook!

Are you easy to find?

Published on June 15, 2015June 14, 2015 by Jean M. Cogdell6 Comments

How easy are you to find?

If someone wants to publish your story, essay or request a sample of your work how difficult will a sample be to locate?

Start by making yourself available.

I hate spam as much as the rest of the world. So we all have to take steps to protect from the dreaded spoofing emails. However, we must have a platform on the world-wide web.

Chuck Sambuchino wrote a great post for The Writer Life on 4 steps a writer can take to have a successful and professional platform.