Jeannette DiLouieSep 29, 20203 minThe Reality of Being Traditionally PublishedWe started touching on the topic of publishing last week. But this week, we’re taking a deeper dive into one branch of it in particular… (Dr
Jeannette DiLouieSep 22, 20202 minLeave Your Publishing Expectations at the DoorSo you say you’re ready to publish. You’ve written everything you needed to write and edited everything you needed to edit. You even asked
Jeannette DiLouieAug 20, 20192 minYour Literary Tone Could Spell Out Your Literary SuccessOn April 12, 2017, Success.com ran an article called “6 Tips to Rule the Art of Conversation.” It opened with, “The art of conversation is
Jeannette DiLouieAug 13, 20193 minYour Writing Style Is All Your OwnOpen a book by Charles Dickens. When you do, you’re bound to find a different writing style than what you’d find reading J.K. Rowling. “Duh
Jeannette DiLouieAug 6, 20193 minOur Creative Writing Is Filled With Preconceived NotionsI didn’t plan to discuss bias on a week that’s filled with more political finger-pointing than usual. I had the issue of preconceived notion
Jeannette DiLouieJul 30, 20193 minIt’s All in the ExpositionWhen you first open up a novel, you’re relatively clueless about its contents. Oh, you’ve seen the front cover and you’ve read the back-jack
Jeannette DiLouieJul 23, 20193 minStop, Drop and Roll While Editing a Second DraftWriting a first draft is a sometimes heady, sometimes frustrating, sometimes debilitating experience. There’s a lot to it, what with: Comin
Jeannette DiLouieJul 16, 20193 minDon’t Beat Yourself Up: Plot Holes HappenLet’s start with this statement: Sometimes, plot holes happen. That’s our thesis right there. It’s meant as both a caution to those authors
Jeannette DiLouieJul 9, 20193 minIdentifying and Understanding Your Narrative HookWhen was the last time you picked up a book, opened it up and went, “Wow! That’s boring. I want to buy it!” If you’re anything like me, tha
Jeannette DiLouieJul 2, 20193 minOnce You’ve Finished a Story’s Full First DraftStarting a story out can be an absolute ton of fun. When you first begin, it’s like you’re on an exploratory expedition. You’ve committed t
Jeannette DiLouieJun 18, 20193 minWriting a Story Ending Is a Subjective EndeavorShakespeare once penned that, “Parting is such sweet sorrow.” That was in the complicated tale of Romeo and Juliette, during the balcony sce
Jeannette DiLouieJun 11, 20193 minIt’s Over! Mostly.Once you hit the falling action part of your plot, it’s official: the climactic moment is complete. The darkest moment is over, with your p
Jeannette DiLouieJun 4, 20193 minLiterary Climax: As Intense as It’s Gonna GetYou know the part of a novel where there’s no more build-up. No more teasing. Just raw, unadulterated passion? In an espionage tale, this m
Jeannette DiLouieMay 28, 20193 minWhat You Need to Know About Rising ActionPerhaps I should have brought the plot diagram back up during our discussion on the first stage of storytelling – the beginning. But...
Jeannette DiLouieMay 21, 20193 minWhat Can We Say About Writing Story Beginnings?There are great story beginnings, and there are uninspiring story beginnings. There are action-packed story beginnings, and there are slow,
Jeannette DiLouieMay 20, 20195 minOh My Goodness, Writer. Keep It Together!You can get a guide to starting your story in such a way that you’ll be able to more easily finish it. What it looks like when you finish it
Jeannette DiLouieMay 14, 20194 minPoint of View in Fiction: Who’s Telling Your Story?Since we’re talking about point of view in fiction today, let’s start out with three different examples of it. They’re all taken from novel
Jeannette DiLouieMay 7, 20193 minDealing With the Definition of Dialogue TagsSince today’s topic is dialogue tags – which you may or may not know about – let’s start out with a paragraph of dialogue, which… thanks to
Jeannette DiLouieApr 30, 20193 minUnderstanding How to Write Dialogue Begins HereBefore I start out my sad little sob story below, please rest assured that you didn’t read the larger blog’s title wrong. This really is...
Jeannette DiLouieApr 23, 20193 minThe Full Setting Range Is Yours to Control and CommandYour main character, Maggie, is running along the beach. Her bare feet dance away from the waves that crawl up the slight slopes, soaking up