Is Your Story STUCK? 5 Reasons Your Novel is Breaking Down – Written By Kristen Lamb

Kristen Lamb, expert in writer’s and author’s support and teaching, talks about 5 reasons why our novel is breaking down. Another very educating and humorously written blog post. Thank you very much Kristen!

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If you’ve been writing any amount of time you’ve been there—STUCK. Stuck is the place we never want to be, but goes with the job.

Every writer at one time or another has experienced the literary doldrums. We hit a spot that, no matter how hard we try, we just cannot seem to move our story forward. Every word we write feels like pulling frogs’ teeth and we wonder why we ever thought writing a novel was a good idea.

Some call this ‘writer’s block’ while others claim ‘they’re only in a dry season’ or ‘going through a rough patch.’ Regardless what name we give this feeling, it all feels a heck of a lot like being STUCK.

Many writers, particularly new writers, see being stuck as a sign that they may be writing in the wrong genre. When they get stuck, this is a perfect opportunity to start working on something NEW. Story gets stuck, and this is SURELY divine evidence that the book really should have been a SERIES, not a standalone or a standalone and not a series.

Whatever.

From personal experience combined with my experience with thousands of writers the process from Start to Stuck can look like this.

Continue reading this post here:

https://authorkristenlamb.com/2018/09/stuck/

 

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15 Thoughts Every Writer Has When They Aren’t Writing

On DSM Publishing I found a link to this blog post, written by Michael Cristiano on ‘A Writer’s Path’. Thanks Michael. I’m convinced many of us have exactly the same thoughts. (or at least most of the ones on your list.)

A Writer's Path

by Michael Cristiano

Not being able to write is a sad fact of life for a writer. There’s laundry to do, there’s food to cook, there’s sleep to be had. Worse, I have this pesky illness that eats up a lot of my time. I toil day in and day out to keep it at bay and under control. Sometimes, it creeps into my evenings, just when I think I’ve escaped. Worse, the horror of it all often keeps me awake at night and the dread fills my dreams with terror and sadness.

Oh, I’m not sick… I have a 9-to-5 job.

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When to Show and When to Tell

Ryan Lanz of ‘A Writer’s Path’ tells us when to show and when to tell. Thank you for a great post Ryan.

A Writer's Path

by Kyle Massa

Show, don’t tell.

If you’ve ever taken a writing course of any kind, you’ve probably heard that phrase.

If you haven’t, the meaning is pretty simple: don’t come out and tell your readers everything they need to know. Instead, show them examples and specific situations that support what you’re trying to say. Doing so often solidifies your points a little better than straight telling.

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Why Publish Your Novel with a Traditional Publisher?

On The Story Reading Ape’s blog I found a blog post, written by Randy on ‘advancedfictionwriting’. I found it very interesting and found more people should read the post. Thank you, Randy.

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Are you about to publish your novel? If so, should you try going with a traditional publisher, or should you go indie? How do you make that decision?

Lynne posted this question on my “Ask A Question For My Blog” page:

I’m planning to go indie with my WIP. It’s only my second novel, I’m still a newbie, but here’s the question: what are the biggest reasons for seeking an agent and/or traditional publisher?

There are a number of obvious negatives associated with traditional publishing, such as low royalty rates. And I’ll have to do much of my own marketing even if my manuscript is accepted. I’d also like to do my own kindle pricing, something I can only do as an indie.

Thoughts? I want to know both sides before committing to my course.

Randy sez: Lynne, I have a feeling your question is much bigger than a single blog post can handle. I’m pretty sure I could write a whole book on the subject, and maybe someday I will. But you’ve got to make a decision right now, so I’ll try to boil things down a bit.

 

To read the entire article, please go to:

https://www.advancedfictionwriting.com/blog/2018/04/15/why-publish-novel-traditional-publisher/

 

Book Sale for Closer

This is phenomenal!! F. E. Feeley jr.’s new book “CLOSER” is available. I read his other books – and I’m soooo going to get this one!! He’s a great author.

F.E.Feeley Jr

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/775332

 

Available in Ebook and Paperback. Audio coming soon!

 

“Gripping, creepy, and plenty of twists and turns to keep you guessing.”

 

“An incredibly well-devised page turner. “

 

“If you like your love stories with a supernatural element, you should like this one.”

 

My new novel, Closer, is on sale for 3.00 at Smashwords. Follow this link and the code is RAE50 before you check out.

 

WATCH THE TRAILER: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1DrBTMHs0o

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Who Else: Writing Secondary and Minor Characters

Morgan S. Hazelwood writes about secondary and minor characters in our stories and books. You can find this blog post on Ryan Lanz’ ‘A Writer’s Path’.

A Writer's Path

by Morgan S. Hazelwood

Who Else Is There?

Writers know all about our main character–they’re the focus of our story. Often, the story is told in their voice.

But what about everyone else? Unless you’re writing a person-versus-nature like Hatchet, you’re probably going to have other characters.

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The 10 Emotional Stages of Editing

On Ryan Lanz’ ‘A Writer’s Path’ Samantha Fenton wrote about the 10 emotional stages of editing which some of us might know very well. Thank you for a great blog post, Samantha.

A Writer's Path

by Samantha Fenton

A long time ago, I started revising and editing my manuscript. And today… I am still revising and editing my manuscript. Rest assured, there have been many emotions involved. Here are some of them.

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