Category: Writing tips
-
How Do I End This Thing? (Writing Strong Endings for 100-Word Stories)
In college, I took a fiction writing class with a professor who had an extremely narrow definition of “good” fiction. It did not include fantasy or science fiction, which he snubbed his nose at. His restricted mindset also included a… Continue reading
-
What Do I Call This Thing? (10 Tips for Titling Your Short Story)
Titles are not my greatest strength. However, titles are important. The title is the door to your story’s house, and it plays a key role in marketing your story. While novels get an artfully designed cover to help entice readers, short stories… Continue reading
-
Protagonist, Hero, Main Character, Narrator
In most works, the main character (MC) is the protagonist, the narrator, and the hero. It’s a lot of jobs, but someone’s got to do it, and who better than your MC, right? However, this is not always the case.… Continue reading
-
Drabble-Sized Ideas (Generating 100-Word Story Ideas)
It’s one of the most dreaded questions writers get asked: where do you get your ideas from? It seems to imply there is some treasure chest filled with brilliant plots and premises hidden away somewhere that successful writers have stumbled… Continue reading
-
10 Tips for Writing a Stellar 100-Word Story
The 100-word story, also known as the drabble, is as small as it is challenging to execute. It takes a lot of thinking, a little bit of writing, and a ton of editing—but it’s well worth the effort, because these stories… Continue reading
-
Understanding Passive vs. Active Voice (And Why BOTH Are Tools in Your Toolbox)
In college, I had a political science professor who had a total ban against passive voice. Any time you used passive voice, she docked a point from your assignment. Most assignments were worth 10 points, meaning you lost a whopping… Continue reading
