Five Posts I Wish I Had Written

Okay, I’ll admit it. These are the five posts I wish I could write.

When I was teaching courses at the university, I had a colleague who said she wished she could teach as I did. She said I knew my material so well, I taught from the overflow.

Writing to be published is a relatively new gig for me. I’m still dipping from the well, hardly teaching from the overflow.

These five posts are ones I find helpful. Maybe one day I’ll be able to share at this level. Until then, I pass the pitcher of knowledge and experience to you.

If you want to improve your writing, pour freely. Indulge completely. And number six? Use it to inspire you…whether or not you are a writer.

Number 1

First up is a great post by +Linda S. Clare. It’s called Writing Scenes v. Narration: Know the Difference. In it she outlines some key phrases that signal when we are “telling” instead of “showing” and several great elements to include in our scenes to make them meaningful pieces that move our story forward. (Quality of light? Who knew?) Linda S. Clare has penned several books and teaches writing.

Here’s the link: http://lindasclare.com/2014/09/writing-scenes-v-narration-know-the-difference/

Number 2

The second post is by +Becky Levine. It is a great post about writing in the close third person point of view (POV). Yes, Ms. Levine clearly explains POV, but one of the reasons I love this post is that it directs the reader to four other highly qualified authors on the subject, +Sally Apokedak, +Tia Nevitt, +Annette Lyon, and +Katy Upperman. By the time you have read all five posts (Becky’s included) you will have a clear understanding of close third person POV with great supporting examples.

Here is the link: http://beckylevine.com/2011/06/10/point-of-view-close-third-person/

 Number 3

I chose this post, Backstory: Where to Draw the line, by +Missy Tippens to include as number three in this list because I think she does a great job of describing backstory, giving examples, and offering solutions. Missy Tippens is an award winning author who, like many of us has been through the struggle of “how much do I include about my character’s past and when?”

Here is the link (Oh, and while you are there, you may want to bookmark the Seekerville blog site. It is full of great writing info.): http://seekerville.blogspot.com/search/label/backstory

Number 4

My fourth post on the list comes from +Chip MacGregor’s blog site. Mr. MacGregor is a literary agent and a true advocated for authors. I read his posts on a regular basis. However, for this list, I chose a guest blog post written by +Holly Lorincz and posted on his site.  It is a great article on the value of professional editing. I must be honest. When I started this process of writing, I had no idea there were different types of editors. I was blessed to be able to work with +Bethany Kaczmarek from "A Little Red, Inc." for Breathing on Her Own. Bethany skillfully tackled developmental elements as well as grammatical edits. And if you are clueless as to what I’m talking about, read “Hiring a Professional Editor.”

Here is the link: http://www.chipmacgregor.com/career/hiring-professional-editor/

Number 5

My final selection of posts I wish I had written comes from +Cara Lynn James, also part of the Seekerville blog. The title is Dialogue Ailments, which should give you a pretty good idea she is not going to tell you what to do, but rather what to avoid in writing dialogue for your character.  Read carefully.  You will really learn to balance and pace your dialogue.

This quote was too long for my graphic art piece, but I liked it so much I share it here:

“It’s a bad idea to write long interchanges of conversation without any pauses in between. Do you know any long-winded people? I certainly do. If they’re boring in person, they’re even worse on the page.”

Check out the entire article here:

http://seekerville.blogspot.com/2012/11/dialogue-ailments.html

Trust me, if you want to write a novel, studying the information offered on these posts will be like taking a short course in writing; a short course with lasting benefits.

Number 6 (We’ll call this one a bonus blog!)

If you need a little encouragement to step out of your comfort zone and live life fully or if you do not want to be a writer –you just drop in on my blog for fun and need a little inspiration –this last blog by my friend, Linda Palmer, is for you. “It is called “Just a Who Down in Whoville” Enjoy: http://lndplmr.wordpress.com/2014/03/20/just-a-who-down-in-whoville/

I look forward to your comments on any of these resources. Do you have a favorite post that will help fellow writers? Please share.