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Blog postTwelve dos and don'ts for a riveting opening to your story
by Jodie Renner, fiction editor & author of writing guides
The opening paragraphs and first page of your novel or short story are absolutely critical. How you craft your opening will make the difference between a potential reader starting your book, then putting it down (or rejecting it online) and seeking another one, or, their interest and curiosity piqued, eagerly turning the page to read on.
Gone are the -
Blog postConcrete Tips for Adding Tension, Suspense, & Intrigue to Any StoryI'm over at The Kill Zone blog today with this post: by Jodie Renner, fiction editor & author of writing guides
Are you in the process of writing a novel? Maybe a thriller or other popular fiction that you hope will grab readers and really sell? Besides a great character and a fascinating plot, you’ll also need some tried-and-true fiction-writing techniques to take your story up a level o -
Blog postby Jodie Renner, editor & author Want to write popular fiction that captivates your readers and sells well, with great reviews? It's all about fiction-writing techniques that will enthrall the reader, rather than turning them off.
Entice your readers, don’t bore them.
Imagine you’ve just met someone for the first time, and after saying hello, they corral you and go into a long monologue about their childhood, upbringing, education, careers, relationships, plans, e -
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Blog postby Jodie Renner, editor & author
"SHOW, DON’T TELL" -- This phrase has been repeated to the point where you might feel it's hackneyed and you can dismiss it--NOT! No matter how many times you've heard it, this concept is still critical to creating fresh fiction that captivates readers and garners great reviews. It's also one of the most difficult concepts for new fiction writers to grasp, along with deep point of view. (The two concepts are inextricably entwined.) U -
Blog postby Jodie Renner, editor & author
If you want to write fiction that engages readers and sells, it's critical to develop an authentic, compelling voice in your novel. The key to accomplishing this is to recognize that voice in fiction is – or should be – inseparable from the words, thoughts, attitudes, feelings, and reactions of your main character (or other important character -- villain, love interest -- in their own scene).
For example, some strong, unique voices t -
Blog postby Jodie Renner, editor & author
For an introduction to point of view in fiction and especially deep point of view or close third-person POV, see my articles
POV 101 -- Get Into Your Protagonist's Head, POV 102 -- How to Avoid Head-Hopping, and POV 103 -- Engage Your Readers with Deep Point of View.
POV = point of view = viewpoint – Who’s telling the story? Whose story is it? or, for novels written in multiple viewpoints, Whose head -
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Blog postby Jodie Renner, editor & author
As I discussed in POV 101, in order to draw the readers in and grab them emotionally, every story needs to have a clearly dominant viewpoint character the readers can immediately identify with.
We should meet that protagonist right away, preferably in the first paragraph, and the first chapter should be entirely from her (or his) point of view, so the reader knows whose story it is and can start bonding with her and rooting for -
Blog postby Jodie Renner, editor and author, JodieRenner.com
In "POV 101 – Get into your protagonist’s head and stay there," I discussed the effectiveness of starting out your story in your protagonist’s point of view and staying there for most of the novel.
But what if you want to show how other people are feeling? If they’re important characters, like the villain, a romantic interest, or a close friend or family member, you can and should give them their own PO -
Blog postby Jodie Renner, editor and author, JodieRenner.com
I’ve been editing fiction for years, and the most difficult concept for many of my aspiring author clients who write in third-person point of view (the most common POV in novels) is to portray their story world through the viewpoint / eyes / head of one character at a time, rather than hovering above them (omniscient POV) or ping-ponging back and forth between different characters’ viewpoints within a par -
Blog postby Jodie Renner, editor & author, www.JodieRenner.comWith all the high-quality, exciting fiction being published these days, it’s absolutely critical to captivate readers right away and keep them eagerly turning the pages of your story. The most effective way to really engage readers emotionally and bond them to your character is by using deep point of view to get up close and personal with your character, and at the same time, creating an authentic, compelling voice for your story
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Blog postby Trevor Atkins, historical fiction & children’s book author
After I posted a screenshot of the character sheet template I use to a Facebook writers group, editor and author Jodie Renner asked if I might provide a bit of my thinking behind using this tool. This article is the result.
When developing the major characters of my stories, I can’t help but draw upon my experience both playing and running tabletop role-playing games (TTRPGs). In such games, charact -
Blog postSince so many families are now forced to stay home, and a lot of parents are faced with homeschooling their kids, I'm offering a special on Childhood Regained - Stories of Hope for Asian Child Workers, school editions. This cross-curriculum resource is excellent for developing skills in reading, writing, mapping, graphing, research, social studies, and social awareness, and includes fun, creative activities as well.
*SPECIAL FOR HOMESCHOOLERS, March-April 2020: < -
Blog postby Jodie Renner, fiction editor and author of writing guides, www.JodieRenner.com
Have your trusted friends or beta readers told you your WIP novel is too long, confusing, or just doesn’t grab them? Here are some typical “big-picture” weaknesses to watch out for in your fiction and correct before sending it to an editor, publishing it, or pitching it to an agent.These types of glaring gaffes in writing, pacing, plot, or structure will bog down your story and invite bad reviews, which -
Blog postby Jodie Renner, editor and author
(For the rest of this article, go to my GUEST BLOG POST up at Janice Hardy's FICTION UNIVERSITY today:
SPARK UP YOUR STORY – A Workable Plan for Adding Tension, Suspense, & Intrigue
We all know that thrillers and other fast-paced popular fiction need lots of tension, suspense, and intrigue to keep readers riveted to the story. But so do all the other genres, to varying degrees. No matter what type of fiction you write, -
Blog postI'm over on The Kill Zone blog today, where I was a regular contributor (every other Monday) for two years, from 2013 to 2015. That award-winning blog specializes in advice for mystery and thriller writers, and I specialize in editing fast-paced suspense fiction, so it was a great fit.
Here's the beginning of my guest blog post over there today, with a link below to the rest:
16 Concrete Tips for Effectively Editing Your Own Fiction
by Jodie Renner, TKZ alumna, f -
Blog postby Jodie Renner, fiction editor and author of writing guides
Are you already pretty confident with writing articles, blog posts, essays, term papers, or business reports? Maybe you've even written a nonfiction book or two? Congratulations! Now you're thinking of trying your hand at writing stories. Sounds great. So making the transition to creating engaging fiction that sells should be no big deal, right?
Not.
There’s actually a significan -
Blog postupdated from original post, by Jodie Renner, fiction editor and author of writing guides
Do you want your popular fiction novel to reach lots of readers and garner great reviews? Of course you do! Competition is fierce, so your first pages have to grab the readers and compel them to keep turning the pages till the end.
Whether in a bookstore or shopping online, potential readers start by checking out the back cover blurb, then read the first page or two. Based on that, -
Blog post…and tighten up your story without losing any of the good stuff!
by Jodie Renner, fiction editor and author of writing guides
Have you been told your story looks promising or even intriguing, but your novel is way too long? Or maybe that it drags in places and needs tightening up? Today’s readers have shorter attention spans, and publishers don’t want to accept long novels from new writers, as they are so much more expensive to produce.
The cu -
Blog postby Jodie Renner, fiction editor and author of writing guides
Are you on the first or second draft of your novel and feel like it's a bit of a muddle? Are you feeling a bit overwhelmed? Maybe thinking of rearranging or eliminating some scenes or chapters, but the task feels daunting?
Here's a quick and easy way to find some clarity. Below you'll see a template for briefly outlining each of your scenes so you can see at a glance if the order works and if each scene is eng -
Blog postby Jodie Renner, editor and award-winning author
After you’ve finished the first draft of your popular fiction novel or short story – or even if you’re only a third or halfway into it but have some nagging doubts about the viability of various aspects of the story – take a short break. Put your manuscript aside for a week or two and concentrate on other things. Then come back to it with a bit of distance, as a reader.
Here's a step-by-step guide to looking for any possi -
Blog postby Jodie Renner, editor and author
(An oldie but goodie I wrote and published here 9 years ago.)
- All of these tips will also make fiction writing clearer and more concise.
"Are you excavating a subterranean channel?" asked the scholar. "No sir," replied the farmer. "I am only digging a ditch." - Anon
Today’s post is mainly aimed at nonfiction writers, for a change. Have you ever read a legal document that was inc -
Blog postELLIPSES vs. DASHES; also HYPHEN, EM DASH and EN DASH
by Jodie Renner, editor and author, www.JodieRenner.com
In my editing of fiction manuscripts, I often find writers using ellipses (...), hyphens, or semicolons where they should use dashes. Here's a brief run-down on the correct use of these punctuation marks.
A. Ellipsis (…) or Dash (—)?
In fiction,
An ellipsis (…) is used to show hesitatio -
Blog postby Jodie Renner, editor and author
Are you a busy writer or journalist? A student with writing assignments piling up? An editor who needs to verify info quickly? Then you'll love my handy, time-saving, clickable resource for writers, editors, students, and anyone who has any kind of writing project. It's called QUICK CLICKS: SPELLING LIST - Commonly Misspelled Words at Your Fingertips. CLICK HERE to check out the Kindle book on Amazon. It's also available as a -
Blog postby Jodie Renner, editor and author
Is it "with Dave and me" or "with Dave and I"? Should it be"who" or "whom"? Do you "lie down" or "lay down"? Is it "the guy that just left" or "the guy who just left"? Is it "My Mom" or "My mom"? Should I use "that" or "which" there?
The English language is in a constant state of flux, evolving and changing along with technol -
Blog postList compiled by Jodie Renner, editor and author of award-winning writing guides
If you know of writers' events that aren't listed here, please add them in the comments below. Include the name of the festival, the date, and the city. Thank you.
AUGUST - SEPTEMBER 2019:
Aug. 9-11, 2019 - When Words Collide - A Festival for Readers and Writers, Calgary, Alberta, Canada. https://www.whenwordscollide.org/
Aug. 22-25, 2019 - Killer Nash
Books By Jodie Renner
Childhood Regained: Canadian Schools Edition
Aug 25, 2016
by
Steve Hooley ,
Caroline Sciriha ,
D. Ansing ,
Fern G.Z. Carr ,
Kym McNabney ,
Jodie Renner ,
Tom Combs ,
Barbara Hawley
$0.99
Other Formats:
Paperback
Childhood Regained: Student Edition, Grades 6 to 8
Sep 14, 2016
by
Steve Hooley ,
Jodie Renner ,
Barbara A. Hawley ,
Sanjay Deshmukh ,
Caroline Sciriha ,
Kym McNabney ,
Lori Duffy Foster ,
Tom Combs
$1.99
Other Formats:
Paperback
Childhood Regained: Canadian Teachers' Guide
Sep 11, 2016
by
Jodie Renner
$1.99
Other Formats:
Paperback
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