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Showing results for tags 'weekly tip'.
Found 23 results
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Adjectives... The simple act of using extra words to further describe the sights, sounds, and feels, of the picture that you're trying to paint for your audience. A single adjective can change the whole perspective of the current scene that your readers are engaged in at the moment. For example, let's say they walk into their bedroom and there's a body laying in their bed. Ok, so what does that mean? The truth is...it can mean a LOT of things. An adjective will set the tone for the entire moment that you're immersed in. Is it a 'sexy' body? Maybe it's a really hot guy, and he's
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You know, there's a quote that says that jealousy in a loving relationship is a lot like salt in your food. Just enough can enrich and enhance flavor, but too much can bitter the taste. I think that, when it comes to putting cliffhangers in your stories, perhaps from chapter to chapter, or maybe even from completed novel to completed novel...the same rule applies. I mean, sure, you can write cliffhangers all day long if you really wanted to...but it can get tiresome in the long run. In fact, I think they would get to be pretty frustrating and predictable if you use them too often. And that wou
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One thing that I've discovered while writing my own stories over the years, is the 'lacking' presence of added depth when I only have one situation going on from beginning to end. Now, this may be just a personal preference of mine...but when I'm focused on two boys and one issue, the theme of the story itself feels really basic and seems to fall 'flat' to me sometimes. Like something is missing. Nothing major, really...but it's similar to a cook tasting their food and thinking, "Hmmmm...I need a little more salt. Or butter. Or garlic." Etc. I like to build a story that feels a bit more full w
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When I was growing up, I can distinctly remember LOVING the old school martial arts flicks that they used to show on Channel 66 in Chicago on Sundays! "Incredible Kung Fu Mission", "Five Deadly Venoms", "Drunken Master"! A good Shaw Brothers original? They never failed to excite me and have me locked in to the point where, by the time it was over, I'd be fighting my own pillows and trying to kick couch cushions across the room with my non-existent skills as a five or six year old Kung Fu warrior. Hehehe, sad but true. But...one thing that always stuck out to me in those old movies was the
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There are so many times when I look back at my older stories, or even just older chapters of stories that I started years ago that I'm currently working on...and there are SO many things that I wish I had changed or done differently. Details that I could have added, 'wordy' and repetitious sections that I wish I had edited out for the sake of brevity and a more potent race to the point, or mistakes that I should have corrected before putting it out there for people to read. Sometimes, I blame that urge to change things on my own insecurities and weirdness as a writer. Sometimes, I blame it on
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There are occasions, as all writers know, when you may find yourself walking off the path of creativity and inspiration...and you're staring directly at a brick wall. It happens. Some call it writer's block, some may doubt their skills as a writer, and sometimes...you're just plain tired. There's no way around it. It can be frustrating and it can be disheartening and it can end up tossing a lot of deadlines in the trash at the last minute, because you just can't rush that which will not be rushed. It's just that simple. However, this article isn't going to be about the dreaded writer's bl
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Hehehe, you know when I was in college, I had a writing teacher that had a somewhat comical, but very true, rule to follow when it came to getting your audience to truly feel a moment of intense emotional pain in your project. Works every time. He used to say, "If you want to make your audience cry...kill the dog!" And, yes, he meant that literally. Script wise, anyway. You can have Rambo gun down an army of enemies in a foreign land, or have Iron Man burn a bunch of terrorists to ashes with pulse blasters...but if you harm ONE animal in a movie or TV show? Instant tears and gasps of
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If I was in the back seat of a taxi (Or an Uber)...and the driver took a couple of suspicious left or right turns without asking me, or had a shortcut that I didn't quite recognize...my first question would be, "Hey, where the hell are you taking me? What's happening here?" If the driver was racing down the streets at breakneck speeds, or if they were slowing around as if I had all damn day to get where I wanted to go...I would be thrown off, and probably pretty frustrated. When it comes to pacing out your stories...your readers are in that same position. They're in the backseat. You're t
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A big, heartfelt, hug to all of you fellow writers who tuned in today, right here, at Gay Authors! Welcome to a new brand new flurry of writing articles that I hope will be useful to all of you who are already massively talented in everything that you do, but are ambitious enough to still search for an added edge wherever you can find one! And also for those of you who are looking for that little 'push' that might get you started on your first project! Honestly, I'm no expert on any of this stuff. Trust me, I make more mistakes than most, and I've probably had more failures than triumphs
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When I′m writing, I often visualize my stories as being movies, TV shows, comic books, etcetera. It′s just the way my mind works, I guess. I picture the characters, the backgrounds, the musical score, the movement of the camera...it′s a part of me putting every part of my story together in sequence, and actually seeing things as they play out in my head so I can effectively describe it for everybody else who might be reading. And just like movies and TV, a vast majority of stories are told in a way where one important scene switches to another important scene, often with some time passing betw
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One thing that I can tell you about my own writing muse is this... It is a shy, introverted, creature, and it takes a lot of coaxing to get it to come out of hiding sometimes. Basically, if you don't want to write your story tonight, or tomorrow, or the next day, because you're waiting for the inspiration to hit you...you're going to end up wasting a LOT of writing time. In fact, you may lose that inspiration altogether. Sometimes you've got to find it on your own. You've got to hunt it down, put a leash around its neck, and physically pull it out of the shadows so you can get someth
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Writer Responsibility December 8th, 1980... A true musical icon was gunned down by his ′number one fan′, according to his assassin. Mark David Chapman murdered John Lennon that night by shooting him in the back, and this was not long after he had just given him a personal autograph earlier in the day. And he didn′t run afterward. Instead...he sat on the curb, and read from J D Salinger′s novel, ′A Catcher In The Rye′. A book that he says inspired his heinous act. One of the saddest days in American history, in my opinion. Now, of course...there isn′t ANYTHING in that book that w
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Anyone who has ever read any of my personal story reviews of another author's story will almost always find a common theme popping up in my critique. Whether it's said in a positive or negative way, I am constantly pushing for people to give more and more detail in their work. (As a suggestion, of course.) Not in every single scene that they write about, but in a few choice scenes that I find myself wanting to dive deeper into as a reader. Now, that's just my opinion, and writers can take it or leave it as they see fit. But I can't help but feel like there are some events in the stories that I
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Raise your hand if you′ve been on a roller coaster before! Hehehe, I′m just kidding. It′s the internet, I can′t see you raising your hand! Trust me, if I could set up spy cameras around you, it would be in the shower...not next to your laptop! ::Giggles:: Seriously, though...when riding a roller coaster, you experience certain peaks and valleys. You slow down in certain sections of the ride, left anticipating the next big ′dip′ with baited breath...and then everything speeds up and races through whatever loops and scream-inducing tricks you′ve got planned for your riders to go through. R
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It's been said many times before. It's practically one of the first basics that every writer learns, that every mentor teaches, and that every critic jumps on. That is the idea of 'show, don't tell.' And yet, while many people may hear that, to some it's a bit unclear as to what that really means, or how to achieve that particular goal. Hopefully, this would give you a slightly better perspective on what appears to be a very simple task on the surface, but actually takes a little practice and finesse to pull off correctly. The first thing to pay attention to is the difference betwe
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Sometimes...the hardest, most unbelievably difficult, part of any story...is the first five paragraphs! It is grueling, it is maddening, it is downright FRIGHTENING at times! And it's hard to really explain why that is to people who don't write all the time. It's a level of insanity that only writers and other artists will ever really know. Because this is the 'kickoff' when it comes to starting a new project. It's the equivalent of throwing the first punch in a fight. Like..."Ok! This is it! Here we go! I hope I know what I'm doing!" And while writing may seem like a relaxing, expressive, and
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It is, quite possibly, the WORST feeling in the world to have poured your heart and soul into a project...ALL of your emotion...ALL of your creative energy...only to have some kind of crazy computer glitch just 'zap' it right out of existence forever. Gone. Never to be seen again. The experience is heartbreaking! I've had it happen to me quite a number of times in the past. Either the 'Save' function didn't work like it was supposed to, or the file got corrupted...my laptop fizzled out on me, or my files got hacked, or my website was shutdown without any warning...I can honestly say that I've
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There are two schools of learning when it comes to writing erotica...some people want a full story with drama and tension and build up...and some people are rock hard already and want to find something hot to get off to! Hehehe, and sometimes we understandably flip flop from one to the other. Depends on the mood, I suppose. But if your writing a story, and you label it as 'erotica'...just keep in mind that no matter how intriguing the story is, no matter how adorable your characters are, or how talented you are with words, style, and metaphor...a great deal of your audience are going to be act
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No matter how hot and steamy the sex may get between your main character and his love interest later on in your story...sometimes the sweetest and most explosive moment of all comes from that very first kiss. Even if your characters are older and it's not their first kiss ever...it's that first delicate connection with the guy you're passing off as his perfect counterpart. If done right, a first kiss between characters can be just as erotic as every other part of your story, if not more so. So how do you make someone's awkward attempt at pressing their lips together for the first time see
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So, you've done it! You put in the time and the energy and the effort, you've drained yourself creatively, and you've put together a story that you can be proud of. One that can touch and inspire as well as excite and arouse. Awesome! Now, all you have to do is put it out where people can read it so they can be thrilled by your genius. Just find a place to post your work...and wait. And wait... And wait some more... Ok, so what's going on here? Where's the praise? Where are the great reviews? You poured your heart and soul into a story that you think is really impressive and wel
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Imagine if you were watching a movie or a play for the first time. You've never heard of it before, you've never seen any advertisements about it, and you don't even know what it's going to be about. Now...imagine if you could hear the dialogue and everything that's going on...but the stage or the screen is shrouded in complete darkness for the first fifteen minutes. You can't see anything at all. You just have to sort of listen to the words and use your imagination to figure out what's going on. Well, the problem with that is...once you bring the house lights up, once the movie visuals actual
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Are any of us perfect? I mean, I'm sure that a lot of us realize that we're not actually perfect...and the few that do believe they're perfect are often blind narcissists...hehehe, and therefore NOT perfect! Honestly, that's not even something that I would ever want to shoot for. If perfection is determined by some sort of direct formula or standard, if it's a bunch of little boxes that all have to be checkmarked to be considered a part of that group...then that would mean it's our imperfections that make us different. Unique. Hell, even mildly interesting. Who would want to toss that aside fr
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What in the world is MICE? The MICE Quotient is a writing tool introduced by Orson Scott Card ("Ender's Game" Hugo Award-winning Author) in his Characters & Viewpoint (Elements of Fiction Writing) and How to Write Science Fiction. The MICE Quotient tool makes analyzing your writing easy and can help identify and fix issues with a paragraph, a scene, or even a whole story. MICE: Milieu- stories focused on the setting. Think Lord of the Rings books that spend many pages discussing languages and song. Idea - stories focused on answering a question or finding information. T
