Breaking the “Rules”: Will It Be Easy or Hard?
Much of writing is subjective, so it can be hard to know how to treat writing advice. Is it a hard-and-fast rule, a guideline, or a personal preference?
Pin It
How Should We Format Non-English Words?
As authors and audiences have diversified, it might be time to look at the standards for formatting non-English words and explore some of our options.
Pin It
Active vs. Passive Voice: Was and Not Was
Some verb tenses can cause confusion with passive voice. What is passive voice, and how can we tell when the word “was” is not a sign of passive voice?
Pin It
Beyond the Past: Understanding the Past Perfect Tense
Many writers struggle to use the past perfect tense correctly, so let’s review when the past perfect tense applies to our story and how to use it properly.
Pin It
Storytelling Verb Tenses: Past, Present, and “Literary” Past Tense
Most stories are written in literary past tense. What does that term mean, and if different from normal past tense, how is literary past tense different?
Pin It
Writing Craft Basics: How to Format Dialogue
We probably think we know everything about dialogue formatting already, but let’s make sure we know all there is to know before assuming.
Pin It
How Can Writers Pay It Forward?
As we’ve journeyed through the writing learning curve, we’ve been helped by others. How can we pay that assistance forward to help other writers?
Pin It
Need Advice from an Editor?
As we go through the editing process, we might have questions we wish we could ask a professional editor. How can we get our question answered?
Pin It
Choosing Just the Right Words — Guest: Kathy Steinemann
Choosing the right word requires us to know grammar, consider voice, avoid typos, and possess a large vocabulary. Homophones add a layer of difficulty.
Pin It
Want to Break Writing Rules? Gain Readers’ Trust
Just as there are risks to breaking writing rules, there’s risk in emphasizing them too much as well. And what does “strong writing” really mean when it comes to developing our voice?
Pin It