writing a novel | Writers In The Storm

Just. Write. The Thing.

Guest Blogger — Fri, 11 Aug 2023 11:00:00 +0000

A first draft is much, much closer to a novel than an idea is. Laura VanArendonk Baugh is here to help us get over ourselves and get it down!

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4 Essential Elements You Need to Create a Workable Novel

Guest Blogger — Mon, 16 May 2022 09:00:00 +0000

Many writers are frustrated to discover their story doesn't work. Sandy Vaile reveals the four essential elements you need to create a workable novel.

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How Small Decisions Can Make Huge Story Impact

Fae Rowen — Wed, 06 May 2020 11:00:43 +0000

Fae Rowen shares four critical areas that help guide readers, and your characters, through the story: motivation, backstory, conflict and character arc.

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How to Focus on Your Story's DNA

Jenny Hansen — Fri, 17 Aug 2018 11:01:47 +0000

Though we are a very cohesive group here at Writers in the Storm, we are split down the middle in writing style. Laura and Fae write their stories in a linear fashion while Julie and I quilt ours together scene by scene. The linear approach kills my stories, but story quilting lets me focus on my […]

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Enhancing Your Story Through Macro & Micro Setting Descriptions

Guest Blogger — Wed, 31 May 2017 11:02:44 +0000

Tasha Seegmiller At a recent conference, I attended a class taught by Ally Condie where she went over the nuances of setting in story. As someone who strives to make my settings rich, and even feel like another character, it was something I was very interested in. While there were many concepts that she discussed […]

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Divine Inspiration… Or Not: Mining Your Life for Story

Guest Blogger — Mon, 15 May 2017 11:02:44 +0000

Kate Moretti A few weeks ago, the fabulous Kimberly Brock wrote a post about the fear of the blank page. She claimed that there are people who love it and she called them psychopaths and equated it to jumping out of airplanes. I’m here to confess: I am that psychopath. I just handed in my […]

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Taking a Story from Idea to Concept to Premise

Guest Blogger — Fri, 04 Nov 2016 11:01:27 +0000

Susan Bischoff Writing as a career isn’t easy—especially for those writers who are still in another career (the evil day job). We can’t have a career polishing five-year novels, and we know, given the demands of day jobs, family, and all the commitments in our lives, that our writing time is very precious. False starts, […]

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Write Up A Storm - Back By Popular Demand

Jenny Hansen — Fri, 25 Sep 2015 11:02:49 +0000

It's b-a-a-a-ack! During our first event on April 20th, we wrote a whole book! The final word count for our first Write Up a Storm was 79,591 words. We promised a follow-up event, and it's coming up just in time to jump start your engines for NaNoWriMo. Writers in the Storm is holding another "Write Up a Storm" […]

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Writing Process Throwdown: Jenny's Story Quilting

Jenny Hansen — Wed, 14 Jan 2015 12:02:36 +0000

Writing is a very imprecise process for me, which surprises no one who knows me well. I’ve tried a gajillion tools in my quest to get a book off the ground and finished. Fast Draft, W-Plot, Snowflake Method. They all helped me be a better writer, but none of them got me to "The End." Those cool […]

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