The Writing Desk

Masterlist of Writing Help for Writers

19236

hermajestyhelps:

*always adding more

General Writing Tips, Guides and Advice

Plot and Conflict

Character Development

Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar

All About Names

Genre Based

Other

Reblogged 1 week ago from saunteredvaguelydownward by the-writers-ramblings

Jay’s Guide To Getting Into The Publishing Industry

141

jkateel:

I get a lot of asks about this, and I told someone I’d do this, so here it is: my advice on how to get into the publishing industry as an editor. If I was in the position to hire someone, these are the attributes I’d look for.

Disclaimer: I am a magazine/website editor, so this is going to differ if you’re going into, say, book publishing. But from what I’ve seen in job listings, they kind of all want the same thing.

The publishing industry has changed A LOT since I started 5-plus years ago, and it’s a highly competitive field. You’re going to be competing with editors who have 20-plus years experience. However, you have an advantage over them, in the fact that you’re young and have a good understanding of how the internet works.

Here’s a basic rundown, under the cut.

  • You can no longer stay an introvert in this industry. I’m a natural introvert, and I’ve had to teach myself to be an extrovert. Bascially: Fake it ‘til you make it.
  • Have a good sense of humor. Your patience is going to be tested, trust me. Let that shine in your writing. Snark is your friend too, but don’t be mean.
  • Know your voice, or start developing it. A good voice makes you recognizable. Makes you likeable. If someone has a good voice, you can pick them out of a crowd. I guarantee you, if I blocked out the name of a good author with a great voice, you would be able to tell who they are by their writing alone. A great example of this is Flutiebear or Nekosmuse. If samples of their blogs were plopped on my desk without a name, I’d know who they were in a heartbeat. They’re that recognizable. Read more about author’s voice here.
  • Rethink your resume, and showcase your voice and creativity into it. You’re going to be competing with people like this. And this. (Though you should probably do this.)
  • Have social media accounts (FB, Twitter, etc) that you use regularly, and know how they work. Pimp it on your resume.
  • Have some sort of blog that you update regularly (not your fandom blog) and/or website that highlights a particular interest. Be it photography or social justice issues or cooking, whatever (as long as it isn’t porn or fangirling), show that you know what you’re doing on the internet. Pimp it on your resume.
  • Have web experience and know how to use those skills: HTML, CMS, Wordpress, SEO (the big one) digital books, etc.
  • Have some form of multimedia experience that you yourself created, e.g., videos, infographics, podcasts. (Gifs too. I’d count gifs. Can you draw decently? Show off your illustrations.)
  • Be prepared to be on video. (See introvert part.) My boss has talked about only accepting future resumes that have a video component, which showcases the applicant’s creativity and video-editing skills. That’s the stuff people are looking for now.
  • Be prepared to edit complete utter crap and turn it into a masterpiece. If you’re going into journalism, learn your AP style.
  • Get some freelance writing in for your resume. The pay is crap, but the experience is worth it. A good place to start is Textbroker.com. (ProBlogger.net is another.)
  • Practice writing everyday. Trust me, it’s so easy to lose this skill on top of everything else you’re going to have to do. :D; A regularly updated blog comes in handy for keeping you in tiptop writing shape.
  • Follow blogs that are in your publishing field of interest. Some of my favorite journalism blogs are The Atlantic, Entertainment Weekly, Doctor Who (not really a journalism blog, but damn do they know what they’re doing), Mother Jones, FJP Tumblr, Huffington Post.
  • GET A LINKED IN ACCOUNT.
  • Networking is friggin’ everything, man. It truly is about who you know.
  • Mediabistro.com is your friend
  • No
  • Seriously
  • Sign up for their newsletters yesterday
  • In fact
  • Sign up for every newsletter that is relevant to your subject and read them.
  • And you’re going to be asked to do newsletters anyway, so have your favorites lined up to use as examples. Understand why you like them too. I mean, at our core, we’re all pretty simple. We all like pretty pictures, mostly of cats. But you’re going to have to explain that to someone one day, and they aren’t going to believe you, so you’re going to have to make a point.
  • Office politics suck. So be ready for that.
  • Know your craft. Love your craft. If you love magazines, be that weirdo that collects random, beautiful magazines (like my random New Zealand surfing magazine that is sex on paper. UNF.) Same with websites and/or books. There’s a reason you love them, so learn how they were put together. What makes them so awesome?
  • Copy Editing For Dummies is your friend.
  • Burn out is a very real thing in this industry—you think college is bad? Work is worse. (Especially if you’re living paycheck to paycheck.) Have an outlet for your stress, and take breaks. As my dad says, “Your job is never worth the heart attack it wants to give you.”

Ummm, that’s all I can think of off the top of my head. I’ll update this post if more comes to mind.

Reblogged 1 week ago from meggannn by the-writers-ramblings
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"Writers let themselves be enticed by the language."

Peter Bichsel (via writingquotes)

Reblogged 2 weeks ago from writingquotes by the-writers-ramblings

God, Why, and World-Building

1032

writeworld:

mobilesavage said: Many questions on the topic of worldbuilding. For example: God, why?

“God, why?” Good question! Here are some world-building questions about gods (deities) and why these preternatural beings might have an influence on your setting and plot.

Basic

  • Does a deity actually exist in your world? Does this deity interfere with the affairs of mortals? If so, how does this deity affect the plot?
  • Are there multiple deities? If so, how do they interact in their pantheon? Do they get along? Does this interaction affect the plot?
  • If there are multiple deities, are some deities more powerful than others? What is the range? If there is a range, how does this inequality of power among deities affect the plot?
  • Is there a religion that worships deities? Is there more than one religion? How do these religions interact? Does this interaction affect the plot?
  • Do any of your characters believe in a high power (deities)? To what degree do your characters believe? How does their faith or lack thereof affect plot?
  • Are any of your characters religious practitioners? To what degree are your characters religious? How does their religiosity or lack thereof affect plot?

If Deities Exist

  • Talk about the creation of the world. What kind being is the creator deity? Thoughtful? Apathetic? An architect-type or more of a twisty chaos tornado? Was more than one deity involved in the creation of the world?
  • Do the people in your world have iron-clad proof that deities actually exist? If so, when did they find out? Is it common knowledge or do only a select few know the truth? If not, why do the deities keep themselves hidden?
  • In a world where there is proof of one or many higher powers, how do hope and faith function?
  • Does praying work? If not, why not? If so, how does it work? Does it require sacrifice or special ritual? Why?
  • Where do deities reside in your world? Do they hold court?
  • Do the deities of your world survive eternally without sustenance? If not, what is required to sustain them?
  • Can a character or group of characters summon a deity?
  • How “human” are the deities of your world? How involved are they with the daily activities of the people of your world?
  • Are the religions of your world worshiping these deities the way they’d like to be worshiped or are they doin’ it wrong?
  • Are these deities pleased with the worship they receive? How does this pleasure or displeasure affect the plot?
  • If your characters worship a deity or deities, does this faithfulness pay off for the characters? Do they gain or lose the favor of a deity or deities through their faithfulness or lack thereof? Can a character or group of characters gain the protection of a deity or deities?
  • Can a deity create more deities? How does that work?
  • Can a deity mate with a human? Under what circumstances would something like this occur? How do deities and humans feel about this sort of coupling?
  • If magic exists in your world, how does this magic interact with the deities of your world? Does magic come from these deities specifically, as in a gift, or does it come from chance or study?
  • If applicable, how are man-made technologies affected by the existence of deities?
  • Can you kill the deities of your world? If so, how and under what circumstances might such a thing be necessary?

If Deities Don’t Exist

  • Does the fact that deities don’t exist in your world affect the plot? If not, is there any reason to comment on the fact that there are no deities in your world?
  • Can/Does anyone find any hard proof that deities don’t exist in your world? If so, how does this affect the plot?
  • Do the religious leaders of your world know that deities don’t exist? If so, why continue on in the religion?
  • If your character(s) believe in a high power, what would it take to convince them that no higher power existed? What would they do as a result of such a realization?

There are, of course, many more questions that you could ask yourself regarding deities and their effect on your plot and setting. Hopefully, these questions can get you started.

If you’d like to add a question or even a few questions to this list, submit or message us!

-C

Messages on this topic:

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Reblogged 2 weeks ago from writeworld by the-writers-ramblings

What is “Pace”, and How Does It Affect Your Story?

284

yeahwriters:

image

a-pelvis-named-elvis asked:

I need a couple of tips on writing chase scenes, while keeping it urgent while not sounding too bland (a character is running to find another specifically).

I think that what’s going to help you most in writing this chase scene is understanding how to control your story’s pace. We haven’t talked about pace yet here on Yeah Write, so let’s!

The clearest way that I can describe pace is to use a music metaphor. In music, we call pace “tempo”. If something has a fast tempo, it has more beats per minute, and the notes are likely shorter (staccato). So in a given minute of an up-beat song, there are a lot of notes, there’s a lot going on, and it gives the music the feeling of being “fast”. If a piece of music has fewer notes, fewer beats, and the notes are held for longer in a minute, it gives music the feeling of being “slow”. (Doesn’t it make you think of being at a school dance and the song switching from something upbeat like Jump Around to a slow dance like My Heart Will Go On?) (I hope you enjoyed my 90s references.)

Moving on!

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Reblogged 3 weeks ago from yeahwriters by the-writers-ramblings

Poetry-Inspired Writing Prompts

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These writing prompts were inspired by poetry but that doesn’t mean they have to inspire poetry. Use them to write anything you want.

(Source: writingforward)

Reblogged 4 weeks ago from fuckyeahcharacterdevelopment by the-writers-ramblings
70
"A good rule for writers: do not explain overmuch."

W. Somerset Maugham (via writingquotes)

Reblogged 4 weeks ago from writingquotes by the-writers-ramblings
181

(Source: justdanceandlive)

Reblogged 1 month ago from redcigar by the-writers-ramblings
180
worddocs: Home // Need a Diagnosis? // F. A. Q. To: Writers in need of a little helpFrom: Some friendly editors What we do: Read excerpts of your work Critique your style, characterization, word choice, & structure Provide you with suggestions on how to improve your writing style, not just on a specific piece, but overall We try to give you a holistic overview of your style as an author; what you’re doing right, where you could use work, your strengths and your weaknesses. We could have more appropriately called ourselves the Style Docs, but let’s face it, that’s not nearly as punny. We’re here to help you improve your writing—whether fan fiction or original work—and make it more enjoyable for your readers, and hopefully for you as well.

worddocs:

Home // Need a Diagnosis? // F. A. Q.

To: Writers in need of a little help
From: Some friendly editors

What we do:

  • Read excerpts of your work
  • Critique your style, characterization, word choice, & structure
  • Provide you with suggestions on how to improve your writing style, not just on a specific piece, but overall

We try to give you a holistic overview of your style as an author; what you’re doing right, where you could use work, your strengths and your weaknesses. We could have more appropriately called ourselves the Style Docs, but let’s face it, that’s not nearly as punny.

We’re here to help you improve your writing—whether fan fiction or original work—and make it more enjoyable for your readers, and hopefully for you as well.

Reblogged 1 month ago from rootvegetable by the-writers-ramblings
234
"I write for the same reason I breathe - because if I didn’t, I would die."

Isaac Asimov (via writingquotes)

Reblogged 1 month ago from thestorynever-ends by the-writers-ramblings
295
Valmont (1989)

Valmont (1989)

Reblogged 1 month ago from iphigenias by the-writers-ramblings
244
just a simple writing playlist | listen here (x) tracklist the cave mumford & sons | little talks of monsters and men | call your girlfriend (cover) barcelona | give me love ed sheeran | new soul yael naim | youth daughter | like ships in the night mat kearney | darling, i do landon pigg ft lucy schwartz | falling the civil wars | delicate damien rice | west coast coconut records | nocturne (for violin and piano) frederic chopin | tonight i’m getting over you carly rae jepsen | seven devils florence + the machine | whatever you like anya marina | colors barcelona

just a simple writing playlist | listen here (x)

tracklist

the cave mumford & sons | little talks of monsters and men | call your girlfriend (cover) barcelona | give me love ed sheeran | new soul yael naim | youth daughter | like ships in the night mat kearney | darling, i do landon pigg ft lucy schwartz | falling the civil wars | delicate damien rice | west coast coconut records | nocturne (for violin and piano) frederic chopin | tonight i’m getting over you carly rae jepsen | seven devils florence + the machine | whatever you like anya marina | colors barcelona

(Source: roleplayerlostinpemberley)

Reblogged 1 month ago from damedurohan by the-writers-ramblings
274
"When writing a novel a writer should create living people; people, not characters. A character is a caricature."

Ernest Hemingway (via writingquotes)

Reblogged 1 month ago from thestorynever-ends by the-writers-ramblings
15842
"Writers don’t write from experience, though many are resistant to admit that they don’t. I want to be clear about this. If you wrote from experience, you’d get maybe one book, maybe three poems. Writers write from empathy."

Nikki Giovanni (via amandaonwriting)

Reblogged 1 month ago from crystalzelda by the-writers-ramblings
14016

theunseeliequeen:

Favorite Little Things → Writing

Reblogged 1 month ago from clashofthekhaleesi by the-writers-ramblings
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