#20 — Small, repeating phrases Sometimes, small phrases end up repeating themselves. But if they're shortened, that will tighten up the story's prose. Here are some examples: Climbed up -> Climbed If you climb something, you're usually going up toward the top. So, can drop up and leave climbed by itself. I climbed up the … Continue reading Common writing mistakes #20
Tag: common
Common writing mistakes #19
#19 — Starting sections with pronouns When writing longer works, it's good practice to start each chapter or scene with the character's name instead of their pronoun. For example: Rose saw the fire hissing in the distance. vs She saw the fire hissing in the distance. This is for two reasons. 1) The character(s) referenced … Continue reading Common writing mistakes #19
Common writing mistakes #16
#16 — Misplaced modifiers Misplaced modifiers modify the wrong part of the sentence instead of what they intend to. They are fun to read though because they can sound silly. It makes more sense in practice, so here are some examples: Running away from me, I stumbled after my dog. Running away from me is … Continue reading Common writing mistakes #16
The past
The past catches up to me,hands me an old file,and walks away without saying a word. It takes a while for me to open the file,not wanting memories to take overand leave me unproductive for the night. But when I do, I fall to my knees.Pain, joy, terror, love, disappointment, and reliefall swarm me, taking … Continue reading The past
POV talk: third person
There are many POVs with questions surrounding all of them. I want to break them all down and discuss the biggest concerns in different posts. Today, I'll talk about third person POV. THIRD person Third person has the most variety out of all POVs. There are three types: third omniscient, third objective, and third limited. … Continue reading POV talk: third person
Common writing mistakes #14
#14 — Misusing commas I've done one of these on commas before. I had talked about using commas to continuously add information to a sentence. But I haven't talked about when to use a comma and when not to. Commas are complicated. What tends to get overlooked with them though is independent clauses and dependent … Continue reading Common writing mistakes #14
Common writing mistakes #13
#13 — Dialogue tags vs. action beats Dialogue tags can be tricky. But they're easy to understand after knowing the difference between them and action beats. Dialogue tags show who's speaking and how they're speaking. These can include but are not limited to: Begged Exclaimed Grumbled Muttered Mumbled Said Screamed Shrieked Snapped Whispered Yelled Dialogue … Continue reading Common writing mistakes #13
3 questions to build your characters’ voices
One of my favorite panels from DV Con was about voice. The presenters brought up many powerful points. They mentioned questions to ask about your main character (MC). Preferably, you'd ask these questions before you begin writing. But if you're like me, you don't know your characters as well on the first draft, so this … Continue reading 3 questions to build your characters’ voices
Common writing mistakes #12
#12 — Not using plain language Recently, I've seen some writers try to up their vocabulary. It feels as if they’re opening a thesaurus and writing the words they find down. Some of these words include specific plant or animal names, scientific words, uncommon verbs, etc. Grackle. Fervent. Reveille. Ostentatious. Imbibes. But it's better to … Continue reading Common writing mistakes #12
Common writing mistakes #11
#11 — Different types of dashes In writing, there are three main dashes you come across: a hyphen (-), an en dash (–), and an em dash (—). I've seen writers confuse them all the time. However, these are easy fixes. It's all about understanding the difference between them. A hyphen (-) is the most … Continue reading Common writing mistakes #11
Robin LeeAnn 