Stories contain action that hooks readers. Conflict propels the action, which eventually leads to a resolution. While a good plot offers readers an escape, it also teaches a lesson. By confronting the external problem, the main character works through an internal issue. The resolution of this emotional conflict changes the course of the hero’s life….
Witchcraft or Rye?
The place was called Salem Village. The year was 1692, when doctors lacked in-depth medical knowledge and religion played a major role in local government. As a result, girls suffering bizarre symptoms were slapped with a diagnosis of “bewitched.” The cure? Find the witches responsible and kill them. The supernatural isn’t the only theory out…
Dashes in Dialogue
The em dash can be a great tool to speed pace and create realistic dialogue. Dash placement matters when formatting dialogue that contains sudden breaks. What causes these breaks? The character who is speaking cuts his own dialogue short. One character interrupts another’s dialogue. The narrator breaks up dialogue. Why It Matters As with other…
More Important or More Importantly?
You’ve probably seen the phrase written both ways. This article discusses more important/ly as an introductory phrase. After reading it, you should have a good grasp of why more important is the best choice. More Important A copyeditor I spent good money on changed an introductory more important to more importantly in my manuscript. Later,…
Literary vs Genre Fiction
On an agents “wish list,” you found the term literary sitting among a hoard of genres. One genre, science fiction, describes your book. However, your story includes literary devices. It holds abstract ideas subject to interpretation. Your main character may fight alien peacekeepers, but he’s on an “internal,” coming-of-age journey. For those reasons, you think…
Zephyr
A tree stretches its branches toward the sky like a child reaching for her mother, crying to be held. Flying away from the weeping willow, a bird zips above leaves rolling across the lawn. They’re pushed by a zephyr stalking the yard for hungry breaths like those of the bird, who darted toward a window…
The Footnote as a Literary Device
Footnotes don’t have to be boring digressions. In fact, they can be quite helpful. Norton anthologies are loaded with footnotes. They shed light on aspects of a work or the circumstances of an author’s time. This gives context to a story, which aids in comprehending and analyzing a work. A dictionary might describe information in…
Book Review: An Abundance of Katherines
John Green’s An Abundance of Katherines (Penguin Random House) shines in the young-adult category. In fact, it’s a 2007 Michael L. Printz Award Honor Book. The contemporary story reels readers in with a relatable plot and “an abundance of” unique features that flip Humdrum on its head. Although published in 2006, the read is timeless….
Sticky-Note Diary: Adjective Rabbit Hole
Sections 5.91-3 of The Chicago Manual of Style, 17th ed., (CMS) discuss a variety of adjectival predicaments. Writers might study these sections on their quest to figure out how to deal with multiple adjectives in succession. Coordinate adjectives require commas. Phrasal adjectives have their own rules. Complicating matters, these rules have exceptions. Situations can get…
Novel Beginnings
Story endings often get all the attention. However, it takes a good beginning to motivate a reader to read to the end of a book. Just as an entire story usually has a structure that holds it together, so does a beginning. By “structure” I don’t mean it’s a rigid one. But the beginning shouldn’t…