• 3 Cs of Impactful Writing: How to Write Clearly, Concisely, and Courteously

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    Whatever you want to write, whether it’s a memoir, a novel, a devotional, a literature review, or a short story collection, impactful writing starts with keeping your reader in mind. It’s like that familiar saying, “Before you say something, think whether it’s true, helpful, inspiring, necessary, and kind.” Similarly, when you write, think about the three Cs: Are my words clear, concise, and courteous? Why Clear Writing Matters: Making Your Message Easy to Understand As an editor, I often find myself making comments that say, “Clarify this,” or “Explain what this means.” When your writing is clear, your readers won’t…

  • Helpful Pointers on How to Write Dialogue

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    Whether in fiction or nonfiction, characters play a large role in driving a story along. Granted, they can’t do so if they remain quiet, and that is where conversations, or dialogue, come into play. Learning how to write dialogue between two or more characters throughout a story helps further the plot, develop the characters’ personalities, and make a story more believable to a reader, thus making the story that much more enjoyable. If you’re wondering how to write dialogue for your book, these tips can help guide you through the process. For some writers, dialogue can flow very naturally; for…

  • road with future, past, present written on it, road is surrounded by grass and trees and sunset in the background; past tense or present tense

    Has My Story Happened, or Is it Happening Now? When to Write in the Past or Present Tense

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    Among the plethora of elements a writer has to consider when writing a manuscript is what tense they wish to write their stories in. The tense of a story is separate from the point of view it is told, but thankfully, there are only two tenses to choose between: past and present. In brief and relatively self-explanatory, past tense is used when telling a story that contains events that have already happened (whether in the distant past or recent past). Present tense, on the other hand, is used when telling a story of events that are currently happening or happening…

  • mountain laurel in the sunset; finishing your novel

    The End: Finishing Your Novel

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    By the time writers find themselves writing the ending to their story, they are 80,000 words—if not more—into their story. After months or years of getting their story on paper, writers may feel burned out, ready to be done, and wanting to be onto their next project. The downside of that, however, is that a novel’s ending needs a lot of attention to avoid leaving readers dissatisfied or thinking the writer took an easier route to tie the plot points together. That’s why finishing your novel on a strong note is important. The ending needs to be just as strong—or…