#author toolbox

All the ways your dialogue isn't working #amwriting #writetip

Bad dialogue will ruin an otherwise great story. It can rip your reader right out of the setting or create one that feels false. It will kill your pacing by stealing the energy from a scene. Almost all bad dialogue suffers from the same few issues. Don’t fall into these common traps. Unrealistic Dialogue For dialogue to sound “right,” it needs to mimic actual speech. Consider: “Good morning,…

The Emotional Connection | Author Toolbox Blog Hop

I am knee deep in the revisions of my current WiP—a sequel to my debut fantasy novel The Healer’s Rune—and I’ve come upon a problem. Although my plot is technically correct, the story itself lacks the spark of life. This is not an uncommon problem among authors, so I turned to two Internet-based writer’s groups that I belong to for help. In the course of the discussion, I was introduced to The…

Book Review – Collaborations by Craig Martelle.

Collaborations by Craig Martelle is a non-fiction title that provides information on how to collaborate on writing projects with other Authors. The Cover: As far as I’m aware, there is only one version for this book. It is bright, stands out, and is branded so as to align with other non-fiction titles in the Successful Indie Author series. I find it presents as a business focused title, which…

Show, not tell. That’s a very old writing tip that a lot of new fiction writers, myself included, fail to implement when starting out with their journey to writing stories and novels.

I learned, however, that it’s not because we don’t know how to write. Rather, it’s because we were trained to write this way in school, most notably with nonfiction. Well, in nonfiction, telling is the way to go.

In…

Resources Review: Getting Into Character by Brandilyn Collins | #Author Toolbox Blog Hop

As I mentioned last month, I have this thing for how-to resources about writing. There’s something about studying the craft of writing that makes me feel content and inspired, so much so that I have to be careful to make sure that any extensive studying I do does not become a thinly-veiled form of creative procrastination.

Because of this, I’ve read enough that the basic advice is becoming…

On the writer's block - Author Toolbox Blog Hop | Lyndsey's Book Blog #authortoolboxbloghop #amwriting #writersblock

Happy New Year! It’s been a few months since the last Author Toolbox Blog Hop, what with NaNoWriMo and the festive break, but we’re back with the first hop of 2019. (I’m a little late as I’ve been away for a couple of days!)

Whether you’ve been writing for years, or you’re new to the craft, you’ll almost certainly have heard of writer’s block. You’ve probably even suffered from it, to some…

Famous first words - Author toolbox blog hop | Lyndsey's Book Blog #amwriting #AuthorToolboxBlogHop #nanowrimo

Hi folks! I’m a little late with my Author Toolbox Blog Hop post this month, but as it’s the last one of the year (anyone else doing NaNoWriMo?), it’s better late than never!

This month I wanted to look at one of the most important parts of any novel, because as we all know, first impressions last. Lots of writers spend hours (days, weeks, etc.) agonising over their story’s first line, usually…

Author Resource: Novel Marketing Podcast | #Author Toolbox Blog Hop

You may not know this about me, but I’m relatively new to the whole concept of podcasts—I shared my discovery of this form of media only last year. While my list of useful podcasts has grown, I have recently discovered the Novel Marketing podcast, and I am jaw-dropped amazed.

Branded as “the show for novelists who aren’t necessarily fond of marketing but still want to become best-selling…