Writing Fiction: A Guide for Pre-Teens

BookCoverImageWell, the day has finally come and Writing Fiction: A Guide for Pre-Teens is available at Amazon and CreateSpace. Yay! The Kindle version should be up in a day or two, and in a few weeks, it should be available on Kobo and at other on-line retailers. A labour of love, this book has kept me inspired and busy for the past several weeks, tweaking and adding final touches. The cover photo may still change, but for now I’m breathing a huge sigh of relief. You can take a peek at the Table of Contents below.

Hope you have some fun, writerly days ahead!

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Getting Started  7

Joywriting           8

What do I need to be a writer?  9

Habits and Goals              11

Choosing Your Goal         11

Writing Every Day            12

Don’t Miss a Word           12

Write with a Friend or Two          12

Pantser or Plotter: Which are you?          15

The Pantser        15

The Plotter         16

Where do I get ideas for stories?              17

What if?               18

Write What You Know   18

Pick 4 Words      20

Writing Prompts               21

Plotting Tips       23

Basic Rule of Plotting      24

Story Planning   24

Plotting with the Hero’s Journey               27

How do I start my story?               31

Who should tell the story?           33

Point of View: First Person          33

Point of View: Second Person    34

Point of View: Third Person         34

How do I describe my characters?            37

Show Don’t Tell                38

Change Is Good                39

Character List     41

How do I describe the setting?  43

Think about how much you really have to describe.         43

Use Comparisons             43

Get the Senses Involved              44

Draw a Map or Use Photos          44

How do I write dialogue?              47

How do I end my story?                51

How do I make my writing better?           53

Revising and Editing        53

Words   53

Sentences           53

Combining Sentences    54

Paragraphs         55

What do I do when a story gets stuck?   59

1. Outline.           59

2. Forget about making the first draft perfect.    59

3. Write more than one story at a time.60

4. Put the story away.    60

5. Brainstorm.    60

6. Ask “What if?”              61

7. Don’t worry.  61

Last Words          63

Bibliography       65

First 100!

School Supplies 3Thanks to all of you who signed up for my mailing list to learn more about my upcoming book, Writing Fiction: A Handbook for Pre-Teen Writers. As I was finishing creating my last link on the bonus page this morning, the 100th person signed up for the mailing list. I’m taking that as a sign. 🙂 Those on the mailing list will be getting an email today with a link to the bonus material. Please let me know your thoughts. I’d love to hear from you.

Things are chugging along on the editing front, but I thought I’d take a moment to share the Table of Contents of the book, so that you’d all know what I’ve been working on lately. It is a labour of love, I assure you.

If you would like to know when the book comes out, please fill out the following form. I promise that you will not be bombarded with spam emails, just the odd thing that I come across that you might find useful, such as a sample chapter or a link to a great writing resource. Thanks!

Writing Fiction: A Handbook for Pre-Teen Writers

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Getting Started       

Joywriting

 

What do I need to be a writer?   

 

Habits and Goals

Choosing Your Goal

Writing Every Day

Don’t Miss a Word

Write with a Friend or Two

 

Pantser or Plotter: Which are you?

 

Where do I get ideas for stories?

What if?

Write What You Know

Pick 4 Words

 

Writing Prompts

 

Plotting Tips

Basic Rule of Plotting

Story Planning

 

Plotting with the Hero’s Journey

 

How do I start my story?  

 

Who should tell the story?

Point of View: First Person

Point of View: Second Person

Point of View: Third Person

 

How do I describe my characters?

Show Don’t Tell

Change Is Good

Character List

 

How do I describe the setting?

Think about how much you really have to describe.

Use Comparisons

Get the Senses Involved

Draw a Map or Use Photos

 

How do I write dialogue?

 

How do I end my story?

 

How do I make my writing better?

Revising and Editing

Words

Sentences

Combining Sentences

Paragraphs

 

What do I do when a story gets stuck?

1. Outline.

2. Forget about making the first draft perfect.

3. Write more than one story at a time.

4. Put the story away.

5. Brainstorm.

6. Ask “What if?”

7. Don’t worry.

 Last Words

 Bibliography           

 

 

 

 

 

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