Stephen King wrote in his book On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft, “the road to hell is paved with adverbs.” We’re rightly admonished not to use adverbs. But what about adjectives? I’d argue that adjectives are also there in the mix that makes up the road to hell. In fact, Mark Twain wrote to student D. W. Bowser (3/20/1880) “When you catch an adjective, kill it. No, I don’t mean utterly, but kill most of them—then the rest will … Read More »

Nobody likes to peer through a glass darkly—it’s too hard to see. Why not just look directly at the scene rather than at its reflection, which is pale and distorted? (Unless you’re looking at an eclipse, of course.) Filter Not It’s just as hard to get the full impact of an emotional scene in a novel if the author dims everything through a series of filter words. You know what I mean: felt, seemed, heard, saw, and their kin. Needless … Read More »

You’ve decided. Your fiction story will become a series. The decision could have been made when you realized your characters have more to say than one book can hold, or you may have decided at the outset that a series is the best way forward. Either way, here are a few hints and suggestions to help make that series a successful one. Timeline Structuring It’s logical to think that books in a series continue where the last one left off, … Read More »

In reading novels as in attending parties, nobody wants to sit next to a bore. It’s easy to say what constitutes a social bore: she hogs the conversation, talks about herself, burrows into a one narrow topic that doesn’t interest you. What marks out a boring book? I had a recent opportunity to think about this when a friend asked me to read his manuscript and give him some feedback. The overarching problem that jumped out at me seemed worth … Read More »

It may feel like an afterthought or process a writer goes through when the writing is done, but whether or not to include a table of contents (TOC) warrants careful thought and special attention. The discussion that follows is based on my own (unofficial) research and inspection of various titles in my own small library. What is a TOC anyway? Basically, it’s a list of chapters and page numbers at the beginning of a book. As a writer, it’s important … Read More »

Ouch! This isn’t the reflection of a sadomasochist! Pain occurs (or should occur) a lot in novels, and it gives the author a lot of fresh ways to show something about their characters. I say “should occur” because it’s far less prevalent in hard-driving thrillers (for example) than it should be. If you jump off bridges and throw yourself out of moving cars, my guess is you’re going to get a few ouchy booboos. If the book makes any pretense … Read More »