Writing Tips

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Fiction Technique Tip: Remember F-A-D!

Sometimes as you’re writing dialogue you’ll find that a gesture or gestures can only go in one place. In Robert’s dialogue below, for example, the sentence containing his body language must go where it is for dramatic impact: “I couldn’t leave Eleanor. Not after all she’s done for me—medical school, raising our kids.” Robert looked down [...]

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The Writers Conference Pitch

Most writers have attended writers conferences and met editors and agents there. That’s often the reason for going. Meetings can happen at cocktail hour or during brief one-on-0ne appointments, or pitch sessions, scheduled by the conference coordinators. A chat over wine and cheese is fine, but we always recommend taking advantage of these appointments. Their [...]

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Get a Fiction Makeover for National Novel Writing Month!

A Contest Sponsored by The Marshall Plan® In celebration of National Novel Writing Month (November 2010), Evan Marshall and Martha Jewett, leading literary agents and authors of The Marshall Plan® Novel Writing Software and The Marshall Plan® for Novel Writing ebook, are sponsoring a contest for aspiring novelists. Send them a proposal for your novel for a chance [...]

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Adapt The Marshall Plan® for Short Stories

I am often asked whether The Marshall Plan® system can be adapted for writing short stories. Absolutely. Here’s what I recommend: Set up your template (or have the software do it) as follows: Use the shortest possible word length, 50,000 words. Opt for no romantic involvement. Opt for an invisible opposition. This way, neither a [...]

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The Writer’s Bookshelf

If you’re like me, you treasure your writing bookshelf, the volumes that have survived the onset of the Internet and stand loyally by, ready to be perused or referred to. Below are some of the titles I treasure most. Are they on your shelf? If not, they’re worth checking out. The Chicago Manual of Style: [...]

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Category Fiction: What’s Hot?

In my Marshall Plan® books I have always recommended writing the genre you love to read. It gives you several advantages. First, the passion you have for reading a particular genre carries over into the writing. Second, you’ll already have a good idea of what’s been done and what hasn’t. But what if you read several [...]

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Writing the Reaction Section

In The Marshall Plan®, the basic units of story are the action section and the reaction section. In my previous post I discussed writing the action section. In this post I’ll discuss writing the reaction section. To recap . . . We’re writing a vampire romance in which our heroine, Sidora (a vampire), has the [...]

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