Recent content by yachtcaptcolby

If it's a consistent thing, maybe use your “Later that night/After they had started moving again/While they took a short break” stuff as almost a heading or a chapter title. Set it apart, bold it, put an ellipsis after it, whatever. Make it a stylistic thing rather than a problem.

I've worked on multiple collaborative projects that started with a single world or theme and tasked writers with going in their own directions from there. It's a really good time. Maybe that's a thought for what you're looking to do: rather than directly writing together with someone, give...

For me, it depends on the story. If it's a big character-driven epic, then yeah...some sort of epilogue would be nice, at the very least. If, however, it's meant to be more of a slice-of-life thing, or if the focus is more thematic or action-driven that character-based, abrupt is fine by me.

I'd suggest keeping it simple. One thought per sentence. Avoid joining clauses with conjunctions. Just get a scene onto the page in its simplest form - the action, the dialogue, the emotion, all of it, in the order it happens, every sentence taking just one step. Once it's all there, read back...

Eight years ago, I wasn't sure I was going to be able to stay in the city after graduating college. I started writing a story about moving back to a small town. Two chapters in, I gave up - probably because I made arrangements to stay in the city and wasn't stressed out about it anymore. I...

Corner each of your beta readers in a bar or a coffee shop and actually talk to them. I find I get much better feedback in person than I do electronically.

You won't know what you can do if you don't try because your fears paralyzed you. Even if something doesn't turn out as "good" as you were hoping, it's still productive in the long run if you learned something from it.

Ain't that the truth! I've managed to build a decent little network of people I can trade editing work with, so that works out well.

I self-published simply because I wanted to have something I'm in complete control of. I can do whatever I want with my world without having to take what someone thinks will or won't sell into consideration. It's a total vanity project; I'd rather write what I like than compromise for a...

Games certainly are art. I'd argue that all forms of human expression are art. That said, not all art is "good," however you prefer to define that. There's a lot of bad art out there in every medium that's ugly or juvenile or lacks a coherent message or doesn't communicate what the artist...

I agree with Pythagoras. Good storytelling isn't just getting somewhere, it's making the getting there part interesting. A big part of that is in how you communicate with the reader. Just make sure you know when to stop tweaking. I'm an obsessive tweaker and there are times when I have to just...

It's science fiction and just barely under $5, but I thought Forging Zero by Sarah King was absolutely fantastic. It's a brutal story about children drafted into an intergalactic army. The characters in that novel grow and change in really impressive ways. (...and my apologies if this is...

I usually use a MacBook Pro at home. I have to deal with Windows all day at work and I don't really want to have to put up with it at home. All the crap in Windows that wants my attention all the time drives me nuts. I bought a refurbished PC laptop I keep around for gaming and situations where...

You might also consider putting your manuscript aside for a few months to write other things. Sometimes taking a break gives you time to work things out organically. Trying to force it may not work.

I think I'd make that two sentences. I find a lot of cases where the comma is questionable really ought to just be two sentences. "I'm quite thankful," Fik muttered. Then he curled up by the fire.