2,087 Answered Questions for the topic writing

Writing

07/14/19

Is it OK to leave a portion of a page blank if you are trying to end the chapter?
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07/14/19

Is it better to describe the main character's physical appearance early on in the story?
I'm writing a novel, and I just realized I don't describe be main character's appearance until Chapter 3 (each chapter is 1500~2000 words long and there are 25 chapters in total).I *do* mention... more
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Writing Vocabulary

07/13/19

How do I incorporate Vocabulary in my writing that I already know?
I seem to have this problem where I know a lot of words but can't always seem to think them up when I write an article or a story. I know the meaning of most of these words, but when I write, some... more
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Writing

07/13/19

If someone's nickname is "The Mooch" or "The Fonz", is "The" capitalised?
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07/13/19

How can I convey an absolute truth from the author to the reader without a mentor character?
There are sometimes moments in works of fiction where the author needs to convey something to the reader without ambiguity. Let's say the situations around the characters get so weird that the... more
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Writing

07/13/19

Why is it so easy to spot typos in things other people have written, but so hard to find them in your own writing?
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Writing

07/13/19

How do you deal with the "singular they" issue when writing and editing?
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Writing

07/13/19

Should we edit as we write or when we are finished?
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Writing

07/13/19

When would verisimilar be preferred over similar in normal usage? Can you offer an example?
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Writing English A Story

07/13/19

Given few words can i make a story?
The words are busy,class,associations,morning,college,campus,traffic,canteen,labs,sound, friends,outreach
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Writing Trends Ending

07/13/19

Does my protagonist *have* to succeed?
I'm thinking about a YA dystopian novel and have planned it quite thoroughly. However, when I look back, the antagonists tend to always be a few steps ahead of my protagonist, and my protagonist is... more
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Writing

07/13/19

Is the comma in “Stop trying, it’s just sad” an acceptable use of the comma?
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07/13/19

How do I get my readers through the early, "hardship" part of my fiction?
A reader of one of my works told me, "It was very interesting, the last two thirds of it anyway." Her fear was that I might lose my readers in the first one-third of the work.The above work was a... more
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07/13/19

Historical Fiction: using you and thou?
Generally speaking, English once used 'you' as the second person plural (equivalent to 'vous' and 'vós') and 'thou' as the second person singular (equivalent to 'tu'). When talking to a... more
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Writing

07/13/19

What is a good way to remember when to italicize and when not to italicize a title?
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Writing Series Novel Style

07/12/19

How can I Switch Protagonists Between Books?
*Disclaimer: I am not intending on doing this. It is just a question I thought was fascinating and might be useful to other writers.* Here's the scenario. You're writing a series of novels. After... more
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07/12/19

When can You Pause the Story and Speak Directly to the Reader?
## Note: This question was previously about breaking the fourth wall. I discovered that my interpretation of that phrase was wrong. I have therefore rewritten the question. ##*(The above is in... more
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Writing Fiction

07/12/19

What does being "heavy handed" mean? And how does one avoid it?
I've come across the term "heavy handed" before, and it seems to be one of the more egregious mistakes that one can make while writing - at least that's the impression I get from critics.What does... more
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Writing

07/11/19

Where does "Sir" (British royalty) go in a book or article footnote?
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07/11/19

Can I make a character make a philosophic observation or say their opinion, even if it's unnecessary for the plot/story?
I have a character in my story who has the habit of making philosophic observations about life and the functioning of things, or his opinion/vision about something. Although most of his... more
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Writing

07/11/19

How can I write extensively on a shallow topic/ object? A topic which doesn't have a lot of content or substance.
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Writing

07/11/19

What is the correct formatting or punctuation for an abbreviated slang type "and" in a phrase like "skittles 'n beans"?
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Writing Novel Wordcount

07/11/19

How can I make a story bigger?
I have written a first draft of what I want to be a novel -- aiming for 50-70K words. When the ending arrived I was at about 30K. So I essentially have to double the length. My list of notes... more
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Writing Quotes

07/11/19

Attributing quotes to fictional characters?
Let's say, for example, that I want to post my favourite quote from *Babylon 5* somewhere:> "I'm not saying what I'm saying. I'm not saying what I'm thinking. As a matter of fact, I'm not... more
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07/11/19

Can I self-publish on a reputable publishing platform, and how much would it cost?
With the barrier to having a publisher sign a new author seemingly high, especially without prior success or experience, are there any good author-funded alternatives out there to the repeated... more
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