Fiction Writing: The Passionate Journey. Blog of Writing Coach, Emily Hanlon: writing technique

Friday, November 07, 2014

How the Fiction Writer Learns to Welcome the Unknown

How the Writer Welcomes the Unknown in Fiction

"... the problems of the human heart in conflict with itself... alone can make good writing because only that is worth writing about, worth the sweat and the agony."-- Willliam Faulkner

What is good fiction writing technique? How do we unleash the creative energy through the channels of character and story?

Craft and technique are necessary, but the trick is to not put the cart before the horse. Technical expertise alone cannot release the writer's passion, and the perfectly turned phrase will please the ego, but if it doesn't translate into something meaningful for the character and story, it is so much wasted word count.

Tuesday, July 01, 2014

The Power of A Good Critique for the Fiction Writer

Power of a good critique in Fiction Writing

A good critique never leaves you deflated. It always leaves you inspired.

Receiving a critique with curiosity and an open mind and knowing how to critique others writing are two of the most enriching aspects of belonging to a fiction writing workshop. Having your work critiqued in a supportive atmosphere where there is a professional writing coach is a terrific learning experience in many way ways.

Whether you are participating in a writing workshop or working with a private writing coach, a good critique encourages the silencing of your Inner Critic, your willingness to take risks with your writing and releases your creative passion.

A Good Critique Inspired, Never Deflates...

Thursday, December 26, 2013

How to Develop Point of View in Fiction Writing

Adding Dramatic Tension Through the technique of Point of View in Fiction Writing

The Problems of the human heart....
William Faulkner wrote: "... the problems of the human heart in conflict with itself... alone can make good writing because only that is worth writing about, worth the sweat and the agony."

Faulkner has given us a tough assignment, yet it is an assignment at which we must excel as fiction writers. The best way to succeed at this is to leave behind what you believe to be "true" and open yourself to the vast possibility of life experiences outside your own. For it is not true that we can only write what we experience. As writers, we have enormous access to the cosmic imagination where anything is possible -- including the great expanse of human emotions.

Writing an emotionally strong scene...

Monday, April 01, 2013

The Power of Image for the Writer

An image is worth a thousand words... that's actually true, especially for a fiction writer. Find out why.

If you begin with words you might be handing over control of your writing session to your Inner Critic!
Many writers have the misconception that words drive writing, that in order to begin you have to have the right first sentence or paragraph. Nothing could be further from the truth. If you begin with words, that's where you'll end up, lost in a quagmire of words. Why? Because

Sunday, May 15, 2011

Who Is the Real Character?

The relationship between the writer and her characters

Do you inhabit your characters or do they inhabit you?

What does the question and its answer mean to you?

Post your answers below!

Monday, March 07, 2011

The Benefits and Pitfalls of Outlining in Fiction Writing

The usefulness of outlining in fiction writing depends on how and when you use it.
As I said in an earlier post, plots, like characters, are living things. Plotting can be a delicious left brain activity that can lead you down the rabbit hole into places you never expected to go. That said, some people are completely overwhelmed at the thought of writing a plot outline. If this is you, don’t worry; outlining is not essential, and you may get some insights from reading on.

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

The Journey of the Plot Driven Writer

We all love a page turner.

The Benefits and Pitfall of the Plot-Driven Writer

Plots are great, no doubt about it. We all love a page turner, and as writers, we love it when we come up with a great plot twist. Murder, mayhem, love found, love lost, love found again, political intrigue, family secrets, science fiction, fantasy... plots go on and on....

It’s also been said that there are only 10 basic plots, and all plots are but variations on one of the ten. I don’t know if that’s true, but there is certainly truth to the statement. This is also the answer to the question: “I have a great plot but what if someone steals it?”

Monday, February 07, 2011

Pitfalls of the Plot Driven Writer

Putting the cart before the horse...

Plot Driven Writers generally need to work on developing flesh and blood characters

As I said in the last posting, the major pitfall of the plot driven writer is thinly developed characters. This pitfall is, however, symptomatic of a greater challenge, one which arises out of the natural inclination of the plot driven writer to begin a story with plot and story arc. To do this, he calls in linear thought and critical thinking, which puts the cart before the horse.

The creative process finds is origins in images and feelings, both of which are decidedly non-linear. The first stage of the process is often quite chaotic. Anything is possible.

Friday, January 28, 2011

Strengths of The Plot Driven Fiction Writer

Does you plot grow faster than your characters?

So far in this series, I have been exploring the strengths and pitfalls of the character driven writer. Now it's time to explore the journey of the plot driven writer.

As we do this, remember that both character and plot are necessary in fiction writing. Most of us are intuitively stronger with either character or plot ― but that strength can become a weakness if it overwhelms the writing process.

A page turner is great but ...

Monday, January 17, 2011

Pitfalls of the Character Driven Writer: When Your Characters Won't Open Up!

You thought you knew who she or he was, but suddenly they seem like a stranger.
Despite a fascination with the human psyche, a character driven writer can find it difficult to get a character to open up? This is all the more challenging when you start off running with a character and suddenly you feel as if you've slammed into a stone wall. No matter what you do, your character feels one-dimensional. You thought you knew who she or he was, but suddenly they seem like a stranger.

Antidote: The Character Interview
Explore the character from the inside out, not from the outside in. There is a difference, and a very big one between the two.

Interviewing is different from a fill-in-the-blanks questionnaire

Tuesday, September 04, 2007

5 Tips for Using a Writing Prompt

How to Use a Writing Prompt in Fiction Writing

The 5 Tips:

Any prompt is only a jumping-off point. You never know where you are going to land!

If your imagination takes you in a direction that has nothing to do with the prompts, go where your imagination takes you. Do not listen to the voice inside your head that says, “Oh, no! I shouldn’t be writing about this!” or “I’m not doing this right!” There are no “shoulds” or “should nots” in this process. The only thing you can do wrong is to not write.

Always name your characters, even if the name never appears in the story. Why would a character tell you her story if you don’t care enough to learn her name?

Write dialogue. In twenty-five years of teaching writing, I have never worked with anyone who couldn’t write dialogue – only with people who thought they couldn’t!

Be a risk taker. Don’t think. Write from your passionate core. Risk and passion are the essence of the creative journey and the sweetest nectar for your Inner Writer. Don’t forget to have fun!

The Writing Prompt:“Nobody loves you like I do,” he said as …

Suggestions for developing the prompt:

Tuesday, April 03, 2007

What Does Point of View In Fiction Writing Mean??

Point of View, How it Works and Why It Is so Important to the Fiction Writer

Point-of-view is probably the most important technique we have as fiction writers.
This includes memoir writing. Everything in story arises from point-of-view: most powerfully motivation and, ultimately, story line.

I believe you can have a wonderful story without a complicated plot.
I don't believe you can have an interesting, much less wonderful story if you have all kinds of twists and turns of plot but the characters are skeletal. One of the reasons Stephen King became such a huge success is that he changed the horror genre by writing fascinating, fully developed characters about whom the reader cares. And he has dynamite plots. Now that's a great combo.

In a nutshell, point-of-view says to the reader...

Thursday, March 22, 2007

The Five Ingredients of the Scene In Novel Writing, Short Story Writing and Memoir

The Five Ingredients of a great scene in Fiction Writing

1. Point of view or who's story are you telling... POV puts you inside your main character's head, heart and gut -- you are seeing the world through the eyes of your character.

2. Dialogue is one of the fastest ways into character. Dialogue also allows characters other than your POV character to reveal who they are. Letting the dialogue "roll" offers unexpected "what happens next?" and other surprises. Dialogue is a great way to show tension. Glance through at a novel. Most novels are anywhere between fifty and eighty percent dialogue. Think you can't write dialogue. You can. I promise. Why am I so sure? You talk, don't you? You can write dialogue. I've never worked with anyone who can't write dialogue, only with people who think they can't.

3. Dramatic Tension/Action...

Thursday, February 15, 2007

Mystery, Intuition and Creativity: Ingredients for The Fiction Writer's Toolbox

How Far Down the Rabbit Hole Are You Willing to Go?
How do you explore the mystery of you?
What does intuition have to do with creativity?
How can you give birth to the true Self whose visions of possibility and becoming are beyond the mind's horizons?

Inner Vision is the mediator between the worlds...
Creativity is a force that gathers its energy in the mysterious inner worlds and gradually moves toward definition and completion in the outer world. The problem, especially in Western culture, is that we are educated to focus on the outer world, which demands us to get it right, get it done and be successful!

Creative success can not be determined by the outside world...

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