Wow, first quarter is almost over. I’m still working on the fifth novel in my Primordial Realms urban fantasy series. I started this book in 2018 and then crashed and burned with it in early 2019. I didn’t touch it again until late last year. This has been my toughest novel to finish, but I am nearing the end.
Crossing my fingers and toes that it will be published late 2021. In the meanwhile…
Here are five interesting writing and publishing related articles I read in January/February.
Photo by The Lazy Artist Gallery from Pexels
The 100 Best Websites for Writers in 2021 (thewritelife.com)
It lists 100 websites that can help writers of all stripes—from freelancing, marketing, and motivation to general writing advice, tips and tricks. A few of the sites I already follow. There are so many new ones I’ve never heard of that I will now have to check them out. Like my to read list needs to get any longer!
Why Your Book Needs a Manuscript Critique ⋆ Books & Alchemy (booksandalchemy.com)
What is a manuscript critique? It is a high level review of your manuscript before you start editing. Books and Alchemy details why you may want to consider one.
5 Tips for Fantastic Worldbuilding in Your Novel | The Novel Smithy
World building can either be the best part of writing a novel or a massive, confusing chore. Eve Lynch at The Novel Smithy, doles out tips to help make world building easier.
3 Reasons Why You Might Not Be Writing (and What to Do Instead) (savannahgilbo.com)
If you feel as if you’re stuck, this blog post might help you figure out why and how to get writing again.
#26: Give Antagonists Understandable Motives (Part 1) – Katherine Cowley
#27: Give Antagonists Understandable Motives (Part 2) – Katherine Cowley
When writing your novel, it’s easy to spend most of your time building up your protagonist. They are the hero after all. There is another character, however, that needs some love—the antagonist, aka the villain, aka the bad guy, aka the force working against the protagonist’s goal, creating conflict. The villain and/or antagonist in your story has to be as fleshed out as the hero/protagonist. That includes having clear motives and goals. You don’t want them to be one-dimensional or worse, clichéd. In my non-humble opinion, conflict makes the best protagonists and where does conflict come from? The answer isn’t a stork.
Bonus:
What is Dramatic Tension? – Kiingo
What is the magic that keeps readers flipping pages and staying up past their bedtimes reading? Tension, my friends. You can have tension (or anticipation) between characters (e.g. sexual chemistry between two people), and within the protagonist (internal and external, e.g. will he betray his brother to save an innocent man from execution; or, will she stake the vampire king who she has fallen in love with?).
Here are some awesome vlogs that also discuss tension in a story.
Were any of the above links helpful?
I hope you liked this month’s blog post. The books in my urban fantasy series are available on Amazon. Please let me know your thoughts by liking, commenting, and/or subscribing. Also, you can join my mailing list by clicking here.
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stacy benedict 