By Allison GraceAre your characters out of control? Is your draft a dumpster fire? Have you given up hope of ever...
Plot Articles
From Plot Bunny to Bestseller: How to Write Your First Novel in Six Easy Steps
4 Powerful Ways to Raise the Stakes in Your Story
By Jodi ClarkYou’ve probably heard the term “stakes” floating around in the writing community. Whether you’ve only...
Why It’s Okay to Have Clichés in Your Fantasy Novel
By Gabrielle Massman“Your story is a bit cliché, don’t you think?”For a long...
Four Types of Plot Clichés That May Be Dragging Down Your Story
A few weeks ago, I picked a random book off the library shelf and started reading. The book,...
Twenty-Seven Examples of Ways to Bend Clichés
Although some clichés used to be powerful writing tropes, they have become trite with age, bringing as much life to...
How Advice from a Chess Grandmaster Can Transform Your Writing
One of my favorite classes that I took at a homeschool co-op during high school was a chess...
Set Your Novel Up for Success by Sharing Your Outline
It’s January, the month of new beginnings. You’ve made your New Year’s resolutions, and maybe,...
Creating a NaNo Outline When It’s Already November
Early October came and went and you said you had a month to prepare.Mid-October...
Three Types of Foreshadowing
By Hope AnnThere are three kinds of foreshadowing. There's covert foreshadowing,...
Writing Synopses
By Anastasia McTague Lots of young writers have had to tangle, at some point or another, with...
Are Cliches to be Avoided?
By Hope AnnClichés abound in movies and books. The dashing prince rescuing the helpless princess. The mentor dying and...