Brandon Miller

My absolute favorite is “Go Teen Writers” by Jill Williamson and Stephanie Morrill.  Right now I’m reading “The Art of War for Writers” and I think I like it.  Jeff Gerke’s “Writing Christian Fiction” was pretty grand, so I assume the rest of his are great as well.  (I’ve only heard good things.)

If you’re worldbuilding, “Storyworld First” is a…[Read more]

Hey so unofficial staff recommendation:

Go Teen Writers is the best big picture craft book I have ever read. I would start with that.

If you are writing speculative fiction, Jill Williamson’s Storyworld First is also a must. (It’s really short and should be read with a notepad near at hand.)

I’ve only read a little of his stuff, but Jeff Gerke…[Read more]

2,000 words is a long post, for sure. But I read and enjoy a blog which goes well over that mark nearly every week. The key is keeping the content separated enough visually so that it doesn’t /look/ like it’s that long. And, like @Daeus said, content trumps everything.

YIPPEE! 100 Posts!
I just passed 100 posts myself, and it’s super cool. So congratulations!
Questions:
What is your favorite story, why?
What is your favorite Disney/Pixar moment, why?
What fictional character do you most look up to, why?

Congrats again!

OH YES.
What @ethryndal said. %200.
Make sure you have everything thoroughly documented and laid out so that you can come back to it. I just spent the ENTIRE month of June getting my current project back in my head so that I could outline the second half of it and move on. Don’t do that to yourself. Write everything down (and then put it…[Read more]

‘Sup?

Okay, so here’s my opinion on taking some time off from a novel after you finish it.
WAIT UP.
FINISH IT? YOU FINISHED YOUR FIRST NOVEL! *alltheconfettiandcheersandlotsandlotsofcake* You get the prize.
Okay, now for the helpful (and also important) stuff. My opinion on breaks (just an opinion, but a common and heavily-tested one) YOU…[Read more]

I know the feel.

My current book is having all the same problems… so I did something crazy last weekend. I printed it off and read it. Like it was a novel and stuff. On paper.
Sure, it has issues. Lots of them. But I found that sitting in my reading corner with actual paper in my hands was encouraging to me in and of itself. Also, reading…[Read more]

@mark-kamibaya I was just rephrasing what you said. All the points go to you. 😛

I have been tagged.
Again.
Which is fantastic, because even though I don’t find a lot of time to spend here, this is the topic I want to spend it in. Also, I think that my lack of actually showing up for this discussion has made me into something of a legend. (@Mark-Kamibaya “master of science fiction” Thanks, that’s really sweet of you but…[Read more]

Just that. Good clean laughs.

I honestly haven’t spent a lot of time on the website, but the Go Teen Writers book was amazing, so In would check that out if I were you. Other than that, my favorites are forgingofstories.blogspot.com and woodlandquill.com (Which may or may not be my own blog. # shamelessselfpromotion). Also, I’ve just started following…[Read more]

@Holly-Nelson-Gray
Hahahahahahahaha. Did someone say something about balance?
Lolno. I cannot express how bad I am at this. All the same, here is the little advice I have:
Use dialogue beats instead of tags. Beats always describe an action of one of the speakers, and look like this in a sentence: “What?” Wesley gasped. “No way!” They are to the…[Read more]

So… I have been tagged.
I would love to share a bunch of great “how to write sci fi” info with you… but I have two issues:
1. I really don’t know much. I didn’t spend a lot of time in the genre until a couple of years ago and I’m still playing catch up. Yes, I write it… but not terribly well. Not yet.
2. What little I do know I just put…[Read more]

@that_writer_girl_99
Yes, you did just make Brandon’s day, thank you very much! I’m glad I can pretend to be helpful and actually pull it off.

Also, Nadine Brandes’ blog (and newsletter) are fantastic. Check them out. (But you know that, don’t you Rolena…)

@graciegirl
(Okay, weird tech things. It says I’ve already posted, but I can’t see it so I’m posing again…)

Okay, so I’m tired and I’ve been sitting in front of my computer all day so words are going to sound harsh… just know that and take all of the following with a grain of salt. 😉

1. In a word… no. I know Daeus said yes, but… he…[Read more]

@graicegirl
Okay, so I’m tired and I’ve been sitting in front of my computer all day so words are going to sound harsh… just know that and take all of the following with a grain of salt. 😉

1. In a word… no. I know Daeus said yes, but… he wrong. (Okay, I think this probably varies on a person-to-person basis, but here’s my opinion.)…[Read more]

Okay, so I’m tired and I’ve been sitting in front of my computer all day so words are going to sound harsh… just know that and take all of the following with a grain of salt. 😉

1. In a word… no. I know Daeus said yes, but… he wrong. (Okay, I think this probably varies on a person-to-person basis, but here’s my opinion.) No. Writing…[Read more]