It really can be a matter of preference and a matter of client preference. I personally wouldn’t put too much stake on it. If you are able to write 1,000 clean, optimized words an hour and your client wants to pay per word you can think, “what do I want to make an hour?” T...
“The world-building that really falls into place first is what I always describe as the sense of power—helping readers understand how power flows in the book. That could mean governmental power, personal power, magical power, whatever. But [determining how power flows] is going to determi...
There’s an excellent reason for that: despite continual online speculation on the subject, there honestly isn’t much debate in agency circles over what constitutes a good query letter. Nor is there really a trick to writing one: you simply need to find out what information the agent of yo...
In order to do your best work, you need a writing space that’s free of distractions. Only when you immerse yourself in your writing can you enter a flow state, where the “deep work” happens. It isn’t so much about working “smarter, not harder.” It’s working smarterandharder t...
Include descriptive settings to help readers get a true sense of the difficulties characters face. Describe the surroundings, including the climate, terrain, location, time period and overriding mood. Use descriptive adjectives, such as foreboding, breezy, ghostly, picturesque and insurmountable to help...
If I had to describe my photography, I’d say that it’s about giving both the positive andnegative spacein a moment the same significance. It’s a more abstract interpretation that doesn’t involve faces or mimics. Some people call it “editorial street photography”. Although I felt rathe...
I believe that to all be true, but it has in the past made me feel like writing good content is impossible. What I learned over time, and what I hope others realise, is that you cannot be expected to produce perfect copy from day one. It isn’t a case of “if you can’t nail...
BONUS: Describe your settings from the points of view of all of your characters, in two to three sentences for each one. Use what works, throw out anything that doesn’t. Using one of the practice prompts above, write, sketch, or find for fifteen minutes. When your time is up, share...
It’s…really hard to describe, honestly. Probably why I find people watching so interesting. Ooooh, the “Explain Halloween” thing sounds like an abject HOOT! Our new guys are definitely not Ethiopian, unless they’re from a very different population than every other one I’ve seen. (...
Then, start writing. As you write, remember to use as many of your five senses as you can. Describe the room for fifteen minutes. When you're finished, post your practice in the comments section. And if you post, please be sure to read a few practices from your fellow writers and co...