Tag: Advice

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Grammar in Dialogue?

Hi Jim, I’ve been working on my story for a while and it takes me through a lot of dialogue along the way. I’m trying to write a modern story with slang and lingo that people today understand. However my spellcheck picks it up and gives me the ‘correct’ recommendations. I don’t want my writing to sound unprofessional, but I don’t want my characters … Read More Grammar in Dialogue?

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The Short Story Submission

Hey Jim, Just read your post on WordPress titles ‘When to Start?’ I think you’ve hit the nail on the head and your advice is especially useful for novices like me. I started writing on WordPress about a month and a half back and I write whenever I can steal 15-30 minutes, mostly from my lunch breaks. I see that my posts are evolving … Read More The Short Story Submission

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When to start?

“Hi Jim, I’ve had a lot of ideas flying around lately, but not all of them are that great. Often times I find myself writing out some of my ideas only to almost immediately hit a road block. Then when I look over it again, I don’t know what I was thinking when I started writing. I don’t know how those thoughts could have … Read More When to start?

Writing Kids and Teens… The Epic Fail!

Okay I see this in both movie and book form, but I’m going to cover some of the more egregious examples. Why is it so difficult to write kids and teens? In many of the movies or stories we see, kids are well behaved, tiny adults… or even worse. You see this a lot in bad comedies or really weird stories. Perhaps the most standout … Read More Writing Kids and Teens… The Epic Fail!

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Magnifica 4: Dark Redeption vs. Taryn

So for the most part, my reader base is used to me giving them answers to their queries about various topics in literature… or hearing me ramble on about whatever topic I can branch from my writing. Well… today I wanted to do something different. I have two separate stories that I’ve been working on and am considering as the sequel to my first … Read More Magnifica 4: Dark Redeption vs. Taryn

This Above All…

“Hi Jim, You’ve given out a lot of advice on your blog about writing and I was just wondering… do you have any piece of advice you would give to a writer? For example, if someone came up to you and told you that they are going to start writing a book, what advice would you give them right off without them asking? Thanks, … Read More This Above All…

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Tasteful vs. Smut-peddling

“Hi Jim, I’m in the middle of writing a fantasy novel. In my book, two of my main characters fall in love. I noticed in Magnifica that your main characters wind up having sex. I don’t want my story turning into sex-novel, which it looks like it’s starting to. When you wrote yours, how did you limit yourself? What made you stop when you … Read More Tasteful vs. Smut-peddling

Fantasy Creatures

“Hi Jim, I’m in the process of writing a fantasy novel and was wondering how you chose what species to focus on? Your writings seem to focus on Angels and Elves, what made you decide to go that route over say… dwarves or faeries? Thanks, Allison” Hi Allison, Good question. It honestly comes down to a couple of different things. For starters, what does … Read More Fantasy Creatures

Too Many Sequels?

“Hi Jim, So I’ve been writing this book series for a few years now and have always gone the indie route publishing. I have about 8 books in the series, all of which have sold well, however everyone is telling me that I should move on and write something new instead of sticking with the same world and characters. Are they right? Should I … Read More Too Many Sequels?

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Cover Inspiration

“Hi Jim, I was just wondering, Divinity’s cover looks really cool! May I ask where you get the ideas for yours? Like what makes you choose one scene in your writings over another? I want to create an awesome cover for my story and was hoping that you could point me in the right direction.” -Abby Hi Abby, I’m afraid that you caught me… … Read More Cover Inspiration

Author’s Advice #19

Hi all, Know it’s been a while and I apologize for that. However I hope that Damnation, once it’s published, will make up for this. Anyway, onto today’s advice piece. Don’t be afraid to break out of your mold. I hate the term ‘typecast.’ I really do. No one should be stuck into one category as a sci-fi or drama actor or writer or … Read More Author’s Advice #19

More Inspiration…

This one, from one of the greatest Metal collectives out there, was instramental when I was writing Divinity. It doesn’t end well as Tobias Sammet’s singing cannot match the power of Amanda Somerville, but it’s still a really great song to listen to if writing about a relationship that may not last. Readers, Do you have a question about writing, publishing, my stories, etc? … Read More More Inspiration…