How-to-write Stories

211 expert tips for non-fiction writers is part college course, part one-on-one training, and part motivational tool. It's designed for anyone who writes non-fiction, or wants to, from freelancers to bloggers to newswriters and more. Contents include: • Writing essentials • What to do before you start writing • Overcoming writer's block • Developing interviewing skills • Specific methods to make writing easier • Spicing up your stories • How to edit your own writing • Pointers on grammar, punctuation and capitalization • Legal and ethical considerations • And much more

So, I was doing a critique tonight. And it was the person’s first book. And I was writing a bunch of the same things that I’ve written on a million other critiques since I started on Wattpad. And, it occurred to me that I keep giving people the same advice—advice that nobody gave me—and advice that beginner writer’s NEED. So I decided to put some of it down in a book, although I’m guessing most people won’t read it. Haha But the title pretty much says it all...

In February of 2017 I had the great pleasure of addressing the Grant MacEwan University English Department with a keynote speech titled "Your Voice is Valid." This speech was all about Mary Sues, fandom, and marginalized voices, and is a direct response to the negative reactions that media texts receive when they announce a protagonist that is deemed to be a "Mary Sue". In the intervening years I think the message of my talk has become even more vital to creators, so I thought I'd record a new video of the speech to share with a wider audience. I had the great fortune of being able to publish the text in it's entirety in issue one of Blanket Magazine (http://blanketmagazine.blogspot.com/), and I read my text from this book. Find more of my writing advice at http://jmfrey.net/words-for-writers/

The original inspiration as co-authored by an in-house Acquisition Editor and Industry Reader and submitted to their employer, a renown book publisher. It addresses the volume of amateurish, unsolicited manuscripts piling unread in the mail room. To avoid missing out on another best seller, their strategy was to invite aspiring writers to read them online. The 'editorial filtering standards' was the proposed Style Guide for non industry readers (that is, aspiring writers) to assess manuscripts for marketability in a standardize manner. The suggested website '4gatekeepers.com' offered membership and access. The Style Guide compares the evaluation process to 'Dante's Inferno' (tough love for aspiring writers) to prepare them for the hellish reads. ~ a fiction (c)2006

This book contains a couple of sonnets of mine. One is meta - a sonnet about sonnets. The other is an example that I will show through eight drafts of how it was composed. This illustrates my method for writing poetry. There are lots of other methods, but here you get to see one of my pieces through various iterations until I get to what I think is "finished". Maybe this will help you in your writing, or maybe it will be purely for our amusement. Either way, feel free to comment on what you see in the process.

Guide to Help First-time Writers. This answers many of the common questions first-time writers have, such as "How do I choose a plot?" and "What do I do about Writer's Block?" This guide is meant to help writers feel like they are capable and have the tools necessary to write a book.

He doesn't have a name. Well at least not anymore. His parents probably called him something but he blocks those memories out. A mutated shouldn't have feelings after all. Though he thinks he cares about his son, small little thing, only a year old, he doesn't know for sure. Welcome to his word. A land where the sun burns flesh at its lowest temperature, rain is acidic and some humans changed to become the mutated. The mutated are not that different from humans; they simplify have extra features and enhanced or reduced abilities. Oh and they pick up a beast along the way because why not?

Let's take your story to the next level! This book will help you identify parts of your writing that slow your story down, and help you build the confidence to hit 'DELETE.' ;) Tighter prose = better pacing = happier readers!

Need Help With Story Ideals and more? Don't Know Where to Begin? Have a Hard Time Starting Your Story Or Describing Characters, Houses and More? You've Come To The Right Place My Friend