Writing

You need things to write about for your article or blog post, and the clock is ticking. But you’ve run out of ideas. Every writer knows the feeling. You need to write something quickly, but you can’t find things to write about. Trying to find topic ideas can become stressful. You enjoy writing, but finding a…

When do you spell out numbers in full words or use numerals in writing? The rules for spelling out numbers can differ depending on which writing style guide you use. APA Style, the Chicago Manual of Style, and many others have slightly different rules. But there is one rule with which everyone agrees. You need…

I originally wrote a positive review of LivingWriter, but I am no longer able to recommend it to authors. While the app was a fine tool for writing a book initially, recent changes to the web and desktop versions have caused issues. In addition, my own experience with the program’s support in recent months has…

The first tip for starting to write a new book is to have a plan. A snowflake outline can help you develop this plan, especially for fiction books. An outline for nonfiction books, such as memoirs and biographies, is relatively straightforward. You usually list the events in chronological order. Other nonfiction books, such as Self-help…

Before you publish anything online, it’s a good idea to choose from a range of free plagiarism checkers. You’re writing original content. But some parts of what you write might be duplicate content or accidental plagiarism. It isn’t the same as copied content, though. If you use a plagiarism detector, you can edit or change certain…

Question tags in dialogue are not always a good idea. They are often called tag questions in American English and are very common in spoken English. They are easy to form by using the auxiliary verb to turn a statement into a question. You live in San Francisco, don’t you? By using rising or falling…

Are you ready to start writing a fantasy novel? Well, nothing is stopping you with these free fantasy writing tools. It is a fantastic writing genre because you can let your imagination run totally free. Another good reason is that fantasy stories are very popular with readers, especially young adults. If you are eager and…

Character development is essential to fiction writing, and a character profile template can help you. You need to get to know your fictional characters well before you start writing your story. No matter what genre you are writing, you should create profiles for your main characters before you begin. Creating a quick bio profile template…

Fiction writing only works when the plot of a story makes perfect sense to a reader. “The king died, and then the queen died” is a story. “The king died, and then the queen died of grief” is a plot. E. M. Forster It’s an old quote, but I was reminded of it when I…

Writing tools today are a long way removed from typewriters and carbon paper. The days of sending or posting typed or printed manuscripts are well and truly over. Every word you write now is digital, electronic, and published via the Internet. You exchange drafts by email or share them on Google Drive. If you go…