There are many posts about how to title your book. Even Bookfox has one. But not as many writers concentrate on how to discuss the book title inside the book. It’s a powerful moment when the reader finally encounters the title of the book inside the pages of the story, and yet we don’t talk […]
One of the best ways to learn how to write is to learn by imitation. So if you want to write a fight scene, you should look at writers who have come before you. Below are a variety of fight scenes: some just with fists, some with weapons like swords, spears, and knives. All of […]
It’s time to write a big fight scene in your novel, but you don’t want to botch it. That’s understandable. I’ve read enough badly written fight scenes to know that it’s truly easy to write a boring, predictable fight scene with nothing at stake, where the reader doesn’t even care who wins by the end. […]
Everyone tells you to write scenes. To show, not tell. But what if that was … bad advice? Or at least limiting advice, because virtually every great book in history uses summary and “telling” in at least a few places in the book. And surprisingly, some books use summary for MOST of the book. And […]
When one of your characters is on drugs, you want to accurately portray the thoughts, actions, and speech of what someone would say on such a drug. But some of you might not want to take Ecstasy or Cocaine or Toad Venom in the course of your casual “writing research.” This post will rescue you! […]
It’s easy to hate dream sequences in a novel. I mean, how many bad dreams sequences have you read? I’ve read a ton, and that’s why for so long I was resistant to teach other writers how to use dreams, and refused to use them in my fiction. But after continuing to see dreams in […]
Stories are chronological. One event happens after another. However, this does not mean that stories have to be told chronologically.
Hi, I’m John Fox, and as an editor I’ve helped hundreds of authors write, edit and publish their novels. If you’re planning on writing a novel, you’ve come to the right place. Let me guide you through the process. Now, you’re probably intimidated to write a novel. You should be. At least a little. They’re […]
A key part of writing a novel is figuring out the structure of your story. However, this structure might actually only be one layer of your novel. Complex plots often contain multiple layers of story.
Young Adult novels, or YA, has been spiking in popularity. According to Publisher’s Weekly, sales of Young Adult novels rose by 18.6% between 2020 and 2021 despite the pandemic.
