May/June2013 Issue
May/June Issue
Writer's Digest Magazine
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Author Archives: Guest Column
Tackling Historical Fiction
For those of you who are curious about the craft of historical fiction writing, let us part the curtain a little and let you have a peek. Read more
Faith-Based Freelance Markets
In the July/August 2013 issue of Writer’s Digest, Scott Noble details how to write for Christian publications. Here are the full submission guidelines for five markets spotlighted in his piece. Read more
8 Steps To Help Secure Your Beyonce Interview
Here’s the 8-part recipe for landing interviews with famous actors, actresses and musicians. Read more
5 Ways to Make Your Novel More Suspenseful
Suspense happens when a scene becomes charged with anticipation. Here’s how to accomplish that in your writing. Read more
How to Create Tension Through Misdirection
A car engine breaks the stillness of the night … the smell of seaweed intrudes on an afternoon chess game … an unopened letter slips behind couch cushions. These are what we might call “plot-hypers,” in that they add elements of uncertainty and tension. Here’s how to add them to your story. Read more
Representing Minorities in Your Writing
Here’s how a Jewish writer was able to gain some perspective and successfully write from the viewpoint of a different minority. Read more
The 4 Best Strategies for Savvy Self-Publishers
If you’re excited by the prospect of achieving success on your own, but intimidated by the ever-changing options available, take heart. Here’s how the savviest writers approach the self-publishing process—and where to go for the help you’ll need along the way. Read more
5 Ways to Deal with Word Repetition
Word repetition can really weigh down your writing and slow down readers. Try out these five simple ways to tackle word repetition and improve your writing skills. Read more
Answers to 14 Questions You’re Too Afraid to Ask Literary Agents
Do agencies really read every query letter? Do agents ever go through the slush pile? Get answers to what you’ve always wanted to know but have been afraid to ask, thanks to this leading literary agent who is willing to give it to you straight. Read more
How to Organize Time for a Dramatic Story
Every story, like every sequence of memorable events in life, has its own chronology; that is, significant happenings with a beginning, middle, and end. As we have said, they may not however be told in that order, which only makes matters more interesting. Embedded in the task of designing a plot sequence is the fundamental question—how will I handle time? Cinema has considerable temporal elasticity. The time element of a story can be greatly manipulated within the film’s actual duration. So where to begin? Read more
4 Ways to Motivate Characters and Plot
Some of your characters will change during the course of your story—let’s call them changers. Others—stayers—will not change significantly in personality or outlook, but their motivations may nonetheless change as the story progresses from situation to situation. Both changers and stayers can have progressive motivations. Confused? Don’t be; it’s simpler than it may seem. Characters come in four basic types: Read more
The Two Pillars of Novel Structure
Even good stories can crumble if they don’t have a strong framework. Use this time-tested structure to transport your readers from exhilarating start to satisfying finish. Read more
The 7 Deadly Sins of Self-Editing
Avoid these tempting traps, and save yourself from the kind of painful revision that can lead your manuscript to eternal damnation. Read more
Why You Should Write About What You Don’t Know
It’s easy to write about what you know, but writing about things you don’t know much about is way more challenging. It’s also more exciting. Here’s why. Read more
The Basics of DIY E-Book Publishing
Here’s an overview of e-publishing principles and skills, as well as specific services you should be aware of given their current prominence in the market. Read more
How to Write a Character From Start to Finish
We love to see characters transformed. Mainly because we are being transformed. Here’s how to craft a memorable character who evolves. Read more
5 Things That Should Be On Every Writer’s Bucket List
Explore these bucket list items to boost your creativity and take the next step towards your own unique writing life and career. Read more
How to Raise the Stakes in the First 50 Pages of Your Novel
No matter what type of novel you’re writing, there had better be some kind of suspense in it. Here’s how to add some (or make what you have even better). Read more
Bringing Kids’ Stories to Life
In this issue’s WD Interview, Jamie Lee Curtis credits her illustrator, Laura Cornell, with helping her add the “secret sauce” that appeals to children and parents alike. Learn more about how their partnership works in our exclusive extended Q&A. Read more
Does Free Pay? The Pros and Cons of E-Book Giveaways
The February 2013 issue of Writer’s Digest features Porter Anderson’s in-depth article “Banking on E-Books,” which provides an overview of today’s e-book marketplace and discusses how savvy self-publishing authors can make money from their digital titles. Here, in this online-companion sidebar, Anderson delves into whether or not the kinds of free e-book giveaways that once had the power to translate into headline-making sales are still viable in 2013. Read more
How To Never Run Out of Ideas
Many people want to know where ideas come from. It’s very simple: everywhere and nowhere at the same time. Two tools can help you always have a supply of ideas when you need them most. Here they are. Read more
7 Ways to Add Great Subplots to Your Novel
Whether you’re planning the fabric of a new story or looking to thread depth into one that’s falling flat, try these 7 methods to a tightly woven plot. Read more
Moving Beyond Writers Block
What do you do when you feel your creativity has dried up, you have nothing to say, or you feel everything you do say, has already been said? There are several solid strategies for transcending these blocks and getting the words and ideas to flow with confidence once again. Read more
How to Structure a Killer Novel Ending
Here are the principles of story structure that you need to apply to your writing in order to get the ending of your fiction right. Read more
3 Quiet Fears that Stop Writers from Writing
How various artists can be used as jumping off points for examining difficult feelings, and ways of getting them to power your writing project rather than halt it. Read more
