![]() |
![]() |
Parallel Visions: City of Angels City of Demons ebook and trade paperback available on Amazon (or here). |
![]() |
![]() |
Welcome to 2021! Let's get some writing done.
Track your writing progress in 2021 using this free spreadsheet.
(And if you're an author with a wiki, add a comment here.) If so, I'd like to hear about it. Add a comment here
|
On Writing
From FritzWiki
http://fritzfreiheit.com/wiki/On_Writing is best viewed with JavaScript turned on.
![]() |
Alternatively: On Writing: Memoirs of the Craft by Stephen King |
- This is (mostly) a collection of links on writing. This covers topics such as agents, characterization, critiquing, description, dialogue, genre, glossaries, manuscripts, markets, methodology, narratology, outlines, plots, scenes, tropes, world building, and writing groups.
Contents
- 1 Advice, Tips and Tricks
- 2 Agents
- 3 Story Beginnings
- 4 Blogs
- 5 Characters
- 6 Critiquing
- 7 Description
- 8 Dialogue
- 9 Forums
- 10 Generators
- 11 Genre
- 12 Glossaries and Lexicons
- 13 Ideas - Or, Where do you get those ideas?
- 14 Lectures on Writing
- 15 Manuscripts
- 16 Markets
- 17 Methodology
- 18 Narratology
- 19 Outlines
- 20 Notes
- 21 Plots
- 22 Question and Answers
- 23 Reading
- 24 Reference
- 25 Resources
- 26 Scenes
- 27 Show vs. Tell
- 28 Short stories
- 29 Slush pile
- 30 Tropes
- 31 Words
- 32 Worksheets
- 33 World Building
- 34 Writers on Writing
- 35 Writing Groups
- 36 Writing Wikis
- 37 Miscellaneous Writing Resource Links
- 38 Back to the Blog
- 39 On Writing
- 40 Also See
- 41 Nav
- 42 Categories
Advice, Tips and Tricks
- Writing advice
- Advice on Writing & How To Writer Speculative Fiction a list of links at specficworld.com
- Advice to Aspiring Writers by Jeffrey A. Carver
- Advice to New Writers by Marion Zimmer Bradley
- David Walton's Grand Index of Writing Advice
- Fritz's del.icio.us bookmarks tagged writing+advice
- Writerisms & Other Sins by C. J. Cherryh
- http://www.sfsignal.com/archives/2009/01/mind-meld-shrewd-writing-advice-from-some-of-science-fiction-and-fantasys-best-writers/
- So you want to write science fiction? at http://inventingreality.4t.com
- Write a Science-Fiction Story / So You Want To - TV Tropes
- (v)
- 10 laws of bad science fiction
- A Basic Guide to Horror by Paula Guran
- Articles on Writing SF, Fantasy, & Horror a list of links at Writing-World.com
- Articles on Writing a list of links at the Horror Writers Association (horror.org)
- Blending Fiction and History by Paula Fleming
- Building New Worlds by Stephen Baxter
- The link Creating Memorable Characters is broken, try all at web.archive.org
- Creating a Realistic Fantasy World by Penny Ehrenkranz
- Essay on Plot by Damon Knight
- Essays on Plot by S. Andrew Swann
- Exploring The Dark Side: The Anti-Hero's Journey by James Bonnet
- Finessing the Infodump by Paula Fleming
- Getting Published by Jeffrey A. Carver
- Getting that First Horror Novel Published by Michael Marano
- Handling Multiple POVs by Vicki Hinze
- How to Revise a Novel by Holly Lisle
- How to Write a Synopsis by Rebecca Sinclair
- How to Write Fiction by Robert Harris
- Hunting a Literary Agent by Chuck Rothman
- Science Fiction and Fantasy at Writing-World.com
- Landing an Agent by Robert J. Sawyer
- Line Editing in 10 Easy Steps from DeepGenre.com
- Making Monsters by James Patrick Kelly
- Manuscript Preparation by Vonda N. McIntyre
- Never-Say-Neverisms by William Safire
- No Bones About it: How to Write Today's Horror - Part I by David Taylor
- No Bones About it: How to Write Today's Horror - Part II by David Taylor
- No Bones About it: How to Write Today's Horror - Part III by David Taylor
- The link On Writing Fantasy & Science Fiction for Kids is broken, try all at web.archive.org by Sherwood Smith
- On Writing Fantasy & Science Fiction for Kids by Sherwood Smith
- Pitfalls of Writing Science Fiction & Fantasy by Vonda N. McIntyre
- Q&A: Point of View by Nancy Kress
- Query Letters: Do them Right! by Lori Foster
- Rejection by Patricia Duffy Novak
- Rights: What they Mean and Why They're Important by Marg Gilks
- Science in Science Fiction: Making it Work by Joan Sionczewski
- Show vs. Tell by Maria V. Snyder
- The 39 Steps to Getting Published by Tara K. Harper
- The Alternate View (aimed at readers and writers of "hard" science fiction) columns by John G. Cramer
- The Failure Of Genre Poetry by Bruce Boston
- The link The Fiction Writers Page is broken, try all at web.archive.org by Crawford Kilian
- The Fully Realized World by Kate Elliott
- The Language Construction Kit by Mark Rosenfelder
- The Powers of Myth by Pamela Jaye Smith
- The Road to a First Novel by J. V. Jones and Betsy Mitchell
- The Standard Deviations of Writing by Roger MacBride Allen
- The Writer's Craft by Ben Bova
- Tips for Adding Tension to Your Fiction by Stacy Verdick Case
- Uncle Orson's Writing Class by Orson Scott Card
- What's the Magic Word: Defining the Sources, Effects and Costs of Magic by Lital Talmor
- The link Worldbuilding Questions is broken, try all at web.archive.org by Patricia C. Wrede
- Writing Full Time: A User's Guide by Robert Weinberg
- Writing Science Fiction & Fantasy from the SFWA
- Writing Tips by editor Ellen Datlow
- Writing for the Web by Crawford Kilian
- Writing Science Fiction For Kids by Justin Stanchfield
- Using Current Events in Speculative Fiction by Paula Fleming
- Using History: We Know Stuff Happens, but How? by Paula Fleming
- Formatting Outlines and Manuscripts by Orson Scott Card - Mar 7, 2006
- Third-Person Characters by Orson Scott Card - Sep 28, 2004
- Copyrights by Orson Scott Card - Apr 1, 2004
- Chapter Length by Orson Scott Card - Apr 1, 2004
- Parallel Storylines by Orson Scott Card - Oct 14, 2003
- A Conversation on Character by Orson Scott Card - Oct 14, 2003
- Stories with Soul by Orson Scott Card - Oct 13, 2003
- Naming Characters by Orson Scott Card - Mar 5, 2003
- More in Naming Characters by Orson Scott Card - Mar 5, 2003
- Starting a Short Story by Orson Scott Card - 05 Mar 2003
- Writer's Block by Orson Scott Card - 23 Sep 2002
- Classroom Writing Activities by Orson Scott Card - 10 Apr 2002
- Background - How Much is Too Much by Orson Scott Card - 14 Jan 2002
- Thought vs. Action by Orson Scott Card - 19 Apr 2001
- Distractions from Writing by Orson Scott Card - 15 Mar 2001
- Writing Spec Scripts by Orson Scott Card - 15 Mar 2001
- Inventing Aliens by Orson Scott Card - 15 Mar 2001
- Hot and Cold Third-Person by Orson Scott Card - 15 Mar 2001
- Themes by Orson Scott Card - 2 Aug 2000
- Point of View by Orson Scott Card - 2 Aug 2000
- Your Inner Editor by Orson Scott Card - Aug, 2 2000
- Digital Books by Orson Scott Card - Aug, 2 2000
- Novel Length by Orson Scott Card - Aug 2, 2000
- Plotlines and Ideas by Orson Scott Card - Apr 26, 2000
- The "Maguffin" by Orson Scott Card - Apr 26, 2000
- On Plagiarism, Borrowing, Resemblance, and Influence by Orson Scott Card - Dec 20, 1999
- When is Conflict Good? by Orson Scott Card - Oct 05, 1999
- Inventing Stories by Orson Scott Card - Jan 29, 1999
- Do I need an agent? by Orson Scott Card - Jan 29, 1999
- OSC Critique by Orson Scott Card - Nov 17, 1998
- Beginnings by Orson Scott Card - Oct 29, 1998
- Discussion of Dialogue and Style by Orson Scott Card - Aug 14, 1998
- Does a Writing Career Always Mean Novels? by Orson Scott Card - Jul 16, 1998
- On Rhetoric and Style by Orson Scott Card - May 12, 1998
- The Sixteen First Rules of Fiction by Geoffrey K. Pullum
- Book Advances, Royalty Checks, And Making A Living As A Writer By Adriann Ranta
- Straight from the Editor's Desk (How to Avoid Landing in the Editor's Trashcan) by Carol Hightshoe
- Top Ten Tips For Writing Good Horror Fiction By Alan To
- Shock and Awe (on writing the first page) by Nathan Bransford
- 10 Universities Offering Free Writing Courses Online
- Aphorisms for Writing Science Fiction by David Alexander Smith
- Points-of-view by Sherwood Smith
- Speculative fiction and the value of the formula by John Ottinger
- Middles by Joe Nassise
- Showing vs. Telling Sentences at writing.colostate.edu
- Critiquing tag at technorati.com
- Writing tag at technorati.com
- List of useful links for searching for blog entries on writing
- Stupid Plot Tricks By Teresa Nielsen Hayden
- A Discussion of Story: From Steering the Craft by Ursula K. Le Guin
- ProsePlease - deviantART Journal
- Mysterious Matters: Mystery Publishing Demystified: Tips for Writers
- Why Don't I Have a Plot, and Where Do I Get One?
- Dangling Modifiers by Lee Masterson
- Van Pelt on Writing: Table of Contents - by James Van Pelt at LiveJournal
- Clueless, Ink
Mindhacks
So You Want To Write ...
Stories we see too often
- Notes on what to avoid in your writing
- http://www.strangehorizons.com/guidelines/fiction-common.shtml
Agents
- Agents With Blogs
- Agents and editors who blog
- AgentQuery.com
- Do I need an agent? by Orson Scott Card - Jan 29, 1999
- Hunting a Literary Agent by Chuck Rothman
- Landing an Agent by Robert J. Sawyer
Story Beginnings
- Hooking Them From the Start at CastingTheBones.com
Blogs
Characters
- Character
- On Writing Characters
- What Does Your Protagonist Want? by Paula Fleming
- What "Type" Is Your Character? by Paula Fleming
- What's in a Name? by Moira Allen
- Third-Person Characters by Orson Scott Card - Sep 28, 2004
- A Conversation on Character by Orson Scott Card - Oct 14, 2003
- Naming Characters by Orson Scott Card - Mar 5, 2003
- More in Naming Characters by Orson Scott Card - Mar 5, 2003
- Building Characters at DeepGenre.com
- Creating Fictional Characters That Hook The Reader by Lonnie Ezell
- Adding Character Depth Through Perception
- Some thoughts on “character” at The Pinocchio Theory
- Fiction Writer's Character Chart
- Character Trait Chart and Personality Components
- Creative Writing 101 - Lesson 5: Character Building - Fantasy, Science Fiction and Animal Characters
- Character Building Workshop
- Character Profile For Fantasy Characters
- Character and Setting Integration Worksheet
Critiquing
- On Critiquing
- OSC Critique by Orson Scott Card - Nov 17, 1998
- Thoughts on Writing #12: Good Critique, Bad Critique. by Seanan McGuire
- How to Be a Good Critiquer and Still Remain Friends by James Gunn
- Useful & non-useful criticism by Kate Elliott at sfnovelists.com
- The Different Types of Critiquers by Elissa D Cruz at livejournal.com
- Thog's Masterclass -- This regular department of the sf newsletter Ansible enshrines gems of "differently good" prose from (mainly) science fiction and fantasy. It is to be assumed that the chosen selections are stuff which brutish Thog really likes.
Description
Dialogue
- Dialogue in Speculative Fiction: When Space Bugz Speakie Funnie and Other Problems by Paula Fleming
- Discussion of Dialogue and Style by Orson Scott Card - Aug 14, 1998
- Crafting Realistic Dialogue
- http://ask.metafilter.com/tags/dialogue
- "Whad Ya Say?" Writing Dialogue
- Dialogue dilemma
Forums
Generators
Genre
- Genre
- The Failure Of Genre Poetry by Bruce Boston
- About Five Thousand Seven Hundred Fifty Words by Samuel R. Delany
Glossaries and Lexicons
Ideas - Or, Where do you get those ideas?
- Under a Cabbage Leaf (where stories come from)
- Search for: writing "where do you get your ideas?" at Google.com
Lectures on Writing
- http://www.onlineuniversities.com/blog/2009/03/100-free-lectures-that-will-make-you-a-better-writer/
Manuscripts
- Manuscript tagged links at Fritz's http://del.icio.us
- Manuscript Preparation by Vonda N. McIntyre
- Formatting Outlines and Manuscripts by Orson Scott Card - Mar 7, 2006
- Manuscript Setup at eclectics.com
- Generic Manuscript Setup at eclectics.com
- Manuscript Format Checklist] by Robert J. Sawyer
- Miss Snark confesses she is ..yes...compulsive by Miss Snark
- Manuscript
- Manuscript Format by John Gregory Betancourt at SFWA
Markets
Methodology
Narratology
- Narratology
- Narratology category
- See Category:Narratology at Wikipedia
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narrative_logic
- Literary Terms by K. Wheeler
- Dictionary of Literary Terms
- What is narratology?
- PPP/Narratology
- Wiki for the International Society for the Study of Narrative
- Narrative terms and concepts
Outlines
- Formatting Outlines and Manuscripts by Orson Scott Card - Mar 7, 2006
- To Outline or Not to Outline? by Timothy Hallinan
Notes
- Manuscript layout
- Page layout notes
- Notes on what to avoid in your writing
- Some notes on critiquing with an emphasis on genre fiction
- Writing short stories (notes)
Plots
- http://delicious.com/fritz/plot
- http://delicious.com/fritz/plot+writing
- Plot
- Plots at TvTropes
- Great plots and their incarnations
- Essay on Plot by Damon Knight
- Also here Plot by Damon Knight at The Rose & Thorn (a literary e-zine)
- Essay on Plot by S. Andrew Swann at Genrewonk
- Plotlines and Ideas by Orson Scott Card - Apr 26, 2000
- Thirteen things to do when you run out of plot by Elizabeth Bear
- Also see Wikipedia Plot (narrative) at Wikipedia
- See Category:Plot at Wikipedia
- Plots at TVTropes.org
- Stupid Plot Tricks By Teresa Nielsen Hayden
- The Thirty-Six Dramatic Situations
- Big list of RPG Plots / The Big List of RPG Plots
- The "Basic" Plots in Literature
- Share Plotting Templates (3-Act Structure, etc.) (forum)
- Literary Devices - Plot at narriti.com
- The law of conservation of detail
- 20 Master Plot Exercises
- Script of T D Edge's third article for Starship Sofa, on Plot (part one)
- Script of T D Edge's third article for Starship Sofa, on Plot (part two)
- Plotting Without Fears by Alicia Rasley || sff.net
- Let's talk about books by brown_betty at LiveJournal
- 9 Ways of Plotting a Novel by Darcy Pattison
- 4 More Plot Variations by Darcy Pattison
Question and Answers
Reading
Reference
- Dictionary
- Thesaurus
- English Idioms at usingenglish.com
- Free Dictionary, Thesaurus, and Encyclopedia at thefreedictionary.com
- History, decade by decade from 1650 to 1990 at writersdreamtools.com
- Idioms at wiktionary.org
- Writer's Glossary
- SF critique lexicon
- See Category:Narratology at Wikipedia
- Literary Terms by K. Wheeler
- Dictionary of Literary Terms
- The Jargon File for computer and hacking related terms.
- The Elements of Style by William Strunk, Jr.
- A Guide to Writing Well
- http://www.tameri.com/write/write.html
- http://www.tameri.com/edit/edit.html
Resources
- Writing Resources at dmoz.org
- Writing Resources at Google Directory
- Melinda Rose Goodin's Writer's Gateway
- Genre Links: Science Fiction and Fantasy Writing Resources
- Movies as resources for writing
- Main Page - The Writerium
- Writing Articles Index at Fiction Factory
- http://www.onlineuniversities.com/blog/2009/03/100-free-lectures-that-will-make-you-a-better-writer/
Scenes
Show vs. Tell
Short stories
Slush pile
Tropes
- Trope
- TV Tropes -- TV Tropes
- All the Tropes -- AllTheTropes Wiki
- Tropes - Part 1 - Shedding Some Light On Tropes
Words
Worksheets
World Building
- Iceberg style of worldbuilding
- Building New Worlds by Stephen Baxter
- Creating a Realistic Fantasy World by Penny Ehrenkranz
- Creating New Alien Species by Lee Masterson
- The Fully Realized World by Kate Elliott
- The Language Construction Kit by Mark Rosenfelder
- Worldbuilding
- The link Worldbuilding Questions is broken, try all at web.archive.org by Patricia C. Wrede
- Worldbuilding by S. Andrew Swann at Genrewonk
- Worldbuilding v2 at Genrewonk by S. Andrew Swann
- http://io9.com/tag/worldbuilding/
- #Writing and #Worldbuilding Resources - Unleaded – Fuel for Writers
Writers on Writing
- Dwight V. Swain
- (more...)
Writing Groups
Writing Wikis
Miscellaneous Writing Resource Links
Back to the Blog
On Writing
- 10 Things That Every Brand New Creator of Science Fiction Should Know (link)
- 20 Master Plots (And How to Build Them)
- The 38 Most Common Fiction Writing Mistakes (And How to Avoid Them)
- The 5 Most Common Writing Mistakes That Break Reader Immersion (link)
- 5 Things Only Serious Writers Do (link)
- Armed and Dangerous - A Writer's Guide to Weapons
- The Art of Fiction: Notes on Craft for Young Writers
- Beginning Writer's Answer Book
- Booklife
- Books on writing
- Bride of Dark and Stormy
- Can you write a story without clichés(qm)
- Characters and Viewpoint
- Conflict, Action and Suspense (The Elements of Fiction Writing)
- Crafting Novels and Short Stories - The Complete Guide to Writing Great Fiction
- Creating Short Fiction: Guide to Writing Short Fiction
- Dark and Stormy Rides Again
- Deadly Doses - A Writer's Guide to Poisons
- The Deluxe Transitive Vampire - The Ultimate Handbook of Grammar for the Innocent, the Eager, and the Doomed
- Dialogue (The Elements of Fiction Writing)
- Elements of Style, The (Forth Edition with forward by Roger Angell)
- Example of telling rather than showing from Dispensing Justice
- Fact or Fiction? by Paul H Landes (link)
- Fiction Writer's Brainstormer
- The Fiction Writer's Silent Partner
- The First Five Pages - A Writer's Guide to Staying Out of the Rejection Pile
- How Fiction Works
- How I Got Published - Famous Authors Tell You in Their Own Words
- How to Be Your Own Literary Agent - An Insider's Guide to Getting Your Book Published
- How to Produce an Emotional Response in Readers: Inner Mode, Outer Mode, and Other Mode (link)
- How to violate the Rule of Cool
- How to Write and Sell Your First Novel
- How to Write Tales of Horror, Fantasy and Science Fiction
- How to Writer a Damn Good Novel
- It Was a Dark and Stormy Night
- It Was a Dark and Stormy Night: The Final Conflict
- The Jewel-Hinged Jaw: Notes on the Language of Science Fiction
- Lists as a literary genre trope
- Master Lists for Writers
- Michael Moorcock: Death is No Obstacle
- Narrative Laws
- Notes on The Secrets of Story
- On Critiquing
- On Writers and Writing
- The Only Grammar Book You’ll Ever Need
- Personal Paradigm Shift, Again - The Business Rusch
- Plot (The Elements of Fiction Writing)
- Plots Unlimited
- Plotto - The Master Book of All Plots
- Reading Like a Writer
- Revision - A Creative Approach to Writing and Rewriting Fiction
- Rewrite Right! - How to Revise Your Way to Better Writing
- The Science of Science-Fiction Writing
- The Secret of Writing An Action Movie in Book Form (link)
- The Secret to Writing a Best-selling Novel (link)
- The Secrets of Story
- The Sell Your Novel Tool Kit
- Showing and Telling
- Sin and Syntax - How to Craft Wickedly Effective Prose
- Son of It Was a Dark and Stormy Night
- Spunk and Bite
- Starboard Wine: More Notes on the Language of Science Fiction
- Steal This Plot - A Writer's Guide to Story Structure and Plagiarism
- Steering the Craft: A Twenty-First-Century Guide to Sailing the Sea of Story
- Story starts
- Theatrical Shortcuts for Dynamic Fiction (link)
- Theme and Strategy (The Elements of Fiction Writing)
- Those Who Can: A Science Fiction Reader
- Voice and Style
- Well-Tempered Sentence, The - A Punctuation Handbook for the Innocent, the Eager, and the Doomed
- When reality won't work in fiction
- World-Building - A writer's guide to constructing star systems and life-supporting planets
- The Writer's Circle - Reading, Thinking, Writing
- The Writer's Little Helper
- Writing a Thriller (Second Edition)
- Writing Advice not Eye-Stabbing (link)
- Writing Science Fiction and Fantasy - 20 Dynamic Essays by Today's Top Professionals
- Writing the Natural Way
- Writing the Thriller
- Writing With Style - Conversations on the Art of Writing
- Can't Do This In Fiction
- Elements of Fiction Series
- On Critiquing
[[File:|right|thumbnail|50px]]
Categories[edit]
- Advice (category)
- Agent (category)
- Blog (category)
- Character (category)
- Critique (category)
- Description (category)
- Empty CatsRest (category)
- Forum (category)
- Fritz Blogs (category)
- Fritz Blogs in 2007 (category)
- Generator (category)
- Genre (category)
- Glossary (category)
- Has Data Table (category)
- Has DynamicPageList (category)
- Has Layout (category)
- Has Layout Base (category)
- Has Nav (category)
- Has NavAlt (category)
- Has Navbox (category)
- Has Tags (category)
- Idea (category)
- Lexicon (category)
- Links (category)
- Manuscript (category)
- Market (category)
- Methodology (category)
- Narratology (category)
- On Writing (category)
- Outline (category)
- Plot (category)
- Reference (category)
- Short Story (category)
- Show vs Tell (category)
- Trope (category)
- Wiki (category)
- Worksheet (category)
- Worldbuilding (category)
- Writing (category)
- Writing Advice (category)
- Writing Group (category)
Categories:
- Has Data Table
- Has DynamicPageList
- Has Navbox
- Has Nav
- Writing
- Links
- On Writing
- Advice
- Agent
- Blog
- Character
- Critique
- Description
- Forum
- Generator
- Genre
- Glossary
- Lexicon
- Idea
- Manuscript
- Market
- Methodology
- Narratology
- Outline
- Plot
- Reference
- Show vs Tell
- Short Story
- Trope
- Worksheet
- Worldbuilding
- Wiki
- Writing Group
- Writing Advice
- Fritz Blogs
- Fritz Blogs in 2007
- Empty CatsRest
- Has NavAlt
- Has Tags
- Has Layout
- Has Layout Base