by Anne R. Allen Let’s face it: first chapters are hard. When you’re writing your first draft, you’re writing for yourself—getting to know your characters and their world. You should let everything spill out on the page free of your inner editor’s censorship. But when you’re revising, it’s a different story. You’ll need to cut […]
The Biggest Problem Facing the Beginning Novelist—And 6 Tips for Avoiding It
by Anne R. Allen Creating compelling narrative takes more than great characters, sparkling dialogue and exciting action. All those elements have to come together in one story. One story. Not a series of episodes. As creatures of the television era, a lot of us tend to think in episodes rather than one long story […]