Anne R. Allen's Blog... with Ruth Harris
Writing about writing. Mostly.
by Anne R. Allen Clichés exist for a reason. A whole lot of people like them. That means they get over-exposed. Clichés represent a natural way of thinking. So don’t feel bad if your first draft has a clichéd opener. It’s part of the process. Here’s the most important thing for a new writer to […]
Start your novel any way you want when you write your first draft, but keep your reader in mind when you edit. by Anne R. Allen There are as many ways to start your novel as there are writers, so be aware that these are not hard and fast rules. But newbies tend to fall […]
The First Chapter is the toughest! by Ruth Harris Someone waves a gun in the first sentence. In the second sentence, Jim (or is it Jill?) is walking his (or is it her?) dog in the rain. In the third paragraph, the dog gets loose, runs into the middle of a movie set where the […]
by Ruth Harris As Anne and I looked back at the blog for the past year, a portrait emerged highlighting the themes and subjects that interested you most. We were intrigued by these clues about what was on our readers’ minds in 2014 and thought you’d be interested, too. So here are the […]
In these days of the “look inside” feature on retail sites like Amazon, the opener of your book is more important than ever. Whether you’re going the query route or self-publishing, your first page is essential to the success of your book…and may be your most crucial sales tool. Those first 250 words can […]
By Anne R. Allen This is usually Ruth’s week to post, but she’s busy proofing galleys of her much-anticipated new novel The Chanel Caper. And next weekend, I’ll be busy teaching THE TECH-SAVVY AUTHOR workshop. So we switched. On March 3rd, look for Ruth’s post on why we like a tough, flinty heroine. OK, […]
by Anne R. Allen Introducing your protagonist to your reader may be the single trickiest job for a novelist. You have to let readers get to know your character in a very short time–then entice us go on a journey with this person into a brand new world. If you tell us too much, […]
