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August 17, 2014 By Anne R. Allen 79 Comments

5 Protagonists Readers Hate: Why Writers Shouldn’t Identify too Closely with a Main Character

5 Protagonists Readers Hate: Why Writers Shouldn’t Identify too Closely with a Main Character

by Anne R. Allen You can learn all you want about writing powerful prose, well-planned story arcs, lyrical descriptions—or any other aspect of fiction—but if you don’t have a protagonist your readers care about, none of the rest matters.I don’t think it’s terribly relevant to talk about character “likability” in the sense of “niceness.” The […]

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Filed Under: The Writing Life, Writing Craft Tagged With: Food of Love, how to fictionalize a memoir, How to write a bestselling novel, how to write a novel based on real life, Likable Protagonists, Mary Sues, Writing tips

February 26, 2012 By Ruth Harris 56 Comments

8 Tips for Turning “Real Life” into Bestselling Fiction

8 Tips for Turning “Real Life” into Bestselling Fiction

by Ruth Harris   A lot of people start writing because they’ve got a real-life story to tell—something that happened in their own lives or the lives of friends or family members they think would make a great book. Sometimes these stories work well as memoirs, but, for a lot of very good reasons, a […]

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Filed Under: The Publishing Business, The Writing Life, Writing Craft Tagged With: Decades, How to write a bestselling novel, how to write a novel based on real life, Janet Reid, memoir or fiction, Query Shark, Ruth Harris

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writers digest 101 best websites for writers award

Anne R. AllenAnne R. Allen writes funny mysteries and how-to-books for writers. She also writes poetry and short stories on occasion. She’s a contributor to Writer’s Digest and the Novel and Short Story Writer’s Market.

Her bestselling Camilla Randall Mystery Series features perennially down-on-her-luck former socialite Camilla Randall—who is a magnet for murder, mayhem and Mr. Wrong, but always solves the mystery in her quirky, but oh-so-polite way.

Ruth Harris NYT best selling authorRuth is a million-copy New York Times bestselling author, Romantic Times award winner, former Big 5 editor, publisher, and news junkie.

Her emotional, entertaining women’s fiction and critically praised novels have sold millions of copies in hard cover, paperback and ebook editions, been translated into 19 languages, sold in 30 countries, and were prominent selections of leading book clubs including the Literary Guild and the Book Of The Month Club.

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