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TheAuthors' series: Reliable Writing Resources

2/29/2016

Today we're going to be talking about reliable writing resources. Everyone has those go-to sites that help them get new story ideas and/or just help them write better. But how can we determine whether their dependable or not?
Truly this is a personal decision, as all of us are different, yet there are a few tricks I've found over the years that have proven quite helpful in picking writing sources:

Frequently Posting
1. I know this may sound a bit cliche, but I find that if they post at least once every week, then I know that they care about their readers.
Good Advice
1. Well, this is entirely up to you. Has the author posted any helpful or thought provoking entries about writing? Have they helped you overcome a certain fear in writing or helped inspire you to write a certain story?
Fellow Writer
1. It's always more fun and (I think) more helpful when the author of the blog is a writer themselves. When they've said they've written a lot of short stories or is planning on editing a book they've just finished, it makes you know that they're dedicated to writing.

Those are all the tips I have for picking out reliable writing sources. Again I want to point out that picking out good resources is all up to you. Here are some sites that I usually go to for writing help/inspiration:

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TheAuthors' series: Making A Memorable MC

2/17/2016

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I've decided that I wanted to do a writing series, not only do I want to post more about writing, I wanted to talk about a few things. They aren't necessarily writing tips, but I do want to share some writing advice that I've gotten through the years.
The first thing that I'll be talking about is:

Making A Memorable MC

I have a ton of great MC's. I have little Abbie from my WIP Another Imagination and I've got Ebinicah James from my paused WIP Ebinicah James and the Crystal Orb. I know Rehe only reason I've said two MC's is because I'm working on some secret books and I don't want to reveal who the main characters are just yet. Yet all of these main characters started out like normal ordinary people. They had something special that inspired us to write a book about THEM and THEIR journey.
Here are some questions I asked myself whenever I made a new MC:

What did you find about them the most interesting?
How did you decided that this was the story you wanted to write?
What's the backstory for your MC?
Why did you pick to write a story about them? (I usually ask myself this question quite often because once I have made a story idea, 15 or so characters come with it...)

And once I've answered those questions, I go off to my next step: ENGAGEMENT. No, not the wedding engagement, but a different type of engagement. This is where I meet with other authors online (a.k.a. social media.... a.k.a. Ravelry) and act as my MC. I do this so I can see how she or he will act in a certain situation. (Collaborative stories are a GREAT example of 'engagement'.)
After that step, I have one thing I must accomplish with my MC before I begin to write them: LEAVE. I put my character away for a few days, I don't think about the story (even though I end up thinking about it in the end), mention the character and I just go about my life. Then I go back to my MC to see if they're still fresh and new feeling (because I don't want a reader to be so into one of my books and then they, reluctantly, put down the book and come back to it later to just wanting to put it down again... Does that make sense?)

There we go! My three handy-dandy steps I use to make a memorable character.

Questions
Engagement
Leave

What do you like to do when you making an MC? Also, what other writing topics do you want me to cover? Tell me in the comments!

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TheAuthors' series: Reliable Writing Resources

TheAuthors'﻿ seri﻿es: Making A Memorable MC

Making A Memorable MC

The Ancient Past of the Scribbler

TheAuthors' series: Making A Memorable MC