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God created the world in six days. On the seventh day, he rested. On the eighth day, he started getting complaints. And it hasn't stopped since.
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god
humor
cynicism
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James Scott Bell |
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In fact, one could argue that the skill of the fiction writer boils down to the ability to exploit intensity.
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writing-craft
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James Scott Bell |
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At this point in the story, the character looks at himself. He takes stock of where he is in the conflict and--depending on the type of story--has either of two basic thoughts. In a character-driven story, he looks at himself and wonders what kind of person he is. What is he becoming? If he continues the fight of Act II, how will he be different? What will he have to do to overcome his inner challenges? How will he have to change in order t..
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James Scott Bell |
e9e3266
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Theme. It's something a lot of writers don't like to think about. It brings up painful memories of high school English class ("Write a 1,000 word essay on the theme of The Great Gatsby, and be sure to relate the green light on Daisy's dock with the eyes of Doctor T. J. Eckleburg. Due tomorrow.")"
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James Scott Bell |
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The semi-colon is a burp, a hiccup. It's a drunk staggering out of the saloon at 2 a.m., grabbing your lapels on the way and asking you to listen to one more story.
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James Scott Bell |
ff1c4f1
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The great spy novelist John Le Carre suggested this axiom: The cat sat on the mat is not the beginning of a story. The cat sat on the dog's mat, is.
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James Scott Bell |
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Sometimes writing a novel feels about as rewarding as turning a spit in the fires of hell.
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James Scott Bell |
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You keep writing because it's the only way to finish the book.
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James Scott Bell |
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Grief was not a stream. It was an ocean.
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James Scott Bell |
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Give yourself permission to be bad. Write first, polish later.
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James Scott Bell |
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Don't give up. I don't think any other advice works. Writing is one of those things where you just have to do it. There will be far more people to discourage you than to encourage you. The time never comes to you, the inspiration doesn't come to you. You just sit down and do it." - James Lee Burke"
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James Scott Bell |
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When the last dime is gone, I'll sit on the curb with a pencil and a ten-cent notebook, and start the whole thing all over again." - Preston Sturges"
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James Scott Bell |
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Dwight Swain, the great writing teacher, once said that the secret of excitement is to go deeper into your characters. Create more backstory, more secrets, more complexity, and you'll get excited again.
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James Scott Bell |
9a4f4e8
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Transformation is about change, and change needs to be proven. People can talk a good game. Someone can say he's sorry for stealing and wants to go straight. But until the thief returns the goods, we don't believe he's a changed person. Change does involve an inner realization. But then, to prove itself, it must work outward in a visual form.
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James Scott Bell |
0a55c93
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A great novel is the record of how a character fights with death.
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James Scott Bell |
e22cd2f
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While there is some disagreement over the official length of a short story, a good rule of thumb is that it is between 1k and 7k words. Less than that and you get into the area of flash fiction. More than that and you move into the territory of the novelette (7k -20k) or the novella (20k-50k).
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James Scott Bell |
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Ernest Hemingway had a rather personal way to describe first drafts. To paraphrase, he said all of them are like, ahem, biological waste.
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James Scott Bell |
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Don't you love that? One of the greatest scientific innovations of all time just came to Townes as he was sitting on a bench in a park. And then he starts "scratching" it out on paper."
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James Scott Bell |
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Other men's sins are before our eyes; our own are behind our back.
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James Scott Bell |
4013004
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at least ten writing sessions.
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James Scott Bell |
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Drive thy business or it will drive thee." - Benjamin Franklin"
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James Scott Bell |
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It's quite interesting to note that Townes's colleagues at Columbia were skeptical of his idea. Niels Bohr, one of the great quantum physicists, and Nobel laureate Isadore Rabi, head of the university's physics department, told Townes his maser idea would never work and urged him to abandon the project.
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James Scott Bell |
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Good writers are good readers.
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James Scott Bell |
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I was in the house alone. That's usually the case because I'm writing and my wife is out in the real world doing something of great value and being with actual people. People who are not tied down to a keyboard, monitor and chair calling out to people who aren't in the house.
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James Scott Bell |
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Get a PHD No, not a doctoral degree. I mean a PHD attitude: Poor, Hungry and Driven.
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James Scott Bell |
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The best way to predict the future is to invent it." - Alan Kay"
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James Scott Bell |
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To be a writer, you have to write. Not like it's your job, and not like it's your love. You have to write like it's your holy chore, you have to write like you are compelled from above and within and without and with everything that you are. You have to write bad stories, you have to write cowboy stories, you have to write period pieces and opinion essays and speeches, and plays, and stuff you wouldn't show your mother and don't wanna see y..
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James Scott Bell |
005bb81
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What I found was a moment where the main character has to figuratively look at himself, as in the mirror. He is confronted with a disturbing truth: change or die.
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James Scott Bell |
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You must want it enough. Enough to take all the rejections, enough to pay the price of disappointment and discouragement while you are learning. Like any other artist you must learn your craft--then you can add all the genius you like." - Phyllis Whitney"
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James Scott Bell |
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A quirky, colorful character overstays her welcome after a few chapters, unless trouble comes calling.
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James Scott Bell |
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the Super Structure Principle may be stated as follows: The power of your story is directly proportional to the readers' experience of it, and the readers' experience is directly proportional to the soundness of the structure.
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James Scott Bell |
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Start by asking if this is writer's laziness as opposed to writer's block.
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James Scott Bell |
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If you up your skill and take more chances, your odds of success increase.
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James Scott Bell |
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Someone with less talent who works hard often outperforms the gifted.
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James Scott Bell |
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The Care Package is a relationship the Lead has with someone else, in which he shows his concern, through word or deed, for that character's well being.
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James Scott Bell |
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The brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we want something. Because the brick walls are there to stop the people who don't want it badly enough. They're there to stop the other people." - Randy Pausch, The Last Lecture"
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James Scott Bell |
e68ee25
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Having a Care Package relationship keeps a character from being completely selfish.
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James Scott Bell |