FaithWriters.com-Christian Writers Forum

Thank you, Deb, for all that you have done for Faithwriters and for the help you have given me to improve my writing. (I could not find a crying face, so I am using the frown face.)

Virginia Bliss

Thanks, Deb. That is good news.

Happy Labour Day and Happy Queen's Birthday.

Can I just clarify: The contest rules state "A minimum of 15 entries to each category (fiction and nonfiction) is required before the publishing component of the prize package will be guaranteed." So even though there will be only one winner, we still need 30 entries, 15 per category? :?: Cinnamon B...

Thanks, Deb.

I'm gettin' there—after many tears, hair tearing, and bloodshed.

Cinnamon Bear

Deb— 1)Is there a word limit for the synopsis? Mine remains stubbornly at 690 words despite my best efforts to cut it. 2) Should the entire entry—synopsis, chapters, chapter summaries, everything—be in the following format: a) Standard manuscript format b) Double-spaced c) Not in bold d) First line ...

Working hard on entry, Deb.

Thanks, Deb!

Deb, would it be beneficial to include my character sketches and chapter summaries with my entry? I haven't completed my novel yet, so some of the chapter summaries are not as complete as I would like them to be. I have decided on the ending and on the resolution of the main plot; however, I haven't...

Deb Porter wrote:Fiction writers, where are you?

Polishing, polishing.

Thanks, Deb!

Virginia Bliss

Deb, should our synopsis reveal the ending?

Virginia Bliss

Jan, What about a general lesson on scenes? Current novel-writing advice seems to recommend cutting in and out of scenes as close to the action as possible--more like a movie. I like how it makes the writing more immediate and intense, but I think it leads to choppiness and some scenes that are too...

In my opinion, pages like the one you provided--and of course, lessons like all of mine--are of limited value if one looks at them as absolutes. While it's true that many "to be" verbs can be switched for more active verbs, if doing so creates an awkward or ridiculous sentence, then a writer should...

I'd love examples of your 'before and after' sentences so that I can see more clearly what's problematic for you. Maybe that will push me toward doing a lesson on this, after all. Jan, here is the link to a website that provides three examples of "to be" sentences that are revised to omit the "to b...

That really falls more on Ann's Grammar Forum. I'll mention it to her, and will link to it here when she finds time to write it. Thanks for the idea! Jan, I think it is a craft-of-writing topic. The grammar may be correct, yet the writing weakened. For example, sentences such as: "I am hungry." "Th...