So, over the years, I've noticed that people on Polyvore enjoy writing stories, correct? As an aspiring author, I'm all for that, but here are some tips to help your writing ability bloom. :)
First line -
The first line of your story should spark a question in the reader's mind. Let's take the first line of The Host by Stephenie Meyer:
"The Healer's name was Fords Deep Waters."
This line INSTANTLY intrigued me, and I wanted to read the whole book. Who is the Healer? Who/what does he/she heal? Why such a weird name? Most people decide on whether or not they want to read a story based on the first couple of lines. If your first line was, say:
“I’m 15-year-old Mary Sue and I’m from southern Colorado.”
Not many people will want to read your story.
First chapter -
- VOICE
Another thing about the beginning of the story is that you need to show the reader your character’s voice. If all of your characters sound the same and want to agree with each other on every topic, that is boring. Give each character a separate voice, and make the main character likeable so people will want to keep reading.
- ACTIVE
No one wants to hear about your characters everyday life, wishing they were someone else. Make something exciting happen right from the get-go. In the beginning of The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, it is reaping day, by far the most tense day of the year in Panem.
The Change -
Now to the reason you’re writing this story. Your main character obviously needs to change at some point! At the end of your story, the main character needs to be a different person than who they were on page 1. The reader still needs to like your character, though.
The Backpack -
This is by far my favorite writing tool of all that I learned from Veronica Roth, author of the Divergent trilogy. If you were going on a 20-mile hike, and you only had one backpack to fill, what would you take? Your flat iron? No. There are no outlets. Take what you need to make it to the end of the hike. If something does not contribute to plot, character, or world development, TAKE IT OUT. But I love this part and- TAKE IT OUT. Do we really need to know every little thing your character is wearing or what they ate for lunch?
Grammar Rules -
- Always, commas and period go within quotation marks, whether the sentence ends with the quotation end or not.
- Always, each new speaker in dialogue gets his or her own paragraph.
- Don’t put extra spaces between paragraphs, not in a book.
- Write any one, every one, some one, some time (except the sense of formerly) as two words.
- Always use ‘s at the end of a possessive term, never s’, no matter the ending letter. Ex. Liss’s dress.
- Enclose parenthetic expressions between commas.
& remember, the best way to get better is to read and write a lot!
x Abbey
