Fi Phillips

One of the dilemmas that many unpublished, or even published, writers fall into is how to cope with differing advice. One agent says this about your manuscript, another says something completely different. One publishing company expresses their slant on what is market-worthy fiction, while a competing publisher disagrees. Even editors and writing coaches don't see eye-to-eye. Who can you listen to? For me, the answer usually lies with other writers, the people who have gone through the grindmill and hammered it into submission. One such writer is Chuck Wendig, novelist, screenwriter, and game designer. For me personally, his website terribleminds is a delight to read and darn-right useful too. A recent offering - A Hot Steaming Sack of Business Advice for Writers is just what I needed at the moment. Have a read. Borrowed from The Writer's Circle Facebook page

Write what you know is a phrase that's often thrown at writers. I've even talked about it myself on this blog . Like most lessons, it can have different meanings and challenges to different people. Author Emma Newman wrote about this topic in The Untrue Truth of "Write What You Know" as a guest writer on Chuck Wendig's terribleminds site. Her article is well worth a read with its discussion of transferable skills. Have a look.

Firstly, apologies for the delay in posting what was supposed to be a  Tuesday Choice Words article. A hospital appointment distracted me for the day. I'm fine, although a little tender and light headed, and raring to get back on the horse (or should that be a unicorn?). Perseverance is an important part of my life. I persevere as a parent to keep my children safe, healthy and happy. I persevere in trampling though the tangles that life throws in my way. I also persevere in my writing, even when I want to tear my hair out over a plotline or a paragraph. Isn't that what human existence is about, essentially, striving to continually move forward? In her article, Acme Anvils and the Long Unicorn Ride to Publication , Beth Cato discusses how she persevered with her own writing journey through agent and publisher rejection, penning her books, and the fight against self doubt. This is a topic that affects most of us writers. Have a look.

I do my best to end each of the chapters in my novel on a question (even the final chapter). Chuck Wendig includes this method in his article, 25 Ways To Write A Real Page Turner of a Book .  Have a look. Elmore Leonard on Writing

I'm a firm supporter of working out 'the rules' for yourself, not just in writing, but in life itself. Chuck Wendig discusses this in his own way in his article, In Writing, There Are Rules, And Then There Are "Rules" .

Today's choice words come from novelist, Chuck Wendig on his blog terribleminds . Chuck discusses plotting by 'mystery' and 'questions' in his post The Question Mark is shaped like a hook: question-driven plotting . It's well worth a read and something I'll be trying out for myself.

I'm struggling with a new chapter for the latest draft of my novel. I start and stutter and start again. This isn't writer's block because I know what I want to write and yet the words, the right words, either evade me or play annoyingly hard to get. I finally came to the conclusion that the difficulty was caused by the main character I was writing about. I need to get to know Blessing better, and as so often happens, a blog article popped into my inbox at just the right time to help me with this problem. 25 things a great character needs  has proved an incredible help in mapping out Blessing's character. Written by Chuck Wendig, it features on his site terribleminds  and is well worth a read.

I'm currently working on the third draft of my novel - rewrite, tinker, expand, delete - and I'm actually finding it more difficult than producing the original draft. Thankfully writer Chuck Wendig has come to my rescue with his article 25 Steps to Edit the Unmerciful Suck out of your Story . And finally, Benedict Cumberbatch says...

It was a very early morning for me today as we're having a new fridge/freezer delivered around 7.00 am (strangely, they're not here yet and it's almost 8). Still, it has meant that I've started the day with a couple of hours of peace before the sound of baby elephants on the stairs (my children - I don't run a zoo). Do you know what there is to lose and gain in your story? Chuck Wendig's 25 Things To Know About Your Story's Stakes discusses just this topic.