
― Robert McKee
photo from:scoutiegirl.com
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![]() “Write every day, line by line, page by page, hour by hour. Do this despite fear. For above all else, beyond imagination and skill, what the world asks of you is courage, courage to risk rejection, ridicule and failure. As you follow the quest for stories told with meaning and beauty, study thoughtfully but write boldly. Then, like the hero of the fable, your dance will dazzle the world.” ― Robert McKee photo from:scoutiegirl.com
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![]() When writing description: Be not only your reader’s eyes, but be their hands, their ears, their mouths, and their noses. Take those “delicious morsels” that some call words, and create images your readers can taste, touch, smell, and hear. Examples: She’d thought about cornbread all day long. She put her key in the lock of her front door and turned it. She hoped her mom had kept her promise. The kitchen was in full view as she let herself into the house. She spotted the plate of cornbread on the table. She was happy. She loved cornbread. She’d thought about cornbread all day long. She put her key in the lock of her front door and turned it. She hoped her mom had kept her promise. As she opened the door the unmistakable aroma of just baked corn coupled with warm melted butter, and sweet honey circled around her head and tickled her nose. She was happy. She loved cornbread. Which one is best? You be the judge! Photo from: biologicalexceptions.blogspot.com ![]() When it comes to writing your characters’ spoken dialogue an “incorrectly packed” set of quotation marks ( “ ” ) is like an untidily packed suitcase filled with clothing hanging over all of its sides. Think of your characters’ spoken dialogue and all of its punctuation as the clothing inside of “your suitcase.” You want everything inside that should be. Correct: “That’s not what I said,” Jackson replied. “Clean out those ears of yours!” Incorrect: “That’s not what I said”, Jackson replied. “Clean out those ears of yours”! Correct: Jennifer whispered, “Jackson, you haven’t taken your medicine, have you?” Incorrect: Jennifer whispered, Jackson, you haven’t taken your medicine”, “Have you”? Keep your quotation marks neatly and correctly packed! Photo from: carryology.com ![]() Dotting your I’s and crossing your T’s maybe second nature to you but what about your commas? Years ago the recording artist Boy George and Culture Club gave us a song called Karma Chameleon. And just as a chameleon is a lizard with the ability to change colors, a comma is a punctuation mark that has the ability to change the rhythm, flow, and meaning of a sentence. Incorrect: Tell the truth Sara, I’ve had enough of your nonsense! (What or who is a truth Sara? Sounds like some kind of serum you might use to get real answers). Correct: Tell the truth, Sara, I’ve had enough of your nonsense! (Names being address in a direct manner need to be set apart by commas). Get the point? photo from backwaterreptiles.com |
Mission Statement
The mission of Clay Jars Publishing is to offer fiction that depicts the situations in life that people of all ages are faced with, and to inspire them to new vision, insight and a desire to live life from God’s point of view. Archives
October 2016
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Copyrights held by Shirley Francis/Clay Jars Publishing
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