Jul
17
2008
I provide advice about
how to write novels, comic books and graphic novels. Most of my content applies to fiction-writing in general, but I also provide
articles specifically about superhero stories.
I read a story today that started with the sentence “This story has to begin with a small lesson in geography.” First, starting a story with a geography lesson will earn you an instant rejection (see question #8 under the fantasy subheading). But I was almost as annoyed by the self-referential “this story.” When you remind the reader he’s reading a book, it’s harder for him to immerse himself in the fantasy.
Jul
17
2008
Cadet Davis reviews and revises the titles of 30 manuscripts submitted to a writing workshop. This will help you evaluate and improve your titles.
Above Average
- The Merchant of Venison. This title does a remarkably good job of identifying the story as a Shakespeare parody. Also, it was the only title this week to get me to chuckle.
- Dogs in Clogs. This was a real head-scratcher and failed to foreshadow the plot in any meaningful way, but was invitingly weird.
- Creeping Death. It foreshadows the story and tone well. If I were rewriting it, I’d make it more subtle and less cliché.
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