Creative Writing Certificate Program
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Bowl of Writers' Cereal Writing Tutorial

The page is designed to help you work out a new idea. If you are coming here with an idea for a story, try to set aside your preconceived notions as you go through the following questions. The questions on this and the following pages have been proven to help both fledgling and experienced writers work out new ideas. Trust the flow of the questions and see the character unfold.

Fiction Writing and Characterization

Fiction writers generally come in two kinds: those who are strong on plot, and those who are strong on characterization. Rarely is a writer brilliant at both. Thus, even if you excel at great story premises, foreshadowing, plot twists, and careful pacing, you may still receive rejections with critiques pointing to ‘two dimensional’ or stereotyped characters; or perhaps it is your main characters’ motivations that are unclear or illogical, which ultimately sabotages the story.

Making Money Writing Fiction

Many writers like to write fiction, but few are able to get paid for their efforts. Besides being a good writer and having the perseverance to complete a work of fiction, you must be able to find places to get your work published. Your work also should be of sufficient value to the publisher that you will get paid for your work.

Writing a Mystery

The elements of a good mystery are usually those of good atmosphere and suspense BUT if the underlying structure of the mystery is weak, all the adjectives in the world won't fix it. I have included here for your perusal a list of items that I use to help me form the underlying structure to a plot. Please enjoy.