When to Focus on Your World
An ad for a popular screenwriting class recently stated, “A great screenplay starts with character,” so their latest offering was on creating great characters. But
David Farland
July 15, 2015
David Farland: Story Doctor Writing Tips
Recent Writing Tips
A Question of Balance
As a new writer, I heard that the average writer took seven years to go from being a novice to professional. I wondered if I could speed up the process. So I set a goal to begin making money within one year. To that end, I began to study (taking classes in college, reading books, and reading the works of other authors) on a daily basis. I also set goals for writing—finishing short stories, poems, and working on novel chapters on a weekly basis.
David Farland
July 8, 2015
The Loneliness Problem
I often look for similarities in great stories to see what works. One aspect that I see very often is that powerful stories resolve “the
David Farland
July 1, 2015
Bring Creative Solutions to Your Writing Career
Earlier this week I wrote about some new challenges facing Indie authors and suggested that one solution to them might be to look again at
David Farland
June 26, 2015
New Struggles in Self-Publishing
I hesitate to mention problems with self-publishing. In some genres, such as romance or self-help books, the industry is doing great. But for those who
David Farland
June 23, 2015
Be Double-Minded
The Apostle James warned that “A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways.” For characters, being double-minded is a good thing. A “double-minded” person
David Farland
June 12, 2015
Be Honest
A story needs to be honest. Now, that isn’t quite the same as saying that a story must be true. Obviously when we are writing
David Farland
June 9, 2015
Be Imaginative
Artist Zaria Forman, source: The Daily Mail I judge stories for the world’s largest fantasy and science fiction writing contest. When I’m judging, the first
David Farland
June 3, 2015
The Truth About Writer’s Block
Some authors never get “Writer’s Block,” and they don’t believe that it exists. They’ll blithely say, “Do doctors ever get ‘Doctor’s block,’ or do plumbers
David Farland
June 1, 2015
Audience Analysis: Part One
How to get to know your audience As a new writer, you might not have given a great deal of thought to audience analysis. I’ve
David Farland
May 27, 2015
To Win Big, You Have to Enter the Race
Last week I got a note from a student who just had a novel accepted by a major publisher. He seemed a little surprised at
David Farland
May 18, 2015
Writing the Impossible
When I fell in love with the idea of writing, it was after reading my favorite novel of all time. I thought, “I want to
David Farland
May 15, 2015
Dream Big
You may not realize it, but as writers we are all on the same journey. We all start as “wannabes,” hoping to amaze audiences with
David Farland
May 6, 2015
Stories and Stables
Many years ago, I heard a renowned magazine editor Gardner Dozois remark, “I don’t want just a great story in my magazine, I want a
David Farland
May 4, 2015
How to Make a Million Dollars with Your Writing
Million Dollar Outlines A couple weeks ago I had the opportunity to participate in IndieReCon, a free online writers’ conference for self-published authors. I did
David Farland
May 1, 2015
