All Questions
8
votes
5answers
1k views
How difficult is it to break into screenwriting?
Is it difficult to get anyone to buy a screenplay you write? I am thinking about writing a screenplay but am concerned that maybe I shouldn't waste my time; I have no formal training in writing ...
4
votes
3answers
123 views
How should I introduce new and complex technologies or tools?
I'm writing a Science Fiction book. While this book doesn't push reality very far, there are some new technologies and tools that I have added. One tool is used more frequently than all the others, ...
7
votes
5answers
160 views
Would it be plagiarism if you use a changed scene?
If I read someone else's scene that describes a situation in my own work if adapted to fit my characters and plot, would it constitute plagiarism if I so use it?
4
votes
4answers
93 views
How can I consistently distinguish among tables, fields, and records in a database?
I am describing a database for a scientific publication. The database has many tables, and each table has fields (spreadsheet columns) and records (rows).
I spend a lot of time discussing tables and ...
3
votes
1answer
79 views
Must one have a book cover designed before to publisher?
I have finished a fantasy novel I have been writing for the past few years and I am now in the process of meeting with representatives from publishing companies toward the goal of publishing my book.
...
0
votes
0answers
75 views
For Kindle, are hard paragraph breaks that serious?
I'm starting with an existing .doc MS. Kindle warns to not use hard para breaks, i.e., don't hit return, but I can't get rid of any of them. Driving me nuts.
4
votes
2answers
108 views
Tips for writing sentences like a native speaker
English isn't my native tongue, but I've been writing novels in English for a while. Most of the time, I can be aware of what's grammatically correct and what's not. But making sure that a sentence ...
7
votes
1answer
62 views
How are multilingual scenes handled when the story's main language is translated into that of its minor one?
Say you have an English book in which a dialogue does at one point take place, and in this particular dialogue one of a handful of participating characters is speaking French, and the fact that he's ...
4
votes
4answers
130 views
Is it acceptable practice to use contractions in a fictional first person narrative for children?
I am writing a children's story in first person, present tense. Aside from the quotes from characters, all of the text is meant to represent the narrator's own thoughts, and either describes what they ...
8
votes
6answers
258 views
Effective techniques for describing pain
I've noticed something in writing: it's difficult to convey pain, and even specific types of pain, to an audience who's comfortably sitting at home in an easy chair.
I can hardly imagine pain until ...
19
votes
10answers
2k views
Is it worth switching to Dvorak?
I've occasionally thought about trying the Dvorak keyboard layout to improve my writing speed. However, I wonder if the speed gain is really worth the initial learning curve.
I'm curious if anyone ...
7
votes
5answers
117 views
Getting details of a past century right
I have been gathering ideas for a novel. The basic idea is in place; the story combines two different eras but the same place.
How do I get the little details about the place, the people, their life ...
4
votes
5answers
352 views
Using dashes in writing dialogue
Does anyone use em dashes (or two hyphens) to denote speakers in dialogue passages? Joyce does this as does William Gaddis. Many others. I practice it, but my only "conceptual understanding" is that ...
4
votes
3answers
100 views
Should I write about how the character solved some riddle or let the reader solve it himself
"Reaching an end to his path, Eric found a locked door, the lock was a combination of 4 numbers, and above the doorknob a script explaining the lock : 'finishing four circles, a lost day is found' "
...
4
votes
1answer
60 views
How are citations formatted in serious non-fiction (proposals)?
Just to be clear, I'm not talking about scholarly work of the sort that might be published by a university press. I'm talking about work by people like Goodwin, McCullough, or Larson. These kinds of ...
2
votes
0answers
62 views
How can I sell articles about TV shows online?
I am a writer, and I write mostly articles about tv shows. How can I sell them?
I researched the freelance content marketplace, but I mostly just found the general sites like fiverr, freelancer, ...
-1
votes
1answer
40 views
Curriculum Vitae editing/writing services for PhD (non-US) [closed]
I am asking this on behalf of a relative of mine. He has a PhD with a concentration in Policy Analysis and Environmental Science and is trying to get a position in either a university/public sector or ...
1
vote
1answer
157 views
Hand wrote 200 page novel- how many typed pages is that?
I wrote 200 pages in a good sized notebook in my tiny, illegible handwriting and I now have the task of typing it up. I am slightly terrified that I'll do it and find that I have only half as many. ...
3
votes
2answers
117 views
Critique wanted for a fantasy prologue
I'm working on a series of short fantasy books (target audience mid-teens to 30-ish). I'd like to know whether or not the short pre-story before the first chapter of the first book works as an intro, ...
3
votes
1answer
47 views
Releases needed for picture books?
Do you need location releases for national parks and model releases for Pets to use in picture books?
2
votes
5answers
161 views
Best way to emphasise the greenness of the fields in spring in comparison with summer
The question arises from this sentence in my story, which was originally written in Hebrew and later translated by me to English. In Hebrew I say:
קמתי בבוקר והלכתי למוצב. היה זה יום בהיר של תחילת ...
3
votes
2answers
117 views
UK laws broken by piracy of novels
I'm preparing some briefing notes on various open licences and I'm looking for some clarification on legal aspects of standard practice in the UK. (If there is a better SE site for this question feel ...
5
votes
3answers
127 views
Tracing dependencies and emergent plotholes during edits
The fiction I write currently hit a major snag and needs a big overhaul of a major part of the story. A whole, large thread is being injected, a second conflict running in parallel with the main one ...
1
vote
2answers
104 views
Am i using “he/she” too often during action scenes?
I'm not sure if I am being too overly critical of what I write or if I am actually falling into that "He/She" echo. By that I mean, using "he" or "she" over and over during the action, or combat in ...
1
vote
3answers
179 views
How to use parentheses
Parentheses have many uses; I find myself reaching for them often. Increasingly though, I realise I can convey the same meaning without parentheses with little or only minor loss in succinctness. ...
8
votes
3answers
93 views
How to tell or retell basic character and setting information in a series?
I am writing a short children's novel and I want to expand this into a series made of several short novels. I intend to write the whole series at once so that the internal universe is consistent and ...
0
votes
1answer
54 views
Should I punctuate abbreviations for Old English, Middle English etc. in academic writing?
When using an abbreviation such as OFr (Old French) or ME (Middle English) in academic writing, what is the best way to stylise it? Masses of punctuation looks messy, but I am concerned my assignment ...
1
vote
1answer
84 views
Does this qualify as a prelude or prologue?
In the story I'm writing i have a 2k word chapter that will either be attached to my fourth chapter or be a prelude. (prologue? I'm not really sure what the difference is or if there is one.) My issue ...
7
votes
5answers
328 views
Avoiding cultural differences
I'm not a native English speaker, but I write in English.
I'm now visiting the US, and I have made some very interesting observation regarding the way ordinary life goes on here. It made me think of ...
9
votes
3answers
177 views
Should freelance writers keep their online business separate from offline?
Freelance writers have a lot of opportunity to write online, but in some cases the rates are less than the same writing project might command offline. Assuming that there are enough advantages in ...
5
votes
1answer
89 views
What is the correct way to write a fractional number in a formal letter?
If I'm talking about a length of time in a cover letter, let's say 5.5 years, what would be the correct way to write this?
five-and-a-half years
5-1/2 years
5.5 years
4
votes
1answer
74 views
singular or plural for index entries
I am in the final stages of writing a book and currently I am preparing the index. Are there any rules whether index entries should be listed in singular or plural?
Currently I have
Markov chains, ...
5
votes
3answers
114 views
How to share the work, if writing in a team?
How to split up the work between the two. One writes the even-numbered chapters and the other the odd-numbered? Does everyone tell the story from the view of a different character or different ...
6
votes
3answers
212 views
Is there any standardized definition of a “Mary Sue”?
I've heard the term "Mary Sue" thrown around a lot, and it seems to mean different things to different people, but is always something negative about the way the character is written, not necessarily ...
2
votes
1answer
78 views
Structure for computer science research paper
I'm writing my first undergraduate research paper for computer science and I think my lack of experience is starting to get on my supervisor's nerves. I've written a program that collects video ...
1
vote
2answers
128 views
How to include photos in my Scrivener book?
I am creating a practical guide book with images. I am using Scrivener. I need to include images into the text, but I will then pass over my draft to a layout designer to layout out the project in ...
3
votes
2answers
111 views
How should we go from Stack Exchange Q/A to publishable PDF with the least hassle?
Over on another site we're talking about taking some of our content (on a particular theme) and re-packaging it as a printable PDF. (The primary use case is paper.) This wouldn't be a straight dump ...
1
vote
1answer
38 views
Is there a way to import a script from Celtx into Final Draft?
Is there a way to import a script from Celtx into Final Draft? Going to switch and it seems as though my script is "locked" into Celtx's format. I'm hoping this is possible and that there isn't a huge ...
6
votes
7answers
2k views
Any documentaries or other inspirational movies about creative writing?
Whenever I watch a good movie or documentary about a subject that interests me, it really gets my juices flowing and makes me want to act on my interests (I suddenly realized that this might sound ...
5
votes
4answers
156 views
How can I convey dates (with ordering) for events happening under different dating systems, e.g. a Sci-Fi story spread over the galaxy?
So I want to write a Sci-Fi where humans have spread across the solar system and into the galaxy. There are multiple stories going across at several different times. E.g.:
Aliens attack Pluto
3 ...
5
votes
2answers
270 views
My Ex husband's wife self published a non fiction book naming my kids in the story
My ex husband's wife self published a non fiction book and put my kids in the story as well. She did not change their names. Neither she nor my ex husband told me about this or asked me (or the ...
6
votes
3answers
250 views
How much power does the author have over an original work?
Some background.
I recently published a book and was asked to share the first 30 pages so the publisher could edit and send it to the distributor. I complied and asked to see it. When I saw the ...
8
votes
5answers
655 views
Do you have to be good at grammar to get published?
I am not very good at grammar. Is there someone who would go through and correct your grammatical mistakes, even if you are not good at grammar? Who would this person be?
3
votes
2answers
77 views
How to cite multiple chapters from same book in Vancouver style?
How can I cite multiple chapters from the same book? Do I have to use separate reference numbers, if they are by different authors?
-2
votes
1answer
99 views
Is there a way to ask online booksellers to pull pirated editions of my books?
Eight of my books are available on Google Books as 100% online, downloadable, but no Creative Commons licensing. Now I am starting to see them show up in bookstores, in versions I didn't have printed. ...
3
votes
2answers
48 views
Standardizing capitalization within a bibliography or footnotes when your sources have used different standards
I’m compiling a bibliography and want to know if I should standardize the capitalization within the titles of the articles. I understand that copying mistakes/typos, etc., is one thing, and usually ...
1
vote
2answers
92 views
Which animal symbolises trade? [closed]
Different animals symbolise different objects or actions. For example:
Bird for letter or postman.
Horse for speed and power.
Bull for aggressivitet and anger.
Im looking for an animal or ...
2
votes
2answers
241 views
How should I format a non fiction book with Scrivener?
I have written mainly novels in Scrivener, and am now thinking of writing a small non-fiction work (which I will self publish).
When writing a novel, you just keep typing til you reach the end, but ...
6
votes
4answers
248 views
How can one plan elaborate crimes for fiction without getting into trouble?
The crime of conspiracy is a limitation on free speech in the united states. Merely talking about, in fine detail, a crime can get one charged with conspiracy.
It is slightly more complicated than ...
3
votes
2answers
73 views
Does submitting multiple pieces to professional magazines (and being turned down) hurt chances of later stories that may be better-written?
When I first started focusing on short stories, I submitted to a range of top professional magazines (Clarkesworld, Strange Horizons, etc.). I wasn't surprised to be rejected, but now I wonder if ...
