To use it, paste your text into the wizard and click the edit button. EditMinion will analyze your text and highlight a range of errors. Generally these are quick-fixes, so your return on the time invested is pretty high.

While it’s no substitute for a beta reader, Editminion does a great job cleaning up a manuscript.

Give it a try here: EditMinion

Prompt: Empty Bench

Image Courtesy Remy Levine | Dreamstime Stock Photos

I’ve Got an Idea, Now What?

Last time I focused on ideas. so now we’re going to take your idea and give it structure using the Seven Point method. Lucky for all of us, Mr. Wells has a presentation of the Seven Point Story Structure on YouTube, so I’ve included the videos in this post. I’m just going to hit the high points and provide you with a worksheet (because I love the worksheets!) so that you can get to work.  The videos are entertaining and he gives lots of geeky examples! He covers information for Romance writers too.

Begin with the End in Mind

Before you write a single word of your story, you must know how it is going to end. If you don’t know how it is going to end, you’ll just be writing aimlessly until you write yourself into a corner, or are forced to go back and start over. So before you do another thing, write down where you want your characters to be at the end of your story. (Just the end, you don’t have to figure out how they got there…yet.)

Once you know where you are ending, you can just put your character in the opposite place for the beginning…so now you have your beginning and your end. Nice, eh?

Seven Point Story Structure Components

Here’s the skinny on the Seven Point Story Structure. This method focuses on the seven pivotal events in your book that drive the story. In the downloadable worksheets for this section, you’ll find examples for this structure.

They are:

The Hook

This is where your characters start from. You set up your character’s world and set their stakes (what they have to lose) in this part.

Plot Turn 1

This is the event that sets your story in motion.  It moves you from the beginning to the Midpoint. You character’s world changes here.

Pinch 1

Pinches are where you put pressure on your hero from your antagonist to force your hero into action.

Midpoint

The midpoint takes your character from reaction to action. At the midpoint, your character determines that she must do something.  (This can take place over a series of scenes.)

Pinch 2

Pinch 2 is where your story takes the ultimate dive. Your hero is literally sitting in the jaws of defeat. Everything has fallen apart.

Plot Turn 2

This point moves the story from the Midpoint to the Resolution. Plot Turn 2 is where you character receives the final piece of information that he needs to make it to the resolution. (No new information can be introduced after this point.) You character believe he has the power to achieve the resolution.

Resolution

Your hero completes what he sets out to do.

Download the Worksheets

You can apply this structure to each of the threads in your story. Along with a blank worksheet, I’ve provided you with several examples. I happened to watch the first episode (two-part) of DS9 last night, so I broke them down with the 7 point story structure as an example. It’s actually fun to see how movies, tv shows and books make compelling use of this structure. Once you know it, you will see it everywhere!

Dan Wells (see his books here) breaks down Story Structure

If you want to see this in action, I highly recommend reading Partials by Dan Wells. (It’s only $2.99 for the Kindle right now. Such a deal!) He’s also got a horror series that is excellent.

(It’s a 5 part series. I’ve listed them in order.)

Spread Your Wings

As much as this is (and will remain) a site dedicated to the art and craft of writing Fan Fiction, I’d like to start talking a bit about how to take your Fan Fiction writing skills to the next level.

With the breakout success of Fifty Shades of Grey and the rise in Self Publishing, becoming a published author is within just about anyone’s reach. That is, if you are will to work for it. In my opinion, no one is better positioned to take advantage of Self Publishing than Fan Fiction writers. Now this is not to say that you should change all the names on your latest fic and slap it up on Amazon, but Fan Fic writers are a prolific bunch. We all love to write, so  National Novel Writing Month  seems like the perfect step up.

November is just around the corner and I’ll be doing it this year. I’d like to invite you to join in. Whether you’ll be writing Fan Fiction or transitioning to original fiction, NaNo is a great opportunity to sharpen those writing skills.  You could finish a WIP that’s been languishing or tackle that new idea that’s been knocking around in the back of your head. In the next three weeks, I’ll be providing you with a series of posts to get you in shape and make sure you have a story to write (and all the tools you need to do it) on November 1.

Ready to go? Let’s get started.

How to ‘Win’ NaNoWriMo

I’m going to be realistic here. I’ve started NaNo a few times and wound up not finishing. Mostly because I can’t stand wasting time writing crap. For some writers, 50,000 words is a win. I want 50,000 words that I can actually turn into a story or novel that someone would want to read. So our goal here is to produce quantity and quality, which is a little different that then NaNo mission, which is pretty much “write words, edit later.” For some people this is a great option, but I am all about the goal!

There will be worksheets for this process, so start a file on your computer, a file on your desk or even a three ring binder. You’ll need to keep them all together so when you actually sit down to write your story, you have everything in one place.

What do You Want to Write?

What tickles your fancy? Makes you secretly giddy? What do you dream about writing. Personally, I’m obsessed with Fantasy novels and Castle. So I’m going to combine epic romance with magic for my NaNo  project.

Download the Idea Creator Worksheet and take fifteen minutes to fill out all the questions. Even if you are skeptical or plan to write a totally original story, this is worth doing. It will expand your thinking and help you to incorporate additional layers of story into your project.

The worksheet asks you to examine your favorite books, tv shows and movies on a deeper level. Look at the overall qualities of the book rather than specific details. Take that information and reassemble it into an idea for your next story or novel. Some questions to consider:

• Why couldn’t you put the book down?
• Why can you watch the movie over and over again and still be just as in love with the story as the first time?
• How would your favorite characters act in a different period of history?
• What if history were different?
• Swap their backgrounds. (For example Castle becomes the cop and Beckett the writer.) What does that do to their characters? The story? How they meet?
• Put your characters into a famous story–say Snow White or Beauty and the Beast.
• Create your own characters (we’ll make sure it’s not a Mary Sue!) and spin them off of your favorite show or book.

Further Reading

Robert’s Rules of Writing – Robert Masello’s fun, creative book of writing advice. It’s a quick and easy read and one of my favorite books on writing.

25 Things You Should Know About NaNoWriMo – Chuck Wendig tells it like it is.  (He enjoys swearing, so if that is not your thing don’t read this!)

How to Write Fan Fiction – In my one of a kind book, I bread down how to write a great story–including a complete discussion on writing multi-chapter/novel style stories.

How to Write Fan Fiction is your one-stop-shop for inspiration.

I’ve just set up a new feature at How to Write Fan Fiction–the Fan Fiction Prompt-O-Matic. (Check it out, just to the top left of this post.)

Every time you visit, you’ll get a brand new prompt. Sometimes, all it takes is a single word to set your imagination on overdrive, so if you are looking for inspiration for your next Fanfic, How to Write Fan Fiction is your one stop shop for prompts. (If you want some help working with prompts, head over to  How to Write with Prompts.) And don’t forget, we’ve got prompt tables for those of you who really want a challenge.

Once you have your Prompt, you can use the Mind Map Worksheet to really work out your idea. Spend between 5 and 10 minutes writing down everything you can think of that relates to your prompt. More than once, I’ve had a story outline itself with this process. Prompts are a great way to brush up on your writing skills–just writing a drabble (100 word fic) a day, keeps your creativity flowing. Drabbles often provide the seeds for longer stories–after you’ve had a while to let things simmer in the back of your brain.

If you have any prompts that you’d like me to add to the list, please submit them via the Contact page on this site. And when you write your story, please come back and share a link in the comments of this post so that we call all read it.

Challenges provide an awesome way to write a story–they get your creativity flowing with prompts, you get to write with other people, and you’ve got the pressure of a deadline. Bookworm Hotspot is hosting a new writing challenge open to all Fandoms. You get to choose from a selection of prompts and write a short story to inspire others to check out your Fandom. Please see the specifics below. And have fun!

( Entries should be posted at Bookworm Hotspot.)

Multi-Fandom Fan Fiction Challenge

We all love a certain movie, tv show, or book.

Your mission is to write a fan fiction story for your favorite tv show, movie, ship, or book and make a non-fan interested in watching/reading it.

Romance, Drama, Horror, Thriller, Smut, it doesn’t matter. Keep it short and sweet. One or two chapters only (complete) and use the following prompts in some way:

Rain
Case
Street
Light
Suit
Tattoo
Ring

(If you need help working with Prompts, go here.)

Post your entries on our site using the page provided and on your fan fiction account. Please (on our site only), describe your inspiration, ie: the book, fandom, tv show, or movie that inspired the story. Let us have some info to get us even more interested. Mention BookWormHotSpot.com in your story’s description and summary and if possible, share our link. Stories can be rated K-NC/17. Post ratings on our entries page when you post your story.

Deadline for the submissions is July 1st.

There will be a poll set up by July 4th for members to vote for which entry made them watch or read what the fiction was inspired by. Winner will have a link to their fan fiction posted on our homepage and our FaceBook page and have bragging rights for a while.

If you have any friends who are writers, invite them to join our site and write a story!

Prompts can take many forms–single words, poems, songs, tables or even pictures. They are intended to provide the seed for your story. One of the best uses of prompts that I’ve found is the prompt table–which gives you a set of prompts and you write a story for each prompt. One of the most effective ways to use a prompt table is to write a drabble on each prompt, then take a look at your drabbles and see which you can develop into a full blown story. I wrote a drabble based on a prompt that turned into one of my favorite stories–one that I would never have written if it wasn’t for that prompt.

With a little looking, you can find writing communities that will issue a prompt challenge weekly.  Search LiveJournal for comms that you can join. There’s nothing better than a weekly writing habit and using a prompt will keep you writing regularly without having to worry about coming up with ideas. Prompts are excellent for stretching your creativity and taking your brain to places it might not go on its own.

But now that you have a prompt, what do you do with it?  The best way to develop a prompt is to use a mind map. (You can find a worksheet here.) Write your prompt (or paste your picture) in the middle of the page and start writing down whatever comes to mind. You may want to set a timer. I find that giving myself a set amount of time produces the highest quality brain storming. Once your timer goes off, get a new piece of paper and start sorting your ideas. I just start crossing off the ones that I don’t like, and rewrite the ones with potential into sentences. Invariably one jumps out. Then I do the Mind Map process all over again to figure out what is going to happen in my story.The next step is to develop a story plan, and then on to the best part–writing!

Prompts spark your creativity and bring fun to your writing. So if you’re stuck in your current story or just have no idea what to write next, try using a prompt and watch your writing take off.

It’s Easy to Get Started - You have a ready-to-write-in universe at your fingertips. The characters and setting have already been created, all you have to provide is an idea. And in Fan Fiction, ideas are endless. A great place to start is with the Post Episode (Post-Ep) story. All you do is pick up where the episode left off, adding your own ending. This works great for shows that leave things open ended, especially around the season finale.

You Can Start Small – If you find the idea of writing a novel daunting, Fan Fiction allows you to start on a much smaller scale. You can try your hand at several short stories (and find an audience, which is much harder to do when you first start writing original fiction) and then move onto the novella. You’ll get feedback from your readers (provided you take care to follow posting guidelines, use spellcheck, and have a general understanding of grammar) that will motivate you to keep writing.

You Have Community - One of the biggest benefits of writing a Fan Fiction story is that you are never alone. You have an entire Fandom of writers that are in the same situation as you are. When you get stuck, you’ll always be able to find someone to offer encouragement, or just to commiserate for a few minutes on the writing process. Not to mention, Fan Fiction communities are always offering prompt tables, ficathons and other writing challenges. You’ll never be at a loss for what to write!

There is a Built in Audience - Within your Fandom, there are already established archives for you to post your story. A quick Google search will give you the location of smaller archives and communities, and you can also post at FanFiction.net. Don’t forget to thank your readers for their comments so they are inspired to leave them on future stories as well.

You Can Practice, Practice, Practice - Perhaps most importantly, Fan Fiction offers you the chance to write, a lot. The only way to become a better writer is to write. With every story or chapter that you turn out, you become a better writer, so take advantage of everything Fan Fiction has to offer you, and write as much as possible.

Fan Fiction offers you the perfect way to stretch your imagination and take those first steps toward becoming a writer. If you long to write a novel, but have no idea where to start, trying writing some Fan Fic. As you write, you’ll develop valuable writing skills and have fun along the way.

Know Your Characters

Authentic dialogue starts before you even write a single word. In Fan Fiction, it is critical that your characters sound like themselves. Your readers know them every bit as well as you do, maybe even better, so take the time to listen to your characters as they speak to each other-what they say and what they don’t say. Figure out what is important to your characters, what they value and what they are afraid of, and then utilize that when you write the words they speak.

Highlight Differences

Your characters must sound different when they talk to each other. You should be able to pinpoint who is saying what without  tags. (A tag is the he said or she said placed before or after your dialogue.) This is where knowing your characters comes into play-their background, their parents, the place they grew up are all going to influence how they sound when they speak.

Read Dialogue Out Loud

If you are only going to do one thing on this list, this is the one. When you read your dialogue out loud, note the words you stumble over and rewrite them. Make sure your characters’ conversation flows naturally between them, and any information they reveal sounds natural. You want to avoid having your characters ‘info dump’ at all costs. Info dumping is when you have a character announce things they already know to inform the reader.

Less is More

We don’t speak in complete sentences to each other. Dropping a word here or there goes a long way toward your characters sounding real. Long passages of dialogue will drag your Fanfic down, so cut your dialogue down to the bare minimum it takes to get the job done. Characters who repeat themselves quickly become boring! Dialogue is what you wish you’d said in the heat of the moment, not what you actually said. So take out everything that isn’t absolutely necessary.

Leave Something Unsaid

In Fandom, this is called subtext, and goes along with less is more. Oftentimes, what a character doesn’t say speaks louder than anything that could ever come out of his mouth. This is where knowing your character’s backstory (as defined by your Fandom’s canon) comes in handy as well. Perhaps there is a topic she always avoids, something that always causes her to leave the room. Using dialogue like this will also help you to slowly reveal your character’s inner conflict to your reader, enticing them to keep reading.

The good news is that the more dialogue you write, the better you will get at it. Keep your eyes open and notice how other writers write their dialogue. Note what works and what doesn’t. There is no better teacher than studying the work of other authors.

Sharing a new story is exciting, but before you hit that post button, make sure that your fic is in tip top shape. There are several practical steps you can take to make sure that anyone who clicks on your story loves it; here’s what you need to know to edit your own story.

Take Some Time Off - The best thing you can do for your Fan Fiction is to step away from it for a day or so. If you don’t want to wait that long, grab a snack or some coffee and take a mental break. You are much more likely to catch any mistakes you’ve made if you step away from your work for at least a short period of time. If you are lucky enough to have a beta reader, send it off for another pair of eyes to look over. Remember, you don’t have to take your beta’s advice, only list to it. (More tips for working with a beta.)

Dissect Dialogue - Editing your dialogue is probably the single most important thing you can do to improve your story. Chances are you can cut it down. Less is more when it comes to dialogue, so look closely at the words you’ve written for your characters. Ask yourself if you can hear their voice in your head when you read the words you’ve written for them. Finally, make sure it is clear who is speaking in each line of dialogue, and always start a new paragraph with a new speaker.

Proof Point of View - Every scene you write should have a clear point of view. This means the reader knows from whose perspective the story is being told. If you head hop in a scene, it can make the story confusing and hard to follow. For this reason, you should make sure it is clear whose doing the thinking, especially if you are flipping between characters. (A common reason for this would be during a sex scene, where you want to account for both characters’ reactions.)

Read it Out Loud - Reading your story out loud forces you to slow down, and you’ll be able to catch any places where the text might be awkward. If you stumble over a sentence, take a minute to reword it. It’s also a good idea to read from a print out-this will help you to slow down and catch some errors you might have missed reading it from the screen. As a bonus, formatting errors will be easier to see as well.

Save the Punctuation for Last - Don’t bother with punctuation until you’re on your last read through. Chances are you’ll change more than one sentence, and you can clean up any errors you might have made on your last pass.  Need help with grammar and punctuation? I’ve got you covered with Write Better, Right Now!

Sum it Up – And here’s a bonus benefit: now that you’ve read through your story a few times, writing a summary will only take you a few minutes. Some writers choose a particular poignant quote  to use as a summary, but I recommend taking the time to write a few sentences that will hook a perspective reader into clicking your link. Writing “I suck at summaries” just doesn’t cut it. Think about how your show teases you into watch the next episode and do the same with your summary.

And that’s it, you’re done and ready to post! Easier than you thought? I hope so!