Free-will opposing Norms and Principles

As educated individuals, it remains our primary obligation to pay tribute to our nation by being objective and by utilizing our writing skills to address features and stories most important to our country. Creative Writers do not adhere themselves to the norms of their society and literary standards. They are more like day-dreamers who sketch their visualized castles on paper and are repeatedly accused of irrational themes, deconstructive thoughts and notions. Remarkable as it may seem, their work arises much curiosity, fame and prosperity as opposed to a traditional writers predictable context. They tend to break all rules and free themselves from daily constraints of reality. Their theories may seem neurotic in pattern and mystic in nature simply because they have merged visionary faith into their literature. Such an example is prevalent in William Shakespeare’s earliest comedies, ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream, which chants creative imagination empowered with the supernatural world.

Reading widely

Writing can be developed as a craft through perseverance and eagerness. Reading can invoke your inner most thoughts. You need to read as much as possible to identify and personalize your writing style. Initially you may read only non-fiction or mystery but exploring diverse genres of literature opens your minds to accept different styles of narration. People all around tend to evaluate your potential based on which you may excel as a writer. Expose your work to masses and consume their reaction. Be sensitive to other readers and soon you will win yourself a dedicated crowd of readers.

Reaching out

If you work for a local newspaper, you need to reach out to the people all around you by stimulating them to react and response to your writing. Don’t limit your writing to concerts, latest fashion or upcoming events or movie reviews but explore audience reactions and what your readers are looking forward while trying all the while to answer the following similar questions. What Event, Why is it happening in your state, why so late or why it is delayed/ rescheduled, When is the event, who is free to attend, is the event on a weekend or does it coincide with another gig? Where is the event and why it is staged there, how do you expect the crowd to be? These questions surely get your audience involved- While you wait for your article to get published, they search your article to catch a glimpse of their remark. You need to contribute your efforts to the society you live in. Look around you and what do you see: Famine, Drought, Corruption, Immorality, Rapes and Abuses. Through your Poetry or articles, you can depict the horrors your society confronts or detail the excellent infrastructure of your city.

Rewriting and Recreating

At times you may feel a strong urge to rewrite a paragraph or verse in a poem or story. In your own solace, you may want to pen down your thoughts upon finishing a certain chapter. Various ideas may flash through your mind as you summarize a chapter or note down your reactions. When you finish, your inspiration will stare back at you in big bold font. Don’t worry yourself with Ethics and Norms. As a free will writer you gradually learn the art of expressing your personal heart-felt, provocative and intrusive ideas and are never afraid to take on an opponent in your game of words. Rest assured your logic will one day be evaluated, preserved, and dignified.

Keep a Journal

Many ideas come when you're least expecting them. Keep a journal or recorder with you at all times so when creativity strikes you are armed and ready. Later when you are at your writing place, go back to what you have recorded and see what ideas come from them.

People Watch

When you are sitting at an airport, restaurant or any place where there are plenty of people, sit and observe what they are doing. What are they saying to each other? What are they wearing? Where are they going? Make up your own stories and lives for the people passing you by. Why does the man who just walked in front of you look as if he's in a hurry? Is he late for something? Keep asking questions, which brings me to...

Why? How? When? Where?

If an idea strikes you, ask questions about everything that has to do with that idea. Even if you don't actually use the answers to some of these questions it's okay because it gets you started and it leads you to what may be more important for your story.

Write What You Know

What do you know about more than anything else? What do you want to inform people of? Did something amazing happen to you sometime in your life? Draw from experience, memory, maybe a book you read or a movie you saw. You can use these experiences as idea starters.

Read, Read, and Read Some More

When you read all sorts of different genres you get ideas from them that you can use towards your proposed genre. You see examples of great writing used in many different forms. Do you like the way one author describes scenes? How can you use that technique for the scene you are working on?

Many or all of these ideas may work for you, the idea is to keep writing. Even if you feel you have nothing worth writing one day take out a journal and start writing about your day, thoughts you had, how events made you feel. Sooner or later one of these remarks will spark an idea for your next piece.

Orwell referred to his upbringing as a guiding factor in his style and purpose of writing; he claimed that a writer's “subject matter will be determined by the age he lives in” and that early experiences and influences help give the writer a voice and to eliminate those early inspirations “will have killed his impulse to write”. George is not the only one that feels it is the early tragedies, hardships and obstacles that give a writer substance and prevent the writing of “empty” works. So that explains why some writers write.

I had a very pleasant childhood and a fairly satisfying adult life to date and I still feel this absolute need to write. I write prose for enjoyment, I write to express myself, I write to fantasize, I write to communicate thoughts. Yes, I have some writing assignments that are not for pure enjoyment, assignments that I do just for the money (although there never seems to be enough of that) and sometimes the subject matter seems, on the surface, boring and tedious, but I still enjoy the process of writing. I live for my fiction. I always have introduced myself as “a freelance writer selling anything someone will buy” and “I want to grow up to be a novelist”.

It has often been said that if you enjoy your job you are not really working. Well we writers work hard even if we totally enjoy our craft. Journaling and personal writings are fun and terrific forms of escapism, but once your writing goes out into the world it becomes a becomes a business. You, the writer must also become a business manager and a salesman. You may be writing for education, to teach someone how to do something, you may be writing for persuasion, either political or advertising, you may blog or write essays just to open doors of communication - but in the end, you are fulfilling the urge to put pen to paper, figuratively at least, and write.

Some fiction writers compare their need to write to the childlike play of pretend. Many say it helps to express otherwise repressed thoughts and dreams. Most of us do tend to assign traits and habits to our characters from the people we know; of course it is always such fun to imagine your story villain as the person who has been most unkind to you and cause them some dastardly fate. In deference to Orwell's list of motivating factors, our egos do get stroked nicely when one of works is commended publicly or our name is recognized by a stranger. There is a definite excitement that comes with the creation of a character, the setting of a scene and the spinning of a tale.

Writers can understand the enthusiasm to sit at a keyboard for hours and type non-stop and fellow writers can understand the thrill of seeing a printed book with our name on it in the local book store or a cover image online. It is an overwhelming sense of being in someone's brain to know that your words are being read. We are an exclusive class of artists and words are our medium, the keyboard is our palette and brush. And when you have achieved that goal of getting someone “thinking”, really thinking, your power seems almost supreme. We are faced with a seemingly impossible quandary when we can't immediately deposit the words on paper that run through our minds with every scene we witness, every smell, every sound and every emotion.

Freelance editor and writer Smoky Trudeau explains it best with an inscription she recently signed in one of her books, “Write to live, live to write. We're writers, we have no choice.”

A spectacular story must have a amazing protagonist. The protagonist is usually the main character. They are always seeking to find or obtain something. When something comes between the protagonist and their goal, conflict is created. The protagonist is usually easily liked and rallied for, or cheered on. If you can make your readers fall in love with, feel sorry for, worry about, and be happy for your protagonist all in the same story, you have written something to be proud of.

Some people favor the bad guy, who most of the time is the antagonist. The antagonist creates conflict by standing between the antagonist and their goal. Don't be afraid to create a ruthless character that the readers will hate. There are many villains throughout literary history that people hated. The Wicked Witch of the West probably wasn't the most liked character in the Wizard of Oz, but she is one of the most memorable.

Every plot has to have conflict . If your main character's life went along perfectly, how interesting would your story be? If there were never any obstacles to overcome, how would your character grow or evolve? There are two types of conflict , and most brilliant stories contain both. External conflict, is also known as man versus nature, or man verses man. Internal conflict, is also known as man versus himself. Pretty self-explanatory huh? Most of the time the main conflict of the story is resolved by the end, but some modern short stories leave the conflict unresolved. In short stories conflict keeps readers waiting for the big resolution, and in novels, it sets up the action and creates suspense.

All stories must take place somewhere. The setting of the story should drive the plot and create a pace for the story. If a person lived in New York, their life would likely be a lot more fast paced than someone who lives in Tennessee. Unless your entire story takes place without your main character moving out of their tracks, there's a good chance that you will even use secondary settings in your novel. A secondary setting is a specific place inside the main setting of the novel. A secondary setting could be a busy airport, or a quiet coffee shop. Setting can be stated directly, or implied through a character's dialogue. Use strong descriptions to create vivid settings. A few well-placed adjectives are more effective than a whole paragraph of descriptive words that tire the reader out before they even figure out where the story takes place.

Sizzling dialogue sells. Dialogue serves many purposes in fiction writing. Dialogue can suggest character's motives. Give your characters a voice to communicate their intentions to the reader, and let them tell it like they want to. Dialogue can also reveal setting and background. Allow your characters to talk about where they are, or where they came from when they speak. Dialogue can also speed up or slow down the story. Insert a slow talking character into a scene and you can slow it to a snail's pace or have a character talk through a scene instead of narrating it and you can speed it up as fast as you want. Just make sure what ever your characters have to say is interesting, and that it serves a purpose in the story. You don't want to bore the reader with pages of meaningless dialogue.

You should always make a conscious effort to pace your story. You don't want to leave your readers in the dust wondering where you went for the last four pages, but you don't want to leave them yawning or nodding off while they are reading your story either. Try to keep a balance between fast paced and slow scenes. If you write a few fast-paced chapters (pages for a short story) slow it down a little in the next chapter (or for the next few pages) and give the reader time to breathe.

Good characterization creates believable characters. It gives the reader a clear mental image of the characters in the book. Readers want to know what your character looks like, how old they are, where they come from, and what they do for a living, but that's only a small part of what makes up your characters. Readers are more interested in what makes up the character internally. They want to know about their personality, personal beliefs, what their likes and dislikes are, and more importantly, what they are thinking. Use dialogue and description to convey character emotion . Characters should be consistently inconsistent, and they should be complex and versatile.

So now that your readers know who your character is, the best way to deepen the reader's bond with them is through character emotion . Even happy go lucky people are not happy all the time. Real people experience real emotions such as anger, sorrow and grief, so your characters should too. People want to see the dark side of life and the negative emotions a person can feel as well as the cheerful happier days. Creating strong emotions in your characters is what makes them feel real to the reader, it also strengthens the bond between the reader and the protagonist . Use dialogue and description to express character emotion in your writing. Don't just tell the reader that the character is sad of happy, show them by having the character laugh until their sides hurt, or soak a tissue with their tears.

One of the biggest problems new writers face today is avoiding clichés . Clichés are words, phrases, or tag lines that have been overused to describe things. The old “ My heart jumped up into my throat” bit has been used to death. Try something new like, “ My heart was pounding like a wild jack hammer against my ribs and trying it's best to find a way out of my chest.” Now you get a mental picture of how scared the person is without using the same tired old cliché. If there's a popular new buzzword that people identify with use it now. Today's buzzword is tomorrow's cliché. Try your hardest to tell your story differently than writers have in the past. If your character must bump their head, I'd avoid having them see stars afterwards.

Consider your title carefully. What sounds like an interesting title to you may not seem so hot to the average Joe standing in the bookstore. Take time out of your busy writing schedule to go to the book store. Books are shelved with the spines facing out, so the graphics on the spine and the title are a reader's first impression. A reader's first impression is everything, because you never get a second chance. If the reader can't get past your corny title, they probably won't bother going any farther. Scan a row of shelves at the book store and read only the titles . Choose a few books based solely on the title . Consider the names of the books, why are they interesting to you? The think about why they may or may not be interesting to other people. The title of a story or novel must have universal appeal. It should be too interesting to pass up, or make a strong statement about the story itself.

1. Read similar works and deconstruct them.

   Personally, I hate doing this, but it does help. What you do is figure out what you want to write, then read something that's already been written in a similar vein. As you do it, you observe the techniques and styles the writer has used to set the atmosphere, mood and pacing of the story. You have to study the piece rather than read it, which in my opinion takes a lot of the joy out of reading. It's like watching a magic trick to try and figure out how it's done rather than appreciating the wonder of it. But still, especially if you are an inexperienced writer, you can learn a great deal from doing this.

2. Don't try to use too many literary techniques.

   Similes, metaphors, oxymoron, antithesis, alliteration, rhyme… there are many, many specific words for certain sentences and structures in the English language. Don't bother with them, at least for now. People have a tendency to try and use them without thinking why their using them, under the impression that it will make their writing seem more professional. Believe me, your writing will not look professional when your characters are speaking in sonnet form for no real reason. The exception here is if your name is William Shakespeare, then for some reason it makes you a genius. Apparently. Walk before you can run. Concentrate on forming flowing, functional sentences (see what I did there?), and building up a good vocabulary before you experiment with these techniques.

3. If it's against the rules but it works, do it anyway.

   Poetic license isn't just for poets! If you can find ways and means to achieve what you want, but the rules of grammar and spelling say no (usually with squiggly red or green lines), do it anyway! A one word sentence can create impact, even though it's technically not allowed. Several short paragraphs (a few sentences each) can either slow down or speed up the pace of a story, despite the fact it looks a little tacky. Just be careful with this, as if you flout all the rules completely, your work is going to look like you vomited alphabet soup on the page and handed it in for submission. Remember, rules have a reason! Think why it is you're not doing something within the rules, why the rule is there to begin with, and how exactly you are breaking it. Think like that and you should be fine.

4. Forget about your work.

   Once you've finished writing, save your work, or stick it on the bookshelf (if you're still that old fashioned), and let it collect dust for a new months. Try to forget you ever wrote it, work on something else. Then when you finally find it again you can proof read it properly. The problem with proof reading is that if you do it too soon, he story is still in your head and your mind will compensate for mistakes subconsciously, in other words you read what you think you wrote, rather than what's actually on the paper. Another way of getting around this is to give it to someone else to read, but many people may not understand what you where trying to achieve with your work, especially if they are not your target audience. This is very important to produce quality writing as I can guarantee, there will be typos and dodgy structuring in your work that you will miss the first time you proof read.

5. Focus, Atmosphere and Pace.

   You need to decide what you're trying to achieve from your story by looking at the above three. Firstly, decide what the focus of your story is going to be. Is the story going to be primarily character development, or are characters just a tool to tell the story? Is the story even the main point of the piece? Perhaps you are simply trying to provoke a set of emotional responses from your reader- a sort of prose poetry. Define your focus and stick to it. If you do want to change focus, then don't do it too often or all the effort you've put into building up your desired effect will be for naught, and your story will not have much impact.
   
   Next is atmosphere. This is primarily determined by the genre you are writing in. If you're writing horror, you want the atmosphere to be dark, scary and make the reader feel "creeped out". You may even want to add light happy sections in to make the horrific areas seem even more compelling by comparison. If you're writing a love story you want to consider the elements of love you will explore. Will it be tragic or easy? Serious or comedic? Once you have defined atmosphere you want there are many ways to create it. Choose specific words and sentences. If you want to create a soft, relaxed atmosphere use punctuation that allows the reader to read at their own pace. If you want tension, slow it down or speed it up by not using commas where one may be appropriate. If relaxed, your choice of words should be soft sounding and probably a little longer to keep the reading pace down. In tense situations, use short, sharp harsh words that will keep the reader needing to think fast. Description is another important part of atmosphere, especially if you can relate it to a reader's own experiences, for example the clichéd description of the character in a cold sweat while under stress.
   
   Pace is an important part of atmosphere as I have described above. However it is also important to consider the overall pace of your story. If the story moves too slowly, for example you bog it down with over description, many readers may get bored and wonder off. This has happened to me with The Lord of the Rings, and a couple of Stephen King's Books. Pace should be dictated by target audience and genre. In general, older readers are more likely to enjoy a book that moves slowly, but describes things in exquisite detail, whereas younger readers prefer to keep things moving so they know what happens next. In terms of genre, you should think carefully how it will work for yourself. For example, in a thriller style story, a description of the long slow tedious investigations into a murder may help readers empathize with a detective character who just can't seem to get anywhere. On the other hand, a fast paced action scene with a victim fleeing the murderer would get readers hearts racing and thrill them in a different way. A mix of the two if done properly could accentuate each other, the chases become so much more intense, and the investigation so much more rewarding when clues are found. Think of your target demographic, and your preferred genre. See what happens.

6. Write in sections

   Before you put pen to paper (or finger to key), decide what it is you will be writing and where you will finish. Get into the mindset to write that style, and once the story no longer requires you to be in the mind set, stop and go do something else. Basically, let's say you spend half an hour writing an intense, action filled gun fight section which then ends with a cliffhanger, and then move on to a completely different area of the story (you know, to build suspense). Say, the hero's love interest wondering around oblivious to their partner's peril. You may well find that that you just can't present on paper what you have in your head. The reason for this is you've got stuck in "high gear". You're used to writing in the action style, and it's hard to get back into a different mind set.
   
   Another advantage of writing in sections is time management and fatigue. Let's face it, sometimes writing feels like a chore, but if you stop then you may never get back to the story! Having a clearly defined goal will motivate you to keep going until the end. To put it another way, it's a lot easier to finish a race when you can see the finishing line. Doing this well ensure you are productive, and remain writing without fatiguing yourself. If you just try to write until you drop, then you will notice a definite decline in the quality of your work as time goes on. Write in sections though, with a break between each one and you can maintain your standard for a lot longer. Just know when to call it a night!

7. Know when something isn't working.

   One of the very first things I wrote was back when I was about 14. I had a great idea for a science fiction novel, a trilogy in fact. To be honest, I doubt I could do it justice now, and back then I certainly couldn't have. I wrote over 60 sides of A4 in size 10 font before I realized something. It was crap. The concept was awesome, but the sheer scope of the story made it almost impossible for me to do it justice, and with very little writing experience under my belt anyway, the writing itself was crude, amateurish, and generally a pile of manure.
   
   The moral of the story is, don't overreach yourself. But more important than that is the ability to tell when something isn't working. If you just can't get a comfortable pace on the story, or you can't generate the atmosphere you want maybe it's not worth bothering with. Perhaps you've bitten off more than you can chew and should try this again when you've got more experience under your belt. Or maybe the concept was just flawed no matter how good of an idea it seemed.
   
   There are few things more disheartening than spending hours and hours on a piece, only to find you have produced the literary equivalent of an Alan Smithy movie. Save yourself the disappointment and the wasted time by always looking at your writing objectively. That's not an excuse to give up just because it's hard though!

8. Set realistic goals and scales.

   When you start out writing, begin by writing short pieces, describing a scene or an event. No more than about 500-1,000 words. We'll call these little mini writings bits. Once you can write bits, you'll realize that writing a story is simply a matter of making lots of these and putting them together in an organized way.
   
   Next, just take up short stories. Around 3,000 to 4,000 words. Now, the challenge is to write in such a way that each "bit" in such a way that it flows into the next one. Remember tip number 6; write them one at a time. Your aiming to create a sort of liner jigsaw, where each bit builds up to give a little more of the big picture. The last few bits should make the picture clear as day, a sort of summary.
   
   If you write in this way you will get used to the idea of escalation and also time management. Aim to write a bit a day at first, you won't overtax yourself, but you'll still produce a meaningful amount of content, so as to finish your work in a reasonable time.
   
   As you grow in skill you will be able to write more and more each time without tiring yourself out mentally. Keep track of this and adjust the amount you write each day accordingly. Remember not to push yourself too hard though, or your quality of writing will suffer. But you do need to push your boundaries, or you won't improve!

9. Write free of distractions.

   Turn off the TV, put the cat out, close your browser, turn off your IM software and lock the door. About the only thing you can do at the same time as writing without suffering a quality drop is listening to music- and even then only certain types. Before you start writing clear your head too. Take a lie down, have a glass of water, have a few deep breathes, whatever. When you write you should be focused on writing. If you are not concentrating on just your writing then your speed will slow right down, and what you do write is likely to be of poor quality. So don't waste your time trying.

10. Stop reading advice and write.

    This may sound like a cop out, but I can assure it's very important. You can read all the advice in the world, take writing lessons and ponder your writing all day- and still write crap. The only way to improve is to write, recognize your mistakes, and fix them. Advice like this can help you identify your weaknesses, but if you don't keep writing and keep trying, they're not going to help you at all. Also, remember that the advice given by other authors tends to be what works for them. You may well find something completely different works for you. But you need to experiment to find these things out. So get writing!

Well, that's ten tips from me. I hope they help you out with your writing. If you found this advice helpful, please click the "I like it" button, or a stumble thumbs up, you know the drill, that way the advice can be accessible to even more people. Also, feel free to leave your own advice in the form of comments, or let me know how these tips have helped you (If they help you).

'Popular Fiction' is a form of fiction that is easy to read and understand and appeals to the average reader. It is usually a story that is plot driven rather than character driven and can usually be placed within a certain genre of fiction such as romance, mystery and crime.

'Literary Fiction' focuses more on style and effect and often appeals to the more academic reader. Where "Popular Fiction" is usually driven by plot, "Literary Fiction" is often character driven and the story may be more experimental and harder to place within a certain genre.

These two forms of fiction can then come under the headings of "Short Fiction" or "Long Fiction". "Short Fiction" is a short piece of up to 8,000 words and can be read ion one sitting. "Long Fiction" is often a novel of more than 40,000 words and often contains a plot that unfolds through characters' speech, thoughts and actions. A piece that falls between 8,000 and 40,000 words is often classed as a novella.

The Writing Process

There are six general steps in the Writing Process. These are "Idea Generation", "Rough First Draft", "Revision", "Setting Aside", "Editing", and "Proofreading".

'Idea Generation' is the first step in the writing process and includes brainstorming, free-writing, clustering, writing down questions and outlining. This is followed by a "Rough First Draft", with the idea being to write quickly and release the creative juices.

After you have completed your "Rough First Draft" you are ready for "Revision". When revising you should try to streamline the story line, add developments and improve structure and style. After this comes "Setting Aside", where you leave the story alone for two weeks so that when you next come to read it you will be doing so with a fresh perspective.

'Editing' means fixing any mistakes in grammar, punctuation, spelling, conventions and typos, and once this is done you are ready for the final step of "Proofreading". "Proofreading is the last thing you do before you are ready to send your story out into the world and is a chance to catch any further typos and to make sure that all your corrections from the "Editing' process have been made.

These writers have found a great audience online. What they have often found out as well is that playing the part of "publisher" for themselves is a lot of work. Some just resign themselves to not having professional looking books in print. Others search high and low and spend tedious hours perfecting the craft of manuscript typesetting. It's the latter that reap the most benefits. Not only in sales, because their work shows such polish, but in pride of accomplishment.

Probably the most perplexing thing for most authors new to the world of self-publishing is the insight that manuscripts do not simply go from this:

To this:

Just by saying so. There is a lot of work that goes into making a raw manuscript appear in its final polished form.

As you can see, one of the things that will most impact the polish of your book is a clean crisp, but artful header. Headers can be placed in various ways. Take a look at several of your favorite novels or non-fiction books, and see which you prefer. Most word processing software now comes with the ability to produce lovely headers, but there are tricks.

How do you keep your chapter pages in place where they belong? Trick number one.

As the average writer types out his initial manuscript, he places chapter divisions, but usually just keeps them in line with the typing, and doesn't do anything special. He might start each new chapter on a new page, but is surprised later on to find if he's gone back and added, or deleted pieces that those titles have moved up or down. You cans top that by making a "hard" page break at the end of each chapter. The next chapter will always start on the following new page then no matter what you do to the content before it.

You still do not have to do this while creating your draft. When you go to create the published copy it is imperative, or you will make many more headaches for yourself as you go on.

How in the world do you keep some pages blank, while showing the headers on others? That's trick number two.

First you need to carefully examine some of your favorite books closely. There are things about the set up that the average reader doesn't pay much attention to. These are the things you may know, but don't really think about looking at, and learning, but will find yourself engrossed in as a self-publisher. Things like the first lead in pages of a book usually do not have headers. Chapter title pages usually do not have headers. It looks best if those pages do not have the headers on them so what do you do?

You need to learn all you can about section breaks. Those are the little tricks that will allow you to choose not to place a header on an entire section (as in the lead in pages), or on "first pages" of a "new section" as in chapters.

At the end of the lead in pages, I usually start at the bottom of the first page of the first chapter because it's on the second page of that chapter that I first want to see headers kick in, you need to create a section break--not a page break.

When you do that, and you go into your header, make sure to check off the box that says "different first page". That allows you to delete any header content on that first page of each chapter without erasing the header contents for the rest of it at the same time.

Do this for each and every chapter.

Page numbers as well go in the headers, usually on the outside of the page header area. Those too you need to skip on the blank header pages.

Each and every word processing program is different in the way they allow the headers to be manipulated, and some have more possibilities, and some less, but the basics are usually available in all of them. To go into any great detail beyond the tricks above would be futile unless we all worked in the same programs, and that's unlikely. It takes a little practice, and a lot of perseverance, but you'll soon discover what you can and can't do within the confines of your program, or programs. I use two separate programs, depending on what type of work I'm doing at the time, but find Microsoft Office Word to be my favorite for creating publishable novels.

The next little piece of creative polish is the drop cap. You've all seen it, even if you don't know what it's called. It's that creative first letter on the first page of every chapter, usually in fiction work.

Is it necessary? Perhaps not, but it truly adds a special polish to your work, and makes it look like a professionally published piece.

Not all word programs have the ability to create it specifically, although Word 07 is marvelous at it. Even if your word processor does not do it, you can manually create it by selecting just that one letter, and changing the size and font of it.

When you're finished you are well on your way to having created a beautiful manuscript ready for publication that you can be proud of.

Have fun. Learn, and be creative. And happy publishing.

Everything you read has an influence on what you write. That influence may be huge and grand, perhaps even a conscious effort to make your piece fit with a certain style, or it may be small, barely noticeable. You may not see it at all, but it's there somewhere.

Sometimes I look back to stuff I wrote years ago, and I see influences there that I wasn't conscious of at the time. For me, these little discoveries are fun; sometimes they're enlightening to my style and its development up to now. (At other times, I notice something and feel glad that it wasn't published.)

I don't believe anyone ever has a fully developed style. Just as we change as the years pass, our writing changes.

And while every artist is unique in many ways, we are still the sum of our influences.

My novels aren't published yet, but that should not deter the level of one's experience. Experience in writing is a world away from experience in publishing, and it's writing - not publishing - that I'm talking about.

My writing isn't technically science fiction, but it isn't technically fantasy; it rides the line between the two. And I'm drawn more to scientific fields such as anthropology and archeology than, say, neurology or technology. I want to experience drama when I read, and I want to create drama when I write; describing the internal workings of a space rocket isn't exactly drama.

And it's our experience of that drama that creeps into our subconscious and influences what we write. It works a lot like life, in that sense, even though it's primarily in the imagination when it comes to reading. But the fact that a book can scare you or make you laugh or cry is proof of the imagination's power.

To expand on the passage, “read as widely as possible,” I've compiled a short list of books I've read in the past year or so. Keep in mind that I write on the line between science fiction and fantasy as you look it over.

“Gardens of the Moon,” by Steven Erikson (fantasy)

“A Game of Thrones,” by George R. R. Martin (fantasy)

“A.I.s,” a short-story collection, edited by Jack Dann and Gardner Dozois (science fiction)

“Dune: House Atreides,” by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson (science fiction)

“People of the Wolf,” by Kathleen and Michael W. Gear (historical fiction)

“Skeleton Crew,” by Stephen King (horror)

“Mister B. Gone,” by Clive Barker (horror)

“The Last Temptation of Christ,” by Nikos Kazantzakis (literary)

“Ghosts of Upstate South Carolina,” by John Boyanoski (nonfiction)

This is by no means a complete list of all the books I've read in the last year or so, but it shows the scope of reading widely. It's not uncommon for me to read a translation of Dante's Inferno and then go to something like “The Chronicles of Narnia.”

When you read on a wide scope, you open more doors for stylistic elements to come through that might not open if you stay within your comfort zone. With time, this will - one hopes - seep into your writing, making your style more and more unique.

Right now, I'm reading “The War of the Worlds,” by H. G. Wells. After that, I plan to read a more modern fantasy novel. And after that, who knows? I have a healthy collection of the modern and the ancient on my bookshelves.

Reading widely also heightens the chance of inspiration, new ideas, and so on. But it's all about story, really; at least it is for me. If I can't enjoy the story, or if there isn't enough story there (if it reads like a textbook, for example), I can't get much out of it. As a reader, I want to experience drama; as a writer, regarding reading, I want to learn from other writers.

Not only does a wide range add a breadth to your writing and, hopefully, your knowledge, but it also teaches you something else. Over time, I've come to appreciate more and more what literary wealth the human race has accumulated over the centuries.

If this article doesn't aid anyone as I hope it will, let it at least stand as a tribute to those great storytellers that never met me but taught me nonetheless. Those storytellers that inspired me and fueled my dreams. And let it stand as a testament of one to whom words are sacred, and who is honored for the chance to add his words to this great wealth. Next to saving the environment, I can't see a greater gift to leave the future generations than our stories.

In dialogue, many recommend contraction use as opposed to the two base words. Again, the reason is it sounds more natural in dialogue. In almost all cases, editors and fellow authors advise using the contractions.

Now, the second part of the answer is to not use contractions if you are writing something formal or want character dialogue to sound stiffer or perhaps "upper-crust" as it were. In business, law, and other formal writing forms, you do not want to use contractions-do not as opposed to don't-because it creates a formal stance. This includes writing professional advice. Again, unless you are trying to create a friendly or perhaps more relaxed air, do not use contractions.

So, for most creative fiction forms: use contractions.

For formal writing or to create a more haughty air in dialogue: Do not use them.

Notice how I did just that when speaking about the two subjects?

Last words of advice: When using contractions, be sure the subject and verb are clear if the verb is a linking one. Don't use the contraction if it's clumsy or draws more attention to the word. So, do write: Shayne will get you for it as opposed to Shayne'll get you for it. Proper nouns are the key here

Finally, passive use can hide in contractions. I've got a story for you is passive. The "have" is hidden, but is there. Don't let passive voice creep into your prose just because the flow looks better. It has to sound better first and foremost.

Word to the wise.

However, as I grew older(and probably wiser), I realized that Literature is not just about Shakespeare. It is a broad subject encompassing prose, novels, poetry, etc. After studying Literature in college, it really opened my mind to new perspectives, and how intriguing to find my mind seeking out new horizons! I got to learn that Literature is actually a subject so subjective, it could be almost anything. However, having a broad concept also means that there are more tunnels to explore, more discoveries to be made in this field of the language. In my opinion, if you say that English is the mother of all languages, Literature must be the father then.

You see. Literature is a subject that cannot be defined. If you say Literature is a language, it is not just a language. It is something beyond language. Literature is a subject that transcends all languages. It is more like a study of the human behaviour, of nature, of our surrounding, of anything you can think of in this world, or even beyond this world. It is an expression of thoughts, of reflections, of morals, of feelings, of emotions. It is a discovery of self, of environment, of living. Basically, if you really have to define Literature, the list is endless.

Personally, I enjoy reading Literature novels. Whenever I visit a bookstore, my first move(literally and figuratively) would be towards the Literature fiction section. Literature fiction is similar to normal fiction books in the sense that they also consist of plots, characters, settings, etc. However, if you were to delve deeper, there are more than meets the eye in a good Literature fiction book. A lot of times, you need to look between the lines to unearth "treasures" that can be subtle. The thing is, many Literature books tend not to go straight-to-the-point. For example, in expressing an emotion like happiness, instead of "I feel happy", it may be written as "A figurative burst of champagne bubbles that course through my inner mind, providing me with an escalating ecstacy I can hardly describe.." Hence, if you are someone who likes to dwell on words and savour them more, Literature fiction provides a plausible knock on your reading door.

Of course, different writers have different writing styles. You should always take your time when browsing through the Literature fiction bookshelves. Seated on them are rows of multifaceted powerful writings that are there for you to pick on. Always read the blurbs at the back of the books to have a rough knowledge on what the book is about. And if something catches your eye or pulls at your heartstrings, you might want to give it a try.

For me, I read quite a bit so I have a few good authors that I would like to recommend. Chuck Palahniuk is the author of the bestseller novel that was made into a movie - "Fight Club". It was his debut novel and that book simply "kicked ass"! The thing about Palahniuk is that he has this idiosyncractic line of thoughts that are often out-of-this-world and many a time proved to be very provocative. In short, clever writing with dark humour. Other books by him include "Choke", "Lullaby", "Survivor" and "Rant". If you have a liking for deep yet somehow grotesque stuff, this is the writer to look for.

Another of my favourites is Jonathan Safran Foer. Till date, he only published two novels, namely "Everything is Illuminated" and "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close". Both were outstanding novels with beautiful descriptions and again, original thoughts and writings. Everytime I go to the Literature fiction section, I would bound to check out on his column, only to find that he has not written any new books.

Above are just 2 of my favourite Literature authors that I would like to share. I could go on with more of other authors but I would rather you as the reader do some exploration by yourself. Honestly, to each his or her taste. In Literature fiction, many, if not all of the normal genres and themes still apply, just that with a more polished and intricate touch. Of course, having said that, you should not just confine yourself to Literature books. Normal fiction books can entertain you on the go, on a good summer by the pool, or when you need a bedtime companion. Basically, they serve one purpose - to entertain. Hence, it would be better to have the best from both worlds, right?

On a contrary note, there really isn't a clear line drawn between Literature fiction and normal fiction. What exists between the grey area is probably the embellishment of the words and probably a more finer approach in the thought process. Other than that, Literature fiction is easily drawn to be on par with any other novel. It takes an avid reader to really pick on a good Literature novel.

If you are new to Literature, it is never too late to start out with the novels, which are actually a more effective way to absorb new ideas and insights. Pick up a book today and you might just find that missing puzzle of satisfaction you have been looking for.