What Can You Say About a Thing? (or Description For Everyone)

By James R. Tuck, @JamesTuckwriter

Part of the How They Do It Series (Monthly contributor)

It seems as if there is an either/or relationship with description for most folks. You love it or you hate it, no real middle ground.

I am a fan of a lot of description, and tend to fall into the camp of using a lot of it in my writing, but my wife hates it, doesn't use it and doesn't even want to read it.

The Long and the Short of Stories (or advice on short fiction)

By James R. Tuck, @JamesTuckwriter

Part of the How They Do It Series (Monthly contributor)

There is no money in short stories.

Let's get that out of the way.

Yes, you can sell them and yes, some folks pay, but short stories are not how you will feed yourself without a ton of hustle and talent.

But you should still write it.

Short fiction builds writing muscles you need to finish the big task of writing a novel or a series. When you write a short story you have to think of it differently than you do a novel and very differently tan you do any book in a series.

What Are You Really Saying? (The Use of Subtext)

By James R. Tuck, @JamesTuckwriter

Part of the How They Do It Series (Monthly contributor)

Ah, subtext my old friend. It's good to see you again.

As a quick catch up, subtext is the meaning that falls under the words spoken in a conversation. It is all the things inside your characters that color their word choice coming to bear weight on what they say and how they say it. It can add a lot of texture to your writing.

Dealing With Reviews Both Bueno and No Bueno

By James R. Tuck, @JamesTuckwriter

Part of the How They Do It Series (Monthly contributor)

You can't control what your reviews say, but you can control how you react to them. 

In the sane week, I got two new reviews, one on a book that was about to come out and one on me as a writer (yes some would say it's the same thing, but I choose to not for sanity's sake).

The one on the upcoming book was one of the most brutal reviews I have ever received. They savaged my book like a pack of starving wolves on a side of raw meat. The term “. . .underwhelming, sloppy novel,” was one of the nicest things in the whole review.

Author Readings: Speak to Power

By James R. Tuck, @JamesTuckwriter

Part of the How They Do It Series (Monthly contributor)

So last night Atlanta had its first Noir At The Bar which is an event that occurs around the world in several major cities. It's focused on crime fiction and occurs in a bar, but otherwise each city's N@TB is different from the next one. Basic set up is you have 8-20 writers who join up and do a 5-15 minute reading. It's a total blast and you should look and see if there is one that happens within driving distance to you. If so, go and enjoy. (Links will be below to read more about Noir At The Bar)

But now the point of this article.

Break Yourself Out (or how to start your book)

By James R. Tuck, @JamesTuckwriter

Part of the How They Do It Series (Monthly contributor)

How do you write a book?

Every author has been asked that question almost every time they do an author event. Most of the time people aren't asking about the minutiae of writing a book. They know how to type. They are fluent in a language of some form. They know how to string words into sentences and sentences into paragraphs and when you do enough of that you have a book.

Most of the time they aren't even asking about storytelling. They have their story in their head, probably not complete, but they know it's in there. I mean, if you see 1/3rd of an elephant the safest bet is the whole elephant is there as well. (Unless you're writing the kind of story that involves a butchered elephant. (Hey, don't judge. I see your judging face))

Know Your Publishing Rights

By James R. Tuck, @JamesTuckwriter

Part of the How They Do It Series (Monthly contributor)

Last go around we talked about the business of writing and my opinion on FTL markets.

This time we are going to talk about the business of writing but we are going to move up the ladder to small press anthologies and a bit that can apply to any contract for longer works at publishers of varying sizes.

Today we talk about rights.

People Get Arrested for Exposure (A look at "For The Luv" Anthologies)

By James R. Tuck, @JamesTuckwriter

Part of the How They Do It Series (Monthly contributor)

There's this thing you have going right now. It's called a career. Maybe yours is just at the beginning stages. You are my target audience. I want to tell you some truth before you get too deep into this game.

If you've been around the block a time or two, feel free to sit down and listen too, you might need a reminder.

Before I start * Disclaimer * : This is 100% my opinion. It is an informed opinion but your mileage may vary.

Today I speak to you about anthologies.

Tick--Tick--Tension: Setting the Clock

By James R. Tuck, @JamesTuckwriter

Part of the How They Do It Series (Monthly contributor)

Story is about tension.

Conflict, its resolution, and the build up to that. Sometimes your story is about the tension between characters, sometimes it is the tension between a characters actions and the oncoming consequences, sometimes the tension comes from the circumstances the plot has put your characters in.

Tension occurs when you inform the reader that something is going to change, to be revealed, or even be destroyed. As the author you set a ticking time clock on the story and that knowledge will keep your reader turning pages.

Small Things That Will Make Your Writing Life Easier

By James R. Tuck, @JamesTuckwriter

Part of the How They Do It Series (Monthly contributor)

Writing a novel takes time.

Often it takes a LOT of time.

I'm a fairly fast writer and still a new novel can take months. Some of this is the attrition of physically typing all the words, but some of it is spent on those little moments where we are writing and find ourselves stuck for long moments, frozen at the keyboard while our brain does the mental equivalent to the little spinning thing on your computer.

Writers--Do the Hard Thing

By James R. Tuck, @JamesTuckwriter

Part of the How They Do It Series

JH: Sometimes we run into a writing wall and we're too scared (or lazy) to scale it. We might see the right path leads over the wall and into the scary woods, but it feels like so much work to get there. Scary, uncertain, finger-breaking work. One of my favorite people, James Tuck, is here today to share some thoughts on this, and what to do when you hit that wall. And I'm delighted to announce that we'll be seeing a lot more of James, as he's just joined us as a monthly contributor.

James was born and raised in Georgia and grew up drawing and reading a steady helping of Robert E. Howard stories, Golden Age comics, and books he was far too young to be reading. Combined with a very Southern involvement in church and watching horror movies, this became the bedrock of his creativity. He became a tattoo artist, and now writes dark fantasy. He's the author of the Deacon Chalk: Occult Bounty Hunter series, a variety of short stories and novellas set in the same world (and some outside of it), and the editor of the Thunder on the Battlefield anthologies. His newest series (co-written with Debbie Viguie), is Robin Hood: Demon's Bane.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iTunes | Indie Bound

Take it away James...

Two Heads Are Better Than One (co-authoring a book for dummies)

By James R. Tuck, @JamesTuckwriter

Part of the How They Do It Series

Writing a novel is usually a solo endeavor, but there are plenty of writers out there who team up to put words to paper. James Tuck is one such writer, and he's here today to share his experience writing as a duo for those thinking about trying a joint effort on their next writing project.

James was born and raised in Georgia and grew up drawing and reading a steady helping of Robert E. Howard stories, Golden Age comics, and books he was far too young to be reading. Combined with a very Southern involvement in church and watching horror movies, this became the bedrock of his creativity. He became a tattoo artist, and now writes dark fantasy. He's the author of the Deacon Chalk: Occult Bounty Hunter series, a variety of short stories and novellas set in the same world (and some outside of it), and the editor of the Thunder on the Battlefield anthologies. His newest series (co-written with Debbie Viguie), Robin Hood: Demon's Bane, comes out in the fall.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iTunes | Indie Bound

Take it away James...

"Speechtags are of the Devil," He Said

By James R. Tuck

JH: Today, I'd like to welcome a great guy to chat with us about, well, chatting. Or more specifically, tagging our chatting. James R. Tuck will share his tips on writing dialogue tags.

James was born and raised in Georgia and grew up enjoying all the South had to offer. Good food, adventure in mild winters and hot, muggy summers, excellent music, and good church folk. His debut novel Blood and Bullets releases today, and you can find more of his hero, Deacon Chalk, in his e-book novella That Thing at the Zoo. You can also find his short story, He Stopped Loving Her Today, at One Buck Horror.

Take it away JT...