Slow Your Prose: 25 Tips on How New Authors Can Improve Their Craft

By James Lewis

New writers often worry more about how to sell their book instead of writing a polished story in the first place. They have the pedal pressed to the floor when they shouldn't have gotten in the ride at all, so to speak. In "Slow Your Prose: 25 Tips On How New Authors Can Improve Their Craft," we go back to the basics.

Showing vs. telling, passive/active voice, point-of-views ... many writers confuse these key elements for writing a good story. Before rushing a book to market, it's more important to write the best book possible first. But why do so many authors skip this step?

As a bonus, you'll find three proven query letters that have led to deals with a literary agent, a magazine and popular anthology by a New York Times best-selling author.

• Language: English
• Publisher: James Lewis
• Release date: May 22, 2012
• ISBN: 9781476247014

James Lewis

JAMES W. LEWIS is a novelist and freelance writer published in several books that include Zane’s Caramel Flava, Chicken Soup for the Soul (two series), Gumbo for the Soul, Truth Be Told: Tales of Life, Love and Drama and Don’t Forget your Pepper Spray. Magazine credits include 3AM Magazine, Eyeshot, Dare Magazine, Naptural Roots Magazine, Lucrezia Magazine, Circle Magazine, Rundu Bedtime Stories and an upcoming article in the fitness magazine AFAA. His debut novel SELLOUT will launch in July 2010. After spending twenty years in the Navy, James retired from active duty and now moonlights as a personal trainer while completing his studies in Kinesiology. In addition to writing, he loves to DJ and has a collection of over 300 vinyl records. He also does extensive volunteer work at a local veterans assistance center. James hopes to resume his role as a Big Brother in the Big Brothers & Big Sisters program soon.

Book preview

SLOW YOUR PROSE: 25 TIPS ON HOW NEW AUTHORS CAN IMPROVE THEIR CRAFT

By

James W. Lewis

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PUBLISHED BY:

James W. Lewis at Smashwords

Slow Your Prose: 25 Tips On How New Authors Can Improve Their Craft

Copyright © 2012 by James W. Lewis

All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

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Dear Readers,

I wouldn’t say I’m a walking resource of endless information on the craft of writing. However, I’ve been in this game for over ten years and have accumulated a nice wealth of knowledge, including on publishing and acquiring an agent. Still, I believe the first step is writing the best piece you can.

Unfortunately, with the ease of publishing e-books, I’ve found so many writers get wrapped up in their excitement of having a new novel, they sometimes forget that important first step. This is especially true for self-published writers (trust me, I’ve gotten ahead of myself, too, and readers have let me know about it). How many times have you read a review where the reader complained of missing words, plot holes, stick characters and other editing problems?

Note: This book discusses basic writing tips. These tips helped me publish short stories and articles in magazines, anthologies, and even

Reviews for Slow Your Prose

[Staciah Black · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Its very quick read has a few good nuggets for the aspiring writer to enjoy