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    Crisis Writing: Use Your Experience to Fuel Your Fiction: Writer's Craft, #35
    200 Boosts for Indie Authors: Empowering Inspiration and Practical Advice: Writer's Craft, #36
    Writing Dark Stories: Writer's Craft, #6
    Ebook series3 titles

    Writer's Craft Series

    By Rayne Hall and Nicholas C. Rossis

    ()

    About this series

    Have you indie-published books, and are wondering how to get more traction and sales? Do you want ideas on how to make your publishing venture a success?

     

    This guide is bursting with suggestions you can use. I've compiled them based on what I discovered from publishing more than 50 books, learning through trial and error. I'll guide you to take shortcuts, bypassing the tedious, time-wasting chores and go straight to what works.

     

    This isn't a how-to manual, but a collection of creative prompts. Don't just read them, but use the prompts to get your own thoughts going: 'How can I apply this to my books, my situation, my publishing business?' After each suggestion, I'll ask a question to kick-start your train of thought.

    Treat this as a workbook which prompts you to research, assess and plan your projects and find the solutions which are right for you.

     

    Some of my suggestions are unconventional, and you may find it refreshing to simply ditch the book marketing efforts you dread, and have fun instead. Attract new readers with activities you enjoy.

     

    I've mixed the topics up, so we'll explore publishing strategy one day, quality another, then cover design, money saving, font choices and much more. We'll circle back to some subjects several times, approaching them from new angles. By dancing from topic to topic like a butterfly collecting pollen, your mind gets a fresh perspective every day. This will prevent your thoughts from going stale.

     

    You'll get the most out of this book if you have already self-published at least one book, are familiar with the challenges and want to take a leap forward. This volume doesn't contain how-to-publish instructions, so if you're a novice in this field, you may find some of the boosts too advanced.

     

    While I've designed the book so you can tackle a prompt a day for 200 days, feel free to adapt the pace to suit your needs. If a topic isn't relevant to you at the moment, do the thought exercise anyway, because the insights will help at a later stage.

     

    Are you ready to delve in?

     

    Rayne Hall

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherScimitar Press
    Release dateJun 7, 2014
    Crisis Writing: Use Your Experience to Fuel Your Fiction: Writer's Craft, #35
    200 Boosts for Indie Authors: Empowering Inspiration and Practical Advice: Writer's Craft, #36
    Writing Dark Stories: Writer's Craft, #6

    Titles in the series (3)

    • 6

      Writing Dark Stories: Writer's Craft, #6
      Writing Dark Stories: Writer's Craft, #6

      Writing Dark Stories: Writer's Craft, #6

      Rayne Hall
      5/5 - 1 rating
      5/5 - 1 rating

      Learn to haunt your readers with powerful, chilling tales. Make their spines tingle with anticipation and their skins crawl with delicious fear. Disturb their world-view and invite them to look into the dark corners of their own souls. This book gives you a wealth of tools and techniques for writing great short stories. It is part of the acclaimed Writer's Craft series. TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction 1. FEED YOUR FICTION WITH YOUR FEARS Places. Weird Shudders. Phobias. Childhood Fears. Dreams. Human Attitudes. Ordinary Things. Assignment. 2. WHY THE TITLE IS A STRONG START Gathering Ideas. Assignment. 3. WRITING BY THE SEAT OF YOUR PANTS Now Write. Prompts. The Freewriting Experience. Assignment. 4. FIFTEEN MASTER PLOTS Plot Ideas You Can Use. Assignment. 5. DARK FICTION AND HORROR GENRES Horror. Splatterpunk. Extreme Horror. Psychological Horror. Dystopian. Lovecraftian. Thriller. Mystery. Dark Fiction. Supernatural. Paranormal. Paranormal Romance. Dark Fantasy. Urban Fantasy. Gothic. Erotic Horror. Horror Comedy. Romantic Suspense. Steampunk. Ghost Stories. Slipstream. Speculative Fiction. Weird Fiction. Flash Fiction. Slice-of-Life. Cross-Genre. Collection. Anthology. Assignment. 6.  POINT OF VIEW Deep PoV Techniques. Serial Point of View. Omniscient Point of View. Other Point of View Styles. Assignment. 7. MANAGING TENSION Goal. Raising the Stakes. Conflicts Among Characters. Peaks and Troughs. Assignment. 8. BUILDING SUSPENSE Pose a Question. The Ticking Clock. Pacing. The Door Opens. Assignment. 9. HOW TO SCARE YOUR READERS Darkness. Sounds. Chill. Isolation. Meet the Monster. Get Visceral. The Gory Bits. Assignment. 10. CREEPY LOCATIONS Select the Setting. Inspiring Pictures. How to Describe the Setting. Practical Research. Setting Research Checklist. Assignment. 11. MAKE THE MOST OF THE WEATHER Create Atmosphere. Deepen the PoV. Make it Difficult for the Characters. Strained Tempers. Mood and Foreboding. Beware the Pathetic Fallacy. Collecting Descriptions. Assignment. 12. HOW TO OPEN YOUR STORY Opening with Setting Description. Opening with Dialogue. Opening While All Seems Well with the World. Assignment. 13. HOW TO END YOUR STORY Endings to Avoid. Seven Possible Endings. Leave Questions in the Reader's Mind. Assignment. 14. VILLAINS AND MONSTERS Human Villains: Clichés to Avoid. Motivation. Depth. Describing the Villain. Monsters: Reveal it Bit by Bit. Keep it Plausible. Assignment. 15. GHOST STORIES Plot and Backstory. Setting and Mood. Characters and Point of View. Assignment. 16. VAMPIRES, WEREWOLVES, ZOMBIES Vampires: Sparkling Versus Traditional. Vampire Tropes. Fiction Ideas. Werewolves: Werewolf Tropes. Questions to Consider. Zombies: How Zombies are Made. Zombie Tropes. Fiction Ideas. Beware the Bite-Hiders. Assignment. 17. RELIGIOUS HORROR Horror in Holy Books. Faith Versus Fear. Religious Historical Horror. Unbelievers Meet Scary Gods. Stories Presenting Religion as Evil. Writing About Other Faiths. Controversy. Assignment. 18. Why Do People Read Horror Fiction? Seven Psychological Reasons. Assignment. 19. MARKETING AND PUBLICATION Traditional Publishing. Markets. Rights. Payment. Self-Publishing. Trends. Assignments. 20. SAMPLE STORIES WITH COMMENTS Burning. Seagulls. Only A Fool. DEAR READER   British English.

      Learn to haunt your readers with powerful, chilling tales. Make their spines tingle with anticipation and their skins crawl with delicious fear. Disturb their world-view and invite them to look into the dark corners of their own souls. This book gives you a wealth of tools and techniques for writing great short stories. It is part of the acclaimed Writer's Craft series. TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction 1. FEED YOUR FICTION WITH YOUR FEARS Places. Weird Shudders. Phobias. Childhood Fears. Dreams. Human Attitudes. Ordinary Things. Assignment. 2. WHY THE TITLE IS A STRONG START Gathering Ideas. Assignment. 3. WRITING BY THE SEAT OF YOUR PANTS Now Write. Prompts. The Freewriting Experience. Assignment. 4. FIFTEEN MASTER PLOTS Plot Ideas You Can Use. Assignment. 5. DARK FICTION AND HORROR GENRES Horror. Splatterpunk. Extreme Horror. Psychological Horror. Dystopian. Lovecraftian. Thriller. Mystery. Dark Fiction. Supernatural. Paranormal. Paranormal Romance. Dark Fantasy. Urban Fantasy. Gothic. Erotic Horror. Horror Comedy. Romantic Suspense. Steampunk. Ghost Stories. Slipstream. Speculative Fiction. Weird Fiction. Flash Fiction. Slice-of-Life. Cross-Genre. Collection. Anthology. Assignment. 6.  POINT OF VIEW Deep PoV Techniques. Serial Point of View. Omniscient Point of View. Other Point of View Styles. Assignment. 7. MANAGING TENSION Goal. Raising the Stakes. Conflicts Among Characters. Peaks and Troughs. Assignment. 8. BUILDING SUSPENSE Pose a Question. The Ticking Clock. Pacing. The Door Opens. Assignment. 9. HOW TO SCARE YOUR READERS Darkness. Sounds. Chill. Isolation. Meet the Monster. Get Visceral. The Gory Bits. Assignment. 10. CREEPY LOCATIONS Select the Setting. Inspiring Pictures. How to Describe the Setting. Practical Research. Setting Research Checklist. Assignment. 11. MAKE THE MOST OF THE WEATHER Create Atmosphere. Deepen the PoV. Make it Difficult for the Characters. Strained Tempers. Mood and Foreboding. Beware the Pathetic Fallacy. Collecting Descriptions. Assignment. 12. HOW TO OPEN YOUR STORY Opening with Setting Description. Opening with Dialogue. Opening While All Seems Well with the World. Assignment. 13. HOW TO END YOUR STORY Endings to Avoid. Seven Possible Endings. Leave Questions in the Reader's Mind. Assignment. 14. VILLAINS AND MONSTERS Human Villains: Clichés to Avoid. Motivation. Depth. Describing the Villain. Monsters: Reveal it Bit by Bit. Keep it Plausible. Assignment. 15. GHOST STORIES Plot and Backstory. Setting and Mood. Characters and Point of View. Assignment. 16. VAMPIRES, WEREWOLVES, ZOMBIES Vampires: Sparkling Versus Traditional. Vampire Tropes. Fiction Ideas. Werewolves: Werewolf Tropes. Questions to Consider. Zombies: How Zombies are Made. Zombie Tropes. Fiction Ideas. Beware the Bite-Hiders. Assignment. 17. RELIGIOUS HORROR Horror in Holy Books. Faith Versus Fear. Religious Historical Horror. Unbelievers Meet Scary Gods. Stories Presenting Religion as Evil. Writing About Other Faiths. Controversy. Assignment. 18. Why Do People Read Horror Fiction? Seven Psychological Reasons. Assignment. 19. MARKETING AND PUBLICATION Traditional Publishing. Markets. Rights. Payment. Self-Publishing. Trends. Assignments. 20. SAMPLE STORIES WITH COMMENTS Burning. Seagulls. Only A Fool. DEAR READER   British English.

    • 35

      Crisis Writing: Use Your Experience to Fuel Your Fiction: Writer's Craft, #35
      Crisis Writing: Use Your Experience to Fuel Your Fiction: Writer's Craft, #35

      Crisis Writing: Use Your Experience to Fuel Your Fiction: Writer's Craft, #35

      Rayne Hall
      0 ratings
      0 ratings

      Are you in the grip of an overwhelming personal problem, or caught up in the currents of a worldwide disaster? If you struggle to survive and keep going day after day, if you find it difficult to summon the energy and the will to write, then this book can help.   I'll guide you to write more and write better than ever, by turning harrowing events into potent stories. Harness the power of your emotions, mould your experiences into fiction. You can even put the evil people who harmed you into service as villains. Your observations become the fuel that turns your tales into beacons.   You can use this book as a course of study to enrich your author voice. At the same time, it serves as practical self-therapy, because many of the principles are adapted from CBT (cognitive-behavioural therapy).   By looking at events from the perspective of an author instead of a victim, you will gain wisdom and serenity. Reframe bad experiences as story material, and manipulate events on paper. This will put you in control instead of being controlled. You don't need psychotherapy or counselling to feel better: you just need to write.   I'll show you how, in 30 lessons with assignments. For some of the exercises, you can work on the short story or novel you've already started, while others will be useful for future works. I suggest you do them all, perhaps one every day if this suits your schedule.   In April 2020, when bushfires devoured homes and habitats, the Covid-19 pandemic killed many and deprived others of their livelihood, racial hatred raged and violent riots erupted, many of my fans and social media followers lived in isolation, stress, poverty and fear. I decided to help by offering to teach a free-of-charge online writing workshop - one designed to alleviate the emotional strain at the same time as giving the students advanced fiction writing skills. The update was phenomenal, and the participants loved it. Many reported that they felt better equipped to cope with the disaster, and that their fiction had soared to a new level.   As the pandemic extended, bringing with it lockdowns, political strife and financial hardship, I decided to turn the course into a book for the Writer's Craft series. The contributions of the original students have been invaluable for this. I widened the scope, so it's no longer just about coping with Covid-19, but about responding to whatever crisis you are going through.   This guide is suitable for fictioneers at all levels, whether you're a beginner just starting out with story writing, or a professional author with many books under your belt.   Get ready to boost your writing and help yourself to feel good. I'll be your guide on this journey of discovery.   Rayne

      Are you in the grip of an overwhelming personal problem, or caught up in the currents of a worldwide disaster? If you struggle to survive and keep going day after day, if you find it difficult to summon the energy and the will to write, then this book can help.   I'll guide you to write more and write better than ever, by turning harrowing events into potent stories. Harness the power of your emotions, mould your experiences into fiction. You can even put the evil people who harmed you into service as villains. Your observations become the fuel that turns your tales into beacons.   You can use this book as a course of study to enrich your author voice. At the same time, it serves as practical self-therapy, because many of the principles are adapted from CBT (cognitive-behavioural therapy).   By looking at events from the perspective of an author instead of a victim, you will gain wisdom and serenity. Reframe bad experiences as story material, and manipulate events on paper. This will put you in control instead of being controlled. You don't need psychotherapy or counselling to feel better: you just need to write.   I'll show you how, in 30 lessons with assignments. For some of the exercises, you can work on the short story or novel you've already started, while others will be useful for future works. I suggest you do them all, perhaps one every day if this suits your schedule.   In April 2020, when bushfires devoured homes and habitats, the Covid-19 pandemic killed many and deprived others of their livelihood, racial hatred raged and violent riots erupted, many of my fans and social media followers lived in isolation, stress, poverty and fear. I decided to help by offering to teach a free-of-charge online writing workshop - one designed to alleviate the emotional strain at the same time as giving the students advanced fiction writing skills. The update was phenomenal, and the participants loved it. Many reported that they felt better equipped to cope with the disaster, and that their fiction had soared to a new level.   As the pandemic extended, bringing with it lockdowns, political strife and financial hardship, I decided to turn the course into a book for the Writer's Craft series. The contributions of the original students have been invaluable for this. I widened the scope, so it's no longer just about coping with Covid-19, but about responding to whatever crisis you are going through.   This guide is suitable for fictioneers at all levels, whether you're a beginner just starting out with story writing, or a professional author with many books under your belt.   Get ready to boost your writing and help yourself to feel good. I'll be your guide on this journey of discovery.   Rayne

    • 36

      200 Boosts for Indie Authors: Empowering Inspiration and Practical Advice: Writer's Craft, #36
      200 Boosts for Indie Authors: Empowering Inspiration and Practical Advice: Writer's Craft, #36

      200 Boosts for Indie Authors: Empowering Inspiration and Practical Advice: Writer's Craft, #36

      Rayne Hall
      0 ratings
      0 ratings

      Have you indie-published books, and are wondering how to get more traction and sales? Do you want ideas on how to make your publishing venture a success?   This guide is bursting with suggestions you can use. I've compiled them based on what I discovered from publishing more than 50 books, learning through trial and error. I'll guide you to take shortcuts, bypassing the tedious, time-wasting chores and go straight to what works.   This isn't a how-to manual, but a collection of creative prompts. Don't just read them, but use the prompts to get your own thoughts going: 'How can I apply this to my books, my situation, my publishing business?' After each suggestion, I'll ask a question to kick-start your train of thought. Treat this as a workbook which prompts you to research, assess and plan your projects and find the solutions which are right for you.   Some of my suggestions are unconventional, and you may find it refreshing to simply ditch the book marketing efforts you dread, and have fun instead. Attract new readers with activities you enjoy.   I've mixed the topics up, so we'll explore publishing strategy one day, quality another, then cover design, money saving, font choices and much more. We'll circle back to some subjects several times, approaching them from new angles. By dancing from topic to topic like a butterfly collecting pollen, your mind gets a fresh perspective every day. This will prevent your thoughts from going stale.   You'll get the most out of this book if you have already self-published at least one book, are familiar with the challenges and want to take a leap forward. This volume doesn't contain how-to-publish instructions, so if you're a novice in this field, you may find some of the boosts too advanced.   While I've designed the book so you can tackle a prompt a day for 200 days, feel free to adapt the pace to suit your needs. If a topic isn't relevant to you at the moment, do the thought exercise anyway, because the insights will help at a later stage.   Are you ready to delve in?   Rayne Hall

      Have you indie-published books, and are wondering how to get more traction and sales? Do you want ideas on how to make your publishing venture a success?   This guide is bursting with suggestions you can use. I've compiled them based on what I discovered from publishing more than 50 books, learning through trial and error. I'll guide you to take shortcuts, bypassing the tedious, time-wasting chores and go straight to what works.   This isn't a how-to manual, but a collection of creative prompts. Don't just read them, but use the prompts to get your own thoughts going: 'How can I apply this to my books, my situation, my publishing business?' After each suggestion, I'll ask a question to kick-start your train of thought. Treat this as a workbook which prompts you to research, assess and plan your projects and find the solutions which are right for you.   Some of my suggestions are unconventional, and you may find it refreshing to simply ditch the book marketing efforts you dread, and have fun instead. Attract new readers with activities you enjoy.   I've mixed the topics up, so we'll explore publishing strategy one day, quality another, then cover design, money saving, font choices and much more. We'll circle back to some subjects several times, approaching them from new angles. By dancing from topic to topic like a butterfly collecting pollen, your mind gets a fresh perspective every day. This will prevent your thoughts from going stale.   You'll get the most out of this book if you have already self-published at least one book, are familiar with the challenges and want to take a leap forward. This volume doesn't contain how-to-publish instructions, so if you're a novice in this field, you may find some of the boosts too advanced.   While I've designed the book so you can tackle a prompt a day for 200 days, feel free to adapt the pace to suit your needs. If a topic isn't relevant to you at the moment, do the thought exercise anyway, because the insights will help at a later stage.   Are you ready to delve in?   Rayne Hall

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