Every time I open Google Reader and see the lastest posts from my favourite blogs, I discover fantastic articles on the art, craft, and business of writing.
But which are the posts I’ve read this year that I found the most useful? The ones I read and thought, “Wow! That article is going to totally make my writing better”?
Because it’s the end of the year, here’s a short summary of what I deem to be the top ten articles on writing I’ve read this year (in no particular order):
The Top 10 Fiction Writing Articles of 2010
- The Ultimate Guide to Novel Queries, by Jane Friedman of There Are No Rules. Everything you wanted to know about how to write query letters, condensed into a short series of posts.
- The 6 Degrees of Show vs. Tell, Rated by Quality, by Victoria Mixon. If you really want to understand the differences between showing and telling, check out this interesting article.
- How to S.W.O.T. Your Story Over the Fence, by Larry Brooks of Storyfix. Learn how to evaluate your novel using the S.W.O.T. method.
- 10 Ways to Create a Plot Twist, by T.N. Tobias. Story getting boring? Why not weave in one of these plot twists?
- The Obvious Symbolism Police, by Sarah Lapolla of Glass Cases. Just when you thought you were being subtle…the obvious symbolism police are here to tell you you’re wrong!
- Seven Keys to Writing Good Dialogue, by Nathan Bransford. Dialogue is the downfall of many aspiring authors. Read this advice to improve the way you write dialogue.
- 7 Techniques for a Dynamite Plot, Alan Rinzler of The Book Deal. Advice on how to take your story from ordinary to extraordinary.
- How to Ensure 75% of Agents Will Request Your Material, by Marcus Sakey for There Are No Rules. Isn’t this what every writer wants? Here are some great tips on how to get your work ready by literary agents.
- 12 Literary Journals Your Future Agent is Reading, by Zachary Petit for Writer’s Digest. If you’re into writing short stories as well as novels, you might consider submitting pieces to these literary journals.
- Best Writing Exercises, Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV, Part V, Part VI, by Larramiefg of The Divining Wand. Whether you love or hate writing exercises, there are some gems in this series offered by established and debut authors.
What are your very favourite posts of 2010? Which articles do you feel will help take your writing to another level in 2011?
Great list thanks for all the fab information
choosing the ten best articles of a whole year must have been quite a task! but you’ve done well…thanks
Thanks! I really just went through my list of tweets for the year and opened all my favourites in tabs, then narrowed it down from there. Time consuming, but worth it! These are some great articles.
Very much appreciate the mentions! Honored. Thank you.
No worries, Jane! I loved your series on queries.
What a great list!!! Thank you for compiling it. 🙂
The top ten are a great and helpful list of fiction writing articles. It is too bad the list did not include Jane Friedman’s recommended article by Chuck Wendig titled ‘Should I Self Publish’ (including superlatives that might not be appreciated by parents of pre-teen aspiring scribes).The blog is the most inclusive article anyone could peruse. Wendig discusses whether to self publish or continue courting rejections while giving an honest assessment of the writing life at all levels. The content is a must for all writers including the one-two or even a few book published authors content with having an agent, a few advance checks, and speaking on the book conference circuit. The blog should be included on any top ten list or at least suggested as #11.
Thanks for the addition, Robert! This is, of course, only a top list of the articles I’ve read this year, which means there are probably hundreds of other articles out there worthy of being included. I’ll have to check out this one!
Great round-up of articles, thanks. There are some new-to-me names to check out, always a pleasure. Here’s to a happy and successful new year of writing!
On behalf of all The Divining Wand authors, thank you much!
You’re so very welcome, Larramie!
Great list!
Found your list via many (many) retweets. Thanks for sharing it…a great way to start off a new year of writing. All best to you~
Great Blog! Thanks 🙂