Author: Ruby Scalera

Two is Company, Six is Ensemble Writing

When writing a large cast, you have to know your characters really well. More importantly than that, however, you have to know how they interact with one another. Here are two exercises you, as an author, can do to ensure your characters are rounded and fully-developed before they ever hit the pages of your book.

Find Your Tribe

Because there is a fine line between being alone to write and being lonely.

Dear New Authors (I Did It So You Don’t Have To)

Here’s what you need to know about being a writer. You have to get up. Because no matter how long it takes you, no matter how battle-weary you feel, no matter how many times you’ve cried this year, if you don’t get up, that’s game over.

Runaway Writer

Because I am a mad scientist writer with my hand in several pots all at the same time, I need to be organized. Really freaking organized.

Sensory Overload

Show. Don’t tell.

Every person who has ever put pen to paper has heard this line. Don’t tell us we are in Paris, give us the acrid scent of the Seine mixing with buttery croissants, give us the crunch of rough, dusty cobblestoned streets beneath our feet, give us the taste of acrylics on the air from freshly painted street art.

The Book Was Better, But I’ll Still Watch It

I’m a firm believer that the original medium is always the best medium. If a book is turned into a film, there will be something lost in translation, and vice versa. But while it might not always resemble the original story to the letter, I still enjoy many books-turned-films. Here are some of my favorites.

Back to Basics

Think about the book you are writing. Think about the book you want to write. Picture it in your mind, the characters, the setting, the themes, the mood. Is it gritty? Is it lush? Is it joyful? Find yourself in that place, that world, surrounded by those characters. Now, answer this question in one sentence.

SO YOU WANT TO DO NANO?

First of all, congrats! Your interest in doing National Novel Writing Month shows an excitement for writing and storytelling and a willingness to rise to the challenge of writing a whole book in a month!

I haven’t attempted NaNo in three years, but I’ll be doing it with you this year! My NaNo project is the third book in a current series, and I look forward to trying the challenge again, especially after all that I’ve learned as a writer and NaNo-er!