by Gabbi Hall There is no replacement for the lessons that experience teaches. Three published authors share their writing advice, which comes straight from years of telling stories, with The Penmen Review. Amy Cotta, author of “Six Weeks to Skinny Jeans,” says, Writing is a process of drafts, edits…
by Gabbi Hall Think of the early stages of character development as the early stages of a relationship. You go on a first date to get to know another person. To get comfortable with your characters and understand what motivates and deters them, you need to sit down with them…
by Gabbi Hall Writing is like cooking; you need the right ingredients to be successful. Think of the age-old metaphor: “That’s the cherry on top.” Using descriptive words in your story equates to adding the perfect toppings to your sundae or the final strokes to a painting. The right words…
by Kaycee Gnatowski Have you ever flipped through the pages of an English grammar book or browsed through the Internet and stumbled upon the word “determiner?” As you rack your brain for past grammar lessons, you draw a blank and come to the conclusion that this obviously must be a…
by Kaycee Gnatowski As children, grammar lessons were often accompanied by eye rolls and groans as the words verbs, commas and nouns made their way on the chalkboard. Learning basic grammar concepts was not a high priority or the activity of choice and, as adults, these feelings have not changed….
by Gabbi Hall Your vs. you’re. There, their and they’re. Then vs. than. We have all been known to make grammatical errors from time to time. “Making some grammatical errors just makes you look bad, and hurts your effectiveness,” wrote Brian Clark, the founder of Copyblogger. Copyblogger created this infographic to share 15 common…
by Pamme Boutselis We know what it’s like—you’re on deadline and whether it’s for a school or professional assignment, you have a finite time in which to finish the piece. Yet every time you start to type, you draw a complete blank. The words start to come and seem to…
by Amanda Marsico I’m here with installment two of the James River Writers Conference 2013 sessions review. The second session I attended was led by the 2013 finalists in fiction for the Library of Virginia Literary Awards: Gigi Amateau, Clifford Garstang, Robert Goolrick, Lydia Netzer, and Kevin Powers, moderated by Peggy…
by Amanda Marsico After giving myself some time to let the information overload of the 2013 James River Writers Conference settle, I’m finally got around to sharing the great tips from the “Suspense Across the Genres” session, with speakers Philippa Ballantine, Christopher McDougall, Kevin O’Malley, and Howard Owen, moderated by Julie Geen. Here are…
by Gabbi Hall The Penmen Review asked writers what the best advice they have been given was. Here is what three writers had to say: Raegan Payne is an award winning, published and regularly produced playwright. She is also a nationally recognized blogger. This is a marathon, not a sprint. Write one…