I say 1 A.M. Tuesday still counts as Monday.

I think I’m going to post part of the introduction to each chapter of Understanding Fiction by Brooks & Warren, 3rd edition (1979), to summarize their main ideas about fiction. This one is a digression, so you get it out of order. In the intro to chapter 3, “What Character Reveals”, they talk about showing versus telling while talking about characters.

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From "Confucianism and Chinese Art":

Confucius asked his students their ambitions. The first to answer said that he wanted to help weak countries get stronger. The second said he wanted his people to live a well-off life. The third said he wanted to be a master of ceremonies.

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[I'm notifying people who favorited "The Corpse Bride" because I discuss it at the end.]

There is one part of every story that must be shown rather than told: The theme. If the theme is something that can be told better than it can be shown, then what you're looking at isn't a story.

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I've collected instances of the advice "show, don't tell" from across time. Here they are, chronologically. I've blogged a couple of them before.

The Wikipedia page on "Show, don't tell" lists some more recent ones. (If you read that page, be aware that while Hemingway was a "show, don't tell" writer, "iceberg theory" is a claim about depth of backstory, not about "show, don't tell".)

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Show, Don't Tell is still being revised, creativity simply had to come to me for me to start writing it.

A Dragon's Duality will be my main story for now, I simply enjoy the idea more than Show, Don't Tell. Whether once both are finished one is better is up to you.

SDT will most likely be a one chapter story that, as I said before, has a similar concept, but completely different outcome. It will be long and will only be as long as I deem it needs to be.

Happy reading!

I—The Inapplicability of Rules for Writers

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So, today's topic actually came to me only yesterday morning whilst on my flight home. I was at 30,000 feet (or whatever cruising altitude was for that flight) and suitably armed, as is my custom, with every type of boredom-defense I can fit in my backpack that will work on an airplane. At the moment, my tool of choice was two-fold: My Zune (yes, I have a Zune, and it has endured eight years and far, far more punishment than any other MP3 player my immediate family has tried), and my kindle.

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As usual, you can find the full post here!
Hello readers! And welcome back to another installment of Being a Better Writer! A unique installment. For several reasons, in fact! And yes, it has to do with why there was only one post last week on the site.

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So, I recently finished a story that seemed... odd to me. The story in question is Clean Slate by Alaborn, and I feel like there was something that deserves discussion. Consider this a review that I am by no means qualified to give.

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Welcome back, readers! It’s Monday once again, and that means it is time for another Being a Better Writer post! But first, a bit of background.

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Yes! Being a Better Writer has returned to Monday!

Honestly, I think I just got lucky this week in not being called into work today, but even so, it feels good to be working on BaBW on a Monday again! This is the day when it's supposed to go down ... Well, up, technically.

Today is also the first day we'll be going off of Topic List IX! That's right, new list, new topics!

Which brings us to today's topic of choice: digging deeper with characters!

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Chapter 4: 1,800 words so far, planning on going to about 3000 mostly done yesterday and today.

Trust me, I'm working on my story, but because my first semester left me so busy (new academy environment), not much can be done. But now, let's get down to business!

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Welcome back writers to another Monday installment of Being a Better Writer, your source for writing advice, guides, and tips.

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Posted via Mobile.

Good news, folks! I’m almost back!

Almost. In transit, either physically, mentally, or both, but that’s still almost. Which means the return of new Being a Better Writer posts at last!

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Welcome back readers! And, with a little hope, welcome back me!

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Welcome, readers and writers!

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Taking a page from Bad Horse's last few blog entries, I thought I'd chip in a little bit.

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Hello readers on this wonderful, sunny (if your weather is like it is here) Monday morning! I’m here to alleviate your Monday blues with this week’s Being a Better Writer! Which, you may notice, is still in the grips of our summer special, the Summer of Cliche Writing Advice! Week seven of the feature, no less!

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