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1500 questions
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6 answers

Can You Hide A Character's Name?

So I'm writing a screenplay and I'm not sure if I can hide my character's name. Do I have to say it in the screenplay but just mention that we don't get their name until later. I've heard I should just use a nickname, but when their "name" is…
user46881
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12 answers

Fictional diary for a novel

When it is appropriate to use the diary form for a novel? Which are the most effective published examples? (I mean fictional diaries, so not Anne Frank's diary).
Wizard79
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How do you build good per-book *and* global indexes?

For our SDK, we generate individual documents (PDFs) and one big HTML doc set (CHM file) from the same Docbook source. Each book has an index, and the HTML version has an integrated index that is the union of all the individual entries. We have…
Monica Cellio
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How do you prevent a character from being a creator's pet?

I have a character that I really like. They were originally intended to be the main villain for a particular story arc and then get killed off for good at the end, but I felt they were really interesting and had a lot of potential that wasn't being…
user2352714
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How can I keep up with my co-author's detail creation?

Keeping track of details invented for a work of fiction is never simple, often requiring writing bibles and continuity editors. But when two people are working on the same book simultaneously, then you're not only dealing with the details you've…
Standback
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Should my readers be able to identify with the bad guy?

I'm in the process of defining the characters for a novel. It is a crime fiction, with a really strong focus on the characters. I hope to construct really rich, complex and clearly defined characters. I know that I should, in principle, create…
Carl Seleborg
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How do collaborating authors choose an agent?

If two authors collaborate, and each of them already has an agent - then who handles the collaborative work? Do the authors decide to be jointly represented under one of their two agents? If that's the case, doesn't that "cut out" the other agent -…
Standback
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How do you track dependencies for your co-authors?

I and one or more co-authors, sometimes geographically distributed, are working on a set of related documents. Sometimes I will make a change in my part that affects someone else's part; this could be anything from changing a name to adding a new…
Monica Cellio
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In fiction, what is meant by phrases such as "his eyes flashed anger for a moment"?

I've read a lot of such phrases, but that one in particular doesn't make sense to me. Physically, what is supposed to be described here? How long is the moment? I've personally tried to make my eyes "flash" as quickly as possible and it's not…
Michael Stachowsky
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Is publishing to Amazon Kindle-alternative eBook markets worth the time and effort?

I have published a few collection Kindle eBooks, and am planning on publishing at least 3 more in the not-too-distant future. While my experience with the Kindle marketplace has been mostly positive, I have been wondering about the other options out…
Strozykowski
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6 answers

How can I edit my own, very old work?

I have about a hundred pages of a novel I wrote in high school, I like the concept behind the writing but I'm finding it extremely difficult to go back and read/edit it again. I last edited the document in 2007. The work received lots of praise at…
Zelda
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Is the phrase “You are requested” polite or rude?

I along with my guide wrote a research publication, which had to be sent to a journal for the purpose of review. My professor wrote the cover letter of the paper as follows: Dear Editor in Chief You are requested to review the paper "Title of the…
ShiS
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4 answers

Can you pitch an outline?

Here's my question: can you pitch an outline of a novel to an agent? I.e. you have two to three chapters complete to a high standard and at full outline of the rest. Would any agents agree to represent a book based on its premise ahead of its…
peanut
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Is there a difference between historical fiction and creative non-fiction?

I have seen two similar terms, historical fiction and creative non-fiction. I'm writing some stories that are set during a real time in history, that might mention real events, real people, but that have fictional main characters and a fictional…
Village
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4 answers

Maintaining distance

I am working on a novel inspired by the Shahnameh - a Persian epic poem by Abul-Qâsem Ferdowsi. The Shahnameh (the title means "The Book of Kings") is structured as a series of interconnected tales: birth of hero Such-and-Such, heroic tale A about…
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