If there’s one certainty about characterisation, it’s that names don’t exist in isolation. It’s tempting to think: do they really matter all that much? After all, our parents chose our name simply because they liked it. Isn’t it enough to do the same with our characters? While this is true to an extent, fiction is not…
5 Dreamy Writing Prompts and Exercises
Dreams have always fascinated me. Why do we dream? Are they meaningful? Why do they form certain patterns? How can we use them to tap further into our creativity? While I can’t answer these questions, I thought that writing some good old-fashioned prompts and exercises around this topic might help us gain further insight into…
Anatomy of a Monstrous Antagonist
Archetypes in fiction are not always clean cut. For example, a villain is an antagonist but an antagonist doesn’t necessarily have to be a villain. A monstrous antagonist like Frankenstein’s monster (who is arguably an anti-hero depending on how you look at it), can be compassionate; or conversely inhumane like Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Today I’m…
5 Ways to Improve Your Grades as a Creative Writing Student
Hello everyone! I hope I find you well. For those of you continuing with their studies during the COVID-19 pandemic, I wanted to share five tips I’ve learned over the course of the year to keep improving my grades during this difficult time. Concentration is challenging (I’m finding I’m reading sentences in module texts over…
How Writing Can Help You Through COVID-19
Hi everyone, I’m sorry I haven’t posted in a few weeks! Normally when I talk about writing on janedoewrites.com, I’m referring to prose fiction; but during the current circumstances, let’s face it, any kind of ink on the paper counts, and I’m finding myself trying out new things. So whatever kind of creative writing interests…
How to Get Fiction Inspiration From Your Family History
As I write this article I’m holding a hairdryer, trying to melt a block of frozen soup away from its non-microwavable container. I’m sure my ancestors had a better system, but then again they didn’t have freezers. Often unconscious of the fact that Caveman Joe, Erik the Beardless and Sophie Hairdryer Soup Queen are the…
5 Ways Writing Poetry Can Improve Your Prose Fiction
Find updates on the Breakfast Club Writing Routine at the bottom of this article! Part way through the film Chocolat, Judy Dench gives a poetry book to her estranged grandson. He reacts in the way many children (and adults) would. Says thank you with a glazed expression; wishing the present was a new puppy or…
The Breakfast Club Writing Routine
As I mentioned in my last post, my 2020 writing goals have fallen by the roadside; with cackling, smug weeds growing through the cracks! I realised a while ago that simple routines are more effective. And yet the amount of writing I’ve been expecting from myself this year has probably been too hot to handle….
A Personal 10 Step Reading Program to Improve Your Writing
Hello everyone! I hope 2020 is going well for you and that you’re managing to keep up with your writing goals (disclaimer: I’m not). The other day I was thinking about how certain novels have a big part to play in developing our writing, and wanted to share my personal list with you, including specific…
Using Word Trees to Generate Plot Ideas
It’s never fun to be stuck in quicksand. I know what it’s like when you have a great character idea or inciting event, but come to a point where you can’t move forward in a story. Fortunately, I’ve found a solution to get myself out of that deadly and, frankly itchy situation: Experimenting with writing…