Portrait of C. S. LakinC. S. Lakin

C. S. Lakin is an award-winning author of more than 30 books, fiction and nonfiction (which includes more than 10 books in her Writer’s Toolbox series). Her online video courses at Writing for Life Workshops have helped more than 5,000 fiction writers improve their craft. To go deep into creating great settings and evoking emotions in your characters, and to learn essential technique, enroll in Lakin’s courses Crafting Powerful Settings and Emotional Mastery for Fiction Writers. Her blog Live Write Thrive has more than 1 million words of instruction for writers, so hop on over and level-up your writing!
How Connected Settings Give Your Fiction Emotional Depth
Image: Miniature hand-painted figures of a woman and man, both wearing hiking gear, are set on a stark white background.
To create unforgettable scenes, purposefully choose settings that trigger character emotions, intensify conflicts, or evoke specific moods ...
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/ Fiction Craft, Guest Post
Using Weather to Convey Mood in Fiction
Image: a woman's hand holds a magenta umbrella as she shelters from rain in an urban doorway.
Your writing might soar to new heights when you make weather—and the words describing it—an important element in your characters’ ...
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/ Guest Post, Improve Your Writing
The Secret Ingredient of a Commercially Successful Novel
Image: sealed can labeled "A Vague Sense of Unease"
Masterful writers keep their readers in a constant state of tension. How to get tension on every page? By focusing ...
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/ Guest Post, Improve Your Writing
The 3 Ms of Character Setup
Image: hand holding top hat
For first impressions to occur as quickly on the page as in person, try this basic foundation to help readers ...
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Masterful Wordsmithing with Metaphor and Imagery
man walking on narrow beach with water on either side
Taking the time to add the skills of creative imagery to your writer's toolbox will help you become a master ...
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/ Guest Post, Improve Your Writing
Questions to Consider When Plotting a Scene
writing scenes
Before writing a scene, determine what type of scene it’s going to be. Will it be a narrative scene? High-action ...
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/ Guest Post, Improve Your Writing
The Secret of Great Memoir: The Mature Self
the mature self of memoir
Memoirists have to write their story, the events of their life, from a future perspective. From NOW. Now brings with ...
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How Writers Can Optimize Their Book’s Description on Amazon
Mountains at the Glacier National Park reflected perfectly in a lake
Author and editor C. S. Lakin offers guidelines on crafting your Amazon book description to maximize sales ...
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/ Amazon, Amazon KDP, book marketing and promotion, description, Guest Post, Marketing & Promotion
How to Build a Compelling Novel Concept (Something With a Kicker!)
novel concept
Writers flounder trying to figure out how to make their idea compelling enough to sustain a great novel. Here's how ...
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/ fiction craft, fiction writing, Guest Post, Improve Your Writing, novel writing, plot, structure
4 Ways to Find the Right Freelance Editor
Local Japan Times / Flickr
Local Japan Times / Flickr Today's guest post is from author and copyeditor C.S. Lakin. Whether you plan to submit ...
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/ copyeditor, editing, Guest Post, proofreading, Working with Editors