Revising and Editing for Creative Writers

the difference between revising and editing

Want to learn more about revising and editing? Check out our self-paced class The Successful Novel, which gives you the tools to write, revise, and publish the novel waiting to be written inside you.  Although the terms revising and editing are often used interchangeably, stylish writers know the difference between revising and editing. When it’s time…

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How to Write a Novel

how to write a novel

The novel form is a large, unwieldy, towering project, and if you find yourself wondering how to write a novel, you might already be daunted by the project’s size and complexity. Good. How you’re feeling is how every great novelist has ever felt before approaching the blank page; you have already put yourself in the…

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What is Theme? A Look at 20 Common Themes in Literature

common themes in literature

When someone asks you “What is this book about?”, there are a few ways you can answer. There’s “plot,” which refers to the literal events in the book, and there’s “character,” which refers to the people in the book and the struggles they overcome. Finally, there are themes in literature that correspond with the work’s…

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How to Write an Acrostic Poem: Examples and Forms

how to write an acrostic poem

If you’re a fan of steganography—the art of concealing messages in text—you might enjoy writing an acrostic poem. From the abecedarian to the golden shovel, acrostic poetry hijacks the poem’s use of line breaks. With this form, you can embed hidden meanings, derive inspiration, or simply have fun with the structure of poetry. Famous acrostic…

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How to Write a Free Verse Poem: Writing Poetry Without Fixed Form

how to write free verse poetry

A free verse poem is a poem that doesn’t rely on any particular form, meter, or rhyme scheme, yet still conveys powerful feelings and ideas. Rather than letting a certain structure define the poem, the poet lets the poem structure itself through the interplay of language, sound, and literary devices. Wait a minute—poetry doesn’t have…

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Flat Character vs. Round Character: Definitions and Examples

flat vs rounded character

Every fictional person that populates books, movies, and plays falls into one of two categories: flat characters and round characters. Flat and round characters each fill important roles in works of fiction, and while this isn’t the only way to categorize fictional characters, it’s a useful distinction to help guide your own character writing. What…

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Repetition Definition: Types of Repetition in Poetry and Prose

Repetition Definition: Types of Repetition in Poetry and Prose

What is repetition? At its simplest, repetition is a word or phrase used multiple times in a text, for the purpose of emphasizing an emotion or idea. It might seem counterintuitive to repeat, repeat, repeat, but when wielded correctly, the repetition of words and phrases has powerful effects in literature. You’re most likely to find…

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Line Breaks in Poetry

line breaks in poetry

Line breaks in poetry are what separate the form from prose. But when it comes to the craft of poetry, deciding where to break the line, on what word, and how the line should be broken proves difficult. Indeed, poetry line breaks often confuse writers and readers alike. How do you read them? How do…

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Irony Definition: Different Types of Irony in Literature

irony definition

What is irony? Well, it’s like rain on your wedding day. It’s a free ride, when you’ve already paid. ’90s radio is helpful here. Okay; but what is irony? It can often be easier to point to specific ironies than to find a definition of irony itself that hits home. Irony involves contradiction of our…

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Get Back to the Book

get back to that book

About the Author: Donna Levin is the author of Extraordinary Means (William Morrow), California Street (Simon & Schuster) and the recent best-seller, There’s More Than One Way Home (Chickadee Prince Books 2017). Her new novel, He Could Be Another Bill Gates, was published by Chickadee Prince Books in October 2018. In addition to novels, Donna has published two books about writing, Get that…

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