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Juxtaposition Definition: What is Juxtaposition in Literature?

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Juxtaposition occurs any time a writer places multiple ideas or images next to each other, without drawing a clear relationship between them. It is, in other words, the art of encouraging inference, because juxtaposition encourages the reader to draw their own conclusions about the relationships between different things. Juxtaposition is a wildly underrated tool in […]

Ekphrastic Poetry: How to Write an Ekphrastic Poem

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Ekphrasis is a literary device in which a work of art, usually visual, inspires a piece of poetry or prose. Ekphrastic poetry, then, describes a poem that finds inspiration in the creative elements of a piece of art. If you’ve recently been moved by artwork, or if you’re looking to find inspiration, you may be […]

Learn to Write! 8 Tips on Learning How to Write

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Learning to write is a process, one that requires consistent hard work and determination—and perhaps some magic! But, as with any other skill, it’s important to work hard on the right thing. Instead of providing a list of pointers on how to learn to write for general purposes, this guide will offer eight key tips […]

Ode Poetry: How to Write an Ode Poem

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The ode poem is an ages-old poetry form that praises and celebrates people, places, things, and ideas. Poets have written odes to Grecian urns, the west wind, the hymen, and to childhood intimations of immortality. If you’re looking to write a poem in praise of something, you might want to learn how to write an […]

How to Write Flash Fiction Stories

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Like a lightning strike, flash fiction stories can be over in an instant—radically altering the terrain of the reader’s imagination. These bite-sized stories take a lot of style, skill, and effective word choice to pull off. Many writers try to conquer the flash fiction form in their writing careers, but the short-short story requires lots […]

Satire Definition: How to Write Satire

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If there’s any genre of literature designed to make fun of humankind, it’s satire. In both prose and poetry, writers have employed satirical techniques as far back as Ancient Egypt, utilizing the conventions and elements of satire to write about our follies. Satire writing has become more popular in recent years. This is partially due […]

Sonnet Poems: How to Write a Sonnet

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The sonnet is a poetry form that poets have wielded for centuries—from Petrarch and Shakespeare to Marilyn Nelson and Terrance Hayes. These 14-line poems use restrictions of length and rhythm to deliver lyrical, captivating musings on themes like love and death. Poets interested in short-form work can gain a lot from learning how to write […]

Word Play: Examples of a Play on Words

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It goes without saying that writers are drawn to language, but because we love words so much, the English language is filled with word play. By interrogating the complexities of language—homophones, homographs, words with multiple meanings, sentence structures, etc.—writers can explore new possibilities in their work through a play on words. It’s easiest to employ […]

Braided Essays and How to Write Them

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When I first started reading and writing creative nonfiction, I was particularly struck by the “braided essay”—its poeticism, its interlacing movements, its endless possibilities. The beauty of a braid lies in the way it weaves distinct strands into a coherent whole, the way individual strands intermittently appear and disappear. If you’ve ever felt like your […]

Protagonist Definition: How to Create the Perfect Protagonist

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If you’re writing any kind of fiction, from a short story to a screenplay, your story has a protagonist. This is the character or characters around whom the story centers. Without a well crafted protagonist, the rest of the story falls short, so careful consideration of a story’s protagonist(s) is crucial to effective storytelling. In […]
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