Finally! A grammar guide specifically designed for fiction writers! Introducing the second edition, with more than fifty new entries! WRITING CORRECTLY DOESN'T HAVE TO BE HARD Great writers write well. Grammatical errors mark a manuscript as unprofessional and the author as sloppy or an amateur. But you don't have to memorize the myriad of grammar, punctuation, and usage rules to have a well-written book. If you're a novelist or write creative nonfiction, this handy guide is essential-giving you the most common and applicable rules and tips to make your book shine-minus the pain! Inside you'll find Short, concise, and often humorous explanations of important grammar, punctuation, and word usage rules as featured on the award-winning blog Live Write Thrive. Bonus fiction-writing tips to help you tighten your prose and say what you mean in fewer, more appropriate words. Easy-to-navigate sections and a comprehensive index so you can find the answer to your grammar question right away. Whether you're a novice or experienced writer, you'll benefit from these clear and helpful explanations of grammar and usage based on The Chicago Manual of Style-the US book publishing industry's authoritative reference guide. You no longer need to search the web or thumb through a stack of grammar books to find simple answers to your grammar questions. With Say What? at your fingertips, you'll spend less time fretting over grammar and more time writing. And you'll become a better writer in the process! Here's what writing instructors say about this handy grammar book: "Good, concise and easily accessible reference books on grammar and usage is hard to find. I mean, are hard to find. This is one of them." -James Scott Bell, bestselling novelist, writing coach, and author of Revision and Self-Editing for Publication "This handy, user-friendly reference book, presented with style and humor, is a must for any writer serious about honing their craft and garnering respect for their works. An essential resource, the e-book will save you time with all its quick links to the short, snappy topics, and the print version is small enough to stay within reach beside your computer, so I highly recommend getting both. Respected editor and writer Susanne Lakin succeeds in making a dry topic interesting and meaningful! And using this book will also help you reduce your editing costs." -Jodie Renner, editor and author of Style That Sizzles "As a self-professed grammar nerd, let me just say this: The world needs more grammar nerds. Editor Lakin is doing her part to make this happen with her pithy, fun, and supremely useful guide to the everyday writing mistakes most of us don't even realize we're making. Her book is conversational and approachable enough to make for enjoyable reading. But its true value is in its 'lookupability.' This is the perfect guide to keep on your desk, next to your computer, for those moments when you're just not sure which word is right." -K. M. Weiland, author of Structuring Your Novel and Outlining Your Novel

Not your same old boring grammar guide! This book is fun, fast, and focused on writing amazing fiction.The world of grammar is huge, but fiction writers don't need to know all the nuances to write well. In fact, some of the rules you were taught in English class will actually hurt your fiction writing, not help it.Grammar for Fiction Writers won't teach you things you don't need to know. It's all about the grammar that's relevant to you as you write your novels and short stories.Here's what you'll find inside:- Punctuation Basics including the special uses of dashes and ellipses in fiction, common comma problems, how to format your dialogue, and untangling possessives and contractions.- Knowing What Your Words Mean and What They Don't including commonly confused words, imaginary words and phrases, how to catch and strengthen weak words, and using connotation and denotation to add powerful subtext to your writing.- Grammar Rules Every Writer Needs to Know and Follow such as maintaining an active voice and making the best use of all the tenses for fast-paced writing that feels immediate and draws the reader in.- Special Challenges for Fiction Writers like reversing cause and effect, characters who are unintentionally doing the impossible, and orphaned dialogue and pronouns.- Grammar "Rules" You Can Safely Ignore When Writing FictionEach book in the Busy Writer's Guides series is intended to give you enough theory so that you can understand why things work and why they don't, but also enough examples to see how that theory looks in practice. In addition, they provide tips and exercises to help you take it to the pages of your own story with an editor's-eye view. Most importantly, they cut the fluff so you have more time to write and to live your life.

This step-by-step guide teaches you the tricks of the trade, with advice on all you need to know to compete in the world of fiction. Whether you are seeking to hone your writing style, shape an existing work-in-progress, or begin the submission process to publishers, successfully published novelists Joyce and Jim Lavene give you all you need to know to set you on the fast track to fulfilling your writing dreams! This authoritative guide shows you how to: Turn your creative idea into a sellable premise Build a strong plot Create realistic characters Develop a first draft Find an agent Market and sell your work to publishers Whether you're writing literary fiction, a terrifying thriller, a sweeping epic, or a passionate romance, The Everything Guide to Writing a Novel is your essential reference to creating the next bestseller!

In love with romance novels? You’re not alone! Romance is today’s most popular fiction genre, accounting for more than half of all mass market fiction sold. If you’re looking to make a serious effort at writing a romance and getting it published in today’s multifaceted markets, you need to learn as much as you can about this highly successful field—especially how to create the perfect heroes and heroines. Now, in this easy, step-by-step guide, a top romance editor gives you the know-how you need to succeed as a romance novelist! Writing A Romance Novel For Dummies is perfect for both beginning and more accomplished writers who are looking to get the leading edge on writing a romance novel and get it published. Leslie Wainger, Executive Editor at Harlequin Books, explains what it takes to become the next Nora Roberts, providing the techniques you need to: Select a pseudonym Write a compelling, heartfelt story Find the right agent and publisher Submit a manuscript Market your novel Join clubs and associations Packed with insider advice, this plain-English guide helps you grasp the building blocks of a great romance, providing practical tips on the craft of writing as well as savvy pointers on how to hook your reader from page one, write with passion, and shape a proposal that will wow agents and editors. You get lots of expert tips on analyzing the marketplace, creating compelling characters, and finding your own voice. Wainger also: Demystifies the sub-genres of the romance world, from historical, contemporary, and multicultural to paranormal, romantic suspense, and Christian/inspirational Explains plotting, pacing, and writing those crucial love scenes Discusses how to conduct research, assign credits, and get permissions Helps you decide whether it’s best to write alone or with a partner Complete with a manuscript preparation checklist, tips for revising your work smoothly and successfully, guidance in understanding and negotiating a contract, and a list of romance writing resources, Writing A Romance Novel For Dummies is your one-stop guide to becoming a published novelist!

This practical book is chiefly intended to help English teachers tackle an area of the new English programme that causes anxiety and about which a large proportion are still uncertain: grammar. Grammar has been an uncertain classroom topic for many years; taught often as a duty, without real progression. In this book, the latest knowledge about grammar is treated as a central component of the meaning making process, in both reading and writing. Pupils can become better readers and write with greater confidence and control as a result of using this approach to grammar. Teachers of other subjects may also benefit from knowing how to integrate some grammatical teaching into the textual interactions of their lessons.

A book on Grammar

How do teachers identify the potential for greater depth writing and encourage children to meet their full potential? This book was created by people who are not only passionate about primary education, but who are also leading experts in their own particular areas. They have made use of their wide experience to offer practical guidance on greater depth writing, while underpinning this with theoretical understanding. We hope that reading this book helps you to reflect on what greater depth writing looks like and how you can encourage children to write at greater depth. You will find many suggestions for teaching lessons that encourage children to write at greater depth underpinned by theory.

Grammar and Writing is a practical book designed to be used by writers of all kinds who want to improve their knowledge of language in order to develop and improve their writing skills. The authors explaingrammatical terms in an accessible manner, through close attention to the way language is used in specific extracts from literary and non-literary writing.

This book is a combination and expansion of my previous guides to help new authors. It has a primary focus on the writing of fiction stories. It starts with what you need to consider before you start to write. It doesn't cover all the aspects of grammar, only those where you need to vary from the English grammar used in business or formal English. The guide covers the areas where I've had the most problems in then past, and seen other authors have issues with the existing style guides for business and academic works. This book of 42,500 words replaces my previous three guides - Writer Guide, Fiction Style Guide, and Make a Good E-pub. It also includes some instruction on how to make a good HTML file from your story. Includes a new expanded CSS style sheet and creating an e-pub from html page.