On Writing

Did you ever wonder how Stephen King, J. R. R. Tolkien, J K Rowlings or award-winning Marianne de Pierres created the amazing worlds in their books? These and other successful fantasy writers found the magic to create realistic fantasy worlds, but they didn’t find it in a book. They spent many hours working out what worked best.

Creating your fantasy world means building a world based upon reality and making sure that your reader knows the rules of that world. Your characters must remain true to those rules throughout your story. For your readers to accept and continue reading your story, they have to believe in your world and accept what is happening to your characters.

J R. R. Tolkien begins his Lord of the Rings series with The Hobbit, by creating a world so real that it has become a classic upon which so many others are based. Tolkien brought us Middle-earth and the lovable hobbits, with incredible description and attention to details. The story contains all the elements of a traditional fantasy with a bumbling hero, an enchanted talisman, dark magic versus the good wizard, and, of course, the quest.

How do you go about creating a reality that readers will accept as readily? There are several things to take into consideration. Your setting must be believable. If magic is involved, you should define the rules of magic and stick with them throughout your tale. Characters should dress appropriately for the period of your story as well as use weapons appropriate to your world.

But there is much more to learn to get right. Take a short-cut in your learning process and get it right the first time. Aurealis award-winning author Marianne de Pierres is willing to share her secrets at the Gondor workshop on May 30^th.

On May 31^st she will show you how to effectively research and what to put in and what to leave out. You can choose to do both days, or just one.

Get a group of your fantasy and science fiction writer friends together and come to Gondor for a fun and informative weekend.

Can’t make it on the day? Skype in instead. You will still be able to ask Marianne questions and take part in the day.

Phone 54 981 332 to book or go to our bookings page, fill in our form and choose your payment method. http://www.gondorwriterscentre.com/workshop-bookings.html

It doesn’t matter how well a novel is plotted or how exciting the action is, if the dialogue is flat or forced you lose your reader. Learning to write dialogue is a major challenge.

Nothing can kill a character faster than the words they speak. Dialogue is one of the main ways a reader gets to know a character.

There is good dialogue and there is bad dialogue and, depending on which you are writing, it will make or break your story. Nothing engages a reader more than realistic dialogue and nothing disgruntles a reader more than a phrase that is contrived, clichéd and unnatural; it will pull a reader away from your lovingly crafted prose quicker than a flat character or a thin plot could ever do.

Their personality is revealed in every word they speak, and in their actions, and it’s the writer’s job to make sure the dialogue is appropriate and sounds natural to that character. What to put in and what to leave out, so that you aren’t boring your reader with unnecessary dialogue and so your dialogue sounds natural, is also important.

It is not too much of a surprise, then, to discover that writing dialogue is one of the most challenging elements of fiction writing and one which takes time to master. This is a skill that can be learnt.

The next workshop at Gondor Writers’ Centre explores ways to make sure you aren’t killing your character every time he opens his mouth.

Workshop: Writing believable dialogue: Tutor Elaine Ouston
Making the dialogue suit your character, add depth to the scene, and show emotion is an important part of making your character believable. In this workshop, we will examine how to make your character’s voice authentic by examining the speech patterns of people from different walks of life and learning what to put in and what to leave out.
Course cost: $50 One day—10am to 4pm.

Places are filling fast so book now on 54981 332 or go to the website and book and pay there. http://www.gondorwriterscentre.com/workshop-bookings.html