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AllWriteFictionAdvice:April2012

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ALLWRITEFICTIONADVICE
A D V I CEONCR EA TI V EWR I TI NG

SAT URDAY,28APRIL2012

AuthorIntrusion
Itsoneofthosethingsthatsometimessneakintothe
narrativewithoutthewriternoticinganditsnotuntilan
editorpointsthemoutthatyourealiseyouhavea
problem.

A LL WR IT E FICT ION
A DVICE

IsBackstoryNecessary?
CreatingLastingImages
TrustYourMemories
ReadingYourMSSOutLoud
SortingFactfromFiction

Butwhatexactlyisauthorintrusion?
Primarily,itiswheretheauthorpersonallyintrudesthe
story,quiteoftenunwittinglytheyplacealargeproportion
ofthemselveswithinthenarrative,eitherthrough
description,actionsorthroughtheircharactersand
dialogue.
Authorintrusionisverycommon.Intruth,thereisalways
atinybitofusinourcharacters,buteverycharacter
shouldbeindividualanddifferent.Andmoreimportantly,
theyshouldbeverydifferentfromthewriter.
Theykeytospottingthemistounderstandwhattheyare
andhowtheyaffectyourwriting.Thereareseveralways
intrusionhappens.
Firstly,writersveryoftenusetheirownpersonalopinions,
personalprejudices,theirjudgementsorsubconscious
thoughtsintheirwriting.Opinions,likes,dislikes,
passionsandpetpeeveshavenoplaceinfictional
writing.If,forinstance,youarevehementlyantismoking,
youmustnotletyourpersonalviewsonitpervadeyour
charactersbyhavingthemspoutantismokingviews,
(unlessyouspecificallyhaveacharacterwho,byhisor
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2012_04_01_archive.html

WE LCOME T O A LL WR IT E

Soyou'veembarkedonyour
fictionwritingjourney.
It'soneofthehardestthingsto
docreateawhole,believable
worldforotherpeopletoenjoy,
especiallyifyou'renewto
writing.It'salsooneofthe
loneliestjobs,especiallywhen
thereisnohelporadviceor
support...sorightheretherewill
behandyarticles,examplesand
simplestepbystepguidesto
helpmakethecreativeprocess
thatmucheasier.

FE BR UA R Y FE MME S
FA T A LE S

Thisnewdeliciouslydark
anthologyisoutnow,witha
rangeofstunningfemalewriters
toscareanddelightinequal
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AllWriteFictionAdvice:April2012

hernature,isthatwayforavalidreasonconnectedwith
thestoryandonlythentheirviewsshouldnotinvade
thestory).Thisisthemostcommontypeofintrusion.
Dontlikecertainreligions?Thatsfine,butdontletyour
personalviewintoyourwritingbyhavingallyour
charactersdislikingreligion.Cantstandsport?Dontlet
yourdislikespillintoyourcharacters,theiractionsorthe
surroundingstory.

measure.Iamprivilegedto
haveeightshortstories/poems
publishedinthisbook,soifyou
likeyourdamesalittledarkand
dangerous,thisisthebookfor
you.

NOW A VA ILA BLE ON

A MA Z ON

Remember,youarenotyourcharacters,andtheyshould
certainlybenothinglikeyou.Thatmeanshaving
charactersthatarereligiousorspiritual,ortheylove
sport,andthattheydoandthinkthingsverydifferentlyto
whatyoudo.
Neverletyourcharactersbecomeyourpersonal
mouthpiece.Ifyouhavecharactersspeakingyourdirect
opinionsandviews,thenyoullfindyourselfmoulding
othercharacterstosuit,becauseallofyourcharacters
aredefinedbyactionsandreactions.Thatmeansyoull
havecharactersrespondingtothingsthatwould,
essentially,seemoutofcharacterforthem.Andthe
momenttheystartdoingthat,youstarttolosethe
cohesionandintegrityofyourstory.
Thekindofthingsthewriterreallylovesorispassionate
aboutmightalsocreepintothecharactersheorshehas
created.Apassionforcarsmightmanifest,oraloveof
animalsetc,andthenbeforethewritercancontrolit,
charactershaveturnedintosomeonecompletelydifferent
theircreator.

FebruaryFemmesFatalesThe
Book

WIS E WOR DS ...

Writingislikebeingmarried
youhavetoworkhardat
maintaininghappinessand
equilibrium,butinvariablyone
alwaysendsupinthedog
house.

A BOUT ME
A J HUM PA GE
UNIT E DK INGDO M

Justbecauseyoumightlovedifferentthings,doesnt
meanyourcharacterswill.Thiskindofintrusionis
indulgence.

I'vebeenwritingfor
over25yearsand
startedoutinthe

Anothersortofintrusiontakestheformofknowledgeand
awarenessthekindofknowledgeonlythewriterwould
possess,notthecharacter.Thesekindsofintrusions
allowcharacterstoknowpreposterousthings,suchasa
characterhavinganintimateknowledgeofcomputer
technology,whensheismerelyanordinaryhousewife
bringingupbaby.Orperhapsalowlycabdriverthat
knowsallabouthitechweaponrybythetimeheturns
reluctantheroinchapter12.

publishingindustry.I've
publishedarticles,studyguides,
poems,flashfiction,short
storiesandanovel.Ialsowork
fulltimesoI'mALWAYS
working.
V IEW MY CO MPL ETE PR O F IL E

BLOOD OF T HE FA T HE R

Ifitsoundsridiculousandunbelievable,thenitlikelyis,
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andthereaderwillspotthisstraightaway,evenifyou
dont.Ifyoustepovertheboundariesofwhatisnormal
andlogicalwithinacharactersexperienceinrelationto
thestorythenyouriskwritingsomethingthatisneither
believablenorcredible.
HowdoyouidentifyandcontrolauthorIntrusion?
Sometimesitisdifficulttospotbecausewedontreally
lookforitwheneditingweretoobusylookingatplot
flaws,characterisation,grammar,dialogueetc,butthisis
whereeditingbecomeanimportantandintegralpartof
thewritingprocess.Youshouldlookoutforthefollowing:
Socialviewsviewsthatyouasthewriterhaveinthe
realworldfindtheirwayintothefictionalworldandhave
nobearingonthestoryorthecharacters.Thatmeans
political,religious,strongsocialviewsetc.Whenthey
becomeprevalent,thatsauthorintrusion.

NowavailableonAmazonKindle
UKandUS

BLOOD A ND GUT S
A NT HOLOGY

Knowledgeandawarenessdonthavecharactersknow
amazingthings(unlesstheyactuallyworkinajobthat
requiresspecialistknowledge)justbecauseyouarean
expertinsomething.Avoidthesameifyouhaveperiod
charactersfromasetera.Peoplein1911wontknow
aboutstuffthatyoudo.
DialogueUsingthekindofwordsandphrasingthatyou
useineverydaylife,ratherthanthecharacterwoulduse
howtheywouldtalkandreact.Makingthemyouwont
work.
IndulgenceLavishingyourknowledgeofsomethinginto
thenarrative,eventhoughitdoesntfitthestoryor
characters,likealoveofart,orbyendlesslygoingonand
onaboutyourloveoftreesforexample,butdonethrough
yourmaincharacter(whoprobablywouldntcaremuch
forecosystemsanyway).

YOUASCAREDYCAT?Now
availableatAmazon

FE BR UA R Y FE MME S
FA T A LE S S T OR IE S

FalseimpressionsByhavingcharacters,usuallythe
villain,thatbecomegrosslyignorantandespecially
foolishbecauseofyourownopinionsforinstancea
blackcharacterbeingmadetoseemstupidorcriminalin
contrasttothewonderfullyangelic,Godlike,whitemain
characterrunstheriskofmakingthemhorrible,hideous
caricaturesthathavenoplaceinreality,letalonefiction.
Narrationyouaretellingastory,notpreaching,not
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2012_04_01_archive.html

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teaching,notconverting.
Yourpersonalopinionsoryourpersonalagendasshould
neverfindtheirwayintoyourfiction.
Apartfromdamagingyourcredibilityasawriter,such
intrusionsarequitedistractingforreaders.Some
intrusionsmightseemdistasteful,disrespectful,outof
place,disproportionate,toomuch,andsomewhatjarring.
Theresultwillbethattheeditorwontbotherandyou
wontbepublished.Thegoldenruleofthumb:Narrate,
keepitsimpleandtellthestory.

VisittheFeardomclickthepic

Nextweek:Whytitlesmatter.
PO S TED B Y A J H UMPA G E A T S A TUR D A Y, A PR IL 28, 2012
4 CO MMEN TS :

L IN K S TO TH IS PO S T

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SAT URDAY,21APRIL2012

CreatingImmediacy
Inordertocreateimmediacy,awriterneedstounderstand
whatitmeans,howimmediacyworksandhowitimpacts
notjustthewriting,butalsothereader.
Immediacyisthedelicateandintimateconnectionbetween

thestoryandthereaderifawriterlacksimmediacywithin
thewriting,thenthereadermightnotbeabletoemotionally
connectwiththecharactersorthenarrative,andifthat
happens,thereaderisunlikelytoenjoythestory/novel.
Itisoneofthoseelementslargelyoverlookedbymany

BLOG A R CHIVE

2015(8)
2014(46)

writers,butitsanimportantelementthatshouldntbe

2013(49)

ignored.

2012(48)
December(4)

HowdoIcreateimmediacy?

November(4)

Immediacymeanscloseness.Inotherwords,itslookingat

October(4)

theclosenessofyourcharactersandyourstorytoyour

September(3)

reader,andhowtomakethereaderfeelasthoughtheyare

August(3)

notjustreadingyourstory,buttheyareapartofit.

http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2012_04_01_archive.html

July(3)
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Tocreateit,youhavetounderstandthatyourreaderwants

June(5)

tobecometotallyabsorbedbythefictionalworldyouhave

May(4)

created.Theywanttobeabletolovethehero,fallinlove
withtheheroineandhatethevillain.Theywanttobeswept
upbytheemotionandaction,theywanttofeelthetension

April(4)
AuthorIntrusion

andconflict,theywanttoenjoythedescriptionsthatbring

CreatingImmediacy

placesandscenesalive.Thewantthewholethingtoleap

Takinginwritingadvicewill
helpyoubecomeabe...

offthepageatthem.
Butinordertoachieveallthat,youhavetoaccomplisha
numberofthings:

UseofConjunctions
March(5)
February(4)

Characterisationfullydevelopedcharacters,completewith
flawsandfoiblesandwellresearchedbackgroundsthekind
ofcharactersthereadercanidentifywith,tohelpthereader
bondemotionallytothem.

January(5)
2011(50)
2010(32)

WatertightplotAfullydevelopedplot,withsubplots,
helpstocreateacompleteandflawlessstorywithoutthe
kindofplotholesthatcanjarthereaderandputthemoff.
ConflictTheresnothinglikeconflicttogetthereaders

T WIT T E R

YoucanfindmeonTwitter:@AJ
Humpage

attention.Everystoryshouldhaveplentyofdifferent
conflicts,becausethatinturncreatesournextitem
EmotionNostoryiscompletewithoutthis.Emotionisa
verypowerfulforceeverybodyfeelsthis,whetheritslove,

FOLLOWE R S

Jointhissite

hate,passion,sympathy,funetc.Charactersareno

withGoogleFriendConnect

different,andtheyshouldelicitemotionwiththereader

Members(266) More

throughtheirownemotions.Yourreadershouldfeelwhat
yourcharactersfeel.
EmpathyTiedinwithalltheaboveelements,thisiswhat
youwantyourreaderstofeel.Greatroundedcharacters,
tightplotandinterestingsubplots,fantasticstorywithlots
ofconflictandemotionallmeanthatthereaderwill
understandthecharactersjourney,theywillempathise.This
createsimmediacy.

Alreadyamember?Signin

Viewpoint1stperson,3rdpersonetc.Firstpersonisa
greatwayofcreatingimmediacymoreintimatelythan3rd
person,itspeaksdirectlytothereader.1stperson,
however,shouldonlybeattemptedonceawriteris
experiencedandconfidentenoughtotackleanovelorlong

S UBS CR IBE T O

Posts
AllComments

storybecauseoftheverbandtenseconfusionsthatarise.
Howdoesimmediacywork?
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2012_04_01_archive.html

MOS T POPULA R A R T ICLE S

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AllWriteFictionAdvice:April2012

Itcreatesaconnectionforthereaderemotionallyand

Chapter&NovelLengths

mentally.Itsthedifferencebetweenthemlikingyour

readerwillendupdislikingyourstory.

Justhowlongshouldachapterbe?
Whatsthebestlength?And
doesanovelhavetofitintoa
setamountofwords?Theseare
justtwoo...

Inanutshell,itkeepsreadersfullyimmersedinthestory.

Flashbacks

Immediacydoesthefollowing:

Whatisaflashback?Flashbackis
oneofthoseusefultoolsthata
writercanusetoenhancea
story.Itenrichesand,ina
sense,nourish...

charactersorbeingcompletelyuninterestedanddetached
fromthem.Ifthereaderbecomesdetachedfromthestory
andthecharacters,thenthereisnoimmediacythere.The

Itcreatesemotionalattachmenttothestory
Itcreatesempathybetweenyourreaderandyour
characters
Itallowsthereadertoengagewithyourcharacterson

Subplots

anintimatelevel

Imoftenaskedbynewwriters
howsubplotsshouldevolve.
Somewritersfindsubplots
difficulttogettogripswhile
othersareputofftry...

Itcreatesasenseofbeingthererightinthethickofit
forthereader

Writersdontalwaysthinkaboutthingslikeimmediacy,but
itreallyissomethingthatwritersshouldpayattentionto,its
thedifferencebetweensomeonelikingyourstory,orhating
it,andmoreimportantly,itsthedifferencebetween
acceptanceandrejection.

WOR K S OF A J HUMPA GE

http://ajhumpage.blogspot.com
ThrillersChillers'n'Killers

It'sworthrememberingthatifaneditororagentcant
connectwithyourcharactersandstory,thenthegeneral
readingpubliccertainlywont.

SHA R E IT

SharethisonFacebook

Nextweek:Authorintrusionhowtoavoidit.

Tweetthis

PO S TED B Y A J H UMPA G E A T S A TUR D A Y, A PR IL 21, 2012

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SAT URDAY,14APRIL2012

Takinginwritingadvicewillhelpyou
becomeabetterwriter
Everyoneneedsadvice,especiallywhenyouarefairlynew

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S E A R CH T HIS BLOG

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tosomething.Itsalwaysgoodtoknowthatthereissupport
andexperienceavailabletoyou.
Thosenewtowritingneedlotsofadvice,supportand

STATS

encouragement,andthereisplentyoutthere.Theamountof
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resourcesnowavailabletowritersisnothingtowhatitwas

PA GE VIE WS LA S T MONT H

almost30yearsagowhenIfirststartedout.Therewasno

suchthingandinstantaccessthroughtheinternet,since

21,564

therewasnointernet.EverythingIhavelearnedhasbeen
throughthreedecadesoftrialanderror,readingcountless
novels,gainingtheexperience,dealingwitheditorsand

14

publishersandofcourse,dealingwiththatcharacterbuilding
thingcalledrejection.
GOOGLE + BA DGE

Whethertheadviceyoureceivecomesthroughwriting
magazines,throughbooks,viateachers,oreventhrough
blogarticlesetc,itisworthtakingnoteofthatadvice,
integratingitandlearningfromit.
Ofcourse,thestrengthofthatadviceisimportant,because
noteveryonewhodispensestheadviceknowswhattheyre
talkingabout,anditsvitalthatanyadviceisconstructive
andbeneficial,ratherthandestructiveorunhelpful.

AJ Humpage
NegativeImpact
TheoneproblemInoticedisthatsometimes,writingadvice

Author and artist

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isgivenbypeoplewhohavenoexperienceortechnical
knowledgetodoso,thereforetheadvicegivenisactually
inaccurate.Thiscanleadtoanegativeimpactonwriting,
becausethewriterwillwronglybelievetheyaredoingthe
rightthing,soitbecomesafalsehood.
Thinkaboutityouwouldntlistentosomeonetellingyou
howtheywouldperformaheartbypassiftheywerenota
qualifiedsurgeon,wouldyou?Youwantsomeonewhohas
successfulexperienceofdoingsoandhasstudiedforitover
manyyears.
So,whenadvisedtotidyyournarrativeandcutdownon
adverbs,thisnuggetofadviceispriceless.Ifyoudont,you
willhaveawful,badlywrittenanduntidynarrative,however
ifyouaretoldthatsallrubbish,andyoushouldwritewhat
youwant,howeveryouwant,thenthatsfinebutitsbad
adviceandyoufollowitatyourownperil.
Doyouthinkthatadverbsarentthatbad?
Doyouthinkthatagentsandpublishersarentbothered
aboutlackofdescription?
Showingnottellingisaloadofrubbish,right?
Characterisationdoesntmatter,really.
WhydoIneedcarewhosepointofviewitis?
Whonoticestensesanyway?
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2012_04_01_archive.html

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Therealityofbadadviceisthatyoumightremain
unpublishedorunsuccessfulforaverylongtime.
Badadvicebreedsbadhabits.Itcreatesafalsehood.
PositiveImpact
Adviceistherebecauseagenerationofwritershavebeen
thereanddoneitlongbeforeus,theyhavelearnedfrom
theirmistakesandtheyhavepassedontheirwisdomtous.
Thesearethekindofpeoplewhocanhelpandsupport
fellowwritersintheirjourney,byimpartingtheirvastwealth
ofknowledgeandyearsofexperience,particularlythe
technicalsideofwriting,becausetheonethingthatmany
writersdontalwaysunderstandisthatwritingisaconstant
learningprocess,whichtakesyears(notminutes)of
apprenticeshipandhardworktounderstandandperfectthe
craftofwriting.
Writersshouldlearntotakeconstructivecriticismandadvice
fromexperiencedwriterspeoplewhohavebeenthere,
doneitandwrittenaboutit.Theirinsightwillhelpnew
writersavoidsomeofthepitfallsandmistakesthatthese
experiencedwritersmadewhentheyfirststartedout.
Positiveimpactforwritingcomesfromthefollowing:

Constructivecritiquesfromeditorsorpublishedwriters
canhelppinpointweakareas,improveyournarrative
outputandhelpyoumasterthetechnicalaspects.
Writinggroupshelpfostersupportandadvice,aslong
astheadviceisfromexperienced,publishedwriters.
Writingmagazinesandbooksonwritingarefilledwith
lotsofwellsourcedadvice,writtenbyfellowwriters
whoknoworhaveworkedwiththeindustry.
Writingcourseshelpyoulearnthecraft,taughtby
peoplewhohaveanunderstandingofcreativewriting.

Withtheincreasingpopularityofselfpublishing,thereisa
worryingtrendofinstantwriterspushingoutthekindof
workthatwouldneverpassanEnglishexam,thekindof
writersthatunwittinglymakeamockeryofthecraftof
writing.Sadly,notallwriterscanactuallywrite.
Therearealsopeoplethatalreadythinktheyknowitall
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theydontactuallythinktheyneedadviceorsupport.Ive
comeacrossplentyofnewwriterswhodismissadvice,
thinkingtheyknowbetter.Thatsfine,butsucharrogance
willonlyholdthemback.Weallneedadviceandsupport,
nomatterhowexperiencedweare.
Valuableguidanceissuchanintegralpartofanywriters
journey,becausewithoutit,wewontgroworimprove,and
wecertainlywontunderstandhowhardwritingactuallyis.
Everybodycanwritebuthowgoodyouaredependson
howmuchyouarewillingtolearn,becauseitsuptothe
individualtotakeadviceonboard,ignoreitordismissit.
Ignoresoundadviceanditmayjustbethedifferenceofyou
beingacceptedorrejectedasawriter,butalsowhetheryou
becomeabetterwriter.
Ifyouarepassionateaboutwritingandwanttowrite,then
takethetimetostudyit,gainexperiencefromitandlearn
fromthosewhovebeenthereanddoneit.Therightadvice
isinvaluable.
Nextweek:Creatingimmediacy.
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SAT URDAY,7APRIL2012

UseofConjunctions
Aconjunctionreferstoawordthatconnectsorconjoinsparts
ofsentences,phrasesorclauses,andformspartofa
relationshipwithinthesentence.Therearethreebasictypes
ofconjunctions:
CoordinatingconjunctionsTheseareusedtoconnect
words,phrasesandclausesAnd,So,Yetetc.
SubordinatingconjunctionsThesejoinasubordinate
(dependent)clausetoamain(independent)clause,e.g.
Janewentwalkingoverthefields,althoughitlookedas
thoughitwouldrain.
CorrelativeconjunctionsThesecomeinpairswhichlink
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words,phrasesorclauseswithinthesentence,i.e.notonly,
butalso,justas,eitheroretc.
Aswithprepositions,andtheevershiftingtastesofpresent
dayfiction,itissometimesdesirabletohaveconjunctionsto
beginasentence,andjustaswiththecorrectuseof
prepositions,theycanaddacumulative,overalleffecttothe
narrative,dependinghowyouusethem.
Sometimesweusethemforcontrast,sometimestomakea
statement,sometimestheycanrepresentconsequenceand
sometimesweusethemtooffercontrastingideasorintent.
Theymayonlybetwoorthreeletterwords,buttheireffect
canbeconsiderable.
Butwerentwetaughtnottousethematthebeginningof
sentences?
Onceagain,itsacaseofpushingasidethedatedadvice
givenbyyourEnglishteachersaboutstartingsentenceswith
conjunctionsandprepositions,andinsteadusingbothof
thesetoolstoyouradvantage.Conjunctionshavetheability
tomakethenarrativealittlemoreinteresting,itpreventsit
frombeingflat.
Thecommononesusedare:

And
For
But
Or
Yet
So
Allofthese,forexample,mightappearlikethis:
So,theyhadliedtoherafterall.
Forthelongesttime,thesoundoftheplaneshummedabove
them.
Butnowthetableshadturned.
Orwassheimaginingit?
Yet,armedwiththetruth,herealisedtheycouldntbe
trusted.
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ByfarthemostcommonlyusedconjunctionisAnd.Not
onlyisitthemostcommon,butoneofthemostpowerful.
Butwhyshouldthisunassuminglittlewordbequiteso
influential?
Whenusedatthebeginningofasentence,itseffectis
multipliedbyhowitsused.Aswithprepositions,itsnot
justaboutwhereitsplaced,buthowitsusedandwhy.
Andisoneofthosewordsthatbringsbrevitytoasentence,
itcanbreatheasenseofatmosphereintothesentence,but
itsalsoarathereffectivewayofendingachapter,too,
becauseitmakesaneffectivestatementofintent,leading
thereaderintothenextchapter.
Comparetheeffectivenessofthesetwosentences:
Thelightswentout.
Andthenthelightswentout.
Thefirstsentenceisperfectlyacceptable.Itdescribes
exactlywhatitneedsto.Thesecondsentenceisalso
acceptable,buttheonlydifferenceisthatitaddsalittlebit
ofgravitaswiththeadditionofand.Thisadditionalso
changesthewaythereaderreadsandinterpretsthe
sentence.Itsalsoquiteeffectivejoinedwithotherwords,
likeAndsoorAndthenorAndyet.
Thefollowingexcerptisfromashortstorythattakesthe
premiseofandtoaddsomethingextratothenarrativeit
repeatsitthroughout,givingthereaderasenseofthe
passageoftime,anditscalledAndThen.
Legsmoved,andarmsandhands.Hisheadfeltsoheavy.
Theminutesevaporated.
Andthenthatstrangesensationrushedthroughhimagain
whenhetriedtomovehisheadremainedskewed.
Somethingtrickledintohisstomach,floodedhisabdomen
andhewincedagainstthesicklyeddy,triedhardnotto
vomit...
...Thentheminutesstopped.
Amidthesuffocatinginnersilence,hisfinalmoments
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AllWriteFictionAdvice:April2012

vanishedintotheencroachingdarknessandhisvision
instantlyturnedintoaninfiniteblackness.
Heslumpedbackagainstthecoldtarmac.
Andthen...
Nothing.
Remember,itsnothowmanytimesyouusethemthat
makethenarrativebetter,buthowtheyareused,sothink
carefullyabouttheeffectyouwant,thestatementyoure
makingandtheintentthatyouwanttoshow.Used
effectively,conjunctionsaddthatlittlebitextraandhelp
preventflat,uninterestingnarrative.

Nextweek:Whypayingattentiontoadvicewillmakeyoua
betterwriter.
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