Link Feast For Writers, vol. 33 – Theme Special

Writing blogs are a great way to learn about the craft and marketing our work. Enjoy the posts I’ve hoarded, some older, some recent.

This week there is a special category for links about theme. According to writing teacher Larry Brooks (Storyfixer), theme is one of the six core competencies writers need to master to succeed.

“Theme is how a story touches you.  What and how it causes you to think about.  How the story mirrors and/or comments upon real life.  Theme says something worth saying, even when it’s obvious.” – Larry Brooks

Read on to find out how you can discover the theme of your book.

 

If You Have Time For Only One Thing

A Gift Created From Your Writer’s Heart by Kathy Steffen

 

On Writing

From Debut to Multi-Published: What I Have Learned In My First Year as a Published Author by Roni Loren

Measuring Success by Gabriela Pereira (thank you for the link, Gene Lempp)

How to Write Every Day – In Theory by Matt Bird

How to Write When You Don’t Want To by Ava Jae

Love Lists by Stephanie Perkins

10 Writing (and Life) Lessons I Learned From My Dog by Jenny Hansen

8 Signs That You Were Meant to Be a Writer by Henri Junttila

Is Every Hero a Luke or a Han? by Matt Bird

Heroes Should Run Into Unexpected Antagonism by Matt Bird

12 Tips on How To Write Antagonists by Karen Woodward

Writing Male and Female PoV by Rayne Hall

Kick Start Your Story With These Questions by Joe Moore

Key Story Elements: Lessons From the Nightmare Before Christmas Musical by Alexandra Sokoloff

Love Thy Neighbor by Donald Maass

Plot Fixer # 9 Plots That Rely On Coincidence and Contrivance by Kara Lennox

Questions You Should Ask Yourself Before You Write a Scene. Any Scene by Larry Brooks

Learn to Pace Yourself by Jennifer Rush

Connie Willis and 11 Ways to Write Great Dialogue by Karen Woodward

Spicing Up a Story with Similes and Metaphors by Jody Hedlund

A Simple Approach to Revisions by Cathy Yardley

Cutting the Fat From Your WIP by Gina Conroy

Freelance Editing: How to Hire an Editor For Your Book or Query Letter by Chuck Sambuchino

How to Survive a Critique by Marcy Kennedy

The Dark Art Of Critiquing, Part 1: What Makes A Story Good? by Karen Woodward

The Dark Art of Critiquing, Part 2: Formulating A Critique by Karen Woodward

How Do We Handle Rejection and Keep On Pressing by Kristen Lamb

Lessons From the Godfather on Sticking to Your Creative Vision by Dan Blank

Do You Read Like a Reader or a Writer? by Janice Hardy

Short Story Structures – Several Ways of Structuring Short Fiction by Karen Woodward

Lamp Lighters and Seed Sowers: Tomorrow’s YA by Beth Kephart (books that have meaning will be remembered)

Top 10 YA Tropes by A. E. Rought

Dear Agent — Write the Letter That Sells Your Book by Nicola Morgan

 

Theme Special

Do Stories Need a Theme? by Jami Gold

25 Things Writers Should Know About Theme by Chuck Wendig

Theme Me Up: How to Develop Your Theme by Janice Hardy

Theme Simplified by Larry Brooks

Beyond Good vs. Sucky: Theme by Matt Bird

Theme = Good vs. Good by Matt Bird

Audiences Are More Interested in Ethics Than Morals by Matt Bird

Dare to Confront the Great Hypocrisy by Matt Bird

Nothing Is Wrong Until You Make It Wrong by Matt Bird

Thematic Image Systems by Alexandra Sokoloff

Visual Image Systems by Alexandra Sokoloff

Visual Storytelling – Part 1 by Alexandra Sokoloff

Hand-Me-Down People – Writing and Activism by Maya Kaathryn Bohnhoff

(What makes you really angry? What kind of a story could you write about it?)

 

Book Marketing

Why Marketing on the Power of Cool Just Isn’t Cutting It Anymore by Abby Kerr

The Art of Creating an Authentic Belief System (Otherwise Known as a ‘Brand’) For Fans, Friends + Followers by Justine Musk

Your Legacy is Written in the Thoughts, Attitudes and Actions of Others by Dan Blank

How to Keep Your Audience Interested by Writing Long-Term Story Arcs by Georgina Laidlaw

Copywriting And Making Money As A Writer With Mindy McHorse by Joanna Penn

How to Storyboard a Book For Marketing Purposes by Bob Mayer

Are Book Trailers Dead? by Laura Drake

5 Most Persuasive Words in the English Language by Gregory Ciotti

 

(Self-)Publishing

Self-Publishing or Traditional Publishing? Which is the Right First Step for YOU? Win a Free Book to Help You Decide by Anne R. Allen

The New World of Publishing: How to Get Started Selling Fiction in 2013 by Dean Wesley Smith

Writing on the Ether: Top Literary Agents Talk Author Management at FutureBook by Porter Anderson

Indie Publishing in 2013: Why We Can’t Party Like It’s 2009 by Anne R. Allen

Making Money From Indie Publishing – A Guide For the Hopeful, the Optimistic and the Doomed by Sarah A. Hoyt

All Six Mega-publishers Can Merge, and They Still Won’t Win Amazon’s Game by Sarah Lacy

Why It’s Time For More Transparency in Publishing by Joanna Penn

 

Blogging

The Zen of Slow Blogging by Kristin Nador

How to Keep Your Right Readers Addicted to Your Blog (And You) by Justine Musk

Tap User Psychology to Build a Community Around Your Blog by Richard Millington

Blog Titles That Get Clicked by Kenra Daniels

Write Better Headlines With This 7 Step Google Reader Experiment by Demian Farnworth

How to Write a Mind Blowing Headline For Twitter So People Read Your Blog by Jeff Bullas

5 WordPress Mistakes Even Experts Can Make by Sherice Jacob

Make Money Blogging: The Provocative History of Professional Blogging by Ramsay at Blog Tyrant

 

Social Media

25 Ways to Make Social Media Work For You by Kathy Temean

How Can We Brag Without It Killing Our Online Credibility by Kristen Lamb

Social Media Scrooge by Talli Roland (Annoying practices)

How to Get Targeted Twitter Followers by Jeff Bullas

Hashtags Galore by Stacy Green

The State of Facebook: What’s Working Now? by Andrea Vahl

12 Ways to Optimize Your Facebook Marketing During the Holidays by Mari Smith

How to Verify Your Website on Pinterest and Why You Should Do It by Tehmina Zaman

5 Tips For Creating Pinterest Images People Love To Share by Mitt Ray

Goodreads Ad Campaigns… Should You Take the Plunge? by Monica Davis

 

Collected Wisdom

Blog Treasures by Gene Lempp

Twitterific by Elizabeth S. Craig

Friday Features by Yesenia Vargas

 

Deep Stuff

Motivation Like You’ve Never Seen It Before by Jenny Hansen

How To Put Fear in the Back Seat by James Chartrand

Give Yourself Permission to Be Happy by Lyn Midnight

10 New Year’s Resolutions For Writers by Keith Cronin

8 Ways Goofing Off Can Make You More Productive

The Secret Power of Introverts by Jenna Goudreau

Networking For Introverts by Meghan Casserly

Which Writers Are Asking the Hard Questions Today? by Eric Christensen (great SFF recommendations that are fun and make you think)

 

Fun Stuff

10 Most Unlikely Things Influeced by J.R.R. Tolkien by Amanda Yesilbas and Charlie Jane Anders

Top 10 Most Anticipated Fantasy Books of 2013 by Marc Aplin at Fantasy Faction

Season of Superstition: The Lost Rituals of Christmas by Erin McKean

Theories of Santa Claus by Anissa at Specnology

A Writer’s Night Before Christmas (poem)

16 Holiday Themed SFF Short Stories by Bryan Thomas Schmidt

10 Comments

  1. Laura Drake
    Dec 12, 2012

    Wow, Reetta, HOURS of great reading here! Before I got started doing that, I wanted to thank you for including Writers in the Storm!

    Happy Holidays!

    • Reetta Raitanen
      Dec 12, 2012

      Thanks, Laura! Writers in the Storm is one of the best collaborative writing blogs.

  2. Debra Eve
    Dec 13, 2012

    Reetta, if I could clear my slate for a whole afternoon and evening, I would pour myself a glass of wine and go through all the Link Feasts I’ve missed! I think you’ve got the equivalent of an MFA in Writing here. Thanks for the hard work.
    Debra Eve recently posted..Late Bloomer, Long Tail 3: Heart WorkMy Profile

    • Reetta Raitanen
      Dec 13, 2012

      Wow, thanks. That’s a huge compliment. In my opinion the best thing about link mashups is being able to pick and choose the links you need right then. It’s impossible to read all the good blog posts there are no matter how fun it would be.

  3. Lynette M. Burrows
    Dec 13, 2012

    Reetta, your link feasts are definitely feasts. Loved Kathy Steffen’s post about DIY gifts from a writer’s heart. I’ll have to spend some time reading through these.

    • Reetta Raitanen
      Dec 13, 2012

      Thanks, Lynette. Kathy Steffen’s article about DIY gifts made me to slap my forehead. Why didn’t I come to think of it myself.

  4. Jenny Hansen
    Dec 13, 2012

    What an amazing Feast, Reetta! I can’t seem to stop opening tabs…this is right up my alley. Curses on you for my 12 open windows! And thanks for much for including me in this fantastic mashup. 🙂
    Jenny Hansen recently posted..10 Writing (and Life) Lessons I Learned From My DogMy Profile

    • Reetta Raitanen
      Dec 13, 2012

      Nothing makes me happier than to hear that the links were interesting 🙂 Thanks for reading, Jenny.

  5. Kristin Nador
    Dec 19, 2012

    Thanks for this wonderful batch of links, Reetta. I’m going to push quickly through my day so I can sit down and savor them. You do such a great job of finding helpful and encouraging information for writers and bloggers. Thanks for the shout-out as well. I feel honored to be included.
    Kristin Nador recently posted..Write Anywhere #57My Profile

    • Reetta Raitanen
      Dec 20, 2012

      Thank you, Kristin. I love it that you’ve adopted a slow blogging strategy. It gives us others courage to kick back a little too 🙂

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