Link Feast For Writers, vol. 49 – Setting Special

Here’s your round of writing, book marketing and other interesting links. My apologies for missing weeks. I’ve been really busy with work and family.

Next Link Feast is due in two weeks, on Friday 21st of July. Because of work schedules I’m moving Link Feasts permanently for later weekday.

Enjoy the links. And please leave a comment. I’d love to hear what kind of links would be most useful to you right now 🙂

 

On Writing

Why Good Writers Sometimes Give Bad Advice? by Lisa Cron

To get the answers we need, we must ask the Right Questions by Jennette M. Powell

Authors: How Are You Backing Up Your Manuscripts and Business Files? by D.D. Scott

The Weirdest Story Ideas Come From Your Own Obsessions by Kelly Link

Pinterest: The Ultimate Writing Excercise by Shannon at DuoLit

Write Your Novel Step by Step by Melanie Anne Phillips

10 Traits of Great Protagonists by Janice Hardy

How to Prevent Predictable Plots by Noelle Sterne

Families: Google+ Worldbuilding Hangout by Juliette Wade

Why the Hero’s Journey Is a Tourist Trap by Lisa Cron

Figuring Out Your Story’s Turning Points by Jenny Hansen

How to Structure Your Story, Part 11: The Spiritual Crisis by Matt Bird

How to Structure Your Story, Part 12: Proactive Pursuit of the True Goal by Matt Bird

How to Structure Your Story, Part 13: The Timeline Is Unexpectedly Moved Up by Matt Bird

Setpiece Scenes: The Unlimited Production Budget by Alexandra Sokoloff

The 7 Essential Questions of Plot – Do You Ask Them? by Jenny Hansen

10 Things Your Opening Chapter Should Do:  A Check-List for Self-Editing by Anne R. Allen

Once More With Feeling by Shannon Donnelly

“Deepening” In to a Scene of Oppression by Juliette Wade

Make It Stick: The Art of Chapter Ending by Tiffany Reisz

Different Voices In Your Narrative by Juliette Wade

How to Write Characters Who Don’t Sound Like You by Janice Hardy

4 Most Common Mistakes Fiction Editors See by Victoria Mixon

How I Self-Edit My Novels: 15 Steps From First Draft to Publication by K.M. Weiland

Using a Critique Checklist, or, How Not To Look Like a Twit by Becca Puglisi

Create a Style Sheet For Your Manuscript by Rachelle Gardner

Should Authors Write Bad Book Reviews by Kristen Lamb

Is It Fair For Authors to Review Other Authors: Do We Ruin the Magic? by Kristen Lamb

 

Settings and World Building

10 Questions to Ask When Choosing Your Setting by Janice Hardy

Setting Your Tale – Part 1 by David Farland

Persistent World, Persistent Characters by David Farland

How Real Do You Want Your World to Be? by David Farland

Your Setting as a Petri Dish by David Farland

Resonance in Settings by David Farland

World Building Tips Learned at Louvre by Janice Hardy

Tips For Shared Worlds and Collaboration Between Independent Authors by Charlotte E. English

 

Book Marketing & Social Media

Writers: 5 Tips on How to Identify Your Target Audience by Colby Marshall

Tweeting Is Not a Marketing Strategy by Dan Blank

10 Free (or Mostly Free) Book Launch Strategies by Chris Robley

Reach New Readers With The Magic Of Audiobooks by Wolf Pascoe

7 Ways Authors Waste Time “Building Platform” on Social Media by Anne R. Allen

What Is Your Strategy For Social Media Intimacy? by Srinivas Rao

25 Tweet Ideas To Help Authors Fight Follower Fatigue by Toni at DuoLit

5 Ways to Use Pinterest For Book Promotion by Shannon at DuoLit

Getting the Most Out of Triberr as Authors by Kenra Daniels

 

(Self-)Publishing

Murder Most Foul by Kristine Kathryn Rusch

The New World of Publishing: Stop Submitting Manuscripts to Traditional Publishers by Dean Wesley Smith

The Stages of an Indie Writer by Kristine Kathryn Rusch

How to Survive and Thrive as an Indie Author by Karen Woodward

Writing on the Ether: Faster, Authors, Faster! by Porter Anderson

 

Blogging

8 Ways Blog Writing Is Unique by Mark Schaefer

Six Steps to a Stress-Free Blogging Habit by Skellie at DailyBloggingTips

3 Ways to Blogging Success by Joel Friedlander

How to Write Your Best Post Ever, Part 1: Planning by Vinita Zutshi

How to Write Your Best Post Ever, Part 3: Editing by Vinita Zutshi

The Brain-Dead Simple But Effective Way To Become a Better Writer by Greg Digneo

5 Ways to Bond With Your Audience by Henneke Duistermaat

Why You Shouldn’t Create a Newsletter (and What to Do Instead) by Jon Morrow

How to Add a Click to Tweet to Your Blog Posts by Caitlin Muir

5 New Ways to Think About Guest Posting by Annabel Candy

How to Use Google+ To Easily Record a Video Blog by Marcy Kennedy

How to Read More Blogs In Less Time by Rachelle Gardner

 

Collected Wisdom

Twitterific by Elizabeth S. Craig

Writer Resources by Gene Lempp

Monday Must Reads by Yesenia Vargas

 

Deep Stuff

5 Life-Saving Facts About Blood Clots by Jenny Hansen

5 Simple Behaviours That Help Prevent Blood Clots by Jenny Hansen

Do You Need a Judgement Day Bucket List? by Jenny Hansen

The Truth About Why You Aren’t Learning Anything in Your Online Classes by Tea Silvestre

25 Things to Know About Sexism and Misogyny in Writing & Publishing by Chuck Wendig

Boudicca: An Archetype For the Ages by C.P.D. Harris

Introduction to the Green Beret Survival Guide and Why You Need It by Bob Mayer (a must read for anyone interested in Post Apocalyptic books)

 

Fun Stuff

An Earnest Attempt to Make You Feel Good Avout Game of Thrones Again by Leah Schnelbach

Movie Review: Man of Steel by Melinda VanLone

No, Man of Steel’s Superman Is Not Your Superman. And That’s Okay by Emily Asher-Perrin

The Great Fantasy Novel Nomination: The Warded Man by Peter V. Brett by Myke Cole (having just read the first three books of the series, I had to share this. Impressive fantasy)

Fiction Affliction: June Releases in Urban Fantasy by Suzanne Johnson

Fiction Affliction: Genre Benders For June by Suzanne Johnson

Fiction Affliction: June Releases in Fantasy by Suzanne Johnson

Link Feast For Writers, vol. 19 – World Building

Every writer needs world building (a.k.a. setting), regardless of a genre. Good setting creates and enchances the conflict of the story, and anchors your characters in their world. What characters want and need has no meaning without a context and history.

Hence a big part of the links this week focuses on world building. And well, also because it’s a favourite hobby of mine 😉

You can find the regular features (writing, author platform, deep stuff etc.) when you scroll down further. Happy browsing.

 

If You Have Time For Only One Thing:

More than Magic & Gadgets–Taking Science Fiction and Fantasy to Another Level by Kristen Lamb

 

World Building

How Much World Building Should You Do Before Writing the Novel? by Lynn Viehl

Building a World from Top-Down, Bottom-Up or Sideways by Sofie Bird

World Building Do’s by Lynn Viehl

World Building No No’s by Lynn Viehl

The Elevator Speech For Your Setting by Berin Kinsman(After the first paragraphs the advice might not be 100% applicable to writing since it’s aimed for roleplaying games)

Information Density, or, Cramming a Fifty Pound Sausage in a Five-Pound Sack (Swan Tower)

Creating a Story Bible by Suzanne Johnson

Your Writer’s Bible by Sofie Bird

World Building Questions by Patricia C. Wrede

Building Secondary Worlds by Mark Charan Newton

Using Tarot Cards to Create a World by Raeyn Barclay

Drawing Inspiration From Further Afield: Fantasy Set In Non-Western Cultures by Aliette Bodard

World Building 101 by Charlie Stross

World Building Heuristics by Charlie Stross

“The ratio of the near future is: 90% of it is just like today, 9% is stuff that is on the drawing boards, and 1% is unutterably strange and alien and unexpected.” – Charlie Stross

World Building: Psychology by Charlie Stross

World Building: The Unknown by Charlie Stross

Lost and Found: The Orphaned Hero in Myth, Folklore, and Fantasy by Terri Windling

Overused Tropes of Fantasy (Roleplaying Tips)

Medieval Demographics Made Easy. Numbers For Fantasy World

9 to 5: Character Jobs in Fantasyland by S.B. Stewart-Laing

10 Divine Concepts (Roleplaying Tips)

Magic? It’s Complicated (Old Words for Old Worlds)

Sanderson’s First Law of Magic by Brandon Sanderson

Sanderson’s Second Law of Magic by Brandon Sanderson

Magic Systems by Juliette Wade

How To Keep Your Story’s Superpowers/Magic Extraordinary by B. McKenzie

 

On Writing

Reading Like a Writer by Patricia C. Wrede

Making the Most of Ideas – The Fear by David B. Coe

Story Elements Checklist by Alexandra Sokoloff

Complicated Webs & Pacing by Patricia C. Wrede

Micro & Macro Levels of Writing by Patricia C. Wrede

Deep Characters For Plot-First Writers by Suzanne Johnson

6 Tricks Movies Use To Make Sure You Root the Right Guy by C. Coville at Cracked.com

Making Your Book Memorable: Creating Moments by Roni Loren

Michael Hauge’s Workshop: An Antidote To Love At First Sight by Jami Gold

Michael Hauge’s Workshop: Are These Characters the Perfect Match? by Jami Gold

5 Ways To Respect Your Writing by Krissy Brady

Why Write Short Stories by Sandra Wickham

Idea Prompt: Fairytale/Myth + Genre/Setting by Sofie Bird

Stand Out In The Slushpile: Some Basic Tips by Erika Holt

 

Author Platform, Blogging & Social Media

How To Create Your Own Brand & Find Your Voice by Marie Forleo (5:08 min video)

Digital Self-Publishing Checklist by Lori Devoti

Advertising Your Freebie eBooks by Karin Cox

Building a Following: The Four Types of Bloggers by Roni Loren

Why I Quit Blogging (and What To Do If You’re Struggling) by Jon Morrow

5 Ways To Systemize Your Blogging by Nick Thacker

How To Legally Use Your Own Photos On Your Blog by Melinda Van Lone

8 Ways To Grow Your Social Media Footprint by Jenny Hansen

How To Build A Rabid Following On Twitter To Promote Your Blog Posts by Jon Morrow (4:56 min video)

Facebook For Authors: Understanding EdgeRank by Chris Robley

 

Collected Wisdom

Twitterific by Elizabeth Spann Craig (August 12)

Friday Features by Yesenia Vargas (August 10)

World Building Resources by Juliette Wade

(In case you are wondering, there are no links to Gene Lempp’s Blog Treasures and Roni Loren’s Friday Features this week because those formats were on a short break)

 

Deep Stuff

5 Important Things I Learned Teaching Autistic Kids by Jenny Hansen

Modern Heroes by Kim Vandervort

Sisterhood by Karin Rita Gastreich

Chasing a Storm & Finding One Inside by Lara Zielin

 

Fun Stuff

Behold Fantastic (Pinterest boards for lovers of history and fantasy)

Immortal Monday: Death Deities & Meg Cabot’s Abandon by Debra Kristi

10 Fantasy Must Reads by Patricia C. Wrede

When Giants Walked the Earth by Ash Silverlock