writing | author-2dot0

Writers Life - A Student Visit

These students all read above their grade level. The two classes had different personalities but I was prepared for that. I had a loose outl

Miles O'Neal

May 22, 20194 min read

Writing 101 - Process Part 3

The early reader (or beta reader) process should start when the first draft is done. You want to start lining your readers up early enough t

Miles O'Neal

Feb 6, 20194 min read

Writing 101 - Process Part 2

First read-through: We read through just to read it as a story. Does it grab and keep our attention? Does it flow well? Is it believable? Do

Miles O'Neal

Jan 30, 20194 min read

More Notes on Dragon Names

In a recent blog, I shared some insight behind the names of several dragons from The Dragon Lord Chronicles. Today we'll look more into...

Miles O'Neal

Jan 28, 20192 min read

Writing 101 - Process Part 1

How you proceed depends on whether you are a plotter or pantser. Since I am a panster, I will cover that. (I may cover plotting another time

Miles O'Neal

Jan 23, 20193 min read

How to Name Your Dragon

In an older blog, we looked at the importance of names fitting the story. In a more recent blog, I covered some ways to come up with...

Miles O'Neal

Jan 21, 20193 min read

Writing 101 - He Said She Said (Teaching By Examples)

Issue: "I feel like my dialogue is just a wall of 'He said' and 'She said.' How do I change it up?" Solution: There are several layers...

Miles O'Neal

Dec 19, 20182 min read

Writing 101 - Coming Up with Names (Teaching by Examples)

Issue: "How do I come up with names for my characters?" Solution: There are numerous ways to do this! Here are a few I've used...

Miles O'Neal

Dec 12, 20182 min read

Writing 101 - Show vs Tell (Teaching by Examples)

Issue: "I hear a lot about 'showing vs telling.' What does that mean? Solution: Basically, telling is simply stating facts or basic...

Miles O'Neal

Dec 5, 20181 min read

Writing 101 - First Word (Teaching by Examples)

Issue: "All of my paragraphs start with 'The', 'She' or the MC's name. HELP." Solution: Spend some time analyzing books you like. Examine...

Miles O'Neal

Nov 29, 20181 min read

Writing 101 - A Wibbly-Wobbly, Timey-Wimey Table of Contents

I have found that chapter titles seldom leap out at me as I'm writing a book- at least, any likely to make it into the final product. I...

Miles O'Neal

Apr 19, 20181 min read

Writing 101 - Those Pesky Titles, or When Bullwinkle Met The Dragon

I read and hear all the time that writing is hard. Once upon a time, it could be. But that's what practice is for. Now I generally find...

Miles O'Neal

Oct 28, 20172 min read

When You Simply Have To Use a Quill Pen

Have you ever tried to write with a quill pen? It's not really hard to do, but it is a bit of extra work, and hardly the stuff instant...

Miles O'Neal

Dec 26, 20164 min read

Writing 101 - Everyone has Unpublishable Junk

THE ALBATROSS CHRONICLES There are many aspects of writing we talk about- the need to just write, holding off on editing, the importance...

Miles O'Neal

Jun 18, 20152 min read

Writing 101 - Tools of the Trade

PING PONG OVER THE DIGITAL ABYSS When I started writing I had to actually write the old-fashioned way- on paper with a pen or pencil....

Miles O'Neal

Jun 11, 20152 min read

There is no box.

I used to say, "I've written pretty much everything but novels and romance. I can't write those." Then I accidentally (yes, really!)...

Miles O'Neal

May 18, 20151 min read

Excerpt from YEAR OF THE DRAGON LORD, Due Out Fall 2015

As they approached the dragons, Younger dove at a dragon not engaged at the moment. As he passed over the other dragon, Younger dropped...

Miles O'Neal

May 13, 20151 min read

How would you feel if your parents were eaten by dragons?

How would you feel if your parents were eaten by dragons? This is the question I lived with...and answered...as I wrote and edited my...

Miles O'Neal

Apr 22, 20151 min read

The Makings of YEAR OF THE DRAGON LORD

For years, I have written short stories. I've published articles and co-authored a technical book but there was one thing I was convinced...

Miles O'Neal

Mar 9, 20152 min read