Does anybody know a good place to learn to write fiction. I would like a web site, becuase it is free, but also some books if there are good ones I could get at Amazon or Borders.com. I am look more specificly at charature, characture dramatics and dramatic tension.

http://www.gaiaonline.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=890436

http://www.gaiaonline.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=311999

Here are two links about writing. IMO these are not good enough for me, but maybe you will find them useful.

Thanks I will check them out and post on whether or not they help me. Anyone else?

Well, it might be helpful to start by spelling 'writing' and 'character' correctly - makes websearching for them easier. ;) Your local library will almost certainly have a whole shelf of How-To-Write books. Can you describe in more detail what you already know about writing and what you want to learn? If you are not already at least an intermediate-level writer you would probably be better off signing up for a seminar class where you will practice writing under the supervision of a live teacher, rather than reading a theory book. Such seminar classes are often offered during the summer at high schools and colleges.

I should'nt post this late I spell much better when I am awake. I really can not afford a Seminar Class. I would not have transportation anyway. Is there any such resource online? If so for free?

I did not find the two links from Anonymous Poster usefull. Sorry for the poor spelling in my first post.

Stephen King has a great book called On Writing. You should have no trouble finding it at a school or public library.

I think I will check my library then. I also would feel unconfortable in a class, becuase my writting is not good, both grammar and creative elements. I did however do well in creative writting asignments in school, but I do not think a teacher would say it was bad unless you wrote somethin explicit.

The whole point of a beginner/amature writing seminar is that nobody's particularly good at writing and you all learn together. I did a few of these various summers when I was 14-17 and I found them very good learning experiences. But yeah, they can be expensive (perhaps $60 a week?) and transportation can be a problem. I don't believe anyone runs free beginner fiction classes online because it's not very fun/rewarding to work with beginners, so why do it unless you're getting paid?

I'm sorry I can't help you more, it's my job as a moderator to know these things, but I haven't worked with beginners in years, and I checked my bookshelf but there isn't anything there that's for beginners either, it's all intermediate specific topics and university-level literary theory. o.O;

But definitely go to your library, find the relevant shelf (dewey decimal 808 if your library uses that system) and just browse theough the available books - you should be able to tell which seem helpful and which seem irrelevant or too advanced. Marge Piercey's _So You Want To Write: How To Master The Craft Of Writing Fiction And The Personal Narrative_ might be a good one if your library happens to have it, it's a workshop-in-a-book with writing exercises, and she writes good novels.

I don't know of any online tutorials on writing but there are a few essential things all writers should cover in their learning process.

Grammar - They really don't teach proper grammar in North American schools anymore so a getting a book on grammar or reading some online reference should be something all writers do. I for one found my writing improve virtually overnight after reading a book on the subject.

Vocabulary Building - A large vocabulary is important to all writers it allows you to better actualize your ideas and prevents the reader from misinterpreting your ideas.

Techniques and Voice - There are many different writing techniques and styles, it important to experiment with different ones in order to find your writing voice.

Structure - This is very important, you have to learn how to properly structure a story in order to prevent your work from wandering, as well as to reduce inconsistencies and plot holes. Learning techniques for building a plot sketch or story skeleton are extremely useful for when creating the plot and structure of your story.

Character Design - How to design characters is important to know. Learning techniques to improve characters building up personalities, pasts, identities, and motivations, will all help to make your characters seem more real and allow the reader to better identify with them.

World Building – Building the world and setting where you work takes place is important. If it takes place in a real location then you should research that location. Simple things like using the correct street names can go along way into improving the reader’s appreciations and connection with your work. If you are creating your own world, then look at the techniques used by ecological, zoological, and technological documentaries in the way they both describe those topics but show the relationships and connections of the various aspects of the topic.


Good luck with your writing.

I don't know if this will be helpful to you or not, if you're more-or-less trying to get the basics down, but I've found the Writers Guild of America website particularly helpful.

Most of the site is geared towards writing for movies and television, but many of the theories are the same when writing for fiction as well.

Peruse the "Best of Mentor FAQ's" under the Mentor Program. Many, many gems of excellent insight. Seriously. Read all of it.

There are also a lot of great interviews and articles on writing. All of this info is free and you don't need to register with the guild.

http://www.wga.org/

If you really want to dig into the bare-bones basics, I can only recommend what has already been mentioned. There are plenty of great books on the subject. A quick google search gave me this guys site:

http://www.briandanaakers.com/learn.html

Good luck!