Category: fiction

Favourite Opening Lines from The Best American Short Stories 2014

Oct 11, 2015

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by

Ace Baker

in fiction, short stories, starters

A good opening leads you into another world–the world of the story. Here are a few that got my attention from The Best American Short Stories 2014: From David Gates‘ “A Hand Reached Down to Guide Me” : The name Paul Thompson won’t mean any more to you than my name would, but if you’d…
J. H. Moncrieff : A Fighter Writer Through and Through !

Mar 31, 2015

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by

Ace Baker

in fiction, novels, power punch, short stories

Spotlight on Horror Writer J. H. Moncrieff I met J.H. Moncrieff at the Surrey International Writers Conference in Surrey, B.C. Two things struck me about her almost immediately: her attitude about writing…and her attitude about life! She’s a writer and a fighter (more than you might even know—read on!), and she’s the focus of…
Indirect conflict: foils in “A Day at the Races”

Feb 19, 2015

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by

Ace Baker

in fiction, knockout idea, nonfiction, short stories

Often, when you hear the word “CONFLICT” you might picture two people fighting–battling each other, duking it out, or fighting against a snowstorm or hurricane. What you might not think about is conflict that is created the way Jason M. Jones does it in “A Day at the Races.” Take a look at this excerpt: Your mother…
Ace Baker will be with the CTA in February and at the ACT in September !

Feb 4, 2015

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by

Ace Baker

in fiction, knockout idea, poetry, short stories

So far this year, I’ve scheduled two opportunities to present ideas about writing to others, and the first is coming up very soon. I’ll be in Coquitlam on February 20th presenting ideas to a group of teachers as part of their CTA (Coquitlam Teachers Association) district-wide professional development day, CREATING CULTURES OF LEADERSHIP. A colleague, Greg Sutherland, and…
Official Journey Prize nominations by PULP LITERATURE !

Feb 2, 2015

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by

Ace Baker

in champion, fancy footwork, fiction, golden gloves, poetry, short stories

“Victory Girl” Nominated by Pulp Literature The editors at Pulp Literature have been incredibly kind to me this year… My poem, “Big Red Schoolhouse,” was selected by past Poet Laureate George McWhirter as the winner of The Magpie Award, and was subsequently nominated by Pulp Literature’s editors for a National Magazine Award. One of…
My Guest Post on Crystal Bourque’s Blog : “Ace Baker: Poet at heART”

Feb 2, 2015

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by

Ace Baker

in fiction, novels, poetry, short stories

I originally met Crystal Bourque at the SIWC Conference in October, 2014. She’s passionate about writing, and we’ve been staying in touch, sharing ideas about that very subject ever since. This month, she asked me to pen a guest blog for her about the subject of the value of poetry to fiction writers. Here’s the…
SHORT STORY IN THE RED TUQUE FINALS!

Jan 17, 2015

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by

Ace Baker

in champion, fiction, short stories, writer ace baker

A short story of mine is in the finals for Red Tuque’s “Canadian Tales of the Mysterious” contest. That means it’s one of thirteen stories chosen to be published in an anthology later this year. Right now, they’re choosing the placings, so I won’t say the title of my story just yet, to keep the…
Nanowrimo: The Final Week? And I’m Stuck? What can I do?

Nov 24, 2014

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by

Ace Baker

in fiction, novels

NANOWRIMO: FINAL WEEK! So it’s the final week of Nanowrimo, and you find you’re stuck. I mean STUCK…like… STUCK like… but really, more like… WHAT CAN YOU DO? Try a few of the following on for size… Did you leave any gaps? Any chapters unfinished? Go back and flesh them out! The beginning of…
Nanowrimo Weeks two and three: Conflict and complication!

Nov 9, 2014

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by

Ace Baker

in fiction, novels

The Middle of Your Novel If you divide your novel into three parts, the beginning is roughly a quarter of your book. That should be over now, after the first week of Nano. The middle is roughly half your book, and that’s where we are now. That means that it’s time for what really drives…
Nanowrimo reminder–courtesy of Mary E. Pearson, on Twitter!

Nov 3, 2014

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by

Ace Baker

in fiction, novels

BANG WORDS OUT (instead of tiring, editing the same words over and over) I love how straightforward this button makes the process seem. Don’t worry if you have to go back and fix a few things–that’s what editing is for…AFTER you have a completed manuscript. Let me show you… The former me: Type a…