Category: knockout idea

Vandermeer on dissection for fiction writers

Jun 18, 2014

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by

Ace Baker

in knockout idea, writer ace baker, writing technique

First of all, I picked up a copy of Jeff Vandermeer’s book, Wonderbook, and I’m having trouble deciding whether it’s a book about writing or a work of art–amazing! But on page 42, I read the following: To grow as a fiction writer, you absolutely must engage in some dissection of stories, your own and…
Quotation Inspiration #002

Jun 15, 2014

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by

Ace Baker

in knockout idea

A drop in the bucket? Hardly:
Picture it #001…a photo to inspire your writing!

May 27, 2014

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by

Ace Baker

in knockout idea, starters, Uncategorized

Ok, so it might lead to some angst, but just look at this image by Brooke Shaden–a girl in white falling into a dark abyss–and you’ll see that there’s a poem waiting there for you to write!
Jennifer Manuel #002: Pathos and simile in SILENT E !

Nov 13, 2013

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by

Ace Baker

in choose your weapon, fancy footwork, fiction, knockout idea, power punch, short stories, Uncategorized, writing technique

After my analysis of Jennifer Manuel’s award-winning story, “The Woman in the Box with the Baby,” Jennifer wrote and tweeted to tell me she was pleased with what I had to say about her work –whew! She also e-mailed me a copy of another award-winning tale of hers, “Silent E,” a story that earned…
Katabasis and your narrative fiction

Sep 1, 2013

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by

Ace Baker

in fiction, knockout idea, novels, short stories, writing technique

In Linda Lappin’s article, “Your Journey to Hell and Back,” in the September 2013 edition of The Writer, she returns to Joseph Campbell’s classic text, The Hero with a Thousand Faces, to discuss KATABASIS: According to Campbell, in myths fairy tales and fictional narratives of mythic resonance, the hero’s or heroine’s descent to the…
Title Generator #002: More titles for your poetry and prose !

Aug 22, 2013

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by

Ace Baker

in fiction, knockout idea, nonfiction, novels, poetry, short stories

Yesterday, I mentioned a mashup method for creating unique titles. Here’s a second, and I’ll use the same book as my resource as an example (Force Field: 77 Women Poets of British Columbia). You, of course, can use any anthology that might be sitting on your bookshelf. Purely on a whim, and since…
Title generator #001: Great titles for your poetry or prose!

Aug 21, 2013

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by

Ace Baker

in fiction, knockout idea, nonfiction, novels, poetry, short stories

One way to jolt your creativity is to come up with a list of new titles for pieces you HAVEN’T written yet. One way to do that is to make a mashup of OTHER titles. For instance, I recently bought a copy of Force Field: 77 Women Poets of British Columbia. Here’s a bit…
8 ways to connect to your creativity , from The Portable MFA

Aug 19, 2013

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by

Ace Baker

in knockout idea, standing 8 count, starters

The following 8 ways to connect to your creativity come from The Portable MFA in Creative Writing, by The New York Writers Workshop (pp. 204-205): 1. Read a newspaper and free-write about something you find there. 2. Write a letter to an old lover. (Don’t send it.) 3. Do a physical activity you’ve never…
Opening paragraphs #005: SUPER CHALLENGE!

Jul 29, 2013

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by

Ace Baker

in fiction, knockout idea, novels, short stories, writing technique

Let’s do a quick review of our look at beginnings in the past four days: Day one: sharp contrast: tough, tough soft Day two: a bit of mystery Day three: 3-line description that ends with a powerful short line Day four: help NOT wanted; hesitation at interaction And now, on day five, we’re…
Cody Klippenstein #001 VOICE through pathos!

Jul 19, 2013

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by

Ace Baker

in fancy footwork, fiction, knockout idea, novels, power punch, short stories, writing technique

If you want to add VOICE to your writing, Cody Klippenstein is the one to turn to. She has won many major writing awards for her short fiction, including “Case Studies for Ascension,” which won the Zoetrope All-Story Short Fiction Contest. It’ll be our study text for this week and it’s up on…