29 - #TipTuesday Writing tip(s) (max. 3)

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A/N: First, let me start off with an apology. I'm sorry this is late. 😣 (I always try to post on time, and I hadn't prepared this TipTuesday ahead of time.) I was feeling quite awful Monday night and Tuesday was such a doozy that I managed to sleep for twelve hours total! I'm still not all better, but my status is a far cry from two days ago! Yippie! 😁🙌🏼

Now, onto our scheduled tips!!!

1. Hook:
I cannot stress this enough! You MUST  have an interesting hook — it's the bread and butter for any successful book (unless you're Stephen King or J.K. Rowling and readers will pick up your book just because your name's on it — and here might be a good time to admit that I've never actually read any of either author's stuff. 😅)
Anyway. Create a quality sneak peek! If you're rather terrible at that or have no idea how to, I urge you to reach out to a WP author who you believe has an incredible blurb and ask for assistance! I did that for UWOG! And then, I created my own for my book, even including an excerpt! (Albeit, it's not that successful but again, amateur writer. 😂 )
Which brings me to the second part of Tip 1. Prologue/Chapter One, whichever one you start with. This is almost as important as the blurb. Why? Because you're judged. This is (arguably) the chapter that needs the most revisions. Even though I consider myself a "grammarian," I do make mistakes sometimes ... many times. (Perhaps there are blunders in this very chapter — I don't know all the grammar rules!) That's okay! Just don't overwhelm your reader with a load of easily correctable syntax. (I'm squeezing grammar/spelling under that umbrella.)
This is why I find it difficult to read books such as mine: The 'undiscovered.' LOL, well, isn't that a bit ironic?! 🤔 Yeah, generally, I don't venture into that group because I'm inundated with errors! (Again, I mean the type where there are so many issues that I struggle to even finish the fifth paragraph!) All in all, hooking entails both blurb and the opening chapter. It's vital that these are as best as you can make them to grab the reader's attention!

2. Characters:
I love those Cinderella-type characters that are wholly virtuous/moral and spread messages like "be kind and have courage." However, unless you're specifically aiming for such a fairytale protagonist, your character won't cut it. Plain and simple. While we know the antagonist(s) has flaws, the protagonist(s) needs them too! In fact, every major player should have at least two identifiable weaknesses. This also goes to villains needing good attributes! One of my favorite authors on WP, who emulates this topic is Lana_sky. I read her novel Crescendo and was blown away because her main characters (MC) blurred the lines between good and bad. I'm not saying that your MCs need to be so ... controversial, but look at Dante and Daniela in that book for character flaws.

3. Feedback:
This is for here, specifically for Wattpad or similar sites. I encourage you to give feedback but only if the author is seeking it - or do so cautiously (if not). (Meaning, don't murder their chapter!) Otherwise, leave nothing or a one-liner. I say this because for starving writers, such as myself, receiving constructive criticism is extremely helpful! I love when my readers tell me what they liked, but I also find equal value when they don't! Yeah, sometimes it's hard when a part that I've written isn't well-received, but that's okay. Which brings me to this little bit. Just because a reader voices what didn't work for them, don't feel pressured to change it if you really feel that the part is essential!

A/N: I hope I've helped you a bit and that I've given you insight into what I look for when reading a Wattpad story. Sorry this was so long, but I thought you deserved something fruitful for my absence. Lol
I'm dedicating this to Lana because she has followed all these tips to a tee. 😊 I've linked Crescendo as well! Although book cover did not make it onto my top three tips, it is an important thing to note as well. XD