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Book Review | The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides
Alex Michaelides’ debut novel, The Silent Patient (February 5, 2019, Celadon Books), is a gripping psychological thriller that follows the unravelling mystery of a woman’s selective mutism after she allegedly murders her husband. Since his debut in 2019, the British Cypriot author has released two other novels in the thriller genre. These novels are The… Continue reading
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How to Use an Apostrophe
An apostrophe (‘) is a punctuation mark used by possessive nouns, possessive indefinite pronouns, and contractions. The apostrophe is a useful punctuation mark, but because it has no exact equivalent in speech, it is often omitted or misplaced. In this article, you’ll learn how to use an apostrophe in different contexts. Continue reading
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50 Questions To Ask Your Character
To write a character well you’ll need to know everything that there is to know about said character, even before you start writing your first scene. Alongside your character’s general physical description, you’ll need to know their beliefs, values, desires, secrets, psychological state, personal relationships, etc. Continue reading
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The 4 Types of Conjunctions
A conjunction is one of the eight parts of a speech. Conjunctions are words that join a group of words, phrases, or clauses. There are several types of conjunctions, each serving a distinct purpose. Continue reading
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Writing Act Three: 6 Tips to Leave Readers Feeling Satisfied
According to David Morrell, “the (story) end is even more important than the first page, and rushing can damage it.” Many great novels are remembered for their first sentences or first paragraph, but what is equally important—if not more so—is how you end your novel. Continue reading
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When to Use Colons and Semicolons
The colon and semicolon punctuation marks have several distinct functions. The colon is the ideal punctuation for when you are trying to illustrate or enumerate. You place a colon at the end of a complete sentence to introduce a list or an explanation. Semicolons, on the other hand, are known to separate closely related, complete… Continue reading
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How to Write Act Two of Your Story: 6 Tips to Keep Readers Interested
Act two (or the middle) is the largest section of your novel. This section of your story is dedicated to a diverse collection of scenes. These scenes increase the suspense and the stakes in your novel. Act two is where readers will see obstacles being thrown at your lead character, continually. Continue reading
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Understanding Subject-Verb Agreement
A subject-verb agreement happens when the subject and the verb are the same number. Number refers to the form of a word that indicates whether it is singular or plural. If a subject is singular, then the verb should also be singular. In the same sense, if a subject is plural, then the verb should… Continue reading
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Character Tropes: What Are They and How Can You Use Them Effectively
Character tropes are popular patterns used in storytelling to create and develop characters that are restricted by culture and time. Character tropes follow a specific predictable pattern, which is so familiar that it often reduces the level of suspense in a story or gives readers exactly what they are looking for. Continue reading
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Who vs. Whom: When to Use Which Pronoun?
The who vs. whom debate is a long-standing one. Other than the customary “to whom it may concern” letter, you won’t see “whom” very often anymore. Instead, you’ll see the word “who” in sentences that traditionally contain the word “whom”. And this is expected because “who” and “whom” are easily confused. Continue reading
