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Category: Topics

Hook Kids’ Attention With Your Writing

Posted on August 13, 2020October 27, 2020 by steve

by  Marcia T. Jones and Debbie Dadey Between the Internet, Nintendo and the TV remote how can “boring” books compete? Marcia T. Jones and Debbie Dadey explain what it takes to grab a kid’s attention and hold onto it from the beginning to “the end.” One chance. That’s all kids will give you before they toss…

Intensive Research Is Important for Children”s Nonfiction

Posted on July 11, 2020July 11, 2020 by steve

by  Donya Dickerson, from Children’s Writer’s & Illustrator’s Market Author Robie Harris” books It”s Perfectly Normal: Changing Bodies, Growing Up, Sex, and Sexual Health and It”s So Amazing!: A Book About Eggs, Sperm, Birth, Babies, and Families focus on sexual health for kids. Here, Harris talks about the process of doing extensive research as she prepared her manuscripts. Robie Harris never…

Why Write Screenplays?

Posted on April 29, 2020April 28, 2020 by Dani Alcorn

I was a novelist before I was a screenwriter. And, like most novelists, I firmly believed the book was always (well, okay, almost always) better. So why write screenplays? I found my answer when I had an idea I was convinced was going to be a novel. It had a great protagonist and an interesting…

Analysis: Moana (2016)

Posted on April 28, 2020November 20, 2020 by Dani Alcorn

Moana has been on my mind recently thanks to Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s adorable video singing his rap to his one-year-old. Like most kid’s movies, Moana’s structure is impeccable. And, like most musicals, some of the nine story structure checkpoints even get their own song! Here’s how this movie breaks down: Act 1 Hook The…

Analysis: The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang

Posted on February 3, 2020November 20, 2020 by Dani Alcorn

Like many romance novels, this book has two protagonists. That means there are two complete sets of story structure checkpoints woven together. First, here’s a quick summary: Stella Lane is a smart woman. She loves numbers, statistics, and algorithms. She has very little dating or sexual experience because, frankly, she doesn’t find it that appealing….

Guest Post: Applying 3-Act Structure to a Picture Book

Posted on December 17, 2019December 4, 2019 by Yewande Daniel-Ayoade

I would like to sincerely thank Steve and Dani for giving me the opportunity to share my experience writing Sade: We’re Moving to Canada! on this blog, and to provide a free copy of the book to the Writing Academy community. I have been writing on and off since I was a kid. I describe…

Guest Post: My Indie Journey

Posted on November 12, 2019November 12, 2019 by Jo Holloway

I’m an indie. It’s not a decision I made lightly, but in the end, I chose the independent publishing route. It’s my path. I’ve called myself type A, or a control freak, or whatever the latest jargon is, but basically, I like to do things myself. I’m also impatient. That said, I know two things:…

Guest Post: Challenges with Writing & Illustrating My Second Children’s Book, Breathe, Mustard, Breathe!

Posted on September 23, 2019September 18, 2019 by Jeremy Ross

I would like to extend an appreciation to Dani and Steve Alcorn for allowing me to share a free copy of my second book, Breathe, Mustard, Breathe! with the excellent Writing Academy community, as well as a few key lessons I learned in writing and illustrating my second book. Breathe, Mustard, Breathe! simply teaches our…

Free (and Lower-Cost) Alternatives to Final Draft

Posted on June 24, 2019June 24, 2019 by Dani Alcorn

Formatting a screenplay is A LOT of work. Theoretically, I suppose you could do it in a word processor, but it would take ten times as long and drive you crazy. That means screenwriters rely on software to do the heavy lifting so we can focus our energy on the important parts (you know, character…

Staging is Murder: A Student Success Story

Posted on April 30, 2019November 20, 2020 by steve

by Grace Topping Today marks the launch of my mystery, Staging is Murder. It’s been a long road to publication, and I honestly don’t think I would have succeeded without Steve Alcorn’s course on mystery writing. It gave me a solid foundation on which to build. Without that foundation, I probably would have given up….

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Recent Posts

  • Hook Kids’ Attention With Your Writing
  • Hook Your Readers With Tension
  • 9 Tips for Writing Stories
  • Three Act Structure Chart
  • Intensive Research Is Important for Children”s Nonfiction
  • Why Write Screenplays?
  • Analysis: Moana (2016)
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  • Analysis: The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang
  • Guest Post: Applying 3-Act Structure to a Picture Book

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