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UPDATED WITH WINNERS - LitReactor's Flash Fiction Smackdown: February Edition

March 2nd, 2015

Flash fiction: A style of fictional literature marked by extreme brevity. Welcome to LitReactor's Flash Fiction Smackdown, a monthly bout of writing prowess. How It Works We give you inspiration in the form of a picture, poem, video, or prompt. You write a flash fiction piece using the inspiration we gave you. Put your entry in the comments section. One winner will be picked and awarded a prize.

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In Defense Of Short Fiction (Not That I Need To Defend It, Because It's Awesome)

February 27th, 2015

If you’ve been reading me for a while, chances are you know how much I love short fiction. For every novel I read, I read at least two collections or anthologies. (My current short fiction reads are Me and Daddy Listen to Bob Marley By Ann Pancake and Let Me Be Frank With You By Richard Ford.) Don’t get me wrong, I love novels, too.

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5 Realty Listings That Could Be Your Character’s New Home

February 27th, 2015

Sometimes a setting has so much personality, it begins to read less like static background and more like a main character. The space inside Thoreau’s cabin projects a sense of calm and solitude, hobbits are nearly inseparable from their holes in the ground, and where would The Shining be without the Stanley Hotel? Atmosphere is a crucial element in storytelling, regardless of genre. But what if you’ve spent your life in a condominium with white walls? What if you’re trying to push out a novel from a suburban ranch with all the panache of lint?

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Why Six Figure Advances Will Destroy the Publishing Industry

February 26th, 2015

Yesterday I saw this tweet.

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Product Review: Musemee Notier V2 Stylus

February 26th, 2015

Just over two years ago, I wrote a column for LitReactor called Paperless Writer: Five Steps To A Successful Digital Rewrite. In it, there was mention of my preferred tablet stylus, the Pogo Sketch Pro, because of its lightness and thinness. Well, times change, and now there's a new love in my life: The Musemee Notier V2. Why?

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Your Favorite Book Sucks: 'The Giving Tree' by Shel Silverstein

February 25th, 2015

I can hear you thinking it. Not The Giving Tree. It’s a timeless children’s classic. Many (myself included) have warm and fuzzy memories of our parents reading it to us as we were tucked into bed, and many more no doubt continue to read it to their own children. The story of a tree’s love for a little boy taught us about friendship, selflessness, and how to exploit them. That’s right—The Giving Tree is nothing but a book of terrible relationship advice for children.

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Always Judge a Book by its Cover: Meet the Artists Dominating Small Press (Part 2)

February 25th, 2015

The content of a book is only half the battle in selling a book. Even that might be saying too much. The truth is, you can sell a truly crappy book if you have the right marketing team. You’re more likely to pick up a shitty book with an awesome cover than a brilliant book with a lackluster cover. Whoever told you not to judge a book by its cover must have been trying to sell you one ugly-ass book. Thankfully, we have artists who are talented and able to design covers that do justice to a book’s innards.

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Storyville: Making Relationships Feel Real in Your Fiction

February 24th, 2015

Today we’re talking about how to make the relationships in your fiction feel real. There’s nothing worse than reading a story about a couple and thinking, “That would never happen.” Or, what about a father-son argument or sibling rivalry that feels out of whack, lacking authority and coherence? Let’s talk about romantic relationships especially, but other relationships as well—what you can do to make them feel layered, truthful, and unique.

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The Seven Deadly Sins of Dialogue

February 23rd, 2015

Ursula K. Le Guin has said that scenes with dialogue are where emotion happens in fiction. According to the emerging body of neuroscience on fiction, such scenes are also where fiction most clearly approximates actual lived experience, that "vivid and continuous dream" of which John Gardner spoke.

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LitReactor Community Spotlight: February 2015

February 23rd, 2015

I just woke up with this computer in my lap. Apparently, I had decided it was time to do another community update, and then... I can't remember. Whatever it was, my room looks like Michael Bay was in charge of decorating, and I have a new contact in my phone under "Zeeby the Flying Guy." Also, I am fairly certain that this isn't my mattress. February, right?

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