Mervyn Love

Plot Got Stuck? Try this Little Trick

Ever had a situation where you've started this great storyline that gets you really excited only to find that it peters out after the second paragraph? For the life of you you can't get it going again. Here's a little secret to help you kick-start your pl... Read >

Characterization - Giving Each Character Unique Mannerisms

As writers, one of the most important aspects of our story writing is to present the reader with real life, three-dimensional characters. One way of doing that is to give each one a unique mannerism which sets them apart from the rest and helps to fill ou... Read >

Backstories Help You Write Three Dimensional Characters

Which is more important: a good plot or great characters? Whilst a humdinger of a plot will add zest to the story, it may all be wasted if your characters are flat and uninteresting. An excellent way to avoid this is to use backstories to make your charac... Read >

Building Believable Characters in Creative Fiction

Readers love getting involved with the characters in your stories. They want fleshed-out real life people that they can sympathise with and feel a connection to. All it needs is a few minutes thought and an action plan. The secret to developing a belie... Read >

How to Get Started Writing Fiction With This 4 Part Plan

Many a would-be story writer has been put off by thinking "I don't have the imagination to write anything people would want to read". This is nonsense. Anyone who wants to write good interesting stories can achieve their aim and I want to tell you how to ... Read >

How to Create Characters Your Readers Will Love

For some writers, creating a full-bodied, believable character can be a daunting exercise. By following this simple step-by-step formula, you can soon have your characters ready to leap off the page. In a short story, which in practice is normally 1,00... Read >

How Not to Win Short Story Competitions

Having run Short Story competitions for the past few years I feel I am somewhat qualified to guide eager story writers along the path to prizes by avoiding those major pot holes that so many fall into. 1. Don't Read The Rules. As soon as I take a story... Read >

Successful Plot Construction with This Simple Formula

A cracking good plot is the aim of every story writer. Here we are going to look at a simple but clever formula to construct a plot for a short story that will put your work ahead of the rest. Let's be clear: you don't have a lot of time to get the sto... Read >

How to Use Time Transitions to Make Your Story Flow

The correct use of techniques to indicate the transition of time can bring smoothness and excitement to your narrative. Here are some tips on how to move your reader effortlessly from one event to another. Place your characters in time by some referenc... Read >

Put Tension into Your Stories to Keep Readers Reading

Tension is built up on a wave of emotion. Emotion fuels the tension and vice versa. Every story needs tension to some degree or other because as a rwiter you want to grab the emotions of your readers. Tension is one way to do just that. So just what is... Read >

Your Readers Love an Element of Suspense. Here's How to Give it to Them

What kind of story needs suspense? Almost all. From romance to the 'slice of life' short story. Suspense will hold your readers whilst they eagerly desire to see the outcome of the suspenseful ingredient. But my non-fiction book on vegetable gardening,... Read >

A Verb! A Verb! I'd Give my Kingdom for a Verb! Parts of Speech Demystified

Confused about conjunctions? Anxious about adjectives? Neurotic over nouns? Tremble no more as here is a simple explanation of all the parts of speech above, and even some you've probably never heard of. To get more intimate with interjections and positiv... Read >

Planning Your Novel is the Key to Success

You've got a great idea for a novel and you've made an enthusiastic start on the first chapter. Easy. But where do you go from here? Once you get into that first chapter you begin to realise you have no road map to take you from A to Z with various stops ... Read >

Minor Characters. Are They Really Necessary?

You are flying high on the wings of inspiration. The muse has blessed you with vivid characters who have taken up residence in your story. There's Clarissa, Matthew, George Hobgood from the Post Office, Melka the Romanian refugee, Neil, Jose and the lodge... Read >

Publishers Love a Well Presented Manuscript. Here's How to Do it.

You may well ask 'Why is this bloke writing yet another article on how to submit your work to a publisher?' The answer is simple: there are still many writers who don't know how to do it properly. And there are those who think they do but don't. So why n... Read >