10 Tips from the Author... Metl: The Angel Weapon by Scott Wilson (Guest Post & #Giveaway) @chapterxchapter @scottdoesstuff @Month9Books



Welcome to my tour stop! Check out a guest post from the author and the giveaway below...

Metl: The Angel Weapon
By Scott Wilson
Middle Grade Dystopian, SciFi
Paperback & ebook, 244 Pages
March 5th 2019 by Month9Books

Summary

Thirteen-year-old Caden Aire spends his days working in the fields and his nights sleeping in a horse stable, all under the watch of Metl—Earth's mysterious and artificial second moon, a looming relic of humanity's lost era.

But Caden's simple life changes when one night, a fiery red X suddenly appears on Metl's surface, and the same red Xs start glowing on his palms.

Now Caden must find the only person who knows what's happening to him, but he doesn't have much time. Metl has started on an impact course with Earth, and to stop it, Caden will have to face both the unsettling truth about his world … and about himself.

(Affiliate links included.)

Guest Post
Top 10 Writing Tips for Aspiring Writers

#10. Don't start your story with a dream or flashback. I know they seem fun and tempting, but they do nothing to ground the reader in your story. At best, the reader will be disappointed when they start your "real story," at worst they will be bored, confused, and stop reading.

#9. Instead, start your story by setting the scene/tone. Show us the "who, what, when, where" in the first three paragraphs, show us how the character feels, and show us how we're supposed to feel too.

#8. Stay in the present day for at least the entire first chapter. Giving us backstory, history, and exposition right off the bat is like a stranger running up to you on the street yelling, "Let me tell you my life story!" It's kind of scary.

#7. Read a lot. The best way to find out how to write is by reading other awesome authors and seeing how they write their stories. Be an active reader, and always ask yourself, "Why am I enjoying/hating this?"

#6. Use body language and character description instead of "he/she/they said" when possible, and definitely instead of awkward "said" replacements like "laughed," "shrugged," "grimaced," etc.

#5. Keep in mind that writing the book is only the first step. Editing is just as much a part of the writing process as putting words down on the page. Always expect to devote at least as much time to editing as it took to write the book. (For example, 1 year to write the book means at least 1 year of editing.)

#4. Don't sit around waiting for the "Mr/Miss Right" of a story idea. Sometimes we have to get to know our story a bit more before we fall in love with it, just like people. So if an idea intrigues you, start writing it and see what happens.

#3. Motivation isn't some sort of magical energy. There are plenty of things you can do to help motivate yourself: give yourself daily/weekly treats for writing, or get a paper schedule and cross off your daily goal in it when you're done. More than anything, consistency — even if it's just a consistent 100 words per day — will get you to the end of the book.

#2. Write your query letter/synopsis first. If your goal is traditional publication, then creating an irresistible query letter right from the start, and then writing the story to live up to it, is a good way to go. You can identify if you're missing conflict, stakes, or anything else before you've even written a word of the manuscript.

#1. When you're stuck writing or have writer's block on your early draft, just tell yourself out loud, "I'm writing garbage and that's okay," and then write whatever you have to to plow forward. Just getting something down now is the important part; you will come back and edit it to be beautiful later.

About the Author


Scott Wilson works as a translator and editor for the Japanese news-entertainment website SoraNews24. He runs ScottWritesStuff, a creative writing livestream on Twitch, and in his free time can be found playing video games and Magic: The Gathering with friends. Metl: The ANGEL Weapon is his first novel. He lives in the Japanese countryside with his wife.


Tour-Wide Giveaway

One (1) winner will receive a Starbucks Gift Card

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What do you think of the book. Are you an aspiring writer? Which of the author's tips do you like?

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