7 Minutes a Day to Mastering the Craft of Writing

by Rob Bignell

You’ve written a short story or a novel. You keep receiving rejection slips from editors and publishing houses … and now you’re not sure it’s good enough to self-publish. You know your story needs a rewrite yet don’t know how to improve it … besides, work or school is hectic, the house needs to be cleaned, and the kids demand your attention, so who has time?… But we bet you can find just 7 minutes a day to achieve your dream of getting that story published. If you can, this is the book for you. This practical, how-to guide takes you step-by-step through improving your story and fiction writing skills – with just 7 minutes of work required a day. You’ll complete short, skillful exercises that allow you to rewrite your novel or short story as you read this book, all the while getting the encouragement and motivation needed to keep you going.You’ll receive expert advice on topics • Ramping up your story’s dramatic tension• Ensuring your sentences pop with energy • Giving your writing flavor and texture• Layering descriptions with symbolic meaning• Avoiding common novice mistakesWhat are you waiting for? Let’s become a better fiction writer today!

Genres: Writing, Nonfiction

117 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 20, 2013

About the author

I'm a professional and affordable editor running Inventing Reality Editing Service, which meets the manuscript needs of writers both new and published. During the past five years, I've helped more than 300 authors achieve their dreams of publication. In addition, for more than two decades, I worked as an award-winning journalist, with half of those years spent as an editor. I'm also the author of the "7 Minutes a Day..." writing guidebooks, the nonfiction "Hikes with Tykes", "Hittin' the Trail", "Best Sights to See," and "Headin' to the Cabin" hiking guidebook series, and the literary novel "Windmill". Several of my short stories have been published in literary and science fiction magazines. For seven years, I worked as an English teacher or a community college journalism instructor. I hold a Master's degree in English and a Bachelor's in English and journalism.

Reviews

[Kyle Janison · Rating 5 out of 5]

I grabbed this book a couple of days ago because I'd read and gotten a lot out of the author's previous book, "7 Minutes a Day to Your Bestseller." It took me no time to read this title, which is a brief 110 pages, but I may be spending the next year or so absorbing everything that's inside it. There were an incredible number of great tips that I'm sure will improve my writing. When needed, the tips come with apt examples and always an easy to grasp explanation. I definitely recommend this to anyone who wants to improve their fiction writing.

[Emily Rooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fast read, I'd recommend this book to anyone who's getting three stars or less for their book reviews. It contains lots of useful advice about how to improve your fiction writing. Some of it is fairly obvious (active voice, show don't tell), but given how many writers still haven't figured that out, it bears repeating (Oops, that was a cliche, which the book also advises against - see what I mean about needing repeating?). In any case, most of the book's tips are brand new to me (begin fallacy, laugh track, local dexterity, authorisms), and I'm sure when taken to heart (Oops, another cliche, dang it!) they'll improve my writing, both academic and creative. As the book's intro says, if your writing feels dull or vanilla, avoid the mistakes and employ the tricks listed in "Mastering the Craft of Writing."

[Greg F. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having read the other three books in the series, I was quick to snatch up this title. Though a quick and easy read, it's dense with tips, explanations, and examples. Some of them are fairly obvious - use active voice, show don't tell, don't use cliches - yet I see those mistakes bogging down novels all of the time. Most of the tips, however, are things I never thought about. Have you heard of a begin fllacy? Countersinking? An eyeball kick? I know being aware of them will ensure my creative writing will be better. Get this book for a quick, handy, useful reference.

[Oliver Frances · Rating 4 out of 5]

An essential book for aspiring writers and, above all, for all writers that are looking for an improvement in their Works. The book recalls you all the simple but sometimes overlooked rules that help a writer to craft his writing and point out all the mistakes that prevent him from having a polished manuscript.
Also, this book offers you a 7-minute-a-day exercise on the topic treated in every chapter at the end of this.
Once that you read it and have done all the exercises you will find easier to write with the essential elements that make a good manuscript.

[J.M. Myrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rob's how to series is not just a helpful guide, it's written in such a way that makes it easy to understand and follow. I've picked up several useful bits of information, and he touched on things I had never considered. It's a compact straight to the point read full of good info!

[Matthew Holmes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Being thorough and enlightening while maintaining simplicity and entertainment is truly a great accomplishment for any form of self-help book, but Rob Bignell's "7 Minutes a Day to Mastering the Craft of Writing" surpassed my expectations in both regards.

it lists 50 easy to follow tips on improving writing style and voice while still being fun by adding many references to popular television shows and books.

Whether you read it all at once or follow the steps day by day, this is a very well thought out and informative piece.

[Walt Griffin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easy to understand and extremely helpful for any author interested in self publishing their novel