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As a writer, I want to keep my readers reading. I fear if I am not posting, they will lose interest and just move over to any of hundreds of other writers. Wish I could keep them breathlessly waiting for my next chapter, but I am just not that good. So, yes, life intervenes. I have gaps...

Always good to hear from someone who made it big. Thanks for listing your insights. My numbers are still three digits, but that still represents a large number of readers who gave my words a chance. I also give SH credit for good feedback. Not just gross numbers. I can look at the chapter...

My whole novel is about a young boy who cross-dresses. He looks and acts as a girl. His/her death is the mystery of the novel.

I just went back and rewrote an entire series - for the second time. I needed to. I found lots of simple grammar stuff, but I also found paragraphs that made no sense, or characters saying things badly. I loved the basic premise of all the books, so why would I not want them to be better...

I struggle every time I have a large number of characters. How do I account for them all? Do they all talk? Where are each of them? My solution - fewer characters. There are just so many I can manage. Classic solution? The Illiad. Best battle scenes ever - but all of it is in...

My novels include characters from various countries. To come up with reasonable names I either use "Most Popular names in X" or I upload either the names of their Olympic winners or their main politicians. Generally gives me a good range of character names that won't be laughed at by locals.

I am uncomfortable with breaks, but I find they have value. I walk, I imagine new scenes, I do additional research. I do sometimes just plow ahead, but I have ended up with real garbage. Reading. There are really impressive authors out there. There is so much to learn - and so much talent...

My last several books take place in Russia. In the city of Tomsk is a Museum of Oppression. Really. It is a building where the KGB took people during Stalin's era. They were killed there or sent off to forest prisons where they were worked to death. You can walk through the cells in the...

1K, 2K, whatever keeps you going. The words inspire. I get blocked, confused, but keep going. Nine times out of ten the words lead me where I need to go. And if some of the words look stupid later, well, that is what revision is for. Keep going!

Lots of good advice in the previous comments. My only suggestion would be shorter sentences. Shorter, punchier. And forget grade school grammar. Sentence fragments work just fine in real life. Try it for one paragraph and see how it feels to you. A trick some famous writers have used is...

I write realistic novels. Not easy. You are wrapping fiction around a real world and real people. It is very humbling to think about the folks really going through the story you are developing. I have a model I know I will never equal - Doctor Zhivago. Book and Film about the Russian...

I understand the desire for publication. Money would be nice, and recognition. Periodically I reach out to agents. Last month I sent queries to forty or so. Got the usual non-response. In the meantime, we have forums like SH. Places to find a few readers. If we have stories to tell, we...

Just some background on Korea (I lived there for a time). Into the 1970s, the standard of living was roughly equivalent in both North and South. South Korea is now far richer - for lots of reasons. From a narrative perspective, you could track changes or decisions. Tell the story of a...

Hero's Journey. You have the start - a MC with little power. Now he begins the journey. Maybe his initiative (need of some sort) or maybe as the result of some other action or character (think Star Wars and the boy meeting Ben Kenobi). Off he goes to adventures and growing skills and power...

I find it interesting to move chapter by chapter. I give each chapter another read and often find yet another typo or grammar error. And I pay far more attention to chapter titles. And it is one more chance to ask the real question - is this chapter needed? So for me, this chapter process is...

Congrats on the stars. I read your first chapter. I appreciate the character development. But people keep telling me something big has to happen in the first few paragraphs. I hate that. I want a chapter to set location and characters. But I am old. I have time and patience. I look at...

Readers. It feels so good to have readers. Glad you found yours. Celebrate your victories - and go back to writing.

Not only do I label each chapter, but each time I post a chapter on SH I wonder if my old label is good enough, or if I can improve it. I want eyeballs. Somewhere in the future of my fantasies, if I ever do get published, I think my chapter labels will still have value. When they put my book...

Strength, weakness, the struggle to do what is right. Bravery. A woman is put in a terrible position yet tries to do the best she can for herself and others.

Want something more contemporary? The King of Siberia takes place in Russia but is actually about the Ukraine war. The MC is an American woman. She is trying to get back to America. Meanwhile, the man she is with is trying to change Russian culture to make it even more war-like. Plenty of...