Writing Tips from Author Dan Wells

I’ve compiled a few writing tips here. The most memorable pieces of writing advice from author Dan Wells’ class at the 2023 Writing Excuses Retreat. These reminders are things I’ve heard before, but never exactly the way Dan shared them (which is the beauty of multiple instructors and in particular, writers as instructors).

For level 201 writers who have moved beyond the 101 mistakes, watch out for not describing things at the right time; meaning right when the reader needs the description. In this failure mode, the descriptions are great, and there’s the right amount, but it is in the book at the wrong time for the reader.

Describing a movie syndrome: The writer knows what the scene looks like; they’re watching the movie in their head…so they forget to say something about what the reader needs to know visually (alas, the reader is still NOT inside their head).

Screenplay syndrome: The writer has already imagined it, so it has happened for them…and they forget to put it into words for the reader. A similar problem can occur if they are a novelist who has actually written screenplays: The tendency to leave out the pieces that movie makers such as directors, actors, designers, and cinematographers don’t want: blocking, emotions, descriptions of characters and setting, along with camera angles and things that go into a shooting script.

Dan also shared this handy way of thinking about revision steps for writers with a 0.0 Draft. I organized it into a handy-dandy rainbow because…RAINBOW!