Two-Minute Writing Tips: A Collection of Quick & Simple Fiction Writing Tips

by Alicia Dean

In today’s busy world—and writers are far busier than the average human being—there is little time for lengthy, detailed, intensive writing courses and writing manuals. Knowing how rare and fleeting a writer’s time is, Alicia Dean posts a weekly ‘Tuesday Two-Minute’ writing tip on her blog where she shares her knowledge, experience, and wisdom in tiny, bite-sized pieces so as not to squander more than 120-second increments of a writer’s precious time. Now, you can get those tips all in one convenient place. In simple, quick and easily digestible servings, this book shares loads of advice for writers. Tips such as… • Recognizing and eliminating filter words that distance your reader • Understanding Point of View – How to fix it and why • Writing Faster Drafts • Clearer, concise writing • Tips for more effective Tweeting No matter your level, from novice to experienced author, you will find something beneficial in Alicia’s handy, quick reminders. (Alicia Dean has edited for an e-publisher for more than ten years and is a freelance editor as well as a multi-published author.) “My collection of writing craft books is impressive. I plan to read them all, when I have the time. Alicia Dean’s Two Minute Writing Tips provide invaluable editing advice that I can immediately apply to my writing. Alicia Dean’s practical manner of explaining methods to reduce grammar errors and make sentences sing inspired me to utilize her editing services.” ~Maureen L. Bonatch, author of the humorous paranormal romance, GRANDMA MUST DIE "If you're like me, you have a strong desire to improve your writing, but very little time to devote to it. That is one reason Alicia Dean's Two Minute Tips are so invaluable. It's a little nibble of information, not too overwhelming. And it's important stuff! Tips that really help to make your work stronger. Honestly, I receive other daily writing tips in my inbox, but I always skim over the subject line and put them in a folder to read "someday." But whenever I see that Alicia Dean has a blog post sharing her tips, I click on it right away. In fact, even though I follow her blog, I still downloaded a copy of her book to keep as a handy resource. I recommend it highly!" ~M.J. Schiller, author of the ROCKING ROMANCE COLLECTION, REAL ROMANCE COLLECTION, and ROMANTIC REALMS COLLECTION. “Alicia’s Two-minute Tips are handy, down-to-earth and useful. I confess that just before I sent in one of my manuscripts for publication consideration, I read her tip about over-use of the word "look" in connection with dialog and dialog tags. I scrolled through my ms to discover (to my horror) "Look" was overused to a fault. I worked hard to edit every one of them and knew that my writing was the better for my effort.” ~ Susan Coryell Author of A RED, RED ROSE and BENEATH THE STONES

111 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 15, 2016

About the author

At age ten, Alicia Dean wrote her first ever romance (featuring a hero who looked just like Elvis Presley and who shared the name of Elvis’ character in the movie, Tickle Me), and she still has the tattered, pencil-written copy. Alicia is from Moore, Oklahoma, and now lives in Edmond. She has three grown children and a huge network of supportive friends and family.

Other than reading and writing, her passions are Elvis Presley, MLB, NFL (she almost always works in a mention of one or all three into her stories) and watching (and rewatching) her favorite television shows like Dexter, Justified, Friends, Seinfeld, Everybody Loves Raymond, and Breaking Bad. Some of her favorite authors are Michael Connelly, Dennis Lehane, Lee Child, Lisa Gardner, Ridley Pearson, Joseph Finder, and Jonathan Kellerman…to name a few.

Reviews

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Once again, Alicia Dean hits the nail on the head with her guidelines for writing clearly. The table of contents deals with many problem areas with which writers deal all the time, and her advice helps writers avoid these pitfalls. Alicia Dean excels as an editor, and her advice is timeless. This writing craft book should be on all writers' shelves.

[M.J. Schiller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Two Minutes Can Make You a Better Writer! Alicia Dean's two minute writing tips are awesome! It is difficult for me to find the time to read all the writing books I've collected. But Ms. Dean's tips are both helpful and concise, which really works for me. I feel my writing has improved because of her suggestions.

[Mark Edward Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Keep this handy

I’ve read through ‘Two-Minute Writing Tips’ with my manuscript open. A good way to review and find mistakes and/or improve your writing.

[Diane Burton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I follow Alicia Dean's blog where Two Minute Writing Tips originated. Easy to read, thought-provoking. I had many "duh" moments when I realized I do what she said not to. LOL The book is a quick pick up/put down read. You need time to digest each tip and see how you can use it in your own work. Lots of great examples.

[Darcy Flynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jam packed and straight to the point, Alicia Dean's Two-Minute Writing Tips is a must have for every writer, no matter where that author is in his or her writing journey. It takes only seconds to read each tip, and once applied, it will prove to be invaluable later on in your manuscript.