Tip #178: Make the ordinary interesting

If you're going to set a scene in a house, write the character of the owner(s)/occupier(s) all over it.  Show the obsessive cleanliness or piles of odd socks lying in the front hall.

H.R.Filmore's Reminders to Self, November 2011.

Tip #177: The three views

Writers sometimes forget that there're three distinct levels of attention~long-range view, where you show if there are {mountains} or dust-clouds {or echoing footsteps} in the distance, mid-range view, where you show the size of rooms and the proximity of your characters from each other and things that matter in the scene, and close view, which is inside the character's personal space and includes anything they touch, taste, and often smell. I've noticed... that people leave out at least one of those too much in a scene, and without them all, the story doesn't feel real

comment by Cmefreeze:
http://critiquecircle.com/forums.asp?action=viewforum&thread=908880&offset=0

Tip #176: Conciously write

when... you suddenly have all of these new tools... they're tools you have to think about conciously because you've just learned them.... {W}riting becomes difficult - because it is suddenly a concious process. And it takes a while to internalise these tools to the point that they become unconcious.  What frequently happens to people is that they mistake the "this is difficult because I'm thinking about it" for "I can't write".

http://www.writingexcuses.com/2011/10/30/writing-excuses-6-22-continuing-education-for-writers/

Tip #175: The first words of a story

There is something delicious about writing the first words of a story. You never quite know were they'll take you.

Beatrix Potter

Tip #174: A sizeable chunk of talent

I have a theory that a sizeable amount of talent is being able to recognise your mistakes and correct them.

http://www.writingexcuses.com/2011/10/30/writing-excuses-6-22-continuing-education-for-writers/

Podcast quote, so wording may not be 100% correct.

Tip #173: Random events

Even if the character does encounter a random event, on a deeper level it should have personal relevance.

http://letsschmooze.blogspot.com/2011/08/lessons-on-pitching-hook-and-character.html

As with life, a random encounter may subtly alter the character's mood and trigger a decision later that might not have happened otherwise.

Tip #172: Making an entrance

do your characters make good entrances in your novels...?

http://blog.janicehardy.com/2011/10/guest-author-maryrose-wood-but.html

think about your character's body posture and manner of walking and what they're likely to look like at this moment in the narrative. Think about what your character's current objective is when he's walking and how this will affect pace and gesture.

http://www.ehow.com/how_6803957_make-entrance-acting-class.html

Tip #171: Fireworks

You know how in a typical fireworks display there will be some rockets that burst into colorful circles, others that will send a sparkly streak skyward, and others that will make a loud BANG? And then at the end of the show there will be a big finale where every kind of firework is thrown into the sky all at once?

That’s the idea behind the Fireworks Ending in film. It means you throw all the elements of your movie on screen at the big climax. You’re hitting the peak of the action, emotion, and visuals all at once.

http://letsschmooze.blogspot.com/2011/08/fireworks-endings.html


Or try thinking of the story as fuses leading up to an explosive climax:

You know what we call fuses that aren’t followed up on? Loose threads... spend some lengthy, intense, brain-breaking hours figuring out exactly how all those wild ideas can come together in the most thrilling, wonderful CLIMAX ever

http://victoriamixon.com/2010/09/13/5-ways-to-make-your-novel-unforgettable/