Spellbinding Writing......?

Question

Writers:

How do you make your writing spell-binding, make it flow in a way so that your reader can't put it down, and just has to find out what's going to happen in the end?

Also, who are some examples of writers (I know J.K Rowling is one) that write in spell-binding ways?

Answer 1

JK Rowling's one, Paulo Coelho's another.
Spell-binding writing... for me it lies whether it's gripping, exciting, if the plot captures me in such a way that i have to finish the book in one setting.
Prolly you'll have to have alot of twists and turns and surprisingly cliff-hangers in every chapter, you know, so action-packed and interesting that the reader'll wish they can put it down, but they really can't.

Answer 2

I agree with Pip. Making your writing spellbinding has to do with your style and the way you go about writing the story. I mean, writing that is spellbinding really is a style, when you think about it. Because J.K. Rowling's writing is spellbinding.

As far as actually making your own writing spellbinding, I can tell you a few things that would help (or wouldn't, I'm just giving my opinion, ha). Practice, for one thing. That's a must. Reading up on spellbinding authors, for another, though that's probably why you wanted a list of spellbinding authors, to absorb their style and incorporate it into your own.

When you get to the writing part, yes, have a plan for your entire story, unless you know for sure you can wing it and will turn out alright (I personally can't do that; I have to know where I'm going before I start, I always make an outline). That way, it's much easier to focus on your writing, and not what you're going to do with your characters next. I can't tell you exactly how to make it spellbinding. Believe it or not, 'spellbinding' is also an opinion. I could think someone was spellbinding, and you could disagree. But I can give you a list of authors I do think spellbinding, and you can try and see what you can do with their stuff (and I mean style).

Tamora Pierce (I've only read Trickster's Choice and the sequel Trickster's Queen, but they were so good I want to buy them now just to have them), Donna Jo Napoli (she's written both historical fiction and fantasy, including her own story of Beauty and the Beast, and also one having to do with Greek mythology, called The Great God Pan), Stephenie Meyer (who writes vampire-romance books), Marianne Curley (though I've only read Old Magic, it's one of my favorite short-reads ever), and Chris Wooding (I've only read Poison and Storm Thief, but they're amazing). I really hardly ever focus on one author and try and read all their stuff (Rowling is an exception, and so is Donna Jo Napoli) and that's why I've only read certain books from some of these authors. But I hope this helps a little. I'm trying to make my own work as amazing as possible, so I know why you want help.

Good luck.

Answer 3

Personally, I believe that it's a gift. However, writing is also a craft, much like painting or learning to play a musical instrument. The more you paint, the better your paintings become. The more you play your instrument, the better you music sounds. The more you write, the better your writing is. I know it's not much of an answer, but there's really not much more to it than that.

Scott Westerfeld and Holly Black are two of my favorite authors, both of whom write in the way you described.

Answer 4

It's not about plot or characters, really. It's about style. It's how you string words together and how they come together. Read White's The Elements of Style or some of Karen Elizabeth Gordon's language books.

Answer 5

i'm a writer too and what i've found if you want a griping story go with what my dad says "a surprise for the author is a surprise for the reader." if the book is predicable than it's not very good, so surprise your self.

Answer 6

I saw that documentary. It was very well done. You could do a paper on why spelling bees are so stressful and nerve racking. I remember last year there was a kid who passed out during the national bee!

Answer 7

Pre-planning. You want things than seem insignificant at the beginning of the book to become important later. For me, it is all about tying things together.

Answer 8

Doris Miles Disney. Most of her titles are probably out of print, but I have seen several in new bookstores recently.

Answer 9

Stephenie Meyer is one that captivates me. [[Twilight/New Moon and Eclipse]]