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Writing Advice from Terminator: Salvation


Proof that good advice can come from anywhere: writing advice from Terminator: Salvation courtesy of The Rejectionist:

1. You need a plot. You really, really do. A Good Idea (“What if it’s the future! And robots are the boss of everything and this hot non-emotive dude has to find this kid who is actually his dad and send him back in time before the robots kill everyone!”) is an excellent start, but a Good Idea is NOT sufficient to carry the entire vehicle of your novel. We don’t care how highfalutin’ your concept or your prose is; you leave out the plot and you are going to bore us out of our skull, and not because we are too stupid to comprehend the brilliance of your talent. You REALLY EXTRA-ESPECIALLY need a plot if you are working in genre fiction. Bonus points if your plot MAKES SENSE (see No. 2).


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