Writer Terms You Should Probably Know (especially if you follow a writer blog [psst… this blog])

Hello everyone, I hope you’re having a lovely morning, afternoon, or evening! I was thinking the other day about various writing terms (some of which I don’t even know the definition of). So, I decided to create this little post of writing/writer terms for myself but also for others who want to know what all these (weird) words mean!

P.S. feel free to let me know if there are any that I missed (and if you would like a part 2!)

P.P.S. all these words and definitions were found at thgmwriters.com

>> The Words <<

– Canon –

This is a noun and is typically used when talking about the characters, events, or traits in a book. If you say “Mary is a blonde; that’s canon.” That means that Mary has blonde hair in the book; it’s written, confirmed by the author. It’s a way to distinguish something original written by the author and something that a fan made up or later writer’s took and adapted/wrote.

– Headcanon –

This is a noun and is mainly used within “fandoms.” It’s typically used when talking about characters, events, or traits in a book. However, it’s the opposite of canon. Headcanons are usually little blurbs or short stories about a character or an event in a book, but it’s made-up; it’s written by a fan or someone else. A headcanon is just another person’s take (or even hopes) of a character or event in a book.

– W.I.P. (or just “WIP”) –

WIP is an acronym which stands for “work in progress.” A WIP is a story, book, poem, etc. that a writer is currently writing or working on. There can be multiple WIP’s. For instance, some of my WIP’s is a musical called Wester as well as a book called Behind The Roses.

– Writer’s Block –

This is when a writer (or author) can’t continue writing. It can be because they don’t know what to write, or they’re not motivated, or really anything that stops (or “blocks”) them from writing.

– Front Matter –

The pages at the front of a book that contain the table of contents, dedications, preface, all that fancy stuff that you flip through before getting to the actual story.

– Back Matter –

The pages at the back of the book that contain acknowledgements, glossaries, sources, and all that fun stuff.

– Literary Agent (or just “agent”) –

An agent is pretty much the mediator between the writer/author and the publishing company. Many publishing companies don’t accept or take “unsolicited manuscripts” so you need a literary agent to represent you for that.

– Novel –

A fiction book with a word count over 40,000 (some other sources say it’s over 70,000).

– Novella –

A fiction book with a word count between 5,001 and 39,999.

– Short Story –

A fiction story with a word count between 1,001 and 5,000.

– Flash Fiction –

A fiction story with a word count between 6 and 1,000.

– Middle Grade –

The preteen/early teenager (10-15) age range for books.

– O.C. (or just OC) –

This stands for “original character.” An original character is a character that a writer (or even artist) comes up with themselves. Some of my OC’s are Idos Rakai Iskar, Hila Rami Hellin, and Annaliese Rune Wolff (who I actually based on myself)

– Passive Voice –

When the verb is focusing on what is being done to the subject of the sentence.

“My first trip to Bali is one I will always remember.” rather than: “I will always remember my first trip to Bali.”

“The plane is being flown by me.” rather than: “I am flying the plane.”

– Pitch –

What the writer/author says or gives to an agent or editor, asking them to work on or represent their writing. It usually contains a query letter, what the book is about, and a short bio.

– Query Letter –

A letter, similar to a Pitch, that is sent to an agent or publisher to get them to represent or publish. The query letter usually involves a short intro, a brief summary, and a quick bio about the writer. Many writers put other books/stories they’ve worked on, their accomplishments (degrees, experience, etc.) and anything to get someone to publish/represent you. This article from blog.reedsy.com and this article from indeed.com both helped me when writing my query letter.

– Royalties –

The author’s earnings from the publisher when their book is sold.

– Tear Sheet –

A sample of the author’s published work. No, it’s not the drafts, outlines, or any other sheet of paper that might have literal tears on it…

– Voice –

Similar to the tone of writing. It’s the sort of tone that the writer/author adapts and puts onto paper. Rick Riordan for example has a more comical voice while J.R.R. Tolkein had a very informative, descriptive sort of voice.

>> Author <<

vs

>> Writer <<

An author is someone who’s work has been published and is credited to them. A writer is … well, anyone who writes.

For example, I am just a writer. Sure, I have a bajillion books, stories, and everything in between, but nothing of mine is published (yet, hopefully). I write on my blog, I write books on Google Docs, I do all sorts of writing, but nothing is published, so I’m not an author (yet, hopefully).

>> Traditional Publishing <<

vs

>> Self-Publishing <<

Traditional publishing is when a author’s work is published, distributed, marketed, (all that fancy stuff) by a publishing (some popular ones are Hachette, HarperCollins, Macmillan, Penguin Random House, and Simon & Schuster). The publishing company owns the rights and the royalties for the book.

Self-publishing is when the author owns the rights and royalties, which can be good. However, you have to market your book and do a lot of “that fancy stuff” on your own or you have to hire others to do that for you, such as an editor or a marketer.

There you go! I hope you found this post helpful or entertaining. Feel free to let me know of any other terms you’d like me to explain (the best I can 😂) or anything else writing-related that you’ve learned and would like to share. I wish you a wonderful rest of your day or night. Keep on inspiring others and loving yourself!