Nicole Bianchi

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Ernest Hemingway’s Favorite Writing Exercise (Video)

Published January 7, 2023 | Last Updated January 7, 2023 By Nicole Bianchi Leave a Comment

Let’s start this year with some wonderful writing advice from Ernest Hemingway.

I’ve just uploaded a new YouTube video sharing Hemingway’s 3-step exercise that will help you improve your writing. I hope this video gives you a bit of inspiration as you work towards your 2023 writing goals.

An aspiring writer once asked Ernest Hemingway, “How can a writer train himself?” Hemingway shared an exercise for sharpening a writer’s observational skills so they can vividly describe their experiences on paper. This exercise can be broken down into three-steps and gives us a fantastic way to practice “show, don’t tell” in our writing.

You can click on the CC button for subtitles. My goal is for this video to help as many writers as possible. 🙂 It would be awesome if you could give it a thumbs up on YouTube and share it with a fellow writer. And I always love hearing your thoughts in the comments. Thank you!

Here’s the full text of Hemingway’s article “Monologue to the Maestro”.

**FURTHER RESOURCES**:

  • Join the email list & get the free writing guides: https://nicolebianchi.com/newsletter/
  • Read my short stories and memoir essays: https://nicolebianchi.com/stories/
  • Check out more writing resources on the blog: https://nicolebianchi.com/blog/
  • Support my videos by buying me a coffee: https://ko-fi.com/nicolebianchi

Filed Under: creativity, featured, fiction, inspiration, motivation, video, writing

Monroe’s Motivated Sequence: How to Write a Powerfully Persuasive Essay, Article, or Speech (Video)

Published June 26, 2022 | Last Updated June 29, 2022 By Nicole Bianchi 2 Comments

I hope all of your writing projects are going well this June. It’s been a few months since I last published a post here, and I’m happy to finally be back.

While I was away, I was making a new video, and I just uploaded it to YouTube:

You can click on the CC button for subtitles. In this video, I look at a persuasive speech outline called the Motivated Sequence created by psychologist Alan H. Monroe.

I first learned this structure when I was competing in a speech and debate league back in high school. It was extremely effective at grabbing the attention of the audience and inspiring them to action. 

Since then, I’ve continued to use it for articles and essays and have taught it to many writing students who were working on persuasive essays and speeches. And I’ve been wanting to share it here on the blog for quite a while! I hope you find it helpful.

If you enjoy the video, be sure to give it a thumbs up on YouTube and subscribe to the channel. This lets me know that you found the video helpful and also encourages YouTube to share it with more people on the platform. Thank you!

**RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS VIDEO**:

  • 📚 Principles of Speech eBook by Alan H. Monroe: https://archive.org/details/principlesofspeemonr
  • 📚 Paperback copy on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3xQEyDL
  • 🎙Full Text of “I Have a Dream”: https://www.npr.org/2010/01/18/122701268/i-have-a-dream-speech-in-its-entirety
  • 📝 2015 study on Attention Span: https://time.com/3858309/attention-spans-goldfish/
  • 🎥 My Video about Four Powerful Persuasive Techniques: https://youtu.be/h2Zx6oBolZY
  • 📬 My email newsletter, The Inkwell: https://nicolebianchi.com/newsletter/
[Read more…]

Filed Under: blogging, copywriting, featured, video, writing

How to Create Story Conflict: The Conflict Triangle with the Stakes Character (Video)

Published February 12, 2022 | Last Updated February 12, 2022 By Nicole Bianchi Leave a Comment

I’m excited to share a new video with you today!

You can click on the CC button for subtitles. In this video, I’m looking at a fascinating writing concept that will help you strengthen your storytelling as a fiction or nonfiction writer. I dive into how this concept is used in modern films like Iron Man 3 as well as classics of cinema including It’s a Wonderful Life and Casablanca.

Thanks so much to an email subscriber for suggesting this topic. 

The conflict triangle will help you:

  1. Write a gripping plot so readers care about your protagonist.
  2. Develop a convincing character arc for your protagonist so that they have an unforgettable transformation.
  3. Weave a compelling message into your story that impacts readers on an emotional level.

If you enjoy the video, be sure to give it a thumbs up on YouTube and subscribe to the channel. This lets me know that you found the video helpful and also encourages YouTube to share it with more people on the platform. Thank you!

RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS VIDEO:

  • 🎥 The Ladder of Abstraction (video): https://youtu.be/-UG8StLBiek
  • 📬 My email newsletter, The Inkwell: https://nicolebianchi.com/newsletter

Filed Under: featured, fiction, video, writing

Three Journaling Methods for Increased Productivity and Creativity (Video)

Published January 15, 2022 | Last Updated January 15, 2022 By Nicole Bianchi 1 Comment

In this video, I’m sharing the three journaling methods I’m using in 2022 to boost my creativity and productivity and stay on track with my goals and projects. Two I’ve been keeping for years (one inspired by Benjamin Franklin’s daily schedule, the other by John Steinbeck’s notebooks). The third is completely new.

Do you keep a journal? Or are you planning on keeping a journal this year? What are your favorite journaling methods? Let me know in the comments.

If you enjoy the video, be sure to give it a thumbs up on YouTube and subscribe to the channel. This will encourage YouTube to share the video with more people. Thanks so much!

RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS VIDEO: 

  • 📝 My blog post about Benjamin Franklin’s daily schedule: https://nicolebianchi.com/benjamin-franklin-daily-schedule/
  • 📝 My blog post about my journals: https://nicolebianchi.com/journals/
  • 📝 A peek into the notebooks of famous writers: https://nicolebianchi.com/how-to-keep-writing-notebook/
  • 📚John Steinbeck’s journals of The Grapes of Wrath: https://amzn.to/3Kdpk0Q
  • 💻 Day One: https://dayoneapp.com
  • 💻 Evernote: https://evernote.com
  • 📬 My email newsletter, The Inkwell: https://nicolebianchi.com/newsletter/

Filed Under: creativity, featured, inspiration, motivation, productivity, video, writing

F. Scott Fitzgerald on How to Write Vivid Character Descriptions (Video)

Published December 16, 2021 | Last Updated December 16, 2021 By Nicole Bianchi 1 Comment

If you’re celebrating Christmas next week, I hope you have a lovely, joy-filled holiday. If you don’t celebrate or if this is a difficult time for you, I wish you peace and happiness this December.

And I have a writing gift for you — I’ve just uploaded a new YouTube video:

In this video, I look at how F. Scott Fitzgerald writes vivid physical character descriptions in The Great Gatsby. I share four strategies that will help you describe people in both fiction and nonfiction so they come alive for readers.

I hope you enjoy this last writing resource of 2021! Be sure to give it a like, leave a comment (comments are awesome), and subscribe to my channel for more videos like this one in the new year.

RECOMMENDED RESOURCES:

  • 📚 “The Great Gatsby” book: https://amzn.to/3pV3GF9
  • 🎬 Movie stills from “The Great Gatsby” 2013 film: https://amzn.to/3GMGCiD
  • 🎥 Dinner Table Exercise (video): https://youtu.be/39XZzQrHfxY
  • 🎥 How to Close Read (video): https://youtu.be/VSwNF-wqL_I
  • 📝 Fitzgerald on Writing Masterful Dialogue: https://nicolebianchi.com/3-tips-fitzgerald-for-writing-masterful-dialogue/
  • 📝 Fitzgerald on Writing Masterful Descriptions: https://nicolebianchi.com/writing-vivid-description/
  • 📬 My email newsletter, The Inkwell: https://nicolebianchi.com/newsletter/

Some of the above links might be affiliate links. Thank you for helping to support the blog!

Filed Under: copywriting, featured, fiction, video, writing

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Hi, I’m Nicole! I help creatives, business owners, and writers take their writing and copywriting to the next level and grow their online audience. I’m also a published writer of essays and short stories. As a Christian, I seek to follow in the tradition of artists like Johann Sebastian Bach, dedicating all my work Soli Deo gloria.
Find out more about me here.
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“My heart is stirred by a noble theme as I recite my verses for the king; my tongue is the pen of a skillful writer.”
– Psalm 45:1

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