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Alright, so @jayna is kicking our butts when it comes to promoting Write Club, and I wish that I could say I have an excellent excuse why, but, well, I don't.

I just started back at school, and I have an insane number of credit hours, on top of three jobs and actually *writing* the Write Club story, but I need to make time for this! My fans must know!

So the first prompt, which @tanglebranch lovingly crafted, goes like this: 
<i>"My only requirement is that in your story there must be a gift given, and it must cost a lot. Not in an expensive way, but in a sacrificial way. On your mark, get set, GO!"</i>

I *know*, she literally said "On your mark, get set, GO." She's such a nerd. :P We love her though.

So! My story has legs and a little over 1500 words, but I'm hitting a roadblock. I think I've written myself into a hole, so I'm trying to either back track or just embrace the awkward shower scene and let it lead me on to the actual story again. I don't know. I have this problem pretty often, but not very often with short stories. Novels are the ones that kick the crap out of me (still have one published though. Suck on *that*, writer's block! Not *the* Block, like, ya know, not being able to write. No affront here!!! Oh my God, how long are these parenthesis anyways??)

Recently, I've been doing some reading, coupled with the advice of the Writer's Block guys, and one big thing that I've found myself doing which is a big writing no-no is:

<h1>Dialogue Tags</h1>

That's right. Dialogue tags.

So what *are* dialogue tags anyways?

Here's an example: "I love the way you kiss me," he breathed. 
Another: "Your hair is on fire!" she chortled.
One more! "I'm gonna find you, and I'm gonna kill you," he growled.

You get the picture?

They seem like good ideas at first, right? You don't have to write "said" a million times, and it covers a bunch of information in one word. *But* professional writers loath and avoid them!

Why though?

For one, they disrupt the flow of your piece! When a reader sees "Said," their mind instantly recognizes it and it doesn't take them time to process it, but with a word like "chortle," there's at least a teeny tiny disruption so their brain can process it. "Said" gets the words out of the way and let's the story be told.

So how do you get their feelings across then?

Easy! Show it through their actions!!

For example: "I love the way you kiss me." Her eyes glanced to his chest, then back to meet his. (leave me alone, I'm not great at this!!)
Or: "Your hair is on fire!" She said, chuckling profusely.
I don't know. How about: "I'm gonna find you, and I'm gonna kill you." He slammed the phone back into it's cradle, and began furiously loading his weapon.

These aren't great examples, but you get the picture. Let their body language tell the story, not you!