How to Write a Novel with Alternating Timelines

There are so many ways to structure a novel, and one key consideration is the timeline. Are you telling the fast-paced, high-tension story of a heist that takes place over a week (or a day)? Are you crafting a family saga that spans generations? Once you have a sense of where your story takes place… Read more »

Find Your Focus Round-up

Find Your Focus Round-up

This has been one of these days where no matter how hard I try, I simply cannot focus on the task at hand. OK, maybe it’s been one of those months. I know for some people, it’s been difficult to find focus since the pandemic started. Every person has their own way of finding focus…. Read more »

Dealing with Ambiguity

Writers deal with ambiguity regularly. Every time we submit a piece to a publication, it exists in both states: published and unpublished. Until the acceptance or rejection slides into our inboxes, the piece remains in limbo.  Maybe we decide to send it out to several places at a time. The anxiety heightens. What if two… Read more »

#5onFri: Five Classic Films Featuring Characters Who Write

#5onFri: Five Classic Films Featuring Characters Who Write

I’ve been a classic film fan all my life. I’ve always loved backstage or meta stories, and the ultra-meta-aspect of writers writing about writers. In movies, there are few scenes that show writers writing, for the simple fact that watching someone write for 90 minutes isn’t entertainment. The focus is generally on how life influences… Read more »

Show, Don’t Tell: Your Story as a Movie Script!

Setting the Scene I write horror and dark sci-fi. My friend is a writer and an actor with a YouTube channel of short videos she’s made on her own. Last fall we partnered up to make a short film for a local Halloween film contest. I had a ghost story I’d been working on that… Read more »