People love a good story, because telling stories is how we share our experiences with others. A well-formed story explains the complex simply so that it will stick with the reader or listener. For a creative, telling the narrative of how and why your creations come about, will not only focus yourself but also inspire… Read more »
Here’s a secret writing exercise I only recently learned: If you want characters to feel real for the reader, you have to hint they have the potential to be the opposite of what they appear. Wait, what? The opposite of what the character seems . . . wouldn’t that mean the character is acting out… Read more »
In the past, I’ve addressed topics like artificial intelligence and time travel as both inspiration for story and as integral parts of setting. I think the best stories can work in just about any setting, but science is at the core of the science fiction genre. This time, I’m going all in on setting. You… Read more »
Creating an immersive setting is an important element of any story, but it’s especially important for historical fiction writers. Readers come to this genre because they want to feel they’re stepping out of their world and into the world of your story, whether it takes place in Gilded Age New York, Renaissance Florence or Imperial… Read more »
We often write stories because we have something we want to say to our readers. How we convey those ideas–essentially, our literary themes –can be tricky. For example, let’s say you’ve written a YA novel about a girl who’s determined to take control of her life. You’re proud of this story and passionate about its… Read more »
We writers should take every opportunity to experience the world of our characters. The more we immerse ourselves in a particular culture or setting the deeper we can understand it, and the more realistically we can describe it in our writing. Unfortunately, cost, distance, or other practicalities (like the lack of space travel or a… Read more »
I almost fell into the trap recently. My protagonist, speaking of his brother, said, “That would be John going off half-cocked, Uncle, not me.” A nice evocative expression for someone who acts without thinking, right? The only problem is, the story is set at the beginning of the 14th century in western Europe. Guns didn’t… Read more »
Revision is my favorite part of the writing process. I’ve often heard writers describe drafting as the “magical” stage, where you can discover new things and let your imagination run wild. It’s true–magic happens while drafting. But magic also happens in revision. Once you’ve written “The End,” you have a chunk of writing to play… Read more »
Our author voices are made up of a combination of modes. The four main ones being dialogue, description, action, and internal thought. Those are the most common modes balancing fictional prose. Too much of any one mode—clumps of description, trains of dialogue, pages of action, and dumps of internal thought—bogs down prose and makes it… Read more »
I have a tendency to over-correct in my editing process. This is especially true when I receive feedback from critique partners, and it’s difficult to get centered enough within myself to know what’s actually working and what isn’t. Even when I’m not receiving critique, I tend to be self-critical and perfectionistic (not sure if that’s… Read more »
