We’re back with another three-act analysis, this time of the French classic, The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery. This book has been a long-time favorite of mine, and like Animal Farm it has a great deal of allegory and symbolism woven into it, though it is decidedly less pessimistic and has a tone that… Read more »
This time I thought I’d do an analysis of Murder, She Wrote, one of my all-time favorite TV shows. If you’re not familiar with it, it’s about Jessica Fletcher, a retired schoolteacher-turned-mystery-author who goes around solving murders. Some of those murders take place in her beloved hometown of Cabot Cove, while others occur when she… Read more »
For some writers, point of view (POV) comes naturally. They hear their character’s voice in their head and know exactly whose perspective the story needs to be in. For other writers, POV can be a minefield where it’s impossible to know which point of view to choose. In fact, it might feel like you have… Read more »
Today, I wanted to talk about an important—and often overlooked—area of the craft, and that is narration. I define narration as any part of the story that’s told by the narrator. This narrator can be a character in the story (as in first person) or they can be an entity outside the story looking in… Read more »
A lot of people think world-building only applies to fantasy, where you have elaborate maps of sprawling kingdoms. Or maybe they think it applies to sci-fi or historical fiction, where you have to bring to life all the intricacies of the story’s world. Whether you write something “world heavy,” or your story’s world is a… Read more »
For the past year, lawyer-hubby, the nerdlings and I have been living in a temporary location as our home gets renovated. We hit some bumps in the road and only now, eleven months after moving out, are we finally able to start making any progress on the construction. This got me thinking about how home… Read more »
You may not know this about me, but I am a die-hard Twilight Zone fan. The show represents some of the finest writing in television and I especially love that it’s kid-friendly so I can watch with the nerdlings. Sure, a couple of episodes might be duds, but what show doesn’t hit the occasional bump… Read more »
Here at DIY MFA, we are passionate about literacy, learning, and helping writers hone their skills. It’s our jam, our laser-focus; it is the air we breathe. As many of you know, I am not only a columnist, but I also work for DIY MFA as the Community Welcome Dragon. I handle many of the… Read more »
Today, Lori is interviewing Natalka Burian. They’ll be talking about time travel, multiple mysteries, and Natalka’s book The Night Shift. Have you signed up to be a DIY MFA Radio Insider yet? This is an exciting new monthly newsletter, especially for our podcast listeners. Every month, you’ll get an email from our podcast producer with… Read more »
Today, I have the pleasure of interviewing Michele Scott. We’ll be talking about cozy mysteries and her book Murder Uncorked. Have you signed up to be a DIY MFA Radio Insider yet? This is an exciting new monthly newsletter, especially for our podcast listeners. Every month, you’ll get an email from our podcast producer with… Read more »
