Today, I’m doing an analysis of Beauty and the Beast, one of my absolute favorite movies. This film never fails to tug at my heartstrings and the ending makes me cry every single time! I first saw this movie at a very pivotal moment in my life. I was in ninth grade and a total… Read more »
If you’ve ever listened to my podcast, DIY MFA Radio, you know that at the end of each interview, I would ask the same question: “What’s your #1 tip for writers?” As I was thinking of what to write for today’s newsletter, I asked myself that same question, and I came up with not one,… Read more »
Today I wanted to talk about one of my favorite topics. Iteration is the process where you repeat something, making small, incremental changes. We’re so used to seeing iteration in the world around us, that we barely even notice it. For example, tech companies use iteration all the time. They produce software and release a… Read more »
We’re back with another story structure analysis. This time, we’re doing a three-act analysis of The Princess Bride, which happens to be another one of my all-time favorite movies. This film is not to be confused with the book by the same title. The book is entirely different and, frankly, I find this to be… Read more »
One of the techniques I talk about most often is the Angst Jar. This is a tool I use to help myself get through creative failure and persevere, even when writing becomes difficult (which, inevitably, it does). The Angst Jar is designed to give you an outlet for creative pain, allowing you to channel it… Read more »
The Star Wars franchise is one of my favorites of all time, and while Rogue One and The Empire Strikes Back are at the top of my list, I have a special place in my heart for Episode IV: A New Hope. We’ve done a bunch of 3-act analyses over the past few months, and… Read more »
I’ve been thinking a lot about all the writing resources that are out there on the web—both free and not free. This got me wondering: “How do we manage it all? How do we tell what’s good from what’s not? And how do we know our time and money will be well spent?” In other… Read more »
Over the past few months, I’ve shared some 3-Act analyses of various different movies, books, and stories. These analyses have included things like the book Pride and Prejudice, the movie Die Hard, and Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour.” It can be useful to look at examples of the three-act structure in action, but… Read more »
If you’re like me—and many writers—you might sometimes feel like you’re writing in a vacuum. Sure, we might love to envision ourselves huddled away in a cabin in the woods penning the next big bestseller, but the reality is that we need to connect with a greater writing community if we want to build a… Read more »
Whether you’re brand new to writing or have been working at it for quite some time, you know how important it is to craft a compelling main character who propels the story forward. I’ve been working with writers for well over a decade and over that time I’ve seen again and again just how crucial… Read more »
