For one reason or another, it can sometimes be tempting to avoid writing certain important scenes. Issues that are difficult emotionally or that we have to expend extra effort to research properly may be issues we’d just as soon write our way around. But doing so is usually a fast and easy way to frustrate […]
March 14, 2022 by 55 Comments Writing LifeHow to Know When You’re a Successful Author?
How to know when you’re a successful author? I suppose almost every writer asks this at some point—and very likely at frequent points. There are multiple ways to define and measure the answer. For many of us, the answer seems come down to commercial success. And yet because commercial success is sometimes elusive, this metric […]
February 28, 2022 by 55 Comments PodcastShould You Take a Break From Writing? 5 Red Flags
Writers are supposed to write. That’s just how it works. But should you ever take a break from writing? Is that just code for quitting? Is it a sign you’re copping to your own laziness or fear? Or that you’re really not a disciplined, “serious” writer? The short answer: Who knows? Only you know. The more […]
February 21, 2022 by 52 Comments Characters9 Ways to Approach Relationship Dynamics in Fiction
Creating an amazing supporting cast that can offer important relationship dynamics in fiction will also help develop your protagonist. This isn’t just because great supporting characters will add color, drama, and nuance to your story in their own right. It’s also because every supporting character in your story has the ability to bring out new […]
February 14, 2022 by 32 Comments CharactersArchetypes and Story Structure: How They’re Connected
By its very nature, story structure is archetypal. It is a pattern we recognize emerging from story. It is a pattern as big as life itself, and therefore one about which we are always learning more, but it is also a pattern we have been able to distill into specific systems that help us consistently […]
February 7, 2022 by 63 Comments PodcastMaking Story Structure Your Own
Over the past decade, the term “story structure” has largely come to refer to plot points and beat sheets. When writers start talking about structure, many of us assume they’re talking about the specific and even archetypal shape of story—the rise and fall of plot, the causal balance of action and reaction, the transformational journey […]
January 31, 2022 by 75 Comments Plotting Your NovelConflict in Fiction: What It Really Is and Why It’s Important to Plot
Conflict is one of the central engines of story. We’ve all heard it: no conflict, no story. On the surface, that makes total sense. But I find there can be a lot of confusion around the word “conflict.” What is conflict in fiction really? What is its purpose? What does it look like in a […]
January 24, 2022 by 64 Comments Editing Your NovelThe Writer’s Inner Critic: 11 Ways to Tell if Yours Is Healthy
Ah, the writer’s inner critic. It’s that wily inner editor who has such a way of getting in the last word (and first and middle words) on any writing session or project. Most of the time when writers speak of the inner critic, there’s a fair amount of self-deprecating exaggeration of how ruthless that little […]
January 17, 2022 by 22 Comments Marketing Your NovelThe Making of a Full-Cast Audio Book: Interview With Wayfarer Producer Kenny Sargent
As of just a few weeks ago, my gaslamp fantasy novel Wayfarer was transformed into a full-cast audio book, complete with original music and sound effects. For me, it was unique experience, having been approached by new audio theater company Sargent Family Productions. They blew me away with the quality of their work, and I’ve […]
January 10, 2022 by 77 Comments PodcastA Writer’s New Year Reflections: The 6 Gifts I Gave Myself in 2021
Another new year brings another new opportunity for reflection and re-centering. As I talk about nearly every year, my preference for the New Year is to focus less on resolutions for the year ahead and more on reflections of what I experienced and gained in the year past. For me, as I think for many […]
