One of my favorite parts of watching a movie is the opportunity to spy on the characters’ familiar surroundings. Their homes, their bedrooms, and their offices all present wonderful insights into personality. The visual medium of film allows for all kinds of details to be included, some so minuscule or subtle most viewers probably won’t […]
June 10, 2011 by 17 Comments Plotting Your Novel3 Easy (or Easier) Ways to Build Suspense
Recently, while writing a short story, I encountered the problem of its being too short. My editor complimented the storyline and structure but indicated something about the writing was missing. It was too short, too bland, too summative and passive instead of being descriptive and active. Finally, I found all these things centered on one […]
March 13, 2011 by 50 Comments Story SettingsAre You Asking These Important Questions About Your Fantasy Settings?
Fantasy settings are special. In many genres, the setting is little more than a necessary backdrop, culled from the author’s life or research. For example, before writing my portal fantasy Dreamlander, my experience with historical fiction had allowed me to drop my characters into real-life settings. I didn’t have to create settings; all I had […]
February 20, 2011 by 51 Comments Narrative5 Ways to Write Character Thoughts Worth More Than a Penny
One of the key benefits of written fiction is also one of the most difficult techniques to master: the characters’ inner narrative. The inner narrative of the characters—their thoughts put on paper—is the essence of fiction. Mastery of that essence equals mastery, in large part, of the art form of fiction itself. No wonder it’s […]
February 15, 2011 by 8 Comments Beginning Your BookThe 3 Integral Components of a Story’s Beginning
Today, I’m honored to be hosted by Larry Brooks on his fabulous site Storyfix. Be sure to stop by his site to read my guest post “The 3 Integral Components of a Story’s Beginning.” Below is a sneak peek: Beginnings are tough for a number of reasons, not least among them the fact that we’re wading blind into […]
December 26, 2010 by 33 Comments Story Settings7 Reasons Weather Is a Writer’s Friend
Ever since Edward Bulwer-Lytton slapped readers with his infamous “dark and stormy night” line, writers everywhere have been leery of misusing weather in their stories. After all, who among us wants a contest for the worst opening lines in fiction named after us? But avoiding weather altogether is a mistake of its own. Weather offers […]
November 24, 2010 by 14 Comments Story SettingsAre You Utilizing Ugly Settings?
In lieu of the usual video post (as I continue my week off), I thought I’d share a reader’s response to the post “The Importance of a Fabulous Setting” from a couple weeks ago. David Taylor emailed me the following, and his thoughts were too good not to pass along: I watched your video and […]
November 3, 2010 by 10 Comments Story Settings2 Rules of Creating a Fabulous Setting
Setting is sometimes the neglected stepchild of the writing world. We lavish attention on our characters and plot, but sometimes forget how powerful a fabulous setting can be. Some genres, particularly those that fall within the realm of speculative fiction (fantasy and science fiction), tend to give more attention to setting, simply because their stories […]
October 31, 2010 by 16 Comments Narrative4 Questions to Improve Your Stories With Powerful Juxtaposition
An easy way to add depth to a story is to introduce one of the most marvelous techniques known to writers: juxtaposition. Juxtaposition is the art of contrast, the foundation of dichotomy, and the tool of both subtlety and boldness. In using juxtaposition, you are able to take two seemingly incompatible things and combine them […]
October 10, 2010 by 17 Comments Dialogue6 Ways You Can Use Dialogue in Your Story
Dialogue is one of the hardest-working components in fiction—but only if you take full advantage of it. It’s easy enough to make your characters talk to each other and even relatively easy enough to make what they say interesting to readers. But if interesting is the only burden your dialogue is carrying, it’s not doing […]
