Feb 23 minRight & WrongerWhat works for one writer may not work for another. One writer may be able to break rules that another cannot.
Jan 24 minThe Voices in my HeadPick one character or action and explain its importance to yourself. Ask yourself over and over again those important writer questions.
Dec 1, 20213 minCopying OriginalityImitation is the sincerest form of flattery. But it’s also a lot like copying.
Nov 1, 20214 minPhysical Descriptions I don’t like to include physical descriptions of my characters in my writing. I’m often accused of this fault.
Sep 1, 20214 min(Syn)Tactics in Fight ScenesReaders need “take a breath” moments in a fight scene. Like swimmers holding their breath, eventually they need to come up for air.
Aug 1, 20214 minAvoid Self-AwarenessSelf-awareness is an end result. A new self-revelation is a great denouement. But until the character has struggled to learn, hold off.
Jul 1, 20214 minTake Your Time to PublishTake the time to learn the skills, to learn the craft, to develop your talent. People will be reading books forever. You have time. Take it.
May 1, 20214 minConstructing Show, Don't TellOur brains use inductive logic; thus, pairing two specific actions together gives the readers all they need to understand.
Apr 1, 20214 minDeeper Than "Show, Don't Tell"In order to SHOW your character’s emotions, you need to know WHY the character feels that way. This is not as simple as it sounds.
Mar 1, 20214 minSecrets of "Show Don't Tell"Narrative will not deliver a feeling alone. Instead, zoom in. Give the image of an action that creates the feeling. Here's how.
Feb 1, 20213 minWrite SmallAs you improve, focus more on the nuances of what you know and not the novelty of something new. I call this learning to “write small.”
Jan 1, 20213 minMaster Your DialogueTo write dialogue, invert the reading process. Don’t use dialogue to deliver information. Use it to deliver emotions and psychology.
Dec 1, 20204 minDialogue & Building CharacterInvert your craft. Start with the deeper psychology, and then write what they'd say because of the feeling, not to explain that feeling.
Nov 1, 20204 minTop Five Dialogue TechniquesThink about how dialogue affects many other elements of writing all at the same time. Below are my Top Five Dialogue Techniques.
Oct 1, 20203 minBecause I Like ItI gave myself full permission to stop writing. I wasn’t going to write any more that night and I wasn’t going to write any more the next day
Sep 1, 20204 minIt's About StoryThat’s why, to me, the worst Jeffery Eugenides book will always be remarkably better than the best Dan Brown book.
Aug 1, 20203 minThinking 4th DimensionallyThere are less-discussed and less-understood Time factors, such as the past perfect verb tense or the order of phrases and clauses.
Jul 1, 20203 minGrammatical Time TravelWhen you use a verb tense without fully understanding it, you’re essentially sticking your reader into the Delorean and stepping on the gas.
Jun 1, 20203 minSubtracting TimeMany writers add more words in an effort to explain or justify. The more effective solution is to go back to fix. More is not always better.
May 1, 20204 minThe Immediate FlashbackThe most misused and dangerous use of Flashback is – what I have come to call – the Immediate Flashback or interrupting backstory.
Apr 1, 20204 minSuspending DisbeliefCharacter's unique abilities put them in strange places, but if you include too many details about abilities, you bore the reader.
Mar 2, 20203 minWord-Time & Real-TimeThe ratio is simple: the amount of words used to show the action is inversely proportional to the time that action requires.
Feb 1, 20204 minStruggle HappyIn life, we want to avoid conflict. However, what we often fail to see is that conflict, though difficult, is the best path toward success.