The Moleskine etc. portion of my notebook collection.(No disrespect meant to Brian Kiteley's wonderful book.)One of the side effects I've noticed from trying to be prolific every day, all year, is that ideas rather bombard you. I'm constantly scribbling down snippets and fragments and possibilities. Most of them won't become stories but some will, and… Continue reading the 11 p.m. epiphany
Tag: nuts and bolts
a little bit of navel-gazing
Fiction, I once read in an old issue of Writer's Digest, is one damn thing after another. Things have to happen in order for the reader to stay engaged and interested. (I have read, as I'm sure we all have, novels that are mostly people thinking about things, but they're not ones that I've reread… Continue reading a little bit of navel-gazing
writing excercises: five characters
I treated myself recently to Tarot for Writers by Corinne Kenner, a book recommended by one of my writer friends. I've been fascinated by Tarot cards since I was about nine and made friends with an older girl in my neighborhood who had a deck that she'd let me look at sometimes. I learned to… Continue reading writing excercises: five characters
plotting: the 9-sentence outline
I like Joseph Campbell. I like studies of mythology and patterns in stories, and I like the Hero's Journey. I've used it to help me plot more than once.Of course, there are elements to The Hero's Journey that don't fit into every story (What if you don't have Shapeshifters? What does Return With The Elixir… Continue reading plotting: the 9-sentence outline
and they all lived happily ever after
One of my writing communities is having an "End it" challenge this week, and ever since I read the announcement I've been thinking about endings. Most of the time, when I begin I only vaguely know how a story is going to end--I know where I want the characters to be, as it were, but… Continue reading and they all lived happily ever after
happy, joyful and whole
The radio station I listen to most mornings has a feature every other Friday called The Painful Circle, where people can call in with their relationship problems for some unsentimental advice. Aside from the three DJs, there are two alternating special guests who help out with the Painful Circle, one of whom is a professional… Continue reading happy, joyful and whole
setting
I have never set a story where I live.I have set stories places I've been and loved, using memory where I could and research for everything else. I've set stories places I've never been and asked locals for advice. I've set stories places that don't exist and where I could create every last detail.But where… Continue reading setting
not for posies and potatoes
It's a funny thing, plotting. There are reams books on plots, arguments about plots. Some people say there are over twenty plots (man vs. man, man vs. God, man vs. self, man vs. society--I'm not going to list them all but you get the idea), some say only two (somebody comes to town, somebody leaves… Continue reading not for posies and potatoes
summing up: the synopsis and blurb
One of the most difficult steps in publishing for me is writing the blurb. (When you're playing with the big boys, I'm sure there's a staff to do just that. With a small press, it's up to the authors.) I found a good article on synopsis writing years ago that I still refer to: How… Continue reading summing up: the synopsis and blurb