Category: Characterization, Plot, & Setting

November 1, 2016

Stupidity Takes the Fright out of Horror

Is it just me, or is it true? Stupidity takes the fright out of horror. Take your generic horror story: an Average Joe, presumed to be relatively intelligent, finds himself (or herself) in the middle of some awful and very probably supernatural danger. Average Joe must then find a solution and/or fight through the situation to either defeat it or simply survive. Throughout...

Categories Characterization, Plot, & Setting/Literary Devices & Writing Techniques Comments: 2

October 20, 2016

A Little Phobia Goes a Long Way

People are emotional creatures – they get caught up in things and act irrationally (and don’t realize it until later). If you’re having trouble working that into your writing, adding a phobia can help because even though phobias are irrational, they follow certain rules. A Little Background on Phobias A phobia is an irrational reaction of fear to something that...

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October 11, 2016

Gender Guessers Are Handy for Writing

A big part of writing believable stories is shaping believable characters, and when you’re trying to write a believable man or woman, questions of gender come up. How do you write convincingly from the opposite gender? How can you tell if you succeeded? That’s when gender guessers are handy for writing. What Is a Gender Guesser? Some people analyzed a bunch...

Categories Characterization, Plot, & Setting/Writer Resources Comments: 0

September 13, 2016

Pets as Characterization: If a Character Kicks a Puppy…

This may be a U.S. thing (Although, judging from the lolcat mania online, it’s more widespread.), but people here are seriously obsessed with their pets.  They treat their pets like their children or even better than their children (Let’s pretend the second comment was a joke.). They also judge other people by their reactions to pets, which makes pet interaction a...

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September 8, 2016

Who Talks Like That? Book Nerds

A while ago, I talked about how people don’t really talk the way characters do in books. It’s true – mostly. One major exception is people without a lot of experience talking in the real world. People who learned their speech patterns from reading instead of actual social interaction. So if you read something and think, “Who talks like that?” The...

Categories Characterization, Plot, & Setting/Humor & Wordplay Comments: 0

September 6, 2016

Plain Speaking Doesn’t Mean Honest

In our culture, there’s an automatic assumption that plain speaking means someone is being honest. Surely, no one would be that blunt (A.K.A. rude) unless they meant what they were saying! Nope. Just like roundabout speaking doesn’t necessarily mean someone is lying, plain speaking doesn’t mean honest. Other Reasons for Plain Speaking Lying: People think that people who are blunt are honest, right? Let say someone...

Categories Characterization, Plot, & Setting/Literary Devices & Writing Techniques/Quotes, Words, & Phrases Comments: 0

August 31, 2016

10 Ways to Complicate a Plot with Technology

Whether the advanced technology in your story is a longbow, a microwave, or a nanobot, there are plenty of ways to take advantage of it. Plot complications are just the beginning (but we have to start somewhere). Here are some examples to look at when you’re trying to come up with ideas. 10 Ways to Use Technology to Complicate a Plot...

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August 11, 2016

What Makes Someone Act out of Character?

A writer knowing what makes someone act out of character is like a race car driver knowing how changes to the engine feel. Yes, if an amateur drives the car, it can still move pretty fast. With a professional driver paying attention to the nuances of the engine, on the other hand, it’s possible to predict its reactions and improve its performance. All...

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August 6, 2016

Scene Dissection: A Writing Prompt for Improving Complexity

The people-watching writing prompt is a good starting point for any exercise, and if you want to improve complexity in your writing, all you need to do is add a little scene dissection. Improving Complexity with Scene Dissection Now, in film, scene dissection is the way a single scene may be broken down into multiple camera shots from different angles....

Categories Characterization, Plot, & Setting/Plotting Exercises/Writing Prompts Comments: 0

May 19, 2016

How to Change Characters without Losing Your Fans

The longer your story or series is, the more likely that one or more of your main characters is going to change significantly. And as far as realism is concerned, that’s good. People change based on their experiences, so changing is a big part of making characters feel more realistic. Plus, it’s useful if you want to keep your readers...

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