Category: Literary Devices & Writing Techniques

January 12, 2016

The Art of the Unlikely Coincidence: Serendipity & Synchronicity in Writing

One of the biggest challenges of writing novels well is tying everything together in a believable way. Part of the difficulty comes from how heavily plots rely on coincidences: little details that seem insignificant at first glance but somehow tie into the resolution. Like life, some coincidence is necessary; however, finding the right amount can be problematic. Too much reliance, and it...

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December 30, 2015

The Big Problem With Meter, Assonance, Consonance, & Rhyme

I could say that it’s the big problem with the artistry of poetry, but I figured I’d ruffle enough feathers as it is. No matter how I say it, however, all of these literary devices rely on how people say words, and that’s something that is simply not consistent. When writing, we have little choice but to rely on how...

Categories Literary Devices & Writing Techniques/Poetry Comment: 1

December 29, 2015

Top 10 Terms for Discussing Poetry

Although poetry and prose share plenty of literary devices, there are some that are more common to poetry, and it can be hard to discuss poetry without them. Here’s a few of the most important ones: Stanza: A stanza is a group of lines. It’s the paragraph of the poem, and different stanza types are named by the number of lines...

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December 13, 2015

Breaking the Fourth Wall on Page, Stage, & Screen

The term “breaking the 4th wall” started with theatre and the concept that the stage was a room with an invisible wall that the audience peeked through to see into the characters’ lives. A character could break the 4th wall by talking to the audience directly, making eye contact with them, or otherwise mentioning that he or she was part...

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December 11, 2015

The Drama of Dialogue

When it comes to dramas, it’s all about dialogue. Seriously. The script of the play is a long series of conversations. That’s it. So if you’re not good at writing dialogue, then you have a choice: don’t write plays, or get better at writing dialogue.* If you want to get better at writing dialogue, I wish I could tell you...

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December 1, 2015

Characterization Through Dialogue

If you’re having trouble with characterization, you might want to check the dialogue. Even though real people don’t talk like book characters, dialogue is one of the fastest and most reliable ways to communicate what a character is like and where a character is from without going into a lot of detail. And the most important part of using dialogue for characterization...

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November 30, 2015

The Carte Blanche of a Likable Character

A while back, I was watching the M*A*S*H* series, and I had a little epiphany. It started when I realized that although Hawkeye and Trapper regularly tormented George Burns, the series always framed their actions as humorous and Burns’ actions as mean-spirited and wrong – which is essentially how the audience took it. And most of the time, Hawkeye and Trapper’s...

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November 29, 2015

Tea & Sex: The Power of Analogies

Have you ever tried to communicate an idea to someone who can’t seem to grasp what you’re saying? Your evidence and arguments are dismissed or ignored, or maybe you’re just having a hard time verbalizing your stance? Analogies can be a great way to make a point to someone when regular arguments fail. They’re also useful for persuasive articles or videos. I’m...

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November 19, 2015

6 Methods to Hook Readers

Anyone else learn about hooks in high school? You know, those one-line bits of magic that supposedly made your college application essay more interesting and enthralling to the poor brain-numbed grader? They’re baaack… Joking aside, hooks are in everything – or at least the concept of hooks is. A hook isn’t necessarily a one-liner. It can be an idea, a...

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November 9, 2015

Plotting A Framework

I’ve been plotting this week (cue maniacal laughter). Of course, that shouldn’t be a surprise. No matter what novel or story a writer is working on, there should be a certain amount of plotting going on at regular intervals: decisions about new characters and what’s going to happen next. Even the most meticulous plotters have to check what they’ve written against...

Categories Characterization, Plot, & Setting/Creative Process/Literary Devices & Writing Techniques/Research & Worldbuilding Comments: 2