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February 10, 2016

Free Un-copyrighted Reading on Project Gutenberg

If you want access to stuff you can’t find in print, you need un-copyrighted works to use in print, or you just like to read, check out Project Gutenberg. It’s an online library of books, magazines, poems, articles, etc. that are no longer copyrighted. That includes most of the classics as well as works where the copyright wasn’t renewed (for...
Categories Research & Worldbuilding/Reviews & Recommended Reading/Writer Resources Comment: 1
December 22, 2015

Worldbuilding Without Traditions Feels Fake

December is one month where many different cultural holidays overlap. Even those without strong religious beliefs often have certain activities they associate with the holiday season. That makes it a particularly appropriate time to talk about traditions and worldbuilding. As far as I know, every single culture in existence has traditions that it relies on (they are generally different from culture...
Categories Characterization, Plot, & Setting/Research & Worldbuilding Comments: 0
November 25, 2015

Ocean’s Eleven & Learning from Other People’s Mistakes

A lot of improving our writing is learning from our own mistakes. But why stop there? Let’s learn from other people’s mistakes. If you want to try this, some of the most revealing pieces to examine are works in progress or works that were re-released. Other than movies of Broadway musicals where the change is apparent over time (such as Rodgers...
Categories Characterization, Plot, & Setting/General Thoughts & Updates/Research & Worldbuilding/Theatre & Film Comments: 0
November 15, 2015

Programs for Writers: Scrivener

Did you know that there are computer programs designed especially for writers? If you look at the list of goodies from the NaNoWriMo sponsors, you’ll see several deals on programs such as Scrivener, Ulysses, Storyist, and Evernote. I have only tried Scrivener, so I can’t describe how the others work; however, I figure that if you hadn’t heard about any of these programs,...
Categories General Thoughts & Updates/Research & Worldbuilding/Writer Resources Comments: 6
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
November 4, 2015

The Top Tool for Realism Is Imagery

It’s hard to talk about realistic writing without talking about imagery. What I said yesterday about realism related to research, experiences, and believability is true, but it was still framed in big ideas (almost more related to plotting: what situations or experiences will the reader believe are real?). Imagery is more about the small details of the experience, and it is one...
Categories General Thoughts & Updates/Literary Devices & Writing Techniques/Research & Worldbuilding Comments: 6
November 2, 2015

Do Authors Tell Stories Or Lies?

A friend of mine is a teacher for a private enrichment company, and one night, she had a student who was determined to argue. Whatever the topic, he could find something wrong with it. When they got to fiction, he pretended to be horrified, saying that fiction is a lie (and, therefore, morally wrong). It was obvious that he was deliberately...
Categories General Thoughts & Updates/Literary Devices & Writing Techniques/Quotes, Words, & Phrases/Research & Worldbuilding Comments: 0