Writers, bookworms, and critics alike love to talk about “three-dimensional characters” – how great it is when stories have them, what a horrid mortal sin it is when they don’t, blah blah blah. But it occurred to me recently that no one – literally no one in my 25 years on God’s green Earth –… Continue reading What are three-dimensional characters, anyway?
People always ask you what your favorite quote is – nobody ever asks you what your least favorite quote is. And they should! It’s a way more interesting question. Well, since nobody asked, mine is Game of Thrones writer David Benioff’s “Themes are for eighth grade book reports.” The show was not even on my… Continue reading How to give your book a theme that really sticks
There’s something really cool about writing horror that makes it incredibly fun to play with, and that is its ability to be layered on top of almost any other genre and still be effective. Think about it – how many genres can you really say this about? Romance and mystery come to mind, but they… Continue reading How to write a little horror into any genre
I have a confession to make: plot structure scares the crap out of me. Of all the problems and pitfalls and mistakes a writer can make, the ones that have to do with how your story is structured are by far the hardest to deal with. They’re insidious in that it’s often very difficult to… Continue reading How to fix your plot structure
So, you’re stuck, huh? We’ve all been there. We all know that awful feeling when the ideas slow down and the story that once excited you suddenly feels boring and flat. It’s miserable to realize you’ve come to a place where you no longer want to write your book anymore – or that your book… Continue reading How to fix the worst kind of writer’s block