And didn't pre-plan a post. Whoops! However, the story I'm editing ready for publication is an Australian short story (about 6k words) about gold country. Do you remember Itchy (originally published here)? Stay tuned. He's going to make it into his own book. Photo by Pat Whelen on Pexels.com
#amWriting
Conflict, suspense, and tension
(Okay, let's just pretend it's Friday and I'm doing my weekly update on the subject that came up several weeks ago) (The pic comes from Fandango and his Flash Fiction Challenge, except I'm not writing fiction -- or am I?) photo from Nicolae_Balt at Pixabay.com. Conflict: See that balloon? The conflict comes from the character … Continue reading Conflict, suspense, and tension
Just so you know …
I'm taking a little nap from the site for a while. Back in May, 2021, unless I catch too many mice in my dreams. What I'm doing, in reality, is editing and writing and editing and writing and editing and writing ... I'll be back ...
Being True to Character
In a professional sense, this time. Something I've noticed recently is the lack of professional attitude in story characters. It's disappointing, even if I understand how much work goes into the story. The character can't be identifiable by a reader as a fraud, out of place/time, or using the wrong objects/words. A priest doesn't walk … Continue reading Being True to Character
Missed the Starter’s Gun
When I mentioned I'd be doing a post a week (should've said once a month), I thought it wouldn't take much extra effort around all the other stuff and the new course and the two new series (or serials - not sure yet). What I didn't count on was the extra workload that comes from … Continue reading Missed the Starter’s Gun
The Moaning Ritual
Sorry, the Morning ritual. It's the time of day when the sun don't shine, the eyes don't open, the coffee is floating an aroma around the house. Two minutes. Then it will be coffee in hand, eyes open, bum on seat. Then I remember all the other stuff that happens without brain engagement. It's the … Continue reading The Moaning Ritual
Place and Time
Otherwise known as Setting. It's one of the [many] things I struggle with. The basics of an opening to a story needs to make clear the Who is Where and When, Why they're there (maybe just a hint), and What they're doing. This post is about the Where and When of a story. The place … Continue reading Place and Time
Summary Tell, or Interactive Show?
It's that old conundrum of show versus tell. Every story has summary, every story has immediacy, but they don't usually end up in the same paragraph. There are reasons for that. A tell is summarising something, a conclusion made, or an unmoving description (static, unattached to a character). There are several ways to tell. Summarising … Continue reading Summary Tell, or Interactive Show?
And Then There was the … Synopsis
What -- you do it first? I don't, and there's a reason for that. It's not that I do things back to front, at least not from my perspective. The start is the beat sheets, one for each character in the story, but the main two characters (usually the main character/protagonist and the antagonist) get … Continue reading And Then There was the … Synopsis
Chit, Chat without Context
The writerly term is talking heads syndrome. What does it mean? Dialogue happens, but there's nothing there, no sense of the where for setting, nor grounding of context or situation. Dialogue can be great, but if there's no world setting, no place for it to happen, the mouthpieces can be set on a piece of … Continue reading Chit, Chat without Context
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