“I've given my memoirs far more thought than any of my marriages. You can't divorce a book."—Gloria Swanson Sticking to "What Really Happened" might cause a disconnect In writing fiction, we …
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Asking “Why?”
Always keep your ideal reader close by in your mind asking "Why?" Our subconscious is perfectly designed for this process. It already knows the story. Our only job is to remain curious and inquire …
Trusting the Process
Be open to possibilities When I wrote my first novel Diamond Dogs, I had the idea that my hero, a high school senior, gets rid of the body. He accidentally kills a kid while driving late one night on …
Why Writers Get Stuck
Einstein says, “You cannot solve a problem at the same level of consciousness that created the problem.” Writers often get stuck because they believe it’s their job to figure out a solution to …
One Thing Readers Hate
One thing readers hate are coincidences. Sure, coincidences occur in our lives every day, but in a story, they are generally a problem. Readers lose interest when coincidence leans in the …
Take Risks – Advice for First-Time Writers
“In order to share one's true brilliance one initially has to risk looking like a fool." - Criss Jami Writing your first story is sort of like, well . . . there’s a first time for everything. It’s …
Outlining: The Dramatic Question
Your characters are a function of the plot, archetypes that constellate around the dramatic question. Story is essentially an argument with the dramatic question being the thesis statement we are …
Blind Spots in Your Story
It is human to have blind spots, and often convenient to be in denial about certain aspects of ourselves. This is natural, or, at least, common. Humans are not logical, and stories both great and wild …
On Writing Dialogue
“If you have a good ear for dialogue, you just can’t help thinking about the way people talk. You’re drawn to it. And the obsessive interest in it forces you to develop it. You almost can’t help …
Developing Your Writing Technique
Technique develops over time. By reading and writing, we absorb a sense of story structure, cadence, and rhythm. We learn how to create and release tension. We deepen our relationship to our …