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Showing posts 1 to 10 labeled Writing in General (77 total)
Guns in Fiction Land, Part 2 - Ten Years Later (May 27, 2022)
Nearly ten years ago, after the unfathomable mass murder of children in Sandy Hook, I wrote the post Guns in Fiction Land. Now in May 2022, after what has become just another commonplace mass murder of children in Uvalde, absolutely nothing has changed. More »
The Distinction between Exciting and Compelling (February 1, 2022)
A lot of death, high stakes, and constant excitement doesn't always create mystery or peak curiosity. More »
Reading in Bad Faith (January 15, 2022)
I've been seeing a trend in Goodreads reviews and social media threads: people are increasingly criticizing books for "problematic content" that isn't actually in the text. More »
Writing the Universal Human Exprience (August 14, 2021)
Writers tend to assume their own personal human experience is the universal one. More »
Constraints on Innovation in Fiction: Reflections on The Lady's Maid's Bell and The Haunting of Hill House (May 2, 2021)
Because expectations for horror have been so thoroughly solidified by Stephen King and slasher flicks, the unfortunate truth is neither of these classic and innovative stories could be published today. More »
Writing Delightful Twists (April 5, 2021)
A good twist is like a delightful magic trick. More »
How to Write Nontoxic Conflict in Romance (December 23, 2020)
Common conflicts might not seem melodramatic enough for a romance. They're not shocking like rape scenes. They're not soul-crushing like outrageous misunderstandings, sudden betrayals, or secrets with tragic consequences. But you don't need Big Trauma for Big Drama. More »
Why Authors Should Write Characters from Different Cultures (August 12, 2020)
It's frustrating to see Twitter meekly accept that shelf space for non-white or LGBTQ+ books is limited and fight over who deserves to fill it. More »
Books Are Not Movies (May 21, 2020)
Many authors tend to write as if they're describing a movie or TV show in text. But what would make for an interesting viewing experience makes for a very dull reading experience. More »
Fiction is Not Reality (April 6, 2020)
"Realism" seems to be the favored excuse for bad morals and plain old bad writing. Whenever writers face criticism for writing unethical lessons, racist/sexist stereotypes, or language that needlessly upsets readers, the common response is, "But those things are realistic." More »