On vacation I read Thrity Umrigar‘s new novel, The Weight of Heaven. Besides being a sensitive and thrilling read that addresses both personal and relevant global issues, I, a writer, learned much from Umrigar who is thoroughly seasoned in this profession.
Reading What You Love Read More »
Why should I read this book? This is the question every reader holds when cracking open the pages of any novel, or work of fiction and deciding whether to invest money and time into purchasing and reading it.
The Dollars and Sense of Writing Read More »
Establishing what is at stake for the protagonist of your story is essential for grasping and holding a reader’s attention. Addressing and making clear the risks your major character faces, and doing this early on in a novel engages the reader towards caring for the major character.
So You Want to Write a Story: What’s At Stake? Read More »
Once you have established the general place and time of a novel there remains the specifics of where the majority of action takes place. Eager to supply a healthy amount of action and avoid writing a stagnant and boring read, young writers often craft a story that holds a infinitesimal number of places where the
So You Want to Write a Story: Where the Action Is Read More »
A story can be seen as answering six essential questions: Who, What, Where, When Why, and How? Who concerns the characters. What defines the current situation, problem or dilemma. Where describes the setting. When is the second part of the setting, time and period in history, either current, or some time in the past, or
So You Want to Write a Story: How=Story Read More »
I have heard it said many times that a writer needs to be able to sum up, in on sentence, what her or his story is about. Since that time I have learned that the ability to do this reveals, the beginning, middle and end of their story, highlighting the climax and resolution.
So You Want to Write a Story: This Story is About…Where Are You Going? Read More »
The setting of a novel includes not simply where the story takes place, location, but also the time and the time period wherein the change of events occurs. Time and time period, like setting are important dimensions to a story. In many stories they act as additional characters.
So You Want to Write a Story: Time, and the Time Period of Your Story? Read More »