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Recent Posts
- Writing with Kennings
- No! I’m Not Insane
- Is “Show Don’t Tell” Good Advice?
- What Exactly is Imagery?
- The Writing Sampler
- Classics Don’t Qualify as Comps
- Dealing with Painful Critiques
- The Power of Laughter
- Scoring Your Sense of Humor
- Why Do We Read Emotions?
- Distinguishing types of laughter
- Why Not AI?
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Author Archives: knlistman
Name Dropping
Hamlet is often portrayed as a man dressed in medieval finery with a skull cradled in his hand. Many people assume that Hamlet recited his fateful soliloquy “To be or not to be…” as he stared at the skull. That’s … Continue reading
Posted in allusions, Characters, Drama and movies, Ideas for writing, Literary devices, Nonfiction, Novels, Trends in books
Tagged Bible, Chewbacca, Shakespeare
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Allusions
The man awoke in an unrecognized ancient building. He attempts to leave, only to find doors lock and windows barred. Then, he discovers other people inside as bewildered as he is. They are all being held as prisoners. The only … Continue reading
Imagery
Imagery is one of the harder concepts to pinpoint in writing. What exactly is the difference between describing something in detail and creating imagery? This is not easy to explain. Imagery is often a figurative or symbolic description that goes beyond … Continue reading
Traveling Swan Roads in Books
While reading Beowulf in a modern translation I encountered a person called a breaker of rings. In my mind I could see a burly man hacking gold rings apart, possibly a thief destroying the identity of his latest heist. As … Continue reading
Leaders within the Writing Community
Writing is often a solitary endeavor. Authors spend hours alone working words and ideas into something alive within their own minds. New writers, unused to such dedicated isolation, often seek inspiration for their creativity–new sources for intriguing characters and unique … Continue reading
Skip the Formula
At one point in time, 10 years ago to be more precise, I decided to write a romance. According to my critique group a romance is a genre that readers can’t get enough of and therefore an easy to market … Continue reading
Posted in Characters, Novels, romance, Story structure, Writing trends
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The Superpower of Speaking Other Languages
I found a list helpful for writers wanting to avoid the dreaded Mary Sue/Marty Stu character. If a protagonist had three or more of the traits that character had failed the test. One item that caught my attention was “Speaks … Continue reading
Posted in languages, Literary devices, Novels, Translations, Writer's resource, Writing trends
Tagged Aguilar, aztec, Cortés, la malinche, Maya
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What is Not Lost in Translation
One of the old Star Trek episodes that intrigued me had a simple plot with a complex Idea. Captain Kirk and his landing party were forced to land on a planet only to discovered that their universal language translators didn’t work. … Continue reading
Posted in allusions, languages, Literary devices, mythology, Translations, Writing trends
Tagged dailyprompt, dailyprompt-1885
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The Language Quandary
Recently, I was reading a novel in which a young woman spoke English with a lovely French accent. At least that is what the author told me. Her dialogue was written in normal, modern, American English which I could … Continue reading
What Rules?
It would seem easier to be a writer after gaining some reputation or a devoted group of followers. But, at that point the writer has to make the decision, “Should I keep producing what readers expect of me or allow … Continue reading
Write about what? 