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Category Archives: Literature
Fiction from my Family Tree
One of the reasons that there is “nothing new under the sun” is because human creativity depends on our experience. But, I have only lived one life. Rather than writing an autobiographical series about a rather sedate existence, I would … Continue reading
How Creative Do You Want to Be?
What can creativity do? Provide me with insight into yet to be imagined stories, allow me to develop amusing ways to express unpopular opinions, fill up my time when I am bored, or fritter away my precious time when I … Continue reading
Posted in Ideas for writing, Literature
Tagged art, artist, Creativity, engineer, graphic-design, stream of consciousness, Writing
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Imaginary reality
Everyone writes from their experience. That is all some writers ever do. Henry David Thoreau only recorded his life experiences. James Baldwin and Ernest Hemingway wrote semi-autobiographical novels in addition to non-fiction essays and articles. Hemingway’s fiction contains thinly veiled … Continue reading
My POV Journey
Initially, when I was eight years old, I started writing in the third person point of view and all my characters were animals. Did I mention that Black Beauty was one of my favorite books? A few years later, I … Continue reading
Posted in Literary devices, Literature, Novels, Style and voice
Tagged Black Beauty, Fiction, Frankenstein, Nectar in the Sieve, point of view, POV, Writing, writing-tips
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Journeying away from the Hero’s Journey
Want a plot that’s been used successfully thousands of times? Research Campbell’s monomyth or simply read Christopher Vogler’s book on the hero’s journey. The hero’s journey is an idea manufactured as a result of popular literature from Greco-Roman times. However, … Continue reading
The Definition of a Classic
First, you must understand that there is no one definition of a classic work. There is the assumption that the work is well-known. But, in which periods has it gained fame? If it is a current written work, will this … Continue reading
Posted in Literature
Tagged books, Classic, empire, history, Literature, Shakespeare, Writing
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Selling Familiar Names
I looked up at the librarian with a pleading glance, trying to get her attention. I had failed, again, in my attempt to check out books at a self-serve kiosk. My difficulty was holding my card at precisely the correct … Continue reading
More to a Name than I Imagined
The statue pictured is a highly stylized likeness of Jehanne Darc, which is displayed all over France even in areas far from her homeland of Domrémy. Those few words not in “normal” English may convince a reader that they really … Continue reading
Posted in Characters, languages, Literature, Trends in books, Writing trends
Tagged AI, blogging, familiarity bias, Fantasy, Fiction, machine learning, magic, Naming characters, Writing
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Who Knows Correct English?
How we speak has been determined by history, especially the history of empires. When the Anglo-Saxons came to the British Isles their germanic brand of “English” overwhelmed the Celtic language of the Britons, and the older tongue was considered the … Continue reading
Posted in Generational differences, languages, Literature
Tagged english, language, languages, pronunciation, travel
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How Can Writing Not Be “Telling?”
I find the “show don’t tell” adage for writers a curious contradiction. Unless you are writing a movie script that will be produced, everything that you record is actually told to the reader. Writing is very abstract, so providing this … Continue reading
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