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Category Archives: Writer’s resource
If it’s good enough for me, it’s good enough for a memoir
If you wish to write what you know, or the story of part of your life, you must come to grips with the fact that your life is not a page turner. What is well written memoir for you, may … Continue reading
Should I write what I know?
According to commonly given advice, the popularity of a memoir rests on the fame of a person writing it. However, the argument against “writing what you know” is often refuted by an excellent rebuttal in the form of a well … Continue reading
Making criticism constructive
Using bad writing advice as gatekeeping to keep some people outside of writing circles seemed like a strange accusation to me. It was not something that I considered before, but as I continued to read the article, I recognized behavior … Continue reading
Your darlings may not deserve to die
When Arthur Quiller-Couch lectured on the art of writing at Cambridge in 1914, he uttered a phrase repeated frequently among authors today. Whenever you feel an impulse to perpetrate a piece of exceptionally fine writing, obey it—whole-heartedly—and delete it before … Continue reading
Posted in Writer's resource
Tagged Kill your darlings, murder your darlings, Quiller-Couch, Stephen King
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Showing too much
Carefully polishing my piece for a writing critique, I attempted to picture every detail of a tense scene. Two indigenous boys scavenged through a village ravaged by mudslides, only to encounter unscrupulous men searching for labors to conscript. The boys … Continue reading
Posted in Story structure, Writer's resource
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Did I Miss Something?
Decades ago, in a high school English classroom, one of my better students sat reading Bear Island, a thriller by Alistair MacLean. He asked out loud, “Why can’t we read books like this rather than the stuff we read in … Continue reading
Don’t ignore response to a tragedy
Anyone who sees or hears a tragedy cannot remain untouched by it. They can attempt to stifle or ignore it, but there will be subtle signs. When that tragedy strikes a person directly, the signs will be even greater, and … Continue reading
Posted in Story structure, Writer's resource
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The key to polite introductions
The first chapter described a woman, now alone, returning to a memory-loaded place. As I read I could easily absorb the environment and still have the mental capacity to consider her conflicted feelings. Would her journey bring healing or more … Continue reading
Posted in Literary devices, Writer's resource
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Remember me?
In the attempt to make characters memorable, some authors make them unreal. Sometimes bizarre to the point of being incomprehensible, and sometimes too talented. The complexities of real humans might overwhelm some readers but that is exactly where to start. … Continue reading
Posted in Writer's resource
Tagged character arc, flaw strength, memorable characters
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Writing rules to break
First write for yourself, and then worry about the audience. The best writers often had to transitioned from one culture to another. The discovery that their own world was not the only one provided them with a more unique voice. … Continue reading
Posted in Writer's resource, Writing trends
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