Category Archives: Story structure

Concerns and techniques for developing plots

From Music to Words

My first experience with music as an inspiration for writing occurred in the summer between high school and college. I lay in bed at night listening to the radio and trying to go to sleep when a pop song with … Continue reading →

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Grasping at Ideas

Books exist that relate the basics of writing stories: how to create plots that follow specific beats and pacing, how to develop characters and throw continual problems at them, how to use settings to enhance your story. But, all this … Continue reading →

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Searching for a Quest

I first encountered Lord of the Rings while I was in high school and J.R.R. Tolkien was still alive. Like most people in the United States I had never heard of him before. However, my friends were enthused about a … Continue reading →

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A Series of World Building Woes

I am tentative about announcing a series because I recall the thrill of reading Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson when I was much younger. In this historical fiction a teenager escapes imprisonment on a ship and flees through the wild highlands of … Continue reading →

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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 →

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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 →

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False Starting Advice

Sometimes, the worst advice to give a new writer is that there are rules to writing and the new writer must master these. Especially before attempting to break any of them. Not all writers are created equally. And, even seasoned … Continue reading →

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Ending the Never Ending Story

When a new idea for a book grabs me, I dwell on it for a few days, a few weeks or or a few months in my spare time as I work on the kind of writing that makes money … Continue reading →

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The Artist’s Hierarchy of Needs

Have you ever seen the “Artist’s hierarchy of needs?” It is based on Maslow’ structure; however, the basic need for a self-actualization, or achieving one’s full potential including creative activities, is the point at the bottom on which the whole … Continue reading →

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The Villain’s Motive

There are multiple ways of uncovering how a person can become a villain. I can look at my own life and see what others did to harm me or what I have done to them by preventing them from accomplishing … Continue reading →

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