Back to School: Lifelong Learning is Where It’s At
Opportunities for lifelong learning about writing are abundant and during this back-to-school season it is easy to get inspired.
Institute for Writer’s Substack
Beat writer's block with the Institute!
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Latest episodes
Be Prepared to See Characters Suffer
Nothing wrecks a story quicker than a writer who is trying to shield the characters from suffering. Story is about challenge. And challenge is about pressure and discomfort.
Character Emotion: Show Don't Tell
Because emotion is so important to successful writing, writers need to think about it. And never is this truer than in creating and inhabiting our characters.
Interiority: What Makes Your Characters Tick
As you seek to create characters, you will also want to work to strengthen the interiority of those characters.
First Steps in Character Creation
Character creation involves building your person from scratch. So, jumpstarting character creation often benefits from creative boosting tricks.
Can You Have Adult Characters?
Most children's books contain adult characters. What they don't do, or don't do often, is feature the adult characters. But the adults are there.
Creating Characters
Character development is an interesting part of writing but may be among the most time consuming and significant in your story.
Building Characters from Scratch
People are interested in people. This is true in books as well as in life. So, let's look at what you really want to aim for in building your characters.
PLOT: Terrific Twists and Turns
Building a plot twist can prove even more difficult than just plot. See what Jan Fields has to say about the way plot twists can turn a story around.
10 Plot Pitfalls to Think About
Plot can be tricky, and, as a writer, you need to be aware of what makes or breaks plot. Take a look at 10 different things to avoid in your own writing.