The Character Is Not The Author…Or Is He?
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View ArticleTrends In Writing Beget A Trend In Reading
Something unexpected has developed in my reading patterns. Perhaps it’s happened to you, too. Back when I first became an avid reader, I’d read whatever I could get my hands on. That was particularly...
View Article“Indoor” Fiction
Much of what passes among and between human beings happens — drum roll, please — indoors, within a home, an office building, or some other place people have put to a particular use. This is a factor of...
View ArticleDescription And The Telling Detail
Many a novice fictioneer labors over description — when to do it; how much of it to do; what to leave in and what to leave out — as he does over no other aspect of the narrative craft. Strangely, the...
View ArticleThe Viewpoint Wars
Viewpoint control is a subject that tries the patience of many a fledgling writer. If there’s a maxim more imperative than “One viewpoint per scene and no head-hopping,” it must be “Show, don’t tell.”...
View ArticleOn Thrillers
As an indie writer, I take an interest in other indies, their achievements, and the degree of success they experience. Many indies craft thrillers by preference. That might be because that’s the genre...
View ArticleFantastic Terminology
One of the great challenges in the depiction of worlds and phenomena distant from reality as we know it is mastering the art of the coinage. It’s not easy; take it from a writer who’s struggled with it...
View ArticleOn Reviews
Amy Metz’s essay on reviews has prompted me to offer a few thoughts of my own. My own concerns are with the standards appropriate to the sort of review one might post at Amazon or Barnes & Noble....
View ArticleProsodies, Threnodies, And Maladies
The indie-writers movement is a thing of great internal variety. Indeed, the one thing we have in common is that we publish our own crap. However, our offerings do display some differences,...
View ArticleAudience Participation
These days, a writer who allows it will get plenty of feedback from his readers. I encourage it; it helps me to know what I’m doing badly, what I’m doing well, and what I could try that I haven’t...
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