Conflict is a necessary part of any story. Without conflict and tension, you’ve got a boring description and no story. Along with conflict, though, you must have character reaction. If […]
Plot
Anything having to do with your story’s plot
4 Tips for Great Conflict
Conflict or tension is a necessary element of storytelling. Without conflict, you don’t have a story. First, let’s hop over to Merriam-Webster and define our terms: Fight, battle, war a […]
4 Tips for Creating Subplots
A subplot is a plot within your main plot, one that affects the secondary character(s). Here are four basic points to keep in mind when creating a subplot: Is the character […]
New Looks
You may have noticed that the site is being revamped. Sometimes it’s good to shake things up and have a makeover. Sometimes your story needs a makeover as well. How […]
5 Plotting Tips for More Interesting Scenes
It can be difficult to keep a good plot interesting. How do you find the right balance between action and description? How much tension is enough, and how much is […]
Advice from the Tony Hillerman Conference
I’ve spent a lovely three days hob-nobbing with other authors and attending writing panels. Here are some gems from the classes. The day I stop learning about my characters is […]
5 Plot Tips
Having trouble thinking of plots? Twisted around when it comes to twists? Here are some tips and tricks to help you solve your problems. Brainstorm. This is the number one […]
6 Steps to Planning a Novel
When I decided to write a novel about Devon Day and the Sweetwater Kid, I had to come up with a convincing plot. Here are some of the steps I […]