Why Every Plot Needs A Ticking Clock
I don’t know about you, but I tend to procrastinate. My to-do list fills up, and the tasks that won’t get me into trouble if I ignore them fall lower and lower on the list until they’re forgotten. This can be problematic in life, but it’s deadly for a plot.
Set Up or Start Up? Making Critical Character Traits Part of Your Plot
Every protagonist has something unique about them, otherwise we wouldn’t have picked them as our protagonist. This “thing” is often what gets them into trouble and makes the story happen. It’s central to who they are, which means there’s a pretty good chance it’ll be on the cover copy or in the query. Readers will know what it is before they open the book. Which leads to a bit of a quandary.
2 Ways to Tell You’re Beginning Your Story Too Soon
This week’s video presents two important rules of thumb, one for making sure you’re not beginning your story too soon and another for making sure your first chapter is hooking readers.
Getting to the Bottom of Your Characters
I’ve heard others sing the praises of Michael Hauge, and every year, have intended to make his presentation. This year, I committed to get there no matter what, and am I glad I did! I’m here to pass some of his wisdom on to you.
And this week from me:
Disappointing your reader: Avoiding dramatic moments that don’t deliver
One of the things sure to disappoint your reader is a dramatic moment that, well, isn’t dramatic. By the time your reader reaches a dramatic moment in your book, he or she has invested in the novel: spent time reading; gotten attached to your characters; and anticipated the dramatic moment—at least if you’ve done your job of building it up by dropping clues and foreshadowing.
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