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Writing Craft

The Art (and Importance) of Specifically Ambiguous Writing

November 30, 2021

The Art (and Importance) of Specifically Ambiguous Writing

November 30, 2021

By Harrison Demchick One of the cornerstones of effective writing is specific detail. Specific detail is what grounds the action of a scene in a tangible reality. It’s how we…

Relationship Thesaurus Entry: Benefactor and Recipient

November 27, 2021

Relationship Thesaurus Entry: Benefactor and Recipient

November 27, 2021

Successful stories are driven by authentic and interesting characters, so it’s important to craft them carefully. But characters don’t usually exist in a vacuum; throughout the course of your story,…

How to Draw Readers in Through a Character’s Choices

November 23, 2021

How to Draw Readers in Through a Character’s Choices

November 23, 2021

Quick, what’s one thing you need in every scene? This question can have a lot of answers – tension, conflict, stakes, emotion, action…on and on it goes. But I would…

Relationship Thesaurus Entry: Stepparent and Stepchild

November 20, 2021

Relationship Thesaurus Entry: Stepparent and Stepchild

November 20, 2021

What’s Your Story’s Focus? Plot vs. Character Arcs

November 18, 2021

What’s Your Story’s Focus? Plot vs. Character Arcs

November 18, 2021

There are as many ways to tell a story as there are stories in existence. That means not all writing advice will be a good fit with the story we’re…

How to Show Emotion for Non-Viewpoint Characters

November 16, 2021

How to Show Emotion for Non-Viewpoint Characters

November 16, 2021

Those of you who are familiar with me know that Angela Ackerman and I talk a lot about emotion. A LOT. That’s because we believe that clearly conveying emotion—particularly that of…

Phenomenal First Pages Contest

November 11, 2021

Phenomenal First Pages Contest

November 11, 2021

Hey, wonderful writerly people! It’s time for our monthly first-page critique contest ? This contest is closed. Please try again next month. If you’d like to be notified when the…

3 Simple Tricks to Immerse Your Reader In Your Story

November 9, 2021

3 Simple Tricks to Immerse Your Reader In Your Story

November 9, 2021

As writers, fusing our protagonist with the reader creates the ultimate reading experience. Teacher and writer John Gardener referred to this as “the fictional dream.” It’s a state the reader…

Relationship Thesaurus Entry: Friends

November 6, 2021

Relationship Thesaurus Entry: Friends

November 6, 2021

How to Showcase Your Character’s Unique Voice

November 4, 2021

How to Showcase Your Character’s Unique Voice

November 4, 2021

Almost every character should have their own voice—their distinctive way of communicating their worldview. To illustrate, here are three lines from Harry Potter that reveal Hermione’s, Ron’s, and Harry’s individual…