Writers Helping Writers^®

Tension

Does Your Story Need More Conflict? Tap this Powerful Source

September 2, 2021

Does Your Story Need More Conflict? Tap this Powerful Source

September 2, 2021

Conflict is such a versatile storytelling element. Not only will obstacles, adversaries, and stressors keep tension high and readers focused, they also provide characters with valuable opportunities to prove themselves,…

The Conflict Thesaurus Writing Guide Is Coming

August 12, 2021

The Conflict Thesaurus Writing Guide Is Coming

August 12, 2021

Each year we look forward to this post, the one where we get to spill the beans and introduce to you the next book in our thesaurus series. This one…

How Stakes Set up Expectations

November 25, 2020

How Stakes Set up Expectations

November 25, 2020

Last time I coached on Writers Helping Writers, I talked about 6 Tricks to Layer on Stakes, in it, I explained how I like to think of stakes as potential…

Stuck in No-Man’s-Land: Your Novel’s Middle

November 19, 2020

Stuck in No-Man’s-Land: Your Novel’s Middle

November 19, 2020

If you have hit the point in your draft where you’re looking out at the vast landscape of your novel with no idea where to go next, congratulations…you’ve probably made…

6 Tricks to Layer on Stakes

August 11, 2020

6 Tricks to Layer on Stakes

August 11, 2020

Stakes are what are at risk in a story. It might be that the protagonist’s life is at risk, or perhaps a romantic relationship, or maybe the opportunity to go…

Storytelling Decisions: What’s the Right Pace for Your Story?

March 10, 2020

Storytelling Decisions: What’s the Right Pace for Your Story?

March 10, 2020

As we learn to write, we often hear about the need to create a strong pace in our story. Many seem to think that a strong pace requires a fast…

How to Build Powerful Character Relationships

February 20, 2020

How to Build Powerful Character Relationships

February 20, 2020

Character relationships are, in many ways, the glue that holds a story together. Almost every tale has at least one relationship at the heart of it, often more. Rarely can…

Build a Bridge: From Story Beginning to Main Conflict

January 28, 2020

Build a Bridge: From Story Beginning to Main Conflict

January 28, 2020

During one of my previous posts as a Resident Writing Coach, we talked about the importance of strong goals for helping our story move forward. But as we discussed in…

Capturing an Unhappy Relationship: A Writer’s Roadmap

January 7, 2020

Capturing an Unhappy Relationship: A Writer’s Roadmap

January 7, 2020

Relationships are a complicated beast, and if you write romance like me, then you’re wed (pun intended) to the HEA ending (happily ever after). But the reality is, we have…

Goal-Oriented Storytelling: Satisfaction

September 17, 2019

Goal-Oriented Storytelling: Satisfaction

September 17, 2019

Welcome to the final post in this four-part series on ANTS. As I mentioned in my first post, ANTS is a goal-oriented framework for storytelling. It’s what you’re trying to…