How Does Fear Play Into Character Arc? Part One
How Does Fear Play Into Character Arc? Part One
It’s hard to overstate the importance a character’s greatest fear plays in their life. As a key motivator, it informs decision-making, spawns new habits and tendencies, and pushes them to…
Read more…Coping Mechanism Thesaurus: Seeking Therapy
Coping Mechanism Thesaurus: Seeking Therapy
When a character suffers emotional pain, the brain’s response is to stop the discomfort, and often this results in a coping mechanism being deployed. Whether it’s an automatic response or…
Read more…Free Workshop: How to Write Fear That Feels Real
Free Workshop: How to Write Fear That Feels Real
Writing authentic fear reactions can be challenging—even when we understand our character well. Why? Because each character has their own personality, background, trauma, and triggers, meaning their fear response to…
Read more…How Fear Shrinks Your Character’s World Over Time
How Fear Shrinks Your Character’s World Over Time
Fear is something we all experience, a psychological early warning system that alerts us to possible danger. When we encounter a situation that contains unknowns, fear kicks in. Even if…
Read more…From Idea to Page: The Journey of a Romance Novel
From Idea to Page: The Journey of a Romance Novel
Romance is the #1 genre of all time. Whether you love it or loathe it yourself, it’s fair to say readers LOVE it! As someone who enjoys romance novels of…
Read more…Coping Mechanism Thesaurus: Celebrating Small Wins
Coping Mechanism Thesaurus: Celebrating Small Wins
When a character suffers emotional pain, the brain’s response is to stop the discomfort, and often this results in a coping mechanism being deployed. Whether it’s an automatic response or…
Read more…Ooo La La: 5 Steps to Write Uncomfortable Scenes
Ooo La La: 5 Steps to Write Uncomfortable Scenes
For many authors, the most difficult type of scene to write (and write well) are sex scenes. However, any type of uncomfortable scene can feel awkward to write, as we…
Read more…How to Write Powerful Story Beats
How to Write Powerful Story Beats
Dialogue without anything else on the page feels like a screenplay—all setup for actors who will never arrive. In a film, the actors carry the scene. In your novel, the…
Read more…Coping Mechanism Thesaurus Entry: Practicing Forgiveness
Coping Mechanism Thesaurus Entry: Practicing Forgiveness
When a character suffers emotional pain, the brain’s response is to stop the discomfort, and often this results in a coping mechanism being deployed. Whether it’s an automatic response or…
Read more…8 Tips for Writing an Unreliable Narrator
8 Tips for Writing an Unreliable Narrator
We know that reader empathy is vital for maximizing their engagement and helping them identify with the protagonist, but what if that character turns out to be an unreliable narrator?…
Read more…What Does a Character’s Fear of Change Look Like?
What Does a Character’s Fear of Change Look Like?
As we move closer to releasing The Fear Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide to What Holds Characters Back, I wanted to share one of the entries that covers a fear that…
Read more…Coping Mechanism Thesaurus Entry: Seeking Balance
Coping Mechanism Thesaurus Entry: Seeking Balance
When a character suffers emotional pain, the brain’s response is to stop the discomfort, and often this results in a coping mechanism being deployed. Whether it’s an automatic response or…
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