When I was editing Shards last year, I came to a realization about my own writing, and I’ve since talked to several other authors who have confirmed that this happens to them as well. As an author, you’re privy to
Betas’ Memory (and How Trappings Color Readers’ Experiences)
My family seems to be very slowly making their way through Shards. It seems like every week a different cousin or aunt or uncle is reading it, which is honestly a bit flattering, that everyone’s bothering. Last week my mother told me
Why I Like Dual Viewpoints
In the modern day trend of first person or single third person narratives, I sometimes feel left out because I tend toward dual viewpoints. (Sometimes I do write single third person. Sometimes I write first person. Sometimes I write more
The Mountain Won (and a ROW80 Check-in)
Time for more mountain analogies, Squiders. I think we’ve compared writing to climbing mountains before, but the fact of the matter is that you have a lot of time to think while you’re trudging uphill. So, last Friday, my family
It’s Okay to Slow Down
It’s already been a very long week, and my brain is tired, so I was commissioning ideas from my various writing peoples, and the Word Ninja over at Full Coverage Writers suggested I write about why a quill and ink
The Hidden Layers of Stories
As both a reader and a writer, I’m always interested in what doesn’t make it into a story. The fact is that, in order to give your story depth and realism, you need to know a lot more about your
Denver Comic Con, Cosplay, and Miscellany
So! It’s Denver Comic Con (or, as I shall refer to it from now on, DCC) this weekend and I’m of two minds. 1) I am really excited because it’s been a long time since I’ve gotten to really do
Is it Worth it to Know About Sub-genres?
If you’ve been around here for awhile, Squiders, you remember we spent about a year going through different science fiction and fantasy subgenres. As might be expected from going through such an activity, I sometimes find myself being really particular
Premise vs Plot vs Structure
Some time ago, Squiders, we discussed Premise and Plot. (That’s a fairly short post, but for those too lazy to click through, the basic gist is that a premise is the idea of the story, whereas the plot is the
Antagonist and Protagonist
Craft post today, Squiders. Protagonist, antagonist. Self-explanatory, right? Well, to some extent, yes. But let’s talk nuances. Your protagonist is the main driving character of your story. It is the person whose dilemma we care about the most. In most
