Tag: drives your characters
Creating Three-dimensional Villains: Lessons From Buffy and Firefly
When writing your next villain, give him or her as detailed a backstory as your protagonist. TV's Buffy and Firefly provide some great examples of well-developed, three-dimensional villains to use as inspiration.
Writing Great Dialogue: Create Power Moments Rich In Subtext
Power moments in your story set up life-changing events and propel your story forward. Writing great dialogue often depends on the subtext you create in setting up these moments.
Storytelling Tip: Engineer Your “Hook” Map
A "hook" is a passage or bit of information that changes the stakes, pulls the reader along, and builds the trajectory of your narrative. Constructing a hook map can help ensure yours are serving your story.
Avoid The Cliché “Strong Female Character”
Readers love a strong female character. Just remember you can be vulnerable, unreliable, uncertain, or even physically weak and still be a strong character.
The Delights And Dangers Of First-Person Narration
First-person narration lets you pack every moment with personality and explore your writer's voice to the max, but it can be a tricky point-of-view to pull off for the course of an entire book.
Create a villain your readers will loathe
There’s something about a great villain that can engage an audience, energize a book, and provide a satisfying source of conflict.
Narrative Structure, Part Two: It’s OK To Stray (or: Don’t Forget Your Cockroach Races)
One way to create a memorable story is to take a minute to let your characters breathe. Build a scene where you exit the narrative structure and allow your readers to bond with the characters.
