Lazy Writing and How to Avoid It

I’ve been teaching writing for almost 14 years and have been writing fiction for 25.  It has been my experience that anyone can write well if given the proper tools and education.  Usually someone tip-toes into my classroom with their short story or poem or random work of fiction under their arm.  They hold it

Juxtaposition: Creating a Foil for Your Heroes

Juxtaposition is defined as an act or instance of placing close together or side by side, especially for comparison or contrast.  Juxtaposed characters are not seen very much in short fiction, but if you are writing a novel you will want to strategically design characters who are foils for your heroes to shine a light on the traits of those heroes. One of the best examples of the use of this

Imagery: Beyond “Show Don’t Tell”

I am sure that if you have attended any creative writing courses at all , you have heard the old addage “Show, don’t tell.”  This is referring to the idea that amateur writers often tell us about the action in their narrative rather than “showing” events through imagery, figurative language and good description.  Over the

Hubris: How to Write Great Villains Into Your Novel

Why do my students love the Joker so much?  The guy has absolutely no redeeming qualities.  He is completely mad, is an agent of chaos, loves to torture the innocent, has brought Gotham City to its knees on countless occasions, yet all the kids seem to love him.  It is because he has what the

Gone, Gone: Are All the Good Ideas Gone?

In the crazy firestorm that is the major motion picture The Hunger Games we need to stop a moment and realize with a small whimper of sadness that all the good ideas may be used up. Don’t judge me.  The Hunger Games has a nice narrative, flows well, tells a good story and is all-in-all

Deus Ex Machina: God Is Not A Crutch

Breaking Dawn is one of Stephanie Meyer’s most popular books, but it has within its pages a literary device that is something good writers should learn to use properly: deus ex machina. Deus ex machina is defined by my handy Dictionary of Literary Terms & Theory (Penguin) as: “any unanticipated intervener who resolves a difficult

A to Z Challenge: Bibliomancy is a Miraculous Thing

As a novelist, I rely on literary devices to take my writing to the next level.  A writer who can consciously use literary devices in their writing without making them that obvious to the reader is a writer who is truly working their brain muscle.  Some literary devices are easier to use than others.  Bibliomancy

How To Find a Unique Narrative Style

One of the most difficult tasks of writing a long novel is the ability to create a narrative style that is unique, flows well, and remains consistent throughout the 50,000 words or so required for a novel. It also must be a style that catches a reader’s eye from the first few pages.  I have

The Great Balancing Act: Writing Novels and Blogging

I have been blogging non-stop since December, and I will have to say that my efforts are paying off.  While writing my novel, I have discovered the ins and outs of using Scrivener as a word processor and have posted a few articles about its use. I have been getting increasing traffic on my blog,

Back On the Horse, But Not At a Full Gallop

I’m out of the woods with the bronchitis, and it has given me a great load of time to think about what I’ll do once I get back to school and try to wrangle my students right before spring break is ticked off the calendar. I basically had a bronchitis break from school as I