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plot-driven vs. character-driven

Michael Hauge’s Workshop: An Antidote to “Love at First Sight”

Close up of eye and text "Love at First Sight? Or Lazy Writing?"

By far, the best workshop I attended at the Romance Writers of America (RWA) Annual Conference was Michael Hauge‘s presentation, “Using Inner Conflict to Create Powerful Love Stories.” Unlike every other workshop, Michael gave his presentation twice. I attended on the second day and the room was standing-room-only packed. The first day was likely […]

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August 9, 2012

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How “The Amazing Spider-Man” Rocks Subtext

The Amazing Spider-Man movie poster with text added: "Subtext and" [The Amazing Spider-Man]

Subtext? In a comic book movie? Really, Jami? Yes, really. Now, I’m not calling The Amazing Spider-Man groundbreakingly genius or anything, but it’s an, er, amazingly good movie character-wise compared to… Oh, say, the Green Lantern. If you remember from my Green Lantern posts about how how not to write plot or characters, […]

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July 10, 2012

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What’s Your Writing Process?

Stick figure drawing a flow chart

Today I’m guest blogging at Melinda Collins’s blog.  I’m talking about the craft of writing, and how I love every bit of it.  Yes, even the hair-ripping-out parts.  *smile* That love of the craft means I don’t have a favorite part of the process, so I don’t strictly fall on […]

August 23, 2011

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What Drives a Story: Plot or Characters?

Dog sled in the snow

Wish me luck.  I’m about to dive into one of the eternal debates among writers.  Which is “better”: a plot-driven story or a character-driven story? If you’re not familiar with the debate, let me explain why this question is so fraught with potential landmines.  A common snub against genre stories […]

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July 26, 2011

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