Genre -Is- Worldbuilding
An article comparing the Arrival movie to its short story inspiration triggered me to see Genre differently. In short, our story’s genre is simply the worldbuilding “lens” we use to explore our story’s meaning.
Pin ItAntagonists: What Is an Antagonist? — Guest: Kristen Lamb
All great stories are about one thing and one thing only—problems. More specifically? Every good story has one core problem in need of being resolved. Today, Kristen Lamb shares her insights into how problems, conflicts, and antagonists drive our story.
Pin ItHow Can We Make Our Writing More Authentic? — Guest: Lizzie Shane
Most of us have probably heard the advice about how we should make our writing more authentic or genuine. But what does that mean, and how can we make it happen? Today, Lizzie Shane joins us to share her insights into mining our experiences for our stories.
Pin ItWhen Readers Don’t Believe Our Writing
One of the many reasons we need feedback is to help us fill in the blanks for things we can’t see or for understanding how others might interpret our words. But what happens when readers see our words and understand our intention, but they don’t believe what we’re telling them?
Pin ItWhat’s “High Concept” & How Can I Create It? — Guest: Jeff Lyons
Last week, Jeff Lyons shared how to make every story idea the best it could be. Today he’s delving into the tricky description of high concept. Many agents and editors say they prefer high-concept stories, but what does that mean?
Pin ItHow to Make Every Story Idea the Best It Can Be — Guest: Jeff Lyons
Some stories tell an engaging tale that’s entertaining but doesn’t necessarily feel deep. Other stories make us feel like we’re changed by reading them. Today, Jeff Lyons shares his insights into how to make each type of story the best they can be.
Pin ItThe Most Important Question in Storytelling: “Why?”
A common problem—even in traditionally published books—is Missing Motivations. A character’s goal can feel irrelevant if readers don’t understand why they have that goal. Or a character might seem stupid or unlikable if readers don’t know why they’re acting a certain way.
Pin ItCharacter Arc Development: Is There a Best Approach?
There are almost an infinite number of ways we can develop our story. As long as we end up with a finished book, our process works. And just like the variety found in the overall writing processes we might use, we have many options for how to come up with our protagonist’s arc as well.
Pin ItCharacter Development Is a Two-Edged Sword
As writers, we do everything we can to make readers invested in our characters in some way. An invested reader is a happy reader, right?
Well, maybe not. Let’s take a look at the other side of character development.
What’s the Difference between Plot and Story?
When we first start off as writers, if someone asks us about our story, we might launch into an overview of our story’s plot. It’s easy to think the plot is what our story is about. But with few exceptions, story isn’t the same as plot.
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