A Perfectly Good Writing Day in L.A.

Welcome to West Hollywood.  I don’t live here, nor am I here to meet with a movie producer about one of my books.  I am, however, sitting in a mall across the street from the monolithic building where that stuff happens, where the agents are, and so I bask in the glorious reflected radiance of […]

How to “Write Like Rowling”

A Deconstruction of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone I don’t think of myself as a name dropper, but I do love to show how famous authors and bestselling books adhere to the principles of story structure.  Especially when those authors are still breathing… I get nay sayers who like to cite Shakespeare and Cervantes […]

Q3 ’13 Storyfix Newsletter — Explanations, Invites, Goodbyes, a Blurb and a Reboot.

With a couple of killer story coaching deals.  That’s the reboot. It’s been a while. Over a month, in fact, since I’ve posted something new here, though this space has been more than suitably filled with great guest posts from my go-to writing gurus. Where have I been?  Picture me on a beach next to […]

Making Your Characters Extreme

A guest post from Marjorie Reynolds. And in case you think I’ve been on a beach popping bon bons… check out my own guest post on the Writers Digest site, called “Confessions of a Story Coach.”  If you only knew. ***** Name three memorable characters from great literature. Which ones did you choose? Captain Ahab, […]

Improving Your Fiction: The Relationship Chart — Part 3

A guest post by Art Holcomb.   Read Part 1 HERE, Part 2 HERE. ***** Before we pick it up where we left off last time, take a moment to review your work on your own Relationship Chart.  When you’re ready, we’ll move into the Bonus Round, where we look deeper into character and relationships. […]