“Deadly Faux”… Launched… Pitched… and Promoted with a Killer Spiff for Writers Who Love a Case Study in Craft
My new novel was released today, from Turner Publishing. If you’ve experienced such a day yourself, you know the feeling. And if you haven’t… keep reading, I have something that might help make it happen for you, sooner rather than later. “Deadly Faux,” is the sequel to my 2004 novel “Bait and Switch” (the reissue […]
Case Study: Lift Your Story from the Ashes of Mediocrity
Another writer has stepped up to share her experience from the receiving end of the story coaching experience. I suggested it to her because it presents an all-too-common situation: answering the question “what is your concept?” with a thin and/or familiar premise, rather than something conceptual. This one thing can make the difference between publishing, or […]
What Every Writer Must Know About “Hero Fact”
A guest post by Jennifer Blanchard In my work as a writing coach, I come across a lot of stories where the hero isn’t being heroic. Either the hero is being saved by someone else or there’s not enough conflict to force the hero to actually step up and earn the title. That’s a serious […]
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. […]
Do ‘Story Physics’ work in Fantasy?
An interview with A-list sci-fi and (now) fantasy author Kay Kenyon. Kay’s new novel — her first fantasy after a string of highly successful science fiction titles — is just out. It’s called A Thousand Perfect Things, I’ve read it, it’s stellar. This interview puts Kay Kenyon on the firing line for her claim that […]
How to Create Layers of Thematically Pertinent Conflict
A Guest Post by K.M. Weiland (@KMWeiland), author of “Structuring Your Novel” How many times have you heard that conflict is story? This truism powers all of fiction for the simple reason that conflict creates plot. Your protagonist wants something. Someone prevents him from immediately gaining that thing. Conflict ensues, and a story is born. On […]