Writing Archives - Robin Catling

The First Quarter Debate

As the protagonist resists engaging with the external plot. the First Quarter Debate powers the first act of a novel.

Sequels, re-boots, and ‘reimaginings:’ are there no new stories only new twists? What happened to originality?

This is a problem with the fantasy genre: magic conjures a plot hole. Usually an entire Swiss cheese of plot

What are the six essential action-genre story beats? The lack of which strips the novel of both genre and story?

What’s the priority for a protagonist in fiction: likable, sympathetic or just compelling? It seems counter-intuitive, but not every protagonist

It’s time for Fantasy Book Cover Cliches Gallery 3. Many elements contribute to a cliche cover: concept, composition, typeface, character

They are the mandatory elements of the genre, but what happens when YA tropes turn toxic? Are we offering impressionable

Ever read a novel and concluded the plot is overpowered by coincidence? A chance meeting in the middle of a

Here’s a ten-point story audit that only takes a few minutes and could save your novel in the early drafting

Can you start a story with the early/late-wide/closeup opening? Or is that impossible?