Galadriel’s Study in Psychopathy
I worked out the central premise of Amazon’s Rings of Power: Galadriel’s Study in Psychopathy. I resisted talking about this […]
Writing
Posts on the craft of writing
The Character’s Core Wound
According to the late teacher and script doctor Peter Russell, the character’s core wound powers the story. Writing and speaking
Introducing the Cumulative Sentence
It’s a rare item of writing craft that finds me introducing the cumulative sentence. I had a “progressive” education, which
Conventions of the Action Genre
Writing a fantasy series, there’s no way I can ignore the conventions of the Action genre. A solid action piece
Every Story Asks Questions
Not the obvious ‘how does it end?’ but something more basic; every story asks questions. ‘What’s is about?’ isn’t really
The Trouble with Prequels
Amazon’s Rings of Power demonstrates the trouble with prequels like no other. When the outcomes and consequences don’t matter, how
Endearing Female Protagonists
Every writer these days seems focused on endearing female protagonists. Let’s compare the wildly popular Black Widow and the not
The ‘All-is-Lost’ Story Beat
The ‘all-is-lost’ story beat is obligatory in just about every story structure from the Hero’s Journey to Save the Cat.
Completing a Character Arc: Misbelief
This week I found the key in completing a character arc: misbelief. It followed two years of writing, ignoring that
The Art of the Long Con
Posting a short story to my writers’ group this week, I’m exploring the art of the Long Con in Selling