Posts - Robin Catling

Six Essential Action-Genre Story Beats

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

April 23 is World Book and Copyright Day 2026. when UNESCO celebrates the power of books as a bridge between

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

Among the upcoming novel releases for April, are these genre-ready covers? Do they scream ‘fantasy? Do the thumbnails reach out

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?

We present our Fantasy Book Cover Cliches Gallery 2. What turns a fantasy book cover into a cliche? Colors? Composition?