Reposted: Three Storytellers, Two Listeners, One Story

This is a fascinating article and story from Mr. Cheah, readers. Check it out! Three Storytellers, Two Listeners, One Story In his essay ‘The Counterfactual Dialectic’ in Pulp on Pulp, Misha Burnett discusses the use of dialectic to determine what is said to the reader, how it is said, and what the reader will take away …

Reposted – Worldbuilding: Life, Death, and Rituals

This is a good reflection for the New Year, readers. Check it out! Worldbuilding: Life, Death, and Rituals DECEMBER 31, 2022 ~ CROSSOVERCREATIVECHAOS So how do your world’s cultures handle life and death? And when I say rituals, I don’t just mean the kind of formal recognition of christenings and funerals. (Though those are more important to tying …

Reposted: Pregnant protagonists going to war

Ms. Monalisa Foster makes a good point here, readers. The fact that so many writers at present are ignoring it is more than a little bit disturbing: Link to article Pregnant protagonists going to war This morning I stumbled onto this and found myself in dire need to write about it because I too am …

Reposted – Business Musings: How Writers Fail Part 10: Blame

A worthy article to consider, future authors: Business Musings: How Writers Fail Part 10: Blame I spent most of the morning trying to start this post. It’s not like me to have trouble writing, particularly a nonfiction post, but I simply couldn’t do what I had planned. What I had planned was simple: Because of …

Reposted: Research for the Working Writer

This article is full of good advice, readers. Check it out! RESEARCH FOR THE WORKING WRITER “Help, I need sources!” Ah, the plea of the desperate student/grad-student/fiction writer in search of material or confirmation of some nugget, or a replacement for something that suddenly won’t work any more. Every so often the question arises about …

Romantic Relationships – A Speculative Commentary

Last week we discussed love among characters. This ranged from brotherly love (philia), or the affection between friends who are or can be as close as brothers, to romantic love. I was not able to express all my thoughts on romantic pairings last week and thus this post will contain those ideas. Previously, we discussed …

Reposted: Campbell’s Hero’s Journey is Bunk

A good thought from John C. Wright, readers!   Campbell’s Hero’s Journey is Bunk We were discussing Campbell’s conception that a wheel-shaped pattern called the Hero’s Journey underpins folk tale and myth for all foundational heroic stories, across all cultures and generations. I admit to be deeply unimpressed with Joseph Campbell’s writing, after reading three …

Love Among Characters – A Reflection

“Considering it, he realized that somehow he never worried about Miriam, and that was wrong. He did not worry about her because she seemed so self-sufficient, so strong. She was like their mother had been, only more so, much more so. But he felt it was wrong to think of a girl that way…It was …

Reposted: Vampirism and Other Afflictions

A thought-provoking reflection from Monalisa Foster, readers: Vampirism and Other Afflictions If you’ve been alive for more than a few decades, you’ve probably noticed that people change as they age. Executive brain function takes place in the pre-frontal cortex, a region of the brain that reaches maturity (stops changing) around the age of 25-26. If …

Reposted: 8 Tips for Dealing With Negative Reviews

A worthy post from K.M. Weiland, readers: 8 Tips for Dealing With Negative Reviews of Your Book If one of your goals as a writer is to be read, then sooner or later you will have to deal with negative reviews of your book. This could be as simple as a family member or beta …