Don’t Be Afraid to Go BigAugust 7, 2025Don’t be afraid to try things–even things that may seem far, far out of the box. You’re not always writing…
Revealing Other Characters’ Inner LifeJuly 3, 2025Stories aren’t primarily about the facts; they’re about the feelings—not just your characters’ emotions, but all of their inner life:…
The Trick to Writing Compelling Inner LifeMay 29, 2025Probably the comment I give most often in a writer’s manuscript is some variation of, “Let the reader in a…
Are You Neglecting a Powerful Tool in Your Writer’s Toolbox?March 27, 2025People-watching is some of the most instructive work we can do for creating richly and fully developed characters on the…
Relationships, Character, and the Unexpressed LongingFebruary 20, 2025Unspoken desires are so often at the root of what may seem like arguments, misunderstandings, and conflict—and it’s a powerful…
Understanding Evil Characters (and Writing Them Real)January 30, 2025So many stories in some way deal with the conflict between good and evil. As authors we’re urged to find…
Analysis: How Storytelling Makes the StoryAugust 1, 2024If you’d like to receive my blog in your in-box each week, click here. My roommate when I lived in New…
How to Let Readers into Your Characters’ Inner LifeJune 20, 2024If you’d like to receive my blog in your in-box each week, click here. One of the areas where I most…
You Don’t Need a Character WoundMay 16, 2024If you’d like to receive my blog in your in-box each week, click here. Many years ago, when I was a…
Character Stakes: The Key to Making Readers CareApril 25, 2024Stakes are crucial to story, one of the central legs of the holy trinity of character plot and stakes, because…