Writing Better Accents Accents can be tough to write. However, not to worry. Because New York Times bestselling author Dayton Ward has some wonderful advice amidst the humor. Distinguishing Each Accent So, can you tell the difference between someone from the Bronx and someone from Brooklyn? And what about Chicago versus Detroit? Or Swedish versus Norwegian? […]
Getting inspiration from TV shows TV shows can be a great source of inspiration. And they can go beyond TV Tropes and even into something (almost, let’s not kid ourselves, folks) profound. So, what do I mean? TV Shows For the most part, we see three kinds of television programs: Comedy Drama Nonfiction And then […]
Review – Cynthia So Cynthia is a fun although ultimately sad story. You see, Cynthia is a Great Dane. And to her sorrow, her master is succumbing to Alzheimer’s. This short story was written for the second volume of The Longest Night Watch. All of the proceeds go to the Alzheimer’s Association. I love the […]
Speculating about the future Speculating is fun. However, future predictions can be notoriously inaccurate. I’m still waiting for my flying car, for example. However, some predictions have been eerily on the nose, such as cell phones, which are a lot like Star Trek’s communicators. So here’s a few idea on how to essentially build your […]
Getting inspiration from life events Life events Life events can be extremely inspiring for writers. They can range from baby showers to quinceañeras. Or they might be religious commitment ceremonies like confirmations. Weddings and Marriages are a special case I’ll cover weddings and marriages at a later date. They generally entail much greater pageantry. Intimacy versus Spectacle […]
Getting inspiration from films Films can be rather obvious sources of inspiration. However, as always, take care not to get into copyright infringement issues. Hence you will need to tread lightly. And you should pretty much assume any movie you see is not in the public domain. Because the vast majority of them are not. […]
Self-Review – Untrustworthy Untrustworthy is my first-ever published novel. Background Much like a fan fiction novel called Reversal, it begins with a dream. And that makes perfect sense, as a dream inspired it. And the dream, originally, was of seeing scenery change before my eyes (I have had this same dream before, and have written […]
Pocket conflicts So, Pocket Conflicts are the kinds of conflicts which are tiny. They aren’t wars and they don’t lead to divorce or a firing. Instead, they are more about the speed of “who moved my cheese?” Hence they are kind of trivial, yet they can add a lot of annoyance into anyone’s life. And […]
Getting inspiration from politics Politics comes with built-in drama. Because competitions for high and low offices can be truly thrilling. And long-term friendships can sometimes end over this often forbidden topic. Right (American definition) So consider the conservative point of view, and what it truly entails. Go beyond the basics of voting. What is a […]
Marriage is more than weddings. And when you consider the entire experience, it can spawn any number of plot bunnies. Courtship So, how did you two meet? It’s a standard question and can be a terrific ice breaker. Getting inspiration from marriage Furthermore, dating rituals differ through time, so adjust what you write accordingly. In […]