This week, I shine a spotlight on the amazing indie story-teller, Christopher Lee. Who is Christopher Lee? Yes, the name is familiar but he’s not Saruman, nor is he Dracula. He’s a somewhat lesser—but no less interesting—version. Christopher Lee is…
Mood and Atmosphere
Stories without mood and atmosphere have an incomplete feeling. They need substance and fleshing out. The dialogue has nothing physical to play against. The characters have no arena in which to move about, and little stage business to enhance the…
Six Tips for Creative Fiction Collaboration
If you’ve been following my newsletter (and if you aren’t, sign up today!), you’ll know that I’ve been working on a creative fiction collaboration with a fellow fantasy author, Jean Lee, to create a work called King Eowain and the Boar,…
Seven Ways to Build Your Author Brand
The thought of selling yourself as though you’re a new watch or a can of fizzy soda may strike you as crass and make you want to stick a fork in your eye, but if you’ve written a book and…
Posted in Author Platform, The Business of Writing
Brooklyn BookFest: A Retrospective
Last week (September 11-17) was the Brooklyn Book Festival, one of the premiere book festivals in the US, and the largest free literary event in New York City. Brooklyn BookFest is a unique kind of festival. Rather than being centralized…
Bad Beginnings
The beginning. It’s a rough spot for many first drafts. As writers, we routinely place a disproportionate amount of attention on our introductory paragraphs. For good reason. Sometimes we just don’t know where a story is supposed to start. And…
Posted in Process, Writing craft
13 Week Rewrite: Week Six – False Victory
This week your hero will experience something that leads her to believe there’s a chance she’ll achieve her goal. This is a critical point, because without it, your reader won’t understand the meaning the hero ascribes to her goal. Each…
People-Watching: It’s Not Just For Peeping Toms Anymore
The next time you’re in a public place — a coffeehouse, a park, a store — observe the people around you. Pick a person, a couple, or a group, and imagine what their lives might be like. Imagine All the…
Name That… Character!
Do you know the meaning of your name, and why your parents chose it? Do you think it suits you? What about your children’s names? And what about your characters? Ask ten different authors about how they choose names for…
Posted in Character, Writing craft
Author Spotlight: Aaron-Michael Hall, Spec-Fic Author
Aaron-Michael Hall is a Speculative Fiction author (Epic Fantasy and Science Fantasy with an EDGE) originally from southern Illinois. Since August 2015, she has written eight full-length novels and published four. Her first novel, The Rise of Nazil, has won…
Posted in Author Spotlight
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