Category: Character

The 4 Worst Words in Any Story

If you watch much tv, you hear these words all the time in almost every series. Some tv shows, you hear them every episode. Writers use them to create conflict. Not just conflict but high stakes. They use them to have a character act out of their nature; to pit allied characters against one another. […]

March 12, 2018 | Posted in Character, Craft, Story Courses
Captain America and Modern Heroes

Captain America has a list in The Winter Soldier to keep track of all the things he’s missed in our very modern society. We have the newest technology, decades of great music available at the touch of a button, and the broadest knowledge that the world has ever seen. But Part 1 of this series […]

May 13, 2016 | Posted in Character, Story Courses
Captain America and Character Journeys

Part 2 Part 2 in the Captain America series begins at the end, after the action, when certainty has replaced questions and conundrums and the struggle to find the right path. It began at Comic Con in 2011 when my best friend and I went to see Captain America: The First Avenger. I loved Cap. […]

May 11, 2016 | Posted in Character, Story Courses
Character plotting

I’m not a plotter. Character and dialog I’m completely comfortable with but plot is a struggle for me (hopefully less and less as a I write more and more but for now it’s tough). So, I’m always looking to learn more about plotting or hear how successful authors address plot or read things that give […]

January 23, 2013 | Posted in Character, Enchanted Storms, Plot, Story Courses
Mary Sue

I seriously dislike the term Mary Sue. I used to despise it quite fiercely but writing this post siphoned most of that venom. I’m still bothered when I see that term used in a review or blog post. I always want to link back to this post with a comment that I don’t think they […]

November 15, 2012 | Posted in Character, Story Courses