So last September (yes, 2022 not long after I finished my MFA) I started thinking a lot about plot as I struggled with Arizona. The story still wasn’t quite right and I couldn’t figure out what was not clicking. As I was thinking through what I was aiming for–what would make it feel like a […]
I’m plotting again. A new, old story. I actually did pretty good this morning, I mapped out 4 plots for the novel – one for each main character. On the surface, I’m pretty proud of myself because I’m actually figuring out how to do this plotting thing and fit pieces together and maybe even have […]
Perhaps you’ve heard of the Moonlighting Curse. The idea that once a couple gets together on a tv show it ruins either the relationship or the show entirely. It began, of course, with Moonlighting which starred Cybill Shepherd and Bruce Willis. Their bickering and sexual tension carried the show for 3 seasons. And then they […]
previously on the blog… I posted about how I write in layers. And that plot and I are only beginning to get along. This expounds on both of those ideas and so may be thoroughly boring for you (understandably) but is a great way for me to keep all my ideas and the things I’m […]
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 […]
Plots are the most difficult part of the story for me. I can do character and dialog all day just for fun but plots require work and miracles of intuition and, well they’re just hard. So what do I do about it? I read, a lot. I read books by brilliant authors and I read […]