Deciding On That One Tough Line
Ode to Old Technology
On a curveball spur of energy, I decided to take out an old piece of kit. That was the start of an hour of grief and consternation from what was meant to be a few minutes of quiet enjoyment. Near a decade ago I was gifted a portable digital audio converter (DAC) from an audiophile … Continue reading Ode to Old Technology
Setting Up the Bar
I want to run through an exercise for something I’m not particularly versed in. Though that statement gives me an easy out, as I often sit on the writer scale’s far discovery end I don’t put much thought to new environments when I’m building on the preexisting characters. Locations and places have always been barebones … Continue reading Setting Up the Bar
Vignettes and the Baton Pass
When my writings turn exploratory or freewheeling, my favorite story structure is the vignette. Unhindered by ongoing plot bloat, naturally disposed to changes in tempo and pacing, the vignette is a neat little tool for when you want to write a varied, shifting story featuring a pantheon of characters and their different perspectives. Every input … Continue reading Vignettes and the Baton Pass
Sidequests in Fiction
Mainlining the Side Paths Despite how much I hold up the theoretical streamlined story with no filler as an ideal to be strived for at every creative attempt, I’m not adverse to sidequests in principle. Like breaking from a busy day at a pondside bench, sidequests can be a pleasant distraction or moment for rumination. … Continue reading Sidequests in Fiction
Speeches in Fiction
I could carry on and on towards this subject without break or pause and it would sound like a lot of the reports you’d hear throughout school. Hopefully only the reports you heard and not the ones you gave (I wish everyone started with a firm basis in speechcraft). Yet it’s only too easy an … Continue reading Speeches in Fiction
What Lies Under that Mountain?
The pale morning sun brushed Gregory’s cheek as he pulled his blanket over his plump face. After a minute’s battle with the brightness he shielded his eyes as best he could and looked out over a full panorama of Tipharia. His home was lost between the many roofs, trees, and swathed pastel blur under the … Continue reading What Lies Under that Mountain?
Scene Breakdown
Learn from my mistakes.
How to Start a Chapter
I should not give advice on this subject considering my penchant for never using chapters, at least not anymore. I used chapters in my early writings, liked it well enough and got enough experience to share everything mentioned after this but drifted into my own method which makes enough sense for me in my internal … Continue reading How to Start a Chapter
Writing Characters After a Character Arc
A good character arc is handled with the same deference as nitroglycerine. On paper it’s a simple combination of basic ingredients but in a writer’s unsteady hand they can destroy everything around them. Hopefully you have a plan or sufficient experience to execute a character arc combined with a great deal of effort to craft … Continue reading Writing Characters After a Character Arc
Colin Klawans 