Storyville: Dissecting "Fireflies"
Dissecting my story, "Fireflies," I shine a light on my first attempt at magical realism — craft, process, and structure.
UPDATED WITH WINNER - LitReactor's Flash Fiction Smackdown: March Edition
In:
Plot
Two sentences. 25 words. Flash!
Nothing New Under The Sun: The Origins of 5 Common Literary Allusions
In:
Phrases
Do you ever feel like you are reading the same things over and over again? Well, you are. Here are five familiar literary allusions explained.
10 More Words You Literally Didn't Know You Were Getting Wrong
In:
Grammar
We hit it out of the park last October by giving you ten words you were probably using wrong. Well, here are ten more.
Storyville: Writing the Grotesque
In:
Voice
Damaged, deformed, and dysfunctional characters—we still have compassion for them. This is the grotesque.
8 Ways to Flesh Out a Character
By Robbie Blair
In:
Character
Looking to develop a character? Here are eight ways you can create a fleshier concept for who your character is and what drives them.
Flash Fiction: The Zorro Circle of Storytelling
By Robbie Blair
In:
Structure
Flash fiction can help writers answer vital questions: How can you identify which words to cut? How can you use subtlety to increase the power of your prose? And what's at the heart of a story?
Storyville: Top Ten Things Literary Journals Need to Do. NOW.
In:
Research
There needs to be a symbiosis between the journal and the author. Here are some ways that we can make that happen.
UPDATED WITH WINNER: LitReactor's Flash Fiction Smackdown: February Edition - Now, with New Rules!
In:
Plot
New Rules: 25 words. 2 sentences.
How the Superheroes of Literature can save you from the Grammar Nazis
By Cath Murphy
In:
Grammar
Who can save the planet from the deadly Grammar Nazis? The Superheroes of Literature, that's who!
O-day ou-yay eak-spay ingon-Klay?: Exploring constructed languages
In:
Literary Devices
What do the Starship Enterprise, Boonville California, and an Icelandic band all have in common? Their own language! Explore a few unique constructed languages with me.
Storyville: Breaking Hearts
In:
Character
In order to break a reader's heart, you first must get them to care.
This is Not a Checklist: How to Write a Story
Some things to have taken into consideration while writing your story. Not rules, just after-the-fact guidelines.
Storyville: Researching The Best American Short Stories Anthology
In:
Research
When you are looking to do research on literary short fiction, start with the Best American Short Stories anthology.
Watching out for Reiterations: Eliminating Redundancy in Your Writing
In:
Grammar
Like Sonny & Cher on February 2nd, redundancies in your writing are driving your readers crazy.
Info Dumps Aren't Evil
By Erik Wecks
In:
Plot
Writers are often told to avoid information dumps at all costs, but this can leave a story feeling clipped and lacking necessary description.
Kill Those Modifiers!
The overuse of adjectives and adverbs can ruin sentences and flatten descriptive passages.
Phraseology: Groups of Words with a Lot of Jobs
In:
Grammar
So I've bored you with lectures on sentences and clauses, now we'll talk about that other group of words-the phrase.
Bringing the Lie to Life: What Your First Two Pages Can Tell You
Using particular details brings your lie to life.
Storyville: Writing Dialogue
What is the function of dialogue, and how do you make it sing?
Screenwriting: Insert Woman Here - Sidestepping the Sausage Fest
In:
Cliche
Where are all the female characters in your screenplay? Why should you care about adding some? Where can you put them?
The Joys and Perils of Self-Fictionalization as Portrayed in Four Films - or - Why We Write
In:
Plot
Four movies that blur the line between artists and their art.
Five Plot Devices That Hurt Your Writing
In:
Plot
A list of common storytelling devices writers employ that usually cause far more harm than good.
Organic Word-Growing: Why You Should Keep the Shit in Your Writing
By Robbie Blair
In:
Rewriting
A look at how accepting the crap you write during early drafts can both accelerate the writing process and feed your story.
Storyville: Where to Send Your Stories
In:
Research
No idea where to send your writing? Consult this list of the most common genre markets, as well as Richard's BIG LIST, five years in the making.
