The Blagger's Guide to Ayn Rand

The Blagger's Guide to Ayn Rand

To blag (v): to sound like you know what you’re talking about when you don’t

The Blagger’s Guide to Literature (n): an invaluable resource for those who wish to blag about books without actually reading them.

To leave a comment Login with Facebook or create a free account.

Storyville: Dynamic Settings

Storyville: Dynamic Settings

This column is going to be all about setting. How much is too much, how much is too little? How can I advance the plot, reveal character and ground my story in reality? How do I work all of the senses into my story without feeling like I’m just cramming those details in? How do I make it feel real? I’ll talk about all of these things and what setting means to me, as well as how I work it into my own writing. So let’s get started.

To leave a comment Login with Facebook or create a free account.

Understanding the Objective Correlative

Understanding the Objective Correlative

Theme is tricky business. A story has to be about something, but if you litter the page with obvious thematic cues your writing could come across as didactic and heavy-handed. Getting those big, universal ideas across without “pointing” the reader toward them, or otherwise producing something that reads like an instruction manual, takes a lot of finesse. It’s easier said than done.

To leave a comment Login with Facebook or create a free account.

The 3 Most Popular Editorial Services and Do You Need Them?

The 3 Most Popular Editorial Services and Do You Need Them?

Header image via Pexels

Three years ago I headed toward the ‘advice for writers’ shelf at Barnes and Noble. I was beginning my research on advice for writers as I was finally leaving my literary agent mantle behind and making my casual role as publishing counsel official. I was and wasn’t shocked to discover the genre had exploded. I felt as though I was seeing, at the very least, double the titles that were offered a mere five years before.

To leave a comment Login with Facebook or create a free account.

The DCU New 52 - One Year Later

7 comments

The DCU New 52 - One Year Later

Last year DC “flipped the table” by doing a line-wide relaunch of all its books, generally referred to as The New 52 (or a million variations thereof).  DC's relaunch started everything over at #0, including Detective Comics, which had been published monthly since 1937 and was almost at 900 issues, making it the longest ongoing comic in the U.S.  It was a bold move-- and I like bold moves-- but ultimately it didn’t work for me, and I'm going to try my best to explain why.

To leave a comment Login with Facebook or create a free account.

Up Close and Personal: A Personality Expose of the Personal Essay

3 comments

Up Close and Personal: A Personality Expose of the Personal Essay

What is a Personal Essay?

You probably have a pretty good idea of what an essay is, but if you want to get all technical about it, the word essay has a couple of meanings:

To leave a comment Login with Facebook or create a free account.

Recap: The Walking Dead 3.02 - Sick

1 comment

Recap: The Walking Dead 3.02 - Sick

Beware spoilers. 

The problem with adaptations is that, if you're familiar with the source material, it's hard to buy into the tension. Good writing or a skilled director can sweep you up in the on-screen action, but it's easy to sit there and wait for the next thing you know is coming. 

To leave a comment Login with Facebook or create a free account.

Truly SINISTER - The Ten Best True Crime Books

7 comments

Truly SINISTER - The Ten Best True Crime Books

Sinister is in theaters this month, a horror film telling the story of Ellison Oswalt (Ethan Hawke), a true crime author who moves his family into a house where despicable crimes were once committed. As one might expect, that’s a bad idea. The scares quickly escalate, but Oswalt is so committed to following up his last best-seller with something important, what he calls his In Cold Blood, that he’s not going anywhere until he gets his story.

To leave a comment Login with Facebook or create a free account.