I have an entry created for Blizzard’s writing contest, and while I think it’s okay, I want to be doubly sure it’s highly polished and as Blizzardy as possible. But it’s not about what I think, is it? It’s going to be read by other people. So I need other people willing to read it.… Continue reading I Must Construct Additional Pylons!
Category: Writing
The Epic Is In The Details
It’s amazing how moving something small can make a huge difference. We’ve been in the process of rearranging our apartment. The latest change saw a large stack of things by the lower corner of the bed, meaning I’d have to crawl out of it in a somewhat awkward manner. Over the weekend (Sunday night in… Continue reading The Epic Is In The Details
Guest Post: Fictional Plausibility And Death
Today’s guest post comes to us courtesy of Monica Flink. She’s a long-standing and very dear friend who is also struggling to get away from the day job environment through the power of the written word. She’s been published on AOL.com, Lifescript.com and eHow. She has guest lectured at colleges and is a regular contributor… Continue reading Guest Post: Fictional Plausibility And Death
Becoming The Hero
Every hero is a protagonist. But not every protagonist is a hero. Some characters start out as heroes, while others are just the focal point of the story. Pure heroism is a rarity in our world, so when we see a Superman or a Captain America or an Obi-Wan Kenobi, we’re a bit in awe… Continue reading Becoming The Hero
The Other Way To Use Lore
Yesterday I talked about the constraints of an established universe and what to do if you want to avoid raising the ire of the fan community. However, keep in mind that this is merely advice for most fan works. Sometimes you want to break the established constructs for one reason or another. That’s fine. Nothing… Continue reading The Other Way To Use Lore
Mind the Lore
So Blizzard’s having this contest and I wrote something for it. Given that this is a piece of fiction written within an established universe it is, in essence, a work of fan fiction. Now there’s a lot of fan fiction, from the drabbles that put Harry Potter in bed with Draco Malfoy to the novels… Continue reading Mind the Lore
Increasingly Fine
My friend – maybe it’d be best to call him a “pen pal”? – Chuck Wendig had this to say in regards to the task that must follow the completion of a first draft: Writing is rewriting. A writer’s arsenal of talents are brought to bear on the first draft, but his skills (the things… Continue reading Increasingly Fine
When You're Evil
Russ Pitts’ triumphant return as an Escapist columnist prompted me to finally lay down some thoughts on villainy. A little roleplaying in World of Warcraft on my characters reminded me how much fun it can be to write for or portray a villain. My brother-in-law, when running Dungeons & Dragons is described as “an evil… Continue reading When You're Evil
On Lethargy
This is Lazy Seal. My wife loves Lazy Seal. The entire time we were at Mystic Aquarium this past weekend, that seal didn’t move. It lay on that rock, sunning itself, near cool water if it wanted a swim. It knows a human will be coming around eventually to feed it fish. It doesn’t have… Continue reading On Lethargy
The Elements of Style
I only own one copy of The Elements of Style. Some own quite a few. My copy is about as old as I am, the Third Edition published in 1979. I took it with me this morning instead of my manuscript, just to brush up on writing well as opposed to just writing a good… Continue reading The Elements of Style
