The Latest

Revelations from the Pulse (Corbin Cases)

(a deleted file from Adri

(a deleted file from Adrian Corbin's laptop) So it’s true. After a day of walking around, a step here and there to look at different peo

It’s All Character

It’s the absolute favor

It’s the absolute favorite word in storytelling. And the one least understood. Ask writers or fans “Which is more important, characters or—�

The Spellkeeper Flight Unofficial Playlist

It’s been a long, w

It's been a long, wild ride bringing the Spellkeeper Flight books to life, ever since

Video Gamers as Writers – Twitching Our Way Into Character

Some writers hone their s

Some writers hone their skills by a mix of soaking up lessons from the masters and researching specifics, from history to sentence structure. I’ve d

Who’s On First – A Character System for Variety in Scenes

Are you using all your st

Are you using all your story? All the characters, all the possibilities and combinations that a tale has ready to unleash? On the one hand

Loose Cannons can Lose Your Canon – WHEN Should You Shake Up Your Characters?

Why would a story that ri

Why would a story that rips forward at light-speed pace take a whole first season for what seemed like ordinary short-term TV conflicts? When Baby

Babylon 5’s One Key to Character Arcs

One way. There just might

One way. There just might be one irresistible way to track and reveal how a character evolves—and make the most of how that arc drives the whole

Writing a Character Arc – Through Other Characters

If the heart of a story i

If the heart of a story is the conflicts it puts a character through, and especially the

Darth Vader Missed It and Dracula Never Tried – Character Plot Twists that Matter

What single choice could

What single choice could make a story? Sure, we writers have dozens of strengths we might weave into a tale, but could there be one clear dec

The Two Laws of Backstory (and why Superman breaks both)

It’s one of the har

It's one of the hardest moments in writing—knowing that even though you’ve picked a perfect character or an ideal plot complication, you have to w

Does your villain need more evil?

Is your story good enough

Is your story good enough? In fact… you’ve probably been exploring and sweating to make your protagonist more real, more dynamic, and the suppo

Deals, Decoys, and Dirty Tricks for your Characters

Your hero’s trapped

Your hero's trapped by his enemies, no way to run or fight—unless he can take what those goons really want and use it against them. Your villain nee