Continuing from last week’s post on creating good characters, I will now give a look at how best to portray those characters who are often far more interesting: the baddies. For the most part, the same rules apply to making good bad guys as making good good guys: show rather than tell, make his/her problemContinue reading “The Worst of the Worst: Making Believable Antagonists”
Tag Archives: books
The Best of the Best: Making Believable Protagonists
While not all protagonists are good, it’s true, they are nevertheless an essential ingredient to any story (with a few abstract exceptions). It might seem easy to make a lead character who is generally likeable, and for some it is. But for others, creating a character out of thin air who is both interesting andContinue reading “The Best of the Best: Making Believable Protagonists”
The Self-Publishing Process
In my previous post, I spoke of why or why not self-publishing might be a good idea. In this one, I will attempt to outline the process of making it happen for those who would like to give it a try. More specifically, I will be talking about publishing a book here, though it can applyContinue reading “The Self-Publishing Process”
The Pros and Cons of Making Books Into Films
The book is always better. That’s what they say, anyway, and for the most part I agree. There isn’t much that the big screen can do that the pages of a book and a little imagination can’t do better. That said, movies do serve their purpose, as I intend to outline here.
The Pros and Cons of E-Books
I’m no big fan of e-readers (as you can probably tell if you’ve read some of my former posts). I never have been, and never will be. While I do own one, I’ve never quite been comfortable with using it the way I am with printed, bound works. With that in mind, here’s my listContinue reading “The Pros and Cons of E-Books”
Plans for December
November was a relatively quiet month, as expected. It saw the typing up of my semi-final draft of my YA anthology, and that’s about it. December should be a bit busier as I attempt to wrap things up and brace for the new year. I will review and edit the next book in my SauragiaContinue reading “Plans for December”
My Ten Favorite Book Series
I was a tad pressed for time this week, so here’s another top 10 list. This time the subject is my 10 favorite book series! These selections exclude nonfiction, short stories, picture or poetry books, sagas, etc. (The numbers in parentheses indicate how many novel-length books are in each series. All book titles are listedContinue reading “My Ten Favorite Book Series”
Sci-Fi or Fantasy: The Fine Line Between Genres
What is the difference between Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and The Lord of the Rings? It’s a common enough question (among a few folks, anyway) with a common enough set of answers. To some, there is no difference: both are speculative fiction (i. e. deal with made-up worlds and situations). To other, more devout followersContinue reading “Sci-Fi or Fantasy: The Fine Line Between Genres”
Marketing Matters: The Benefits of Live Appearances
Once you’ve got your book, story, et cetera published, it is time to move on to that third phase that relatively few of us introverted writer types bother to think about: marketing.
Ten Problems with the ‘Redwall’ Series by Brian Jacques
On this day in 1986, the very first Redwall book was published by Hutchinson in the UK. To mark the 34th anniversary of this monumental work in the field of middle grade and young adult fiction, I am releasing this list of critiques that I have lovingly assembled over the course of reading this otherwise phenomenalContinue reading “Ten Problems with the ‘Redwall’ Series by Brian Jacques”