The Writing Life

Writings, and writing about writing.

Eight tools from fiction to make you a better screenwriter

This article originally appeared in the newsletter of the Phoenix Screenwriters Association. To sign up for their newsletters, filled with screenwriting tips and industry news, go here. After studying and practicing screenwriting for years, and working in TV development in Los Angeles, I decided to try something new, and wrote my first novel, The Plus …

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The Two Types of Suspense, and How to Create Them

Even if you’re not writing a story that one would typically think of as suspenseful—say a mystery, or thriller, or horror piece—you probably do want to keep your readers in suspense. Think of suspense as the invisible fishing wire pulling readers through from paragraph to paragraph, chapter to chapter. If your readers aren’t anticipating something, …

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The Funnel: One simple approach for going from blank page to book

So you’ve decided to write a book. So you’re staring at a blank Word document. So what now? In my last post, I talked about the paradox of creativity: that sometimes putting restrictions on the writing process can push you to tap into your imagination. That article includes my thoughts on why this works, as …

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Why to join a writers’ group – and how

This article was originally written as a guest post for the Charlotte Readers Podcast. Visit their blog for more literary reflections from a variety of writers! There’s a stereotype that writers are solitary creatures whose only contact with the outside world is to gaze contemplatively out windows. I can confirm this from personal experience. Yes, …

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