Writing a story with a physical villain? Whether our hero’s adversary is an eighth-grade bully, a civilization–busting alien super villain, or a historical bad guy from our culture’s point of view, they all have one thing in common. They think they are justified in their actions. To get into our villains’ heads, we have to empathize with them. All Villains Want to be Understood Our stories benefit from outlining our hero’s backstory, whether that backstory is revealed or not. It … Read More »

Are you a mystery writer? If so, do you write “Hard Boiled” or “Cozy?” Since I write in the genre, it’s important for me to know where my stories fit on the mystery spectrum. Yet these days that gradient is crowded and murky. It’s confusing, but I think my protagonist is the key to the answer. In what was arguably mystery’s golden age when Dashiell Hammett, Raymond Chandler, Mickey Spillane and Ross Macdonald were making their marks, a clear partition … Read More »

Imagine your story’s protagonist is a standup guy or gal. The main character, the one who stirs the cocktail. But you find that the protagonist is missing something, and getting plot points out there seems awkward. Her character is a bit flat. Could be, she needs a foil. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines “foil,” when used in the writerly, literary sense, as “someone or something that serves as a contrast to another.” Simple and straightforward, that. Think Lou Costello to Bud … Read More »

Question: Why should your protagonist be special? Answer: Because that’s what will make your reader sit up and take notice! I find that engaging with the struggles of a sympathetic protagonist is key to enjoying the fiction reading experience. Perhaps it’s even one of a reader’s greatest pleasures. Why do little girls love the story of Cinderella? Why have versions of that tale about a vulnerable girl’s triumph over a cruel stepparent been around since ancient Egypt and maybe before? … Read More »

We’re all concerned about making our historical novels authentic. We research costumes, tools, and architecture. Yet all that effort can dissipate when the characters open their mouths, if their speech isn’t equally time-appropriate. But how can it be, when they are speaking Chinese or Medieval French or simply American English of the eighteenth century—rendered in “Modern”? Like Us Yet Not As we all know, dialogue can make or break a novel. It reveals the characters and their relationships; it can … Read More »

Whether we write fiction, poetry, history or news, we are creating a story. I began my writing career as a newspaper journalist and ended up writing history books. Some people have told me history is dull. With that in mind, I try to present information in a lively, insightful, and informative manner, while making the material relevant and easy to digest. While working in museums, I honed writing skills by preparing press releases, grant applications, handouts, craft instructions, job descriptions, … Read More »