Category: Creative Writing
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Thoughts on Part II of a Trilogy
I was watching a video recently about The Lord of Rings that mentioned that the main goal of part II of a trilogy is to get from part A to part B (setting up the big finale). In part, I think that’s true. Part II of a trilogy, of course, should also be its own…
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Thankful Thursday: Thankful for reviews
Today, I am grateful for the people who have taken the time to leave a review of any my books on Amazon or Goodreads–whether the first editions of my trilogy or the newly released second edition of my trilogy’s first installment. Unless you ARE an author, you can have no idea how much an honest…
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What motivates a good villain?
Villains can be some of my favorite characters . . . Hans Gruber. Saruman. Sauron (of the Silmarillion era) is probably my favorite villain ever. Gaston of Beauty and the Beast is an interesting villain just because, in a lot of ways, he’s an everyman. A narcissist, sure. But an everyman. Lots of different things…
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Successfully writing and editing a novel takes a marathon mindset
Now, for most people, especially people who have written or are trying to actually write a novel, this is intuitive and rather obvious. Still, I hold it can be very useful to break down the obvious things that we seldom take the time to pick apart and analyze. There is wisdom there. Reminders. motivations. So,…
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Using social media as an author: THE BAD
There are some real positive aspects to social media. But there are also lots of negatives. Let’s start with the spammers and scammers. They’re real. Never click on a link you have ANY doubts about at all, and make sure you enable double-factor authentication on your accounts. When you have a public page, you become…
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Using social media as an author: the GOOD
Social media is a mixed blessing, to say the least. Today, I wanted to focus on what I enjoy about using social media as an author, because there are benefits, and there are ways to use it that are quite helpful and inspiring. First, I should say I am most active on Facebook. I have…
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What reading nonfiction can teach a novelist
I read quite a bit of nonfiction, mostly theology, spiritual autobiographies, and Catholic/Christian apologetics. Obviously, if you want to write fiction, you need to read quite a bit of fiction. But more than that, you simply need to read. Reading a breadth of things can really help you grow as a creative writer. Here are…
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Character motivations in fiction
Today, let’s talk character development. One of the most critical aspects of creating a deep, memorable, and relatable character is understanding what motivates him or her. We are all motivated by different things to some degree, and sometimes to a great degree. Here are a few things to keep in mind or to ask yourself…
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You never know what legacy you’ll leave (the example of Cervantes)
If you follow my blog regularly, you may already know that Cervantes inspired me to enter a doctoral program in Early Modern Spanish Lit. One of the things I find so fascinating about Cervantes is the situation he lived in, along with the fact that he always considered himself a failure. You see, Cervantes died…
Creative Writing with the Crimson League 