April is National Poetry Month. So why should that matter to fiction writers? Because poetry is the marriage of words and ideas, blending the two together to create something greater than the sum of their parts—which is exactly the same thing fiction does. Personally, I believe reading poetry (and, if you choose, writing the occasional…
Author: Kelley J. P. Lindberg
The Secret to Using Secrets in Your Writing
Let’s talk about secrets. Okay, sure the whole point about secrets is that you’re not supposed to talk about them. But as authors, we are the gods of our made-up worlds, and we can break all the rules we want. For writers like us, secrets are one of the many “secret” weapons in our arsenal,…
Strengths and Weaknesses: Two Sides of the Character Coin
You’ve heard the advice that characters should have both strengths and weaknesses to make them appear more “rounded” and multi-dimensional. It’s easy to think of those as very different aspects of a character’s personality. But what if their strength is also their weakness? Any strength can become a weakness, depending on the situation. That simple…
Holiday Gifts for Writers 2023
Still searching for the perfect holiday gift for the writer in your life? Never fear, my annual list of holiday gifts for writers is here! Whether you’re looking for inspirational gifts, workspace upgrades, or pure indulgences, there’s surely something on this list that will tickle your writer’s holiday fancy. Home Office/Workspace Upgrades and Tools Indulgences…
Share Experiences with Your Characters
Your main character—let’s call him Archie—has a problem. He’s trying to find something lost in the woods (a criminal’s hideout, perhaps, or a missing child, or a jungle-covered Mayan ruin). Suddenly, Archie knows what he needs: a drone! Now you, the author, have a problem. You’ve never flown a drone. What does it feel like…