I’m learning names can be tricky. I created a protagonist with the surname of Lawley because he lives by the letter of the law. (However, in order to survive he must bend a few rules.) Character names are often self-explanatory. Think Sleeping Beauty; Bugs Bunny; Old Yeller; Prince Valiant; and Superman, the Man of Steel….
Author: Rainey Hall
Say, Mack, what’s your secret?
There is a restaurant in Manitou Springs, CO, Adam’s Mountain Café, that has the best chicken salad ever. Just plain ol’ chicken salad, but with its one or two secret ingredients—wow. Fantasy and sci-fi author David Farland tells a story about an author he met at a writers conference. She admitted to him that she felt…
Increased procrastination or increased motivation? That depends on you.
Have you ever been searching for that something special for one of your characters, a subplot, a setting, a way to kill off a character, or perhaps researching for a historical fiction manuscript and it happens? You click. You have no self-control—you simply click! For example: Xkcd’s Radiation Dose Chart – PA: 88. LRD: 988….
Blurry Vision Syndrome and Choosing
Okay, so there’s most likely—just spitballing—over one-hundred and sixty of us that didn’t final in the Colorado Gold contest. (Isn’t that just a bother!) Shocked? Pride wounded? In the depths of disagreement? Lost yourself in darkness, even though, well, it’s not dark? Confounded? Downright mad? Everything is blurry—including your future? You’ve got it—Blurry Vision Syndrome….
Bits and Pieces Make a Whole Character
The following conversation actually took place: Coworker: “How can I submit only the first chapter of my manuscript to a contest? The good stuff doesn’t start until chapter three—maybe four.” Me: “Your story doesn’t begin where you think it begins.” CW: “Sure as the day you were born, it starts in chapter one.” Me: “As…