Unreliable narrators allow you to get more creative with how you tell your story, which can make it more complex and interesting to read. However, writing an unreliable narrator is no easy feat, since there are many things you need to do well throughout the entire narrative in order to …
What is an Unreliable Narrator? (And How to Write One!) Read More »
Utopian stories are undeservedly far less popular than the closely related genre, dystopia. After all, most people assume that if there are no corrupt politicians, zombies, or mass environmental destruction in your speculative fiction, it just won’t be interesting. However, just because utopian stories don’t rely on cheap thrills and …
Whether you need a fictional disease to write your next post-apocalyptic heartbreak thriller, or you want to create a story that centers around an alien parasite, carefully crafting that fictional illness is essential. Characters can get sick in any genre, but sci-fi, post-apocalyptic, fantasy, and dystopian stories often utilize diseases …
How to Create a Fictional Illness for Your Story Read More »
When it comes to writing a story, there are few things quite as challenging as giving it a proper title. A story’s title needs to be short, compelling, memorable, and appropriate to the genre and plot of the story. Not to mention, there’s a lot of pressure to pick a …
So, you want to write an Autistic character. That’s great! Unfortunately, most writers fall short of portraying Autistic characters well. If you want to avoid offensive stereotypes and make your Autistic characters accurate, doing the proper research is essential. There’s a lot of misinformation about autism in mainstream media, so …
Fear is a complicated emotion that involves pronounced emotional, physiological, and behavioral elements. To write fear well means you’re going to need to address each of those elements, while also taking into consideration the character’s personal history and why their fears developed. Like any of the major emotions, fear has …
Dialogue plays a huge role when it comes to writing a story, so it can be a bit daunting to include a character who doesn’t (or can’t) speak. Many writers make mistakes when writing a nonspeaking character, or they end up relying on old stereotypes and tropes that frankly everyone …
If you want to create a more diverse cast of characters for your story, including a nonbinary character is a great place to start. Gender variance is an often overlooked aspect of diversity, and, even in stories that prominently feature other LGBT+ characters, nonbinary people don’t often get to see …
If a character gets into a fistfight, chances are, they’re going to end up with a few nasty bumps and bruises. Likewise, tripping on asphalt or accidentally grabbing a sharp object could also result in your character looking a little worse for wear. There are infinite ways for characters to …
Body language is an essential part of bringing your characters to life, and yet, many writers struggle to find a balance between drawing no attention to the characters’ body language and obsessing over the way their characters move. If you don’t describe how your characters move in a scene, you’re …
Writing Body Language: Bringing Your Characters to Life Read More »
