Posts by Filip
As Lauren Ipsum points out, whether it is necessary to employ different POVs depends on the story you want to tell. Personally, I try to keep my stories as simple as possible. This includes limit...
Don't take the Hero's Journey literally. In my opinion, one of the most important lessons about the Hero's Journey is this: Don't take it literally. The Hero's Journey is not about classical Greek ...
First of all, I think that there is no definitive answer to a question like this. Stories are different, and a mechanism that worked fine in one story might fail in another. You will have to try ou...
Although I like the concept of character interviews, in this special case, I would sketch the entire character's biography. In that way you not only have a clear idea of the character's personality...
According to the wiktionary, a "name" is "any nounal word or phrase which indicates a particular person, place, class, or thing." Implications: "The Dark Lord" is a fully valid name. There is n...
The Background: I'm writing a novel that is set in the working quarters of a cruise ship. It's named after the "stage identitiy" of the main characters. (Let's call her Nancy.) All the subplots I h...
I'm working on a novel that is told from a single narrator in third person. A number of subplots detail the stories of secondary characters. My problem: From their point of view, I could easily w...
From what you write, I feel that you have a very good idea of who your characters are but struggle to "sum them up". In addition to Mark's excellent ideas, here's a technique I've recently tested o...
Context: I was a similar situation a few years ago. I wandered into a museum and by chance found a whole world that was there for me for the taking. I instantly knew that I wanted to write about th...
I've recently got a crushing critique. The critic pointed out I was obviously unfamiliar with the basic tools of the trade and that my style was non-existent. She insisted that "everybody can inven...
