This article is by Kyle Malone. Foreshadowing has come to rank as my favourite literary technique. This is not due to the fact that it is the hardest to grasp (far from it), but because when used correctly it remains one of the most powerful. The art of storytelling, of whisking readers into other worlds, … Read more
I started writing a little over six years ago. I’m taking it seriously, and I have dreams and ambitions for what I want to achieve, but for the time being it’s mainly a hobby. It’s fun, but I want to take it further, and I’m trying to figure out how to get there. Today I’d … Read more
This article is by S.H. Mastersmith. A character’s arc refers to the journey a character goes through, and the changes and self-discoveries they make along the way. The character starts the story with certain thoughts and morals (or lack thereof) and through a series of events, those thoughts and morals are changed, for better or … Read more
A few years ago, I wrote an article for this site called The Walking Dead is Not About Zombies. In it I show that the zombie apocalypse is just a backdrop. The thought experiments that explore who we are as humans is where the core value of the storytelling resides. Now, a few years later, … Read more
This article is by S.C. Sharman. When readers pick up your book you want them to have a hard time putting it down. Even if that means staying up all night until they’ve read the whole thing. The way to achieve this is by building suspense. Here are four proven ways to keep the suspense … Read more
This article is by S.C. Sharman. Foreshadowing is a literary tool in which a writer hints at what is to come next for the audience. Offering slight hints of what is to happen next is a proven way to keep the reader on the edge of her seat. The trick to using it properly though, … Read more
We’re all different. We come from different backgrounds, live different lives, and we’re all the main characters of our own stories. These stories too are all different, and they take place in different worlds – our own. A consequence of this is that we see the world in different ways. We have different opinions, and … Read more
C. S. Lakin has penned nineteen novels of various genres. She works professionally as a copyeditor and writing coach, and critiques more than two hundred manuscripts a year. She also guest blogs on the top writing blogs, such as Writers’ Digest and Grammarly, and teaches workshops around the country. Her award-winning blog Live Write Thrive … Read more
This article is by Isobel Mitton. Speculative fiction writers often tackle social issues. The Hunger Games tackled the social class system. And so did the Divergent series. Both series were about the haves and have-nots. They were also about dictatorial governments in a world where one person had all the power to decide life and … Read more
One of the best ways to engage readers in a story is to include personal interests. Some interests are shared by lots of people: pets, or baseball, for example. People who love pets usually cry when a furry secondary character dies. Baseball isn’t just a game, it’s a culture, a team, a relationship with your … Read more