Parent-Shaming & Mom-Shaming—Has Our Culture of Guilt Gotten Out of CONTROL?

Have you read that last book by Dr. Snooty Pants who never had a kid but feels comfortable judging? “Why Your Child Will Kill You in Your Sleep for the Insurance Money if You Don’t Stimulate Enough Creativity?” It’s a best-seller….

Anatomy of a Legendary Villain

If a villain is wanting to rule, control, destroy, etc. they should have a really good/plausible/sympathetic reason for doing so. In fact, when we do a great job at creating the villain, our audience will struggle with who to root for.

Ten Ways to Tighten Your Writing & Hook the Reader

When I used to edit for a living, I earned the moniker The Death Star because I can be a tad ruthless with prose. Today I hope to teach you guys to be a bit ruthless as well.

Franken-Novel, Perfectionism & The Dark Side of Critique Groups

Depending on the problems, critique groups can create bad writing habits and even deform a WIP so badly it will lose any chance at resonating with readers, thus being successful.

5 Ways to KILL a Perfectly Good Story

Over the weekend Hubby and I rested and watched movies and we took turns who could pick the film. Hubby loves dramas and war films. I prefer horror and space aliens. Anyway, Hubby chose the drama Unbroken and that is three hours of my life I will never get back. Halfway through the movie, I had …

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