Tag Archives: science fiction

I’m nearing the end of writing my current novel, and my protagonist is facing some awful choices. It’s still my first draft. But I have made sure my protagonist has others that might help him. I’ve tried to make those other, supporting, characters have depth. Each one of them will face the challenges that comeContinue reading “When All Seems Lost for the Protagonist of a Story”

Every character has a reason for their actions, but we generally only know about the protagonist’s history and what drives them. The more we know about a character, the more we may be drawn into their story. Even if that story involves fantastical elements we would never experience. The history and the desires of theContinue reading “Every Character Has an Inner Motivation”

This week I’ve been thinking a bit about how characters in a story see each other. Not everyone shows their true self during a first impression, and it should be the same with characters. Just like people, they approach a new meeting with their own defenses raised. It’s only when another character is found trustworthyContinue reading “A Character’s True Self”

When I think of a good book, I often think of characters and setting first. Science fiction and fantasy stories are my favorites for the way those stories can show different aspects of society and technology that may not be right around me. The characters in these stories, while mostly relatable, have adapted to theContinue reading “Using Books to See the World Differently”

Writing my latest book, and fleshing out the scenes I’ve outlined, has really got me thinking about reality versus perception. I’ve often heard that perception drives reality, and my latest book has a little of that mixed in with the story. The futuristic world I’ve created for it has augmented reality that everyone is tiedContinue reading “How Characters Perceive Their Reality”

Thinking about the characters in the current book I’m writing, and with some recent events, I’ve found myself thinking deeper. I think a good story must have good characters, and sometimes, those characters, like us in life, need good support. The other characters in the story can help the main character come to life asContinue reading “A Main Character Can’t Do It Alone.”

I’ve been working hard on my next book. I’ve got the outline and the characters defined. Writing the story each day for the last week, I’ve realized how much I enjoy writing. When I am excited about a story, I can write quickly. It all flows. In many ways, when a story is flowing wellContinue reading “What Drives a Character?”

Just this last week I had a conversation with an acquaintance about how everyone sees the world differently. I realize we could each go through the same experiences and come through on the other side remembering it differently. I mean, there will be a lot of similarities in what we describe happening, but the differencesContinue reading “We Are All Interesting Characters”

The year is almost over and I find myself reviewing my goals versus where I am. I put a few books on Amazon Kindle over the last year, read several other books, and worked at improving my writing. But those are only a few of the goals I set for 2021. As I’ve been doingContinue reading “New Goals for the New Year”

We’re nearing the end of 2021. What an odd year? It may not have been as rough as 2020, or it might have been worse. I’ve been thinking a lot about stories, especially since I’m working on outlining my next book. One of the big things I’ve noticed over the last year as I writeContinue reading “Every Story Needs a Hero”