According to Merriam-Webster.com, “Mystery” means anything that is not understood. Its origin pre-dates the bible. “Suspense” is defined as nervousness or excitement caused by wondering what will happen. It was first used in the 1500’s. “Minutiae” means trifles, details and smallness, and it dates to 1782, making it the new kid on the vocabulary block. …
Tag: story
Jul 18
Yes, you can publish a book
My thoughts on self-publishing What is stopping you from publishing your book? You are. I have self-published two books so far, and I am thrilled about it. With the introduction of eReaders, writers have complete freedom in their craft. You have the ability to post anything online through a blog and various social media, …
Jun 23
Pace
With the possible exception of cookbooks, dictionaries and encyclopedias, everything written has some sort of pace to it. From greeting cards to poems to speeches, each piece opens, gives a few high points and then comes to a conclusion. When done correctly, the reader takes no notice of pace. Getting a suspense novel to the …
May 23
Information Dumps
An information dump is exactly what it sounds like: a steaming plop of backstory. It includes facts about characters and events that are relevant to your storyline but predate the opening scene. Often times, these factoids are the very building blocks of your story, but to start with them at the beginning – which is …
Mar 24
Food for Thought: It Starts with a Story
Last month I mentioned that I like to visit a website where I can listen to people tell stories about their lives. I watch a lot of programs on PBS and happened to catch a short, ‘filler’ spot attributed to StoryCorps with a note at the end to check out their website to find out …