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 …
Tag: crafting
Apr 23
Six Sensible Rules for Suspense
Amy stirs, half asleep and freezing cold with a putrid taste sticking to her throat. In the distance, her two dogs bark frantically. Much closer, the wind whistles in the fog and gently brushes her cheek, and that puzzles her…? Amy wakes with a jolt and shivers with fear. “Glenn!” she calls, coughs and shoves …
Mar 03
The Hobbit – A Story about Us
“Good-bye then, and really good-bye!” said Gandalf, and he turned his horse and rode down into the West. But he could not resist the temptation to have the last word. Before he had passed quite out of hearing he turned and put his hands to his mouth and called to them. They heard his voice …
Feb 03
Crafting: Making the Invisible Visible
We all have our favorite authors. They’re ones whose storytelling draws us in. Their characters’ voices speak inside our heads as old friends or familiar voices that send chills through our body. Some authors have a writing style so distinctive that when a passage is read out of context, we can identify them. A sampling …