by Stephanie Dethlefs | Sep 7, 2023 | Audience, Character Development, How to write a novel, Mindset, Planning your book, writing life
Is it good enough? Am I writing it well? Does it make any sense? Will anyone want to read it? These are just some of the questions that arise from the uncertainty that all of us writers feel from time to time. Or daily. (Is that just me?) A lot of the uncertainty we...
by Stephanie Dethlefs | May 11, 2023 | First Draft, How to write a novel, Planning your book, writing craft
How do we create characters that are nuanced and complex without being stereotypical, flat, or strange caricatures of themselves? The key is to know them. Like, really know them. Recommended reading: How to Plan a Character Arc Transcript: Stephanie (00:07):Hello...
by Stephanie Dethlefs | May 10, 2023 | Character Development, First Draft, How to write a novel, Planning your book, Plot development, writing craft
Who is one of your favorite fictional characters? [I’ll give you a minute to think.] Once you’ve named one, I’d like you to take a minute and think of three ways you would describe the character. Try to only use one of them as a physical descriptor. And…go! (I’ll...
by Stephanie Dethlefs | Mar 22, 2023 | Audience, First Draft, How to write a novel, Revision, writing craft
What makes a scene a scene? Is a scene the same as a chapter? And why does it matter? In this video, we’re breaking down the elements of a solid scene and clearing up some common misunderstandings. Transcript: Stephanie: (00:06)Hello writers! Scenes are the building...
by Stephanie Dethlefs | Mar 22, 2023 | First Draft, How to write a novel, Revision, writing craft
Without conflict, there is no story. It’s as simple as that. Except that the options for conflict are many and the ways of using it are layered. Not so simple after all! In this video, we’ll break it down so that you can identify the most important elements of...