Guest Post by Jack Smith Antagonists can be persons or larger forces—groups, institutions, the society as a whole, nature, or the cosmos. Plots dealing with larger forces tend to embody conflicts with individuals as [...]
Guest Post by Jack Smith Fiction depends on tension. Tension—a felt response to conflict—must be heightened as well as diminished in a literary work. Where this is accomplished depends on the nature of the [...]
Guest Post by Jack Smith When you write and revise your fiction, you deal with a host of problems. With some novels, it’s hard to decide on the right point of view. With others, [...]
Guest Post by Jack Smith Revising a novel often calls for a bit of pruning. Some material must undoubtedly go, anything that doesn’t contribute pretty directly to the plot and your protagonist’s overall arc. [...]
Guest Post by Jack Smith A strong opening to a novel is, of course, important. If the opening is boring or off-putting in any way, the reader is likely not to read on. It [...]
Guest Post by Jack Smith You have an interesting and compelling premise for your novel. Your logline is snappy and fetching. Your characters are complex with complex relationships between them. Your plot is lock-step, [...]
Guest Post by Jack Smith When we think of a novel, we think of a story. We think of characters moving through time, growing due to conflict, coming ultimately to some sort of realization, [...]
Guest Post by Jack Smith In fiction what is “correct” is what works—what creates strong characters, drives the story, and creates the appropriate tone. This applies to grammar and mechanics as well. I’ll have [...]
Guest Post by Jack Smith I tend to like fiction that can be read on several different levels. It’s not just a good story; it also points to abstract ideas of various kinds—to themes [...]
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