The workshop I participated in at NSWC was about building compelling characters. The focus was on characterization in scene. We did several exercises to explore our main character. One I found especially useful, practically and conceptually, was “the ladder of specificity (or abstraction)” when deciding what details to include in scenes. First, we discussed why… Continue reading NSWC Lesson #2: The Ladder of Specificity
Tag: writing
NSWC Lesson #1: POV and Tense
A lot of people have different agendas for their blog. Mine is a way for me to process my thoughts on writing (and reading. Sometimes even life). So many bloggers write with their audience in mind and share their knowledge on craft. That’s not something I’m attempting to (or am qualified to) do. This is… Continue reading NSWC Lesson #1: POV and Tense
Weekend Character Workshop
I haven’t taken a creative writing course since high school. I Though I have a great group of writer-friends I’ve met online who critique my work and I give feedback on their writing, too. But I’ve never done any sort of in-person workshop. At least not with fiction. I’ve defended a thesis. I’ve worked on… Continue reading Weekend Character Workshop
Souvenirs from My Internet Travels: May 20-26
I love discovering new books, and Nancy Pearl always has great recommendations. She gave a list of Summer Reads for NPR and I added A Partial History of Lost Causes by Jennifer Dubois to my to-read list. I thought this story at The Good Men Project was inspiring. I love book stores (so much I… Continue reading Souvenirs from My Internet Travels: May 20-26
Feel of Fact
“The imagination is in love with the feel of fact.” – John Bayley * In high school, I had an eccentric English teacher who often spoke in contradictory terms and used circular logic. She had this analogy for explaining paradox that goes like this. Pretend two ideas are socks. When you role them up, the… Continue reading Feel of Fact
wrapped up in books 