Tag Archives: character

Writing-Tip Wednesday: Descriptions and Point of View

Posted on October 14, 2020 by dbjackson

Description does not — cannot — take place in an emotional or circumstantial vacuum. Not that long ago, I offered tips on writing scenes involving sex and violence, and essentially said that dealing with such encounters is almost entirely a … Continue reading →

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Writing-Tip Wednesday: “Pitch Inside”

Posted on September 30, 2020 by dbjackson

In the mid-1980s, my favorite baseball player on the planet was a young pitcher for the New York Mets named Dwight Gooden. Gooden had a meteoric career that was shortened by injuries and chronic drug abuse. But for the first … Continue reading →

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Writing-Tip Wednesday: SEX and VIOLENCE, and How To Write Them

Posted on September 9, 2020 by dbjackson

Title got your attention, eh? Yeah, figured it would. I might not be a marketing genius, but I’ve learned a little bit over the years… Last week, I wrote about using profanity in our writing, and at one point likened … Continue reading →

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Writing-Tip Wednesday: How To Handle Profanity In Your Writing

Posted on September 2, 2020 by dbjackson

Have you watched the HBO series Deadwood? It’s a Western, the creative child of the brilliant David Milch. It’s violent, brutally realistic, and absolutely the most profane thing I have ever watched, with the possible exception of the Academy Award-winning … Continue reading →

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Writing-Tip Wednesday: Short Fiction Anthologies — When Does an Idea Become a Story?

Posted on August 12, 2020 by dbjackson

What is the difference between an idea and a story? It sounds like a basic question, but we have just begun the Zombies Need Brains Kickstarter for the coming year’s anthologies, and once again I am hoping to co-edit one … Continue reading →

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Writing-Tip Wednesday: The ABCs of Character

Posted on August 5, 2020 by dbjackson

Last week, I wrote about befriending our characters, as a way of using empathy to improve our character development. This week I would like to continue the discussion of character work by taking a slightly different approach to creating and … Continue reading →

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Writing-Tip Wednesday: Single Point of View v. Multiple Point of View

Posted on May 27, 2020 by dbjackson

If you know me, if you have been with me in panel discussions at conventions, if you have ever received any sort of writing advice from me, or even heard me give such advice to others, I need for you … Continue reading →

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Writing-Tip Wednesday: Dialogue, part II — Attribution

Posted on April 8, 2020 by dbjackson

Last week’s Writing-Tip Wednesday post began a two part series on dialogue with some advice on the writing of the actual “spoken” words we put in the mouths of our characters. Today, I follow that up with a discussion of … Continue reading →

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Writing-Tip Wednesday: Dialogue, Part I

Posted on April 1, 2020 by dbjackson

I love writing dialogue, in part because I love reading dialogue. I believe that people are natural eavesdroppers. We like to listen in on other people’s conversations. That’s what reading dialogue is all about – it is one of the … Continue reading →

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Writing Tip Wednesday: Guest Author Tina LeCount Myers on Writing a Series

Posted on March 11, 2020 by dbjackson

Today I welcome to the blog my dear friend, Tina LeCount Myers. Tina and I met at a World Fantasy Convention a few years back and immediately fell into an easy friendship. I have since read her work and discovered … Continue reading →

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