Okay, so that title is a *little* misleading. I'm not talking about actual blood. Unless you're like me and tend to have random nosebleeds. Not good for your keyboard. No, the hurt I'm referring to is more emotional than physical. But how so? You've no doubt come across the adage to 'write what you know' and likely… Continue reading Blood on the Keyboard: Writing When it Hurts
Category: Writing FUNdamentals
Writing a Healthy Romance
Romance novels often get blown off by the wider reading community (and especially the literary) as frivolous emotional porn (and sometimes actual porn) lacking any real substance or plot. This couldn’t be further from the truth. However, like all genres, romance does have some troublesome tropes. Some of these tropes are perpetuated in common advice… Continue reading Writing a Healthy Romance
Going Over the Rainbow: The Asexuality Spectrum
For this month's Going Over the Rainbow post we are going to look at one of the more misunderstood orientations—asexuality. I've broken this post up across two weeks because there are a lot of misconceptions as to what being asexual is and I want to address those before getting into actually writing an asexual character. So what… Continue reading Going Over the Rainbow: The Asexuality Spectrum
Going Over the Rainbow: There is No Fast Lane
After last week's post I had some people asking me to explain the concept of aromanticism further. If after reading the post and the included links you are still feeling a bit confused or unsure, don't worry there isn't anything wrong with you. Unfortunately, it is a subject much like gender; you only truly 'get… Continue reading Going Over the Rainbow: There is No Fast Lane
Going Over the Rainbow: Aromantic
Nope the A in LGBTAIQ+ does not stand for ally. This week, I'm taking a look at the aromantic orientation.
Going Over the Rainbow: Like a Moth to a Flame
This week has been chaotic at best and I apologize for the lateness of this article. As writers who write living beings at some point our characters will probably experience attraction to another being and desire a relationship. But what kind? Romantic relationships often seem to be the default in books and movies. Hero A must… Continue reading Going Over the Rainbow: Like a Moth to a Flame
Going Over the Rainbow: The Trope Trap
All joking aside, accountability is something that professionals of any discipline face. Even us writers. Yes, you read that right. You, my dear writer, are accountable to your reader. Well yes, you say, I should give them the best story I can write. Yes you should, but it goes beyond that too. If you've… Continue reading Going Over the Rainbow: The Trope Trap
Going Over the Rainbow: Show and Tell
I recently ran across a post on Tumblr where the OP was rather distraught. They'd been told that using the word asexual to describe their character's orientation was historically inaccurate for their setting. This brought up the issue of explicitly stating a character's orientation within the prose and when and how this should be done.… Continue reading Going Over the Rainbow: Show and Tell
Going Over the Rainbow: Crush Those Stereotypes
There is a lot of great advice out there when it comes to creating our characters. From Nancy Kress' Dynamic Characters to The Positive and Negative Trait Thesaurus by Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi there are many excellent resources for writers looking to create truly unique and realistic characters. Even as comprehensive as these helps… Continue reading Going Over the Rainbow: Crush Those Stereotypes
Going Over the Rainbow: Moving Beyond the LG in LGBT.
Growing up in small towns in the middle of the Midwest, I didn't get much exposure to people of other races. There was not a single African American at the school I went to and only one person of mixed race. I also had no exposure to people who identified as different sexual orientations or… Continue reading Going Over the Rainbow: Moving Beyond the LG in LGBT.