Writing Roots

Readers are fully aware that they’re reading a book. However, for just a moment, they pretend they’re inside the story, that they are the characters going on this adventure. Breaking that bubble (also...

23 Touko 20229min

Readers have come to expect certain things from books, including certain tropes and clichés that help establish pieces of the story within a line or two. We’ve talked before about how you can use cook...

19 Touko 202211min

Meme culture has given us plenty of names with strong stereotype associations. Karen, Chad, and Kyle, for example. As an author, it’s good to keep in mind that there’s a reason these names grew into m...

16 Touko 202211min

There are some things that reader will simply accept as fact because they are reading fiction. We’re not talking about magic or futuristic science. In this episode, we’re discussing actual things that...

12 Touko 202211min

It is impossible to keep opinion out of your writing. It is impossible to keep current events from swaying the flow of a story. Both of these things can be both a benefit and a hindrance to your story...

9 Touko 202212min

Why do you read? That simple question determines so much about how authors approach their books. Whether they’re writing a cook book or an epic fantasy, the author needs to know why someone may be ...

5 Touko 202211min

Part of becoming a successful author is knowing your target audience. You need to know what they like, the kinds of stories that will interest them, and the types of characters they will align with. E...

3 Touko 202211min

Part of why we’ve taken this whole month to introduce you to the writing skills involved in various kinds of storytelling is because all of those skills can be useful while writing any story. News art...

30 Huhti 202235min