Who wants to hang off cliffs anyway?

Who wants to hang off cliffs anyway? (cliff-hangers in story telling) The word cliff-hanger conjures up images of actor Sylvester Stallone hanging precariously off mountain tops, doing his very best to simultaneously save and end people’s lives. The whole movie is...

Where are we going again?

Where are we going again? (the sacrosanct story outline) I recently attended a book signing by a celebrated local author. Once the business of the book signing had been completed, those lucky enough to stay squeezed into the shop engaged in a short Q&A session...

Of characters…

For me, story telling is all about characters. They are the real driving force behind everything and the reason why I write. It’s all about them: what they feel, what they go through. The story is just a channel for them to accomplish their emotional journey....

Of music and inspiration…

Music has always taken an important place in my life. I listen to it, every day — on my way to work, all day long while at work, when I relax at home. I would even listen to it in the shower, if I had one of those water-proof radios — Santa, if you’re...

POV… how and what to choose

One of the first things on which you need to decide when writing a story is point-of-view.   The four categories are:   First Person In a first-person narrative the story is relayed by a narrator who is also a character within the story, so that the narrator...

Why you need to plan ahead…

Why you need to plan ahead — a writer’s tip.   When I wrote book #1, I pretty much had no idea what I was doing. I just ploughed ahead, one word after the other, one page after the other, one chapter after the other. It’s not a bad technique per se....