Laurie Schnebly When you think about the three elements needed to braid your story together, you probably think of plot and character first. That makes sense. If you had to write a book using just those two items, you could do a pretty good job of keeping it interesting and entertaining. Sure, readers might be […]

Describing clothes on characters isn’t nearly as fun writing an action scene. But let’s face it, clothes and their condition say as much about our characters as they do on real people. Thankfully there are ways to sneak clothing descriptions into a scene without sounding like a fashion magazine. When ever possible, let clothing and […]

Catherine Spangler Hello all! I’m thrilled and honored to be included in the Writers in the Storm Blog community. Since I write science fiction romance and urban fantasy romance, I thought we could discuss creating alternate worlds and world building, and the elements needed for “other-worldly” romances. Building an Alternate World There are a number […]

 I don't "do" poetry. In my first writing class–a seminar style graduate-level class for English majors (what was I thinking?)–this math major freaked when I was handed a long poem and told I'd be leading a discussion about it. The professor gave me advice that I still use for finding the significant takeaways from articles […]

Shannon Baker I write mysteries. I don’t write sci fi/fantasy because my mind is tethered to the real world too tightly to make the great leaps required to build whole new worlds. And by tethered, I mean, I’m not that imaginative. Write what you know, they say. It’s good advice that makes creating fiction so […]