by Nanci | Apr 29, 2024 | Craft, Podcast
What do you do when your novel or memoir doesn’t follow the typical plot structure? Maybe you have more of an exploratory approach. To you, plotting feels counter-intuitive, and can leave the story feeling false. So how do you plot a story that’s an interior...
by Nanci | Apr 22, 2024 | Craft, Podcast
We can all agree that your opening scenes are your only chance to capture your reader’s attention. It’s what hooks them into the story. Also known as your story’s setup, there’s an art to it. The setup is essential to master. You have to be...
by Nanci | Apr 15, 2024 | Craft, Podcast
Our stories can become so overrun with ideas, they run away from us. Each idea begets another and another until you’re lost in the vortex. There are stories within stories. Endless possibilities. So many directions the story can go. And then writing your story,...
by Nanci | Apr 8, 2024 | Craft, Podcast
Writers have different approaches to story. Some write more about action. Others are more fascinated with a character’s inner life. The trick is to link your character’s interior story to the plot. Both are approaches are valid. But when the inner and...
by Nanci | Mar 18, 2024 | Craft, Podcast
Your first chapter is the first impression your reader has of your novel. So you want to make it count. Bore them with too much exposition, long forays into backstory, and superfluous characters and details, and your reader will grow bored, overwhelmed, and will stop...
by Nanci | Mar 11, 2024 | Craft, Podcast
How do you move readers with your characters’ emotions? Are you showing enough emotions, or too much? In this episode, I’m sharing 3 techniques to master emotions in your story. So you can move readers in a way that stays with them long after they finish...
