We’ve gone over our characters and probably have an idea of a story or plot. So why stop now and look at the very words we use? It’s important because we want to get our words, sentences, and paragraphs in good working order before we get too deeply into our […]
Learning the Craft: The Villain Character
How to create a villain? Take a good look at your hero. What kind of villain would he have? What is your hero trying to accomplish, and what kind of bad guy (or gal) would fight the hero’s desired outcome? Not everyone can be good. And if everyone were always […]
Learning the Craft: The Adversary Character
What is an Adversary Character in Literature? According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, the word adversary is from the Latin adversarius, which means “turned toward” or “antagonistic toward.” All villains are adversaries, but not all adversaries are villains. An adversary is not necessarily evil. He or she is a character who […]
Learning the Craft: The Teacher or Mentor Character
What is a Mentor in Literature? The classic mentor is a wise and learned older person who takes the protagonist under his wing. He or she has usually been in the place or situation the protagonist is now. The Mentor ‘knows the ropes.’ If the main character is in […]
Learning the Craft: Your Protagonist or Main Character
Who is your Protagonist? Your main character changes with whatever genre you write. It can be the hard-drinking detective in a crime mystery or the handsome rogue in your romance. However, this character needs to be your most developed character because he carries the plot. The author needs to fully […]
Learning the Craft: Character Creation
Why start with creating your characters? If you write fiction, you know that there are two kinds of fiction. There is action-driven fiction that is fast-paced and all about the plot. Then there is character-driven fiction which is what I write. While the plot is slower, the characters and the […]
Moriarty Meets His Match: A Professor and Mrs. Moriarty Mystery (Book 1), by Anna Castle
When writers strain their brains for new ideas, they might consider revisiting an old idea. For instance, Gregory Maguire applied the rules of “alternative fiction,” in his retelling Frank Baum’s classic 1900 story the Wizard of Oz. Forget Dorothy, Maguire wrote from the point of view of the Wicked Witch […]
The Twelve Steps to being a Spiritual Writer
Step Five- Admitted to God, to ourselves and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs. Over the past few weeks, we have examined our failings and sins. The purpose has not been to feel badly about ourselves. It is to examine the habits, fears, and patterns that […]
Of Pencils and Love
Isn’t is a curiosity that the most astounding contemporary Saint of our time would choose an image that has nothing to do with who she was? Mother Theresa was in all ways a “doer”. She was the one in the field and getting her hands dirty in places where others […]
Great Lessons Learned In Silence
A little bit of interesting trivia: There could be a sign on a bed at the White House that reads “Mike Eisenbath slept here.” No, not that White House. I’m talking about the Jesuit retreat center in St. Louis, Mo. While the home of the President of the United States […]