When Characters Take Over the Plot, Let Them
Novelists joke that their characters took over the plot, and the joke is accurate. A character who rejects a planned scene is telling you the outline was written before you knew her.
Series: Fiction Writing (Page 10)
Fiction WritingPlot Armor: Signs Your Hero Is Too Safe, and How to Fix It
Plot armor is the invisible rig that keeps a protagonist alive, lucky and competent because the story needs them. Here are the four kinds readers spot, from wounds that don't count to choices that never cost anything, and how to…
Fiction WritingElmore Leonard’s 10 Rules of Writing, and Which Ones I Break
Elmore Leonard's 10 rules of writing all keep the writer out of sight so the reader stays in the story. I follow most of them and break a few on purpose, from short teaser prologues to long descriptions of places…
Fiction WritingShould Your Novel Have a Prologue? When a Cold Open Earns Its Place
A good prologue works like a TV cold open: a short scene that hands the reader a question and walks away. A bad one is a history lecture before the story starts. Here's how to tell them apart, with examples…