How Do You Find That Killer Idea?

A while back, there was a trending hashtag on Twitter about where writers get their ideas. This was my response. If only it were that simple. Many people think writer’s block is not being able to think of anything to write. It isn’t, at least not for me. It’s when you can think of things…

Misunderstanding The Muse

A little while back, my friend Dan wrote a post about his muse. I’ve been mentally returning to it since then, mostly because I don’t think I completely understand what a muse is. I know, a writer with a fuzzy muse sounds like a serious and, um, personal problem. I thought I understood the muse…

You Want To Write What? Including The Taboo In Your Stories

Last week, I participated in a flash fiction challenge in which I picked two subgenres to mash together into a single short story. I did this using a random number generator and landed on dystopia and erotica. (Read it here if you’re so inclined.) Yep, erotica. As in hormones, blood rushes and naughty bits. I…

Make Your Readers Cry: Writing Emotional Scenes

I watched The Hunger Games last night. I read the book before the movie came out, and I’ve seen the movie a few times. So I obviously knew what would happen. Still, a certain scene got me. By that, I mean it made me weepy. I’m not usually a weepy individual, so the moment surprised…

In Search Of The Elusive Hook

This weekend is Hook Queue Weekend in my critique group. The queue only exists on the first weekend of every month, and its sole purpose is to determine if your submission has a good hook or not. It’s brutal. Allow me to explain a bit before I get to the point. Anyone reading submissions is…