E.M. Forster wrote: “The test of a round character is whether it is capable of surprising in a convincing way.  If it never surprises, it is flat.  Flat characters . . . in their purest form . . . are … Continue reading →

How well do you know your main characters?  Sure, sure, you know he has a red beard, she has mahogany skin, he likes to sing in the shower, she drives faster than the speed limit.  That’s a good start.  But … Continue reading →

Are we fair to our characters? John Gardner was once asked what he meant by the word moral when he was talking about moral fiction and moral criticism.*  He answered, saying “Good works of fiction study values by testing them … Continue reading →

“You don’t need to wait for inspiration to write. It’s easier to be inspired while writing that while not writing…” — Josip Novakovich, Fiction Writer’s Workshop I was looking for an exercise for my writing group and came across one … Continue reading →

“By the third line, I know whether it’s going to turn into a poem or a story.  With poems, I talk to people. In stories, they talk to me.”–Grace Paley Alice Walker has spoken about how she follows her characters … Continue reading →

You can’t fix boring. – Adair Lara There is a debate going on about how much description writers should provide for characters.  One school of thought says you should give a lot of description for your main characters.  What a … Continue reading →

Each writer is born with a repertory company in his head. . . . . As you get older, you become more skillful at casting them. – Gore Vidal The best stories, and certainly most stories, are character driven.  They … Continue reading →