For a new writer there is no shortage of books and articles on the art of writing. Advice from successful writers is everywhere, much of it very good, such as: 'show don't tell'; the importance of first line, the first page, the first ten ages; the importance of developing three dimensional characters; character arc; and …
Category: For newbie authors
Story boarding
In my previous blog, I put forward the view that a writer should know his/her story before he/she starts writing. Once a writer has a story concept, a character with a goal, a source of conflict, and stakes at risk then they have basic ingredients for a story. But as any chef knows, ingredients can …
Creative story ideas and concepts
Recently, I was wondering why some writers were more successful than others. You might think it’s all down to their reputation, fan base and clever marketing or simply serendipity. But reputation and success is normally built on the solid foundations of quality and creativity that may take many years to achieve. One feature many great …
Pacing and escalating tension
A few weeks ago, I went to see Star Wars The Force Awakens. What a movie! Of course, with all the hype about the movie there was always a risk that it wouldn't live up to fans expectation, or that it would not true be to the the original trilogy. But most of the critics …
Planning what’s next
In November 2015, I launched my second novel, Alien Hothouse. As a result, most of my time in December was taken up in marketing and administration. I still need to do a lot more on the marketing front, but for now I want to get back to writing. The New Year is an ideal time …
Time travel, paradoxes and plot holes
Terminator and Terminator 2 are two movies that I would put onto my list of my all time great science fiction movies. In contrast, Terminator 3 and 4 were pretty much disasters. So when Terminator 5 Genisys was released, I wasn’t sure quite what to expect. Recently, I watched the Genisys and enjoyed it, although …
Story and structure
Having just finished the final edit of my second book, I pondered over whether my workflow had improved from my first book. I have always believed in planning my stories, although for me planning and revision continues throughout the writing process. Part of story planning is story structure. In my view, a good story has to …
Suspending disbelief
Have you ever put down a book because you thought the story-world was just too implausible? I suspect not many. But I am sure there are books you may have put down because you thought they were just plain boring. No one likes mundane and boring. Readers want excitement. Good writers like Veronica Roth and …
Book versus movie
Holidays are a great time to get away from the day-to-day pressures of living and simply unwind and enjoy yourself with family or friends. For me it’s also a time to catch up on some sci-fi reading. One of my favourite movies of all time is Riddley Scott’s Blade Runner, which is loosley based on …
Unbelievable Endings
Movies and novels are two very different mediums of story telling. Some great novels don’t necessarily translate into great movies. And some great movies would not necessarily make a great novels. But despite the obvious differences in the medium, there is a lot a novelist can learn about storytelling from the analysing the story elements …
JMJ Williamson 