By Janine Rosch, @janinerosche “Ryann Ashcroft rolled onto her back, clinched her arms across her stomach, and surrendered her breath into the dreary, gray sky. The newspaper had predicted snowfall …
Bark Factor: Adding Pets to My Novel
by Peter Leavell, @PeterLeavell My dog’s Instagram account has an insane number of followers. He’s cute, cuddly, and doggone it if Winston doesn’t outsmart me time and time again. Animals …
3 Characterization Tips from Movies
By Cara Putman, @cara_putman One of the classes I have taught at Krannert is Persuasion & Communications, a class for Masters of Marketing students. One lens I use as I …
Five Hacks to Bring Your Character to Life
By Janine Rosch, @janinerosche Maybe you’ve heard it: the tale of the dreaded “cardboard” character. There is nothing especially likable or unique about them. They are never embraced by the …
Characterization vs Plot: Keepin’ It Real
by Michelle Sass Aleckson, @MchelleAleckson Have you ever been asked this question: what’s more important in a story, the characters or the plot? Beware, writer! It’s a trick question. For a …