Steph's Creative Chaos
My youngest daughter is a lizard. That’s what her sister calls her because, like her father, she loves the heat. She thrives in it. She basks in. She goes jogging in it for Pete’s sake. Like her sister, however, I am not a lizard. If you put me in heat over 85F I tend to... Continue Reading →
When I die, bury me surrounded by all of my unfinished craft projects. Please oh please don't curse the world with all of the things that I was not talented enough to bring to life. The thought of all of my unfinished craft projects ending up in a Goodwill bin for people to paw through and wonder about gives me the screaming heebie jeebies. They'll be judging me and my inability to finish what I start, I just know it. Maybe in the great beyond I will find a way to work on six craft projects at the same time and complete them all successfully,
The chest of a thousand drawers lived for years in a shadowy alcove between my grandparents’ kitchen and their downstairs hall. Actually, it didn't have a thousand drawers, but since I never actually counted the number of drawers, and since the contents always seemed so mysterious to me, it may as well have been a... Continue Reading →
A synopsis is a short summary of the story that you are writing. In order to create a working synopsis, it is necessary to ask yourself some questions to help you get all of your proverbial ducks in a row. Once you have a working summary you have all the details you need at your fingertips to keep the details of your story consistent.
Words are powerful things. Being honest or authentic in our responses does not require us to be cruel. It is quite possible that the words you choose, especially as you become skilled in how to provoke certain emotional responses from your readers, can have as much power as the ancients believed their own special, magical words to have on others and the world around them.
Creative writing is all about turning ideas into words. If done correctly, these words take an idea, a world, characters that only ever existed in your imagination and make them come to life. If you spin your words well, that story, those characters, that world, your idea will live forever. And if that isn’t real alchemy, I don’t know what is.
What does it mean to be a "real writer?" Is being a real writer something you were born with, or is it something that you become?
Is your written work secure? Computers and computer storage systems as well as online uploading and online blogs can be marvelous tools for today’s writer, keep a wary eye out for the cyber-dog. When the cyber dog attacks, your work can be lost in a heartbeat. Learn how to safeguard your writing.
Creating Believable Fictional Characters Creating believable fictional characters is detrimental to creating a successful story. In truth, without a character that comes alive in the reader’s mind, you will find that your entire narrative may fall flat. Have you ever read a piece of fiction where the characters seemed two dimensional? Perhaps the protagonist seems... Continue Reading →
Being a writer is about tapping that inner wellspring of creativity, not just now and again, but consistently. Every day I talk to two kinds of people; those who want to become good writers and those who are already good writers but want to become better. At some point even the best of writers asks... Continue Reading →
You must be logged in to post a comment.