Book Review: Catch Me If You Can by Carrie Marston
This novel of friendship, family and change in a modern girl’s world follows 15-year-old Laura Brown, a plain girl with big problems. Laura is an average teenager of a divorced family, she dislikes her dad, detests her stepmom, doesn’t talk to her mom and never sees her sister. Add in [...]
Author Interview: June Foster
Hi, and thanks for your willingness to appear on my blog! I'm looking forward to sharing your knowledge and advice with the rest of the world (at least with the small portion of it that follows my blog). Please tell us a little about yourself. As a mother, grandmother, and [...]
The Nine Plots: Character vs. Society
"May the odds be ever in your favor." In a post-apocalyptic future, the Capitol maintains absolute control over the collapsed North American government. To remind the citizens of their place in society, the Capitol hosts the annual Hunger Games – a nationally televised death match between children ages 12-18 years [...]
The Nine Plots: Character vs. Setting
Not every villain has a face. In some stories, your hero’s greatest challenge is his surroundings. Jack London’s Call of the Wild is a classic example of the main character battling the elements. More recently, Twister is an excellent example of your character versus his or her surroundings. In case [...]
How to Start Your Story: A Great Beginning
Aside from the obvious, what is “the beginning” of your story? What does it do? What purpose does it serve? I like to think of the beginning as the introduction. It has a lot of responsibility. You need to introduce your setting, characters, and character goals/conflicts while capturing the reader’s [...]