Carol Bluestein
Brain games – The Creative Art of Writing
Writing, for me, is a Brain Game. How to get from here to there, efficiently without leaving out the details, practically without over/under explaining, and safely so my reader is buckled in for the ride, while my characters fight for the world they want to live in and for. Recently, in a wide range…
Read MoreBoxes — Breaking Free
I have just returned from the International Women Writer’s Guild (IWWG) Summer Conference. It is the first-time members have gathered, in person, since Covid. It was as if we’d never taken a two-year hiatus. For me, this gathering is the space where we break out of our boxes, roles, and silence to listen, see, and…
Read MoreDoes a Hero’s Gender Matter in Fiction?
Q: Does a hero’s gender matter in fiction? What do you try to do when you write female characters and/or a female hero? What are they like and why? How much physical description do you include and why? What do male authors miss when they write female characters and vice versa? A: Good question. As…
Read MoreCreating Story
Armed with a slew of ideas taken from the news and history, I sat down to write from a very loose outline: guy kills people, guy get caught. Yeah. Not really specific enough. Turns out, finding the story is harder than it looks. Each individual problem has to be woven into the manuscript and addressed.…
Read MoreA Writer’s Dilemma
There is nothing new under the sun. I and every other writer knows this to be true. Sitting in front of a blank screen is not because there is a lack of input, it’s about what bits and pieces to pull out of the ether and mold into a story worth telling. For me, while…
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