Tag: world building

A Different Take on Strong Female Characters

unconventional strong female character vintage-977158_960_720Recently, while out for lunch with my editor, she remarked that my work always contains strong female characters. While this is true, what she said made me think more deeply about my motivation and what I look for in a strong female character.

Not long after that I did a beta read for a fellow author which made me think in a new way about my own writing and what I look for as a reader. Yes, the author you do a favour for may not be the only one to benefit. Haha. Continue reading “A Different Take on Strong Female Characters”

Watch Your Language: Write Out Those Inconsistencies

inappropriate phraseOne thing that’s kind of fun, and kind of annoying, about being a writer is spotting slip-ups in traditionally published books.

I’m currently reading a well-known trad-pubbed epic fantasy. This trilogy has garnered critical acclaim. It was optioned for a movie (although the option has run out). A video game has been set in the world of this series. The author was even hired to finish another author’s fantasy series after the original author of that series died. (Bonus points if you can name both authors.)

In short, people love these books. But I’ve found inconsistencies in the story. Continue reading “Watch Your Language: Write Out Those Inconsistencies”

World Building Tips for Authors

forbes westGuest Post
by Forbes West

People come up to me – at bars, restaurants, half-way houses, and ask, “Forbes? That you?” After a few moments of sideways glances and awkward chatter, they will soon say to me, “Boy, Nighthawks at the Mission (available at Amazon.com now), you really set up a world there, whoa, I gotta say, you know, that world you built in that sci-fi story, yowza.” And I’ll nod and glance at my watch and exit the room quietly after making an excuse as I do not like talking to strangers.

After I’ve walked away and soon realize I left my keys in my other jacket pocket and I have to wait around an hour for my wife to come open the front door, I sometimes reflect to myself, what is world building? How does one do it without submerging the real stuff of story – the characters, the plot – and explain this new setting to the reader who doesn’t have the privilege of sitting inside my brain the entire day?

When I started writing Nighthawks at the Mission (available at Amazon.com now) I didn’t even exactly start with the story. I started by making up the actual entire world that this story would inhabit. Continue reading “World Building Tips for Authors”

World Building In Fiction

about_usAll writing requires a setting, something to connect that writing to. In the case of technical or scientific writing the setting will be the program, research, or piece of machinery you wish to explain. In the case of non-fiction it will be based on a real place and time.

My particular interest is in the writing of fiction. Why? Because that’s what I do. That’s what I know best. Continue reading “World Building In Fiction”