by Cole Salao
Being a writer is famously a solitary profession. And it is—for the most part. If you’re serious about improving your craft, you have to interact with your audience and other writers. Feedback is an important element of the craft. Aside from beta readers and...
by Cole Salao
As a writer, you’ve always been taught to avoid writing stereotypes. These oversimplified generalizations tend to make your work plain and sometimes even offensive. However, there are ways to make stereotypes work for you but it will take a lot of care and...
by Cole Salao
You’ve done the work and finished your book. However, you still need to catch the attention of prospective literary agents and book publishers. Authors use a lot of tricks to give their works a better chance of avoiding a permanent place in the slush pile. A comp...
by Cole Salao
In writing, a concept and premise are often used interchangeably. However, while they are linked, the two are not the same. Both are different steps in the story-building process. Let’s talk about the reasons why you, as a writer, need to know their differences. What...
by Cole Salao
Gone are the days when heroes simply need to embody Good. It doesn’t matter what genre you’re writing in, your character must not only be memorable but unique enough to avoid being derivative. After all, premises and settings get your readers diving into a book but...
by Cole Salao
When you read or watch dramatic, highly emotional stories, there are often some comedic scenes peppered in to alleviate some of the tension. This is called comic relief. It’s an age-old plot device that has been used to let your audience “breathe” from the story....
