“Don’t head jump” is a command that gets thrown around a lot of Creative Writing 101 classes. It essentially means, don’t allow your reader to view the thoughts and feelings of more than one character in your story, at least not in the same chapter. When characters are talking to each other, you don’t want… Continue reading How To Head Jump: Properly Implementing Multiple Characters’ Thoughts in Stories
Photo by Hey Beauti Magazine on Unsplash In college, I started getting notes on my short stories that said, “Don’t open a scene with dialogue.” Of all the rules I gathered over my writing education, this one always made the least sense to me. Probably because I never really got a solid answer on “Why not?” That’s partially… Continue reading Shout It Out: How to Properly Open with Dialogue
Over and over again, new writers are told, "Show, don't tell." It's great advice because all too often, new writers clog up the action of their story with summaries of places, events, and character relationships rather than properly immersing readers in the moment. I was given this advice as a fledgling writer, and I've written… Continue reading Tell, Don't Show: Properly Implementing Exposition
