Craft and Creativity
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The Emotional Evolution of Characters
What makes a character memorable? Why are some easily forgettable? There are characters from novels I read decades ago whom I still think about, while there are characters from novels I read only three months ago that I can barely recall. What’s the difference? Often, it’s a matter of connection between a character and the…
Finish Strong: Ending Nonfiction Pieces
I love the end of nonfiction pieces, because all the information has already been delivered. Now, we have an opportunity to feel the author’s mind directly. One ending that definitely takes this opportunity is in Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech. It begins: “Five score years ago, a great American, in whose…
Sincerity in Poetry
Poetry Recommendation: “Exiles” by Neil Shepard Out of his collection The Book of Failures. Exiles (after Adam Zagajewski) And don’t we all want a second life in order to process the first one? Don’t we all want a second childhood refunded at the end of days? My mother said, You’ll regret this for the rest of…