Category Archives: Plot

The Next Big Thing

Posted on January 17, 2013 by Laura Stanfill

Two dear blogging friends, Jo Eberhardt at The Happy Logophile and Anthony Lee Collins at U-town, tagged me for The Next Big Thing. I am excited to report that answering these questions shifted my brain back into novel-writing gear. (It has been … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiction, Plot, Writing | Tagged , , , | 15 Comments

Two Sides of a Writerly Conversation

Posted on December 20, 2012 by Laura Stanfill

One of my favorite things about Brave on the Page: Oregon Writers on Craft and the Creative Life has been introducing writers to each other. Around when we launched the book in October, I connected Gigi Little and Sarah Cypher, two … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Community, Plot, Writing | Tagged , , , , , | 13 Comments

Writing Challenge #17: Cutting Back on Minor Characters

Posted on July 18, 2012 by Laura Stanfill

Writing Challenge #16 focused on using organic metaphors to lend your minor characters more personality. This one is about the opposite–dealing with too many minor characters. Is your novel-in-progress full of bit players who are sitting around doing very little … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiction, Plot, Writing, Writing Challenge | Tagged , , , , | 22 Comments

‘My Words Don’t Seem Right’

Posted on June 25, 2012 by Laura Stanfill

As I was cleaning out old school papers at my parents’ house in May, I came across my eighth grade reading and writing journal. That spring we studied prejudice through reading about South Africa and slavery, plus Steinbeck’s Grapes of … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiction, Plot, Revision, Writing | Tagged , , , | 29 Comments

The Hunger Games–the Book Versus the Movie

Posted on April 14, 2012 by Laura Stanfill

I finally read THE HUNGER GAMES last week in anticipation of seeing the movie this past Friday. What surprised me most about the cinematic interpretation was its point of view. I won’t share any spoilers, but if you want to … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Plot, Writing | Tagged , , , , , | 18 Comments

First Snowfall

Posted on January 19, 2012 by Laura Stanfill

We’ve had a few days of wintry weather here in Portland, including a lovely, swirling blizzard-like snowfall Tuesday night. The next morning, though, we woke up to slush and rain. My husband and I talked about that little-kid feeling of … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiction, Plot, Writing | Tagged , , , , | 17 Comments

Interview: Speculative Fiction Author Duncan Ellis on NaNoWriMo Priorities, Plotting and Caffeine Consumption

Posted on October 31, 2011 by Laura Stanfill

In honor of National Novel Writing Month, and the bleary-eyed scribes who plan to hunker over their computers throughout November, today’s Seven Questions interview is with speculative fiction author Duncan Ellis. Duncan has completed NaNoWriMo seven times, which means he … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiction, Plot, Seven Questions, Writing | Tagged , , , , , | 15 Comments

Getting Lost in a Novel: Pat Conroy’s “South of Broad”

Posted on October 24, 2011 by Laura Stanfill

My mom doesn’t read much fiction these days. Because when she’s fully immersed in a story, she doesn’t want to do anything but read. Everyday obligations become obstacles. They keep her from the page, and the next page, and being … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiction, Plot, Reading | Tagged , | 5 Comments

Giving Myself Permission to Revise

Posted on October 21, 2011 by Laura Stanfill

Once again I’m preparing to break the sacred first-draft rule: Don’t revise. I break this all the time, but don’t always admit to it. When I blogged about submitting my first draft to my critique group in mid-September, Jody Moller … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiction, Plot, Revision, Writing | Tagged , , | 20 Comments

The Barbie Jeep Method: Part 2

Posted on October 12, 2011 by Laura Stanfill

After writing in high gear for the past few weeks and finding myself stuck, I thought about the Hero’s Journey workshop I took with Stevan Allred and Joanna Rose this spring. We had homework–making a giant picture of our character’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiction, Plot, Revision, Writing | Tagged , | 12 Comments