On Writing (mostly) Fiction

Dana Glossbrenner

Trusting the Reader

"Trust the reader." It's great advice. I've also heard it as "Let the reader do some of the work." These comments and others like them...

Dana Glossbrenner

The Pitfalls of Writing Contests: A Case Study

Note: PM me if you want to know the contest and its associated workshop that I am hereby boycotting. I have had an awful experience with...

Dana Glossbrenner

Saving the Cat

I came across the phrase, "Save the Cat," in a blog on how to salvage a manuscript. It's a plot development technique. I could tell that...

Dana Glossbrenner

Where'd You Get Those Characters?

I began to hear the most frequently-asked question right away: “Are your characters based on anyone you know?” Friends who received...

Dana Glossbrenner

Choosing a Title (and losing my mind)

As we all know, a title is the first element we see of a written work. A title determines how the reader approaches it, determining...