Archive for the ‘MICRO-MANAGEMENT’ Category
The rules of timekeeping are supposed to be simple in fiction. Choose a tense when you start writing, and stick to that tense throughout — whether it’s past, present, or (god help us) future. Sometimes, though, cutting to the present tense in your past tense story can create some unusual & noteworthy effects.Today at SpecTechnique […]
Filed under: MICRO-MANAGEMENT, STRUCTURE, WRITING STYLE | 5 Comments
Tags: alfred bester, john le carre, M John Harrison, Mary Gentle, poul anderson, vampire hunter d
Flip the Story
14Mar12
Yesterday at SpecTechnique we looked at cases when a cliche is deformed or expanded. When you’re going into a deformed cliche, you think you’ve seen this line before. Then when the cliche flips around on you, you’re taken by surprise. This is a technique writers can use to breach their readers’ defenses. Today we’re leaving […]
Filed under: ACTION, CHARACTERIZATION, EXPOSITION, MICRO-MANAGEMENT, STRUCTURE, Uncategorized, VIEWPOINT, WORLDBUILDING, WRITING STYLE | 1 Comment
Tags: China Mieville, John Scalzi, Mary Gentle, Osamu Tezuka, Star Wars