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A Simple Path to Organize Your Novel
Many writers begin with a great idea but quickly become overwhelmed by the size of a novel. You know the feeling. I know the feeling. Perhaps this is just a me problem, but regardless, we need a simple path to organize our novels! Let’s say you have a character, a setting, and perhaps even a…
The Astrology of the Mackenzie Shirilla Crash: A Symbolic Reading of the Event Chart
On July 31, 2022, at approximately 5:35 a.m. in Strongsville, Ohio, a devastating vehicle crash claimed the lives of Dominic Russo and Davion Flanagan. The driver, Mackenzie Shirilla, survived. The case quickly spread across news outlets, social media, and a new Netflix documentary sparking widespread debate about intent, emotional instability, recklessness, and responsibility. I live…
It’s Time to Talk Dialogue
Dialogue is one of the fastest ways to reveal character, create tension, deliver information, and control pacing. It is also one of the quickest places where inexperienced writing becomes obvious. This is something I am quickly learning. Readers may not consciously think about dialogue formatting while reading, but they absolutely notice when something feels awkward,…
Why Do Writers Think Symbolically?
Writers spend a great deal of time observing the world. Over time, many begin noticing something unusual: objects, places, weather, animals, colors, and recurring images rarely remain neutral inside a story. Meaning begins attaching itself to everything. Thinking symbolically is an art. A locked door may represent emotional distance.A flooded road or the winter may…
Rabbits Keep Appearing in My Life: Symbolism, Signs, and Creative Awakening
Lately, rabbits have been finding me. They have been appearing in my yard at unusual moments. I unexpectedly saw one walking into work and it let me get relatively close (for a rabbit). This morning I spotted a rabbit running outside my daughter’s school. There were students entering and busses dropping kids off. The setting…
ACT I: Guiding Questions and Answers
In my last post I answered 10 questions about Act I of my novel. These questions helped me sort out the flow of my plot along with the ideas I am kicking around. Now, I want to go a step further. After going over my answers to those questions a few days later, I noticed…
How I Am Brainstorming Act I of My Novel
I recently created an infographic about the three-act structure because I genuinely like having a shape to work within when I am writing. I like seeing how a story is built and what each section is meant to accomplish. This is where brainstorming comes in handy. Brainstorming helps me think more clearly. This task is…
Why Readers Keep Going After Chapter 3
Sometimes I just can’t finish a book. It’s a frustrating experience for us readers, especially if there were high expectations for the read. The technique for quitting a novel is very personal. Some readers quietly set a novel aside after a few chapters. There is no fanfare, just a calm understanding that the reader must…
Tarot and the Character Arc
Welcome to Part IV of my Divination and Writing Series. Today we’re going to talk about characters and the character arc. This is so important because a strong story does not necessarily have to have the most interesting plot in the world, but it needs interesting characters who change. That change is the character arc.…
Do You Suffer From Too Many Ideas?
If you want to write a novel but feel pulled in ten directions at once, you are not alone. When beginning a project, many writers do not struggle because they lack ideas. They struggle because they have too many. This is a phenomenon often referred to as “too many ideas syndrome” and it can be…
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