Recent content by Kris

Midpoint is one of the most important parts of a story arc. It’s a huge ‘push point,’ where all the threads of your story come together to ‘push’ the character and plot towards a rousing Act III. Do you know how to give your story that ‘push’? Do you know how to craft a midpoint that puts...

Great stories have great structure. It’s vital for writers to deliver all the right hits, in all the right places, if they want to get on readers’ auto-buy lists. But most plotting methods aren’t specific for the romance genre.. Trying to adapt a single-protagonist, plot-centric structure will...

Writers love backstory! We need backstory. It’s pain and motivation and the unique angles that make our characters sing and howl at the moon. It’s the whys and hows. It explains everything. Unfortunately, it can also kill story. Backstory can be deployed. Done right, it’s a weapon in our...

You’ve got a great story with awesome characters yet, somehow, it’s sagging. Your wonderful characters aren’t exploding off the page...at least not after the opening chapters. Your scenes aren’t taking off. The story feels flat. What’s going on? One of the most common challenges writers face...

Romance is the hottest genre in fiction. It has limitless subgenres and a voracious reader base. But adding a love interest isn't enough. You have to respect the genre, and you must deliver the genre conventions to meet reader expectations. Discover how to craft a powerful, character-driven...

Great stories have great structure. It’s vital for writers to deliver all the right hits, in all the right places, if they want to get on readers’ auto-buy lists. But most plotting methods aren’t specific for the romance genre.. Trying to adapt a single-protagonist, plot-centric structure will...

Forget making your characters 'sympathetic.' Make them remarkable. How many times have we heard the advice: "Make your character 'sympathetic.'" Or scarier yet, 'relatable.' But maybe that’s not what you need... When you start focusing on making your heroes and heroines sympathetic...