All Stories

The writer’s path is full of obstacles—from deciding what to write about to actually finishing a manuscript. But one of the biggest challenges is one we create for ourselves: overthinking. For many writers, one of the main reasons they find it so hard to write a draft from beginning to end is that they keep getting themselves sidetracked by overthinking: What should the cover for this book look like? Is it YA or dark fantasy? How many goblins should ambush my protagonist in t

If you’ve ever found yourself stuck mid-writing—not sure how to develop an idea into a narrative, or not sure where to take your characters next—the problem isn’t with inspiration, but lack of analysis. We like to think of writing as a creative art, ruled by elusive powers such as the muse and inspiration. We wait for stories to unfold on their own and characters to mystically write themselves as they go through the plot. But if you’ve ever had a staring contest with a blank

For many beginner writers, the first struggle they need to overcome is actually writing something from beginning to end. But it’s not the only challenge an aspiring writer can face. Once writing a complete manuscript is no longer an issue, you soon find yourself faced with a different kind of question: how to improve as a writer, and ideally, without spending money on it? Whether you’re writing as a hobby or attempting to publish your books for the whole world to see, somewhe

Let’s face it, most fantasy writers are in it for the magic. And I can’t blame them—it’s much more exciting than our mundane reality. It’s what got me into writing fantasy in the first place; I’ve been to reality, and even though I haven’t lived through all possible human experiences, I think I get the gist. Fantasy, on the other hand, is a land of shiny, endless possibilities. But while liberating (from office jobs and pesky laws of physics), fantasy writing presents a diffe

Most aspiring writers struggle to finish writing a book, and it’s not only the discipline or the art of storytelling that’s standing in their way—but it’s also the fear of failure. For many beginner writers, the fear of criticism, of not being good enough, is the thing that takes them from “I have this great idea I want to write” to “It’s probably bad.” The paradox is, however, that becoming a good writer takes time and practice (as well as being open to criticism), and none

One of the main obstacles we face as writers is writing about things we know absolutely nothing about. We’re drawn to writing for the freedom it gives us to create worlds and visit places we’ve never seen (which is obviously more interesting than writing about what we know). But this freedom also poses a challenge. I recently encountered this problem when writing Monsters and Heroes ; I was fine with the quest through the dark forest and the royal family, but then came a scen

The thing most beginner writers struggle with the most is building a consistent writing habit. When you’re just starting out, writing feels chaotic. Your attention is pulled in a dozen directions, and your ability to write seems to depend entirely on the mood you wake up in or whether the muse decided to pay you a visit that day. But the reality is that writing has little to do with inspiration and everything to do with habit. And just to make my point – I’m writing this arti

Are you trying to decide whether to set your novel in the real world or a fantasy one? You’re not alone. Many writers get stuck at this exact crossroads, and I can’t blame them; Realism offers safety, familiarity, but also some serious expectations to meet, while fantasy offers, well, freedom. For many writers, fantasy solves problems that realism creates: overwhelming research, creative limitations, and a sense that everyday life simply isn’t interesting enough. Which is whe

If you’re anything like me, you probably find the idea of writing about our very real, modern, and clearly existing world deeply uninspiring. Writing is the time we dedicate to escaping the world we know into one we conjure on the page, so writing about that same familiar world sort of defeats the purpose. And it makes sense—if our minds can create places and people we’ve never seen before, why limit ourselves to the safety of the known? ​ When weaving a different reality as

When I was in my twenties, I read somewhere that a person can only become a good writer in their 40s. Naturally, I resented this statement immediately. For how can an old, bitter person—stuck in their ways with all the magic and positivity drained out of their system—make a better writer than a young person, full of originality (or so they’d like to believe)? One with an open mind and curiosity about life? But now that I’m nearing the big 4-0, I am starting to see the truth i

Every writer has a voice. Here's how to identify yours through tried and proven methods.

We tend to think of ourselves as having consistent worldviews, opinions, and attitudes, but our mood affects us more than we know. In a research I remember from my days as a psychology student, researchers interviewed people as they came out of movies and asked about their opinions and views. They found that people who had just stepped out of a sad drama had more pessimistic views than those who had just watched a comedy. ​ And while you could say that perhaps it was the mela

These days, it feels like everyone has already thought of everything; for any idea you might think is original, there’s someone out there who’s already thought of it, done it, and probably gotten rich for it. You can see it on social media—there are a million trainers, coaches, and people who want to sell you the sacred knowledge of the same thing that another thousand people are talking about. It’s the same with movies—you start watching one, only to realize halfway into the

I finished writing two fantasy novels before I began the project of publishing one. Each one took about a year to write and another half a year to a year to edit. Considering those timelines, I thought that getting them out into the world would be a piece of cake—I mean, the real work was already behind me, right? But I was wrong. Few things are more satisfying than typing the last word that marks the completion of your novel. That moment when you know you’ve got the juicy, t

There are two creatures residing within every writer—the inner mage and the inner goblin. One is creative, dreaming, and, at times, delulu. The other is critical, judgmental, and not very pleasant to be around (I also wrote about these characters and how to deal with them here ). Both of these creatures can be deranged in their own way, but both are also useful and needed to make you a good writer. ​ Normally, it’s a good idea to keep the inner goblin—also known as the inner

Every protagonist needs an antagonist. A warrior needs a monster to fight, a clever heroine needs an oppressive system to navigate, and a detective needs a maniacal mastermind to catch. Monsters and bad guys (and gals) are a must in every story, adding the challenges and obstacles your main characters must overcome. But when it comes to writing villains and monsters, it’s easy to fall into the innate nature trap—they’re bad simply because they’re… well, bad. Why is the demon

Writing a book is hard. Whether it’s getting into the habit of writing, coming up with ideas, or just finding the time. But it’s also the fun part—the creative part—and once that’s complete comes the phase every writer dreads (and if they don’t, they should): editing. On one hand, editing is empowering. It forces you to identify and solve problems, taking your book to the next level. It transforms your story from a messy manuscript into a (hopefully) polished novel. But it’s

In our era of self acceptance and care, it’s easy to label criticism as a bad thing. I mean, if we’re all winners and doing our best is enough, a voice that dares suggest you could try harder doesn’t stand the chance of gaining popularity. We’ve also talked about silencing your inner critic while writing ( here and here ) , because nothing kills creativity, and stops you from ever completing the manuscript of the novel you’ve always dreamt of writing, like the gnawing voice

Being a child of the 90’s, I still remember a time when writing female leads who refused to await any savior and did the butt-kicking all...

The great hall doors swung open, and a procession of armed guards followed, heralding the entrance of Belrond, lord of the elven kingdom....