Competition always makes me more productive. I've written my best stories when they were for contests among friends. I knew if I didn't turn in something good, I wouldn't live it down, so I'd meet the deadline no matter what. By writing enemy I mean someone you want to be better than, someone you want …
Real life
I'm having trouble concentrating on the fictional worlds I create, when the real one I live in is in such turmoil. It's hard not to think 'what's the point?' Who care's what happens to a pretend person I made up when there are real people in trouble everywhere? But we can't all do everything. That's …
Several short sentences about writing, by Verlyn Klinkenborg
I got this as a gift last year, and am finally finishing it now after a long hiatus of distraction. This is unequivocally the best book on writing I've ever read. Each page--each sentence--is a useful insight that most 'how to write' books would stretch out into an entire chapter. It is a joy to …
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Will AI ever write fiction?
With all the advances in AI showing seemingly creative potential, I wonder if in some distant future, AIs will be able to scan the whole of human writing, and determine what makes for the perfect story--and start churning them out. I've always been a proponent of AI, and see it as more helpful than harmful …
Character questions
What would your character do if approached by a drunk in a bar? Lost in the woods with no food or flashlight? Locked unjustly (or justly) in solitary confinement? If they were told they just swallowed poison? This is an exercise I was just doing recently with my sister, and it's fun and also informative. …
Jonas David 