Tom, Dick, and Harry are all very fine names, but we generally need more than those three. For one thing, the romance between Prince Tom and Princess Dick is going to look a bit odd on the page. For another,
If you’ve read much G.K. Chesterton, you’ve probably realized that some of his stories are better starting places than others. Father Brown, generally speaking, is a much gentler introduction to his style and philosophy than Manalive or The Man Who
As we discussed last week, while law provides a problem, justification alone provides an answer, at least for the real world. As our stories are reflections of the real world (seen in the failure of the antinomian answer in both
Redemption arcs have a difficult problem: how do we deal with the (often horrific) history of the character being redeemed? It’s a real-life problem too. How do we deal with the man who is repenting of a long history of
A distinctive, compelling character is a central part of most good stories, and therefore it’s a difficult goal to achieve for us writers. As a result, we as authors spend a lot of time worrying about how to make our
When I write a story, I sometimes realize that my plot requires a new character. This secondary character,1 therefore, is created as a facilitator of plot (including character arc); he gets the protagonist from point A to point B, or
We’ve all heard the adage, “Show, don’t tell.” It’s practically the first thing any creative writing course teaches, after the formatting requirements, and I’ve made a pun off it myself. It’s sound advice, but like all short-form bits, it’s not
If ChatGPT wrote a novel, would it be art? In order to answer that question, let’s refer to the definition of art I provided last time, as well as our knowledge of how ChatGPT (and other text/ image generators) actually
This poem provides important background for the story.1 “I said in my heart, ‘Come now, I will test you….’” ~ The Preacher The sea rose around me in silent suspension, the roar of its stillness too vast to hear, its
If you want to find out what it feels like to be unpopular online, AI art (and whether it’s art) is your fast track to the top.1 Of course, the real firestorm is around image generating AIs, but the same