Gothic Fiction
“The Gothic is primarily a mode of feeling, an atmosphere of haunting and mourning rather than a set of fixed themes.” – Alison Milbank First Encounters I stumbled into Gothic fiction in secondary school. The dark, emotional tension in Jane Eyre, Rebecca, and Wuthering Heights hooked me right away. Each country house and moor felt alive, almost characters in…Read More
Fascination with Monsters
“Like one that on a lonesome road Doth walk in fear and dread, And having once turn’d round, walks on, And turns no more his head; Because he knows a frightful fiend Doth close behind him tread.” —Samuel Taylor Coleridge Fantasy thrives on the battle between good and evil. Evil is often personified as something…Read More
What Screenplays Teach Novelists
“Books and movies are like apples and oranges. They both are fruit, but taste completely different.” – Stephen King When I was working on my first novel, Graëlfire, I asked a novelist-cum-screenwriter to copyedit an early version of my manuscript. I wanted feedback on my handling of exposition, a tricky job in fantasy and sci-fi. World-building…Read More
Choosing a Strong Title
“A good title is the title of a successful book.” – Raymond Chandler Choosing a strong title for your story is a pivotal step. When readers browse books—whether in stores or online—they make snap judgments. The title is usually what grabs them first. Along with the cover image and blurb, it hooks attention, sets the…Read More
Mastering the Game: Characters, Plot and Setting
Plot Meets Place Creating a story often begins with a spark of inspiration—an image, a moment, or a theme. For my first novel, Graëlfire, that spark came from two primary sources: a theme for a plot and its setting. The theme was a quest for the Holy Grail. The setting was the landscape around my…Read More
Portal Fiction
If you see a fairy ring In a field of grass, Very lightly step around, Tiptoe as you pass; ― William Shakespeare Portals in fiction are gateways to other realms, times or realities. Whether magical, man-made, or natural, they overcome boundaries to travel. There’s something mysterious about them—even dangerous—and that’s what makes them so fascinating….Read More
Writing Bedtime Stories
“If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales. If you want them to be more intelligent, read them more fairy tales.” — Albert Einstein When winter set in, I decided to compile all the bedtime stories I’d created for my granddaughter over the years. It started when she was three, inspired…Read More
Empathy and Fiction
“Fiction gives us empathy, it puts us inside the minds of other people, gives us the gifts of seeing the world through their eyes.” – Neil Gaiman In a world that often feels divided, empathy is a trait that bridges gaps between people. It opens us up to seeing and understanding differences; it helps us…Read More
Authenticity in Historical Fiction
“If history were taught in the form of stories, it would never be forgotten.” – Rudyard Kipling Historical fiction combines made-up characters and plots with real people, places, or events from the past. The genre encompasses a diverse range of stories, including action, romance, horror, and mystery. This provides readers the opportunity to experience different…Read More
Landscape as a Muse
“… a huge peak, black and huge, As if with voluntary power instinct, Upreared its head. I struck and struck again, And growing still in stature the grim shape Towered up between me and the stars, and still, For so it seemed, with purpose of its own And measured motion like a living thing, Strode…Read More
