For my first storytelling review on YouTube I decided to choose The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde. It’s a great classic for a reason. Wilde’s poetic writing, his plot twists and Dorian Gray’s character arc mold the story of the narcissistic Dorian Gray. Warning: spoilers ahead!
Author: Marieke Mills
I’m Marieke, a writer of fantasy. I’m Dutch, love sushi, adore dogs, am an avid reader, eat vegan/vegetarian half of the time and have a great love for the English language. I’m currently working on my first fantasy novel, The Fourth Ruling.
Write with all senses
Senses, we have five of them: sight, hearing, taste, smell and touch. For creative writing, you can accomplish a lot using all of the senses. To truly engage a reader in the surroundings of your world, you can use so much more than just the eyes to explain what your story is made up of.
How Designated Survivor makes politics about people
My most recent Netflix binge series is Designated Survivor. I’ve been amazed at how they manage to make politics so much about people. Taking a closer look at the storytelling, I’m starting to understand exactly why this show on politics is so approachable.
Writing, only do it when you love it
Becoming a writer, especially a creative writer, should only be done when you truly love the written word. What makes writing so different from other jobs? Well… you’ll write a hell of a lot of words without getting paid before you might possibly eventually get somewhere. So, you’d better love what you’re doing.
Why writing is all about the details
Details, they are so fundamentally important in storytelling. I didn’t realise many years ago that it were the details, which made me love stories.
The 5 greatest podcasts for writers
Podcasts are the best. Especially those about writing, because they provide so much information. Better yet, you can listen to a podcast while commuting, walking or cleaning. Here are 5 of the greatest podcasts for writers out there!
Changing Your Story All Over Again
I made a decision just last week. Rather than a trilogy, my current project ‘The Fourth Ruling’ is going to be a standalone. It is frustrating in some ways, but liberating in others.
Finding Your Writing Space
Gosh, I can’t tell you how much I have been struggling with finding the right place to write. I just moved out of my tiny student studio apartment to a grown-up sized apartment and I’ve been trying to find good places in the house to get my writing done.
Griar’s Fate (Short Story #2)
If there were two minutes left, what would you do? Nora mulled it over as she looked out over the city. The bonfire roared in the middle of the central square. The flames blazed up, snapped and danced as erratically as her own temper.
Nora’s long fingers stroked Bentley’s neck. The warmth underneath its scales gave away the impatience simmering inside its body. It craned its neck and its jaw snapped.
‘We’ll get there soon, Ben. It has to be done.’ The bonfire reflected in Bentley’s eyes. They were as big as Nora’s fist by now. They’d grow bigger, she was sure.
From a distance a loud cry sounded. Nora placed her foot on one of Bentley’s leathery wings and pulled herself up. She clenched her thighs around the dragon’s neck and took a firm hold of two large scales.
The cry was followed by the sound of a horn. Nora whistled and Bentley started moving, its great talons clawing through dirt and stone alike. Continue reading “Griar’s Fate (Short Story #2)”
Great writing advice from David Farland’s blog
David Farland’s Story Doctor blog is a wonderful source of writing advice for new writers. I discovered he had a blog via the Writing Excuses podcast. Farland really is an expert in his field as he has taught students for many years.
Who’s David Farland?
David Farland (real name Dave Wolverton) is a teacher as well as a fantasy and sf-author. Farland has taught many now published authors the skills they needed. Amongst them are Brandon Sanderson and James Dashner. Right now, he organises several writing workshops, which you can take and other aspiring authors can take. Continue reading “Great writing advice from David Farland’s blog”