Finding Your Fiction: Concise Steps to Writing Successful Fiction – Point of View

Posted on 03/08/2011 by Jeff May

Point of View What do you think about your Uncle Dick’s drunken spectacle at Thanksgiving dinner? Do you scorn him? Or do you wish you could have half as much “fun” as he did? What do you think about your prissy, uptight sister-in-law’s angry reaction? Are you ready for a shot of Vodka? We filter the world through our unique (yet all too ordinary) personalities and point of view. Point of view occurs naturally. You … Continue reading →

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Ten Best — Academy Award Nominees 2011

Posted on 02/27/2011 by Jeff May

Amazingly, all ten best picture nominees are worth seeing and therefore, for me at least, they provided an interesting rating challenge. I am a little disappointed that some “professional” critics felt it necessary to tear into a few of these films. While not a movie critic, I do write book reviews for BookscapeStL so I know the temptation. You look for anything you can criticize. After all, critics are paid to be critical. Some mistakenly … Continue reading →

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Winter Fun 2011

Posted on 02/21/2011 by Jeff May

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Finding Your Fiction: Concise Steps to Writing Successful Fiction — Character

Posted on 02/19/2011 by Jeff May

Establish Characterization Reveal Character Change character for good or bad If you become enamored with your plot twists and turns, you risk creating characters “beyond belief.” Your character can be a Terminator or a talking Sunfish and still be believable if their actions make sense. If our meek sunfish suddenly acts like a shark only to serve a plot twist, then Mr. Sunfish is no longer believable. On the other hand, if Mr. Sunfish has … Continue reading →

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Finding Your Fiction: Concise Steps to Writing Successful Fiction — Plot

Posted on 02/10/2011 by Jeff May

Note: “Finding Your Fiction: Concise Steps to Writing Successful Fiction” – blog posts derived from my popular “Finding Your Fiction” workshop in association with St. Louis Writers Workshop and St. Louis Writers Guild. Completed guide will be available as an ebook, likely on Smashwords. (Feedback, incisive or otherwise, welcome.) Section I Choosing plot over character is dangerous. Plot is presented here first mainly because it might be “easier” to comprehend. On the other hand, characters … Continue reading →

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Finding Your Fiction: Concise Steps to Writing Successful Fiction – Introduction

Posted on 02/02/2011 by Jeff May

Note: “Finding Your Fiction: Concise Steps to Writing Successful Fiction” – blog posts derived from my popular “Finding Your Fiction” workshop in association with St. Louis Writers Workshop and St. Louis Writers Guild. Completed guide will be available as an ebook, likely on Smashwords. (Feedback, incisive or otherwise, welcome.) Introduction You are a writer. You have been writing most of your life, writing term papers, developing business proposals, composing letters, email, and Facebook posts. But … Continue reading →

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Forest Park Feast

Posted on 01/25/2011 by Jeff May

On my way home yesterday, I was driving through Forest Park (St. Louis City) and saw a hawk on the snow-covered path right next to the road.  I immediately turned around, stopped, and got out.  The hawk went right on eating his squirrel.  I got within about a foot and took these pictures.  No other drivers seemed to notice, or wern’t interested in watching him eat. He was a big red-tailed hawk enjoying his Forest Park … Continue reading →

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Learning to Write Fiction

Posted on 01/13/2011 by Jeff May

Thousands of “How to Write Fiction” books have been written, dating back to Sherwin Cody’s 1894 How to Write Fiction, Especially the Art of Short Story Writing. Cody hadn’t published any fiction when he wrote his “how to” book. And two years later, his novel failed miserably. Cody never wrote fiction again. Or at least he never tried to publish his fiction. (In today’s electronic world, he might have tried “self-publishing” on Smashwords or CreateSpace.) … Continue reading →

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The Strange Life of Another Odd Short Story

Posted on 01/06/2011 by Jeff May

I cannot remember when or why I wrote Nuclear Power and the Civil War Lizards. Judging from the initial setting, I think I’d just started working for McDonnell Aircraft in the old Falstaff Brewery Building across the street from Forest Park, now the location of the St. Louis Science Center. That was 1978. In digging through my collection of submissions and rejections, I found a May 17, 1979 submission to Bill Plummer of Quest/79. You … Continue reading →

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Fly Fishing Made Easy in Missouri – Part II

Posted on 01/02/2011 by Jeff May

Sunfish, Scrappy Bluegill, and Big Smallmouth First, you must accept that you do not need to catch trout. A smallmouth bass is as good as a trout any day. In fact, even a small sunfish or bluegill on a fly rod can be lots of fun. My brother, who lives and fishes in Wyoming comes back to Missouri specifically to catch sunfish, bluegill, and smallmouth. Of course, when I go to Wyoming, I catch lots … Continue reading →

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