Daniel Rodrigues-Martin's Blog: The Ark Series, page 2
June 23, 2019
"Writing what you know" in the age of cultural appropriation | Writer Questions #8
So I'm writing a book. This book is about Japanese people. It's a fictional book.
I chose Japan as the setting because I thought it was different from my native USA. I read once that so many novels take place in the Anglophone world, it's boring. And I thought it would be interesting to explore Japan for a few other reasons that I won't go into here, but you can ask me if you like through
I chose Japan as the setting because I thought it was different from my native USA. I read once that so many novels take place in the Anglophone world, it's boring. And I thought it would be interesting to explore Japan for a few other reasons that I won't go into here, but you can ask me if you like through
June 18, 2019
Why live? | Writer Questions #7
My protagonist is a doctor who euthanizes the terminally ill and suicidal - anyone who asks for his help to come to a quick and painless end. Now I'm at a scene where he and another character are arguing their philosophies, with my intent of digging into the nuances of each position: life vs death.
However, I'm so far stuck in my MC's head that I'm drawing a blank on his opposition. His
However, I'm so far stuck in my MC's head that I'm drawing a blank on his opposition. His
June 3, 2019
Is it okay to write badly on purpose? | Writer Questions #6
Writer: Is it ever OK to deliberately write poorly, as long as it serves a function of the story? I have a character who, throughout the story, has their memory altered to forget certain events, or to influence their perception. From a critic's perspective, it would seem as though the character just isn't written well; they don't react the way a normal character would given their
March 15, 2019
How much do you describe a character's surroundings? | Writer Questions #5
Image courtesy of Pixabay.com.
Writer: 1. Do you describe the surroundings only when they drive the plot/story forward? Or [do] you like to describe them to give the reader a sense of the mood/setting/atmosphere? 2. How long are your descriptions? How do you decide the length?
Dear Writer,
Questions of craft are tethered to context. That said:
I often want the reader to be oriented to the
Writer: 1. Do you describe the surroundings only when they drive the plot/story forward? Or [do] you like to describe them to give the reader a sense of the mood/setting/atmosphere? 2. How long are your descriptions? How do you decide the length?
Dear Writer,
Questions of craft are tethered to context. That said:
I often want the reader to be oriented to the
March 14, 2019
How much research should I do for my story? | Writer Questions #4
Image courtesy of Pixabay.com.
Writer: How much research do you do for a story and how faithful are you to said research? Are there times when you knowingly take a creative liberty for the sake of your story or do you stick to the research for the sake of authenticity? With fairy tales I tend to go either way. As long as I keep the rules internally consistent, I'm not too concerned with
Writer: How much research do you do for a story and how faithful are you to said research? Are there times when you knowingly take a creative liberty for the sake of your story or do you stick to the research for the sake of authenticity? With fairy tales I tend to go either way. As long as I keep the rules internally consistent, I'm not too concerned with
How Much Research Should I Do for My Story? | Writer Questions #4
Image courtesy of Pixabay.com.
Writer: How much research do you do for a story and how faithful are you to said research? Are there times when you knowingly take a creative liberty for the sake of your story or do you stick to the research for the sake of authenticity? With fairy tales I tend to go either way. As long as I keep the rules internally consistent, I'm not too concerned with
Writer: How much research do you do for a story and how faithful are you to said research? Are there times when you knowingly take a creative liberty for the sake of your story or do you stick to the research for the sake of authenticity? With fairy tales I tend to go either way. As long as I keep the rules internally consistent, I'm not too concerned with
March 9, 2019
Should Writers Obey the Rule of "No Adverbs"? | Writer Questions #3
Image courtesy of Pixabay.com.
Writer: "As I explore this new world of writing, I come across some “rules” that can be amusing, if one recognizes them for the holy mantras they are, or confusing, if one doesn’t. Recently, the “no adverbs” religious utterance came to my attention. Why should a writer exclude those incredibly beautiful words? (Please don’t start your answer with the words “
Writer: "As I explore this new world of writing, I come across some “rules” that can be amusing, if one recognizes them for the holy mantras they are, or confusing, if one doesn’t. Recently, the “no adverbs” religious utterance came to my attention. Why should a writer exclude those incredibly beautiful words? (Please don’t start your answer with the words “
Should Writers Obey the Rule of "No Adverbs"?
Image courtesy of Pixabay.com.
Writer: "As I explore this new world of writing, I come across some “rules” that can be amusing, if one recognizes them for the holy mantras they are, or confusing, if one doesn’t. Recently, the “no adverbs” religious utterance came to my attention. Why should a writer exclude those incredibly beautiful words? (Please don’t start your answer with the words “
Writer: "As I explore this new world of writing, I come across some “rules” that can be amusing, if one recognizes them for the holy mantras they are, or confusing, if one doesn’t. Recently, the “no adverbs” religious utterance came to my attention. Why should a writer exclude those incredibly beautiful words? (Please don’t start your answer with the words “
March 8, 2019
Is dialogue necessary? | Writer Questions #2
"Poppy Field" by Claude Monet. Image courtesy of Pixabay.com.
To dialogue or not to dialogue? What does dialogue do for fiction? Is it necessary? Generally recommended? Vital? Or is it completely optional and its absence has no bearing on the quality or palatability of the writing?
Dear Writer,
Nonfiction writers regularly do not include dialogue in their work. In many cases, we would
To dialogue or not to dialogue? What does dialogue do for fiction? Is it necessary? Generally recommended? Vital? Or is it completely optional and its absence has no bearing on the quality or palatability of the writing?
Dear Writer,
Nonfiction writers regularly do not include dialogue in their work. In many cases, we would
"Is dialogue necessary?"
"Poppy Field" by Claude Monet. Image courtesy of Pixabay.com.
To dialogue or not to dialogue? What does dialogue do for fiction? Is it necessary? Generally recommended? Vital? Or is it completely optional and its absence has no bearing on the quality or palatability of the writing?
Dear Writer,
Nonfiction writers regularly do not include dialogue in their work. In many cases, we would find it
To dialogue or not to dialogue? What does dialogue do for fiction? Is it necessary? Generally recommended? Vital? Or is it completely optional and its absence has no bearing on the quality or palatability of the writing?
Dear Writer,
Nonfiction writers regularly do not include dialogue in their work. In many cases, we would find it
The Ark Series
The blog of Author Daniel Rodrigues-Martin, chronicling updates about his Science-Fantasy series, Ark, his other writings, and his musings on all things "story" and "writing." These musings occur in t
...more
- Daniel Rodrigues-Martin's profile
- 20 followers
