My mom is a big fan of Robert Downey Jr. So much so, she asked if I wanted to watch Avengers: Endgame (2019) with her. I asked if she’d seen Avengers: Infinity War (2018), the film that sets up Endgame…. Read More ›
creative writing
The Habitual Writer
A messy desk. In the bedroom, a clean path from the bed to the door. Stacks of unread books line the ground and/or bookcase. An empty social calendar. Piles of dirty clothes. A well-used coffee pot. An overused laptop. If… Read More ›
Failure as a Writing Tool
Around this time every year, I’m either really satisfied with myself or angry with myself. It’s not because it’s the weekend after Thanksgiving and I’ve gorged myself on too much food. And no, it’s not the fact that I may… Read More ›
Writing Tips, part 1
Have you ever seen these memes with Captain America with the caption “So, you want to be a…” and then it’s a funny saying or profession? Well, I almost included a meme like that only it would say “So, you… Read More ›
Zombies: A Perfect Monster?
I don’t know if it’s just me, but I like rooting for the monster. For the most part anyway. If you think about it, most monsters are only doing what their nature tells them to do. How can we hate… Read More ›
Should Books Be Banned?
“So now do you see why books are hated and feared? They show the pores in the face of life. The comfortable people want only wax moon faces, poreless, hairless, expressionless,” – Ray Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451. A long time ago,… Read More ›
Based on a True Story
You’ve heard it all before. Based on a true story. Ripped from the headlines. There are a lot of television shows/novels/films that claim that their stories are actual depictions of real life events. But are they? How much truth is… Read More ›
Different Types of Conflict
Last week, I had written a summary of the second act of a story because we were entering into the middle of the year. For those that hadn’t read it (shame, shame, shame), the second act is the middle of… Read More ›
Stuck in the middle with you
As we enter the middle of the year, I thought it would be interesting to examine the middle of a story. For those that don’t know, most stories are split up into a three act structure. The first act serves… Read More ›
Why I Hate Writing
As you read the headline, I know what you must all be thinking: “But Jim, you’re a writer. How can you possibly hate writing?” In reality, hate is probably too strong of a word. I love writing and there’s nothing… Read More ›
The Writer's Apocalypse 