by Michael J. Totten | Nov 5, 2026 | Character Development
Don’t you hate it when you’re reading a novel or watching a movie and the main character does something stupid? It’s one thing when a minor character in a horror flick does this—Don’t go in the barn, you idiot—but it’s another thing altogether when your heroine won’t...
by Michael J. Totten | Oct 27, 2026 | Plot and Structure, Uncategorized
Story structure and plot are not the same thing. They’re like climate and weather, where climate is what you expect and weather is what you get. Plot is what happens in your particular story. Fido the dog steals kibble from Gaius the cat, then Gaius gets his revenge...
by Michael J. Totten | Oct 21, 2026 | Plot and Structure
The worst possible ending to your story is having your character wake up in bed and discover that it was all a dream. Yes, The Wizard of Oz ends this way, and yes, it’s a classic, but you won’t get away with it, but that’s okay because you didn’t want to anyway. The...
by Michael J. Totten | Sep 24, 2026 | Plot and Structure, Uncategorized
The worst possible place for a flashback is right at the beginning of a story, but I see this on the regular from beginning authors. I know what’s usually going on here. Most of the time, these early, misplaced flashbacks are there to illustrate a character’s...
by Michael J. Totten | Apr 17, 2025 | Plot and Structure
Beginning authors often bloat up their stories with scenes that they don’t need and that readers don’t enjoy, a problem that’s usually fatal if it occurs anywhere near the opening chapters. It’s not uncommon, when working as a developmental editor, for me to suggest...
