Tag: Advice

Another Song Added To My Writing Playlist

I love Battle Beast. They’re a very 80s-style Heavy Metal Band with a very distinct sound. You really hear their full capabilities here: I WANT THE WOOOOORRRRLD!!! Oh Hell Yes!!! Readers, Do you have a question about writing, publishing, my stories, etc? Please feel free to post a comment or email me. jimthewritingwizard@gmail.com I’ll use those comments to select my next blog post. I … Read More Another Song Added To My Writing Playlist

Historical Accuracy in Writing

Hi Jim, I was wondering how important you feel it is to portray history accurately, even in a fantasy universe? Thanks, Mike Hi Mike, It really depends on how close to reality your story is. If you’re doing a sort-of ‘what if’ story, you can pretty much do whatever you want… to a point. I’d say no matter what the case, you really do … Read More Historical Accuracy in Writing

New Musical Inspiration From an ‘Old Friend.’

A lot of writers have a playlist of music to help them write and I am no exception. The tempo and mood of the music help them describe and convey emotion as we write what we hear. The lyrics guide us on the direction of the plot, the chorus gives us strength to continue, and the changeup inspires the story climax! With this in … Read More New Musical Inspiration From an ‘Old Friend.’

Does a Bad Guy Have To Be Evil?

I’ve heard this one before and the best answer I can give is… no. The bad guy or villain in a story does not necessarily have to be evil at all. When Chancellor Palpatine said that goodness is a point of view in Revenge of the Sith, despite how self-serving his remark was, he was actually right on many different levels. There are actual … Read More Does a Bad Guy Have To Be Evil?

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Christian Writing, Non-Christian Readers

Hi Jim, I’ve been looking at some of your writing and a lot of it appears to surround Christian/Catholic dogma and beliefs. As a non-christian (Muslim) I was wondering how, as a writer, you appeal to non-Christian readers, or are you writing for that specific demographic? If someone who doesn’t believe the same thing that you do picks up one of your books, how … Read More Christian Writing, Non-Christian Readers

From One Universe To Another…

  Hi Jim, I’ve been writing for a very long time, but I need some advice. I’ve mostly worked on children’s books, but recently have started writing adult fiction. I want to use one of my characters from my children’s books in an adult setting, but I’m worried about how my audience will react to it. Some of my readers have grown up with … Read More From One Universe To Another…

Trump’s Election… Epiphany.

https://twitter.com/SethMacFarlane/status/796306781542592512 Seth MacFarlane… as a fellow creator/entertainer, my hat goes off to you on this one. Because while you and I don’t always find ourselves on the same side as every issue, I happen to be 100% with you on this one. Readers, as many of you have seen over times, I have done my best to be bipartisan about everything going on with … Read More Trump’s Election… Epiphany.

Ruining Fantasy?

I talk a lot about writing trends and would like to go into something that has been going on for a while now… There has been a push in more recent media circles to make fantasy and fiction more like reality… We’ve all seen this in some way, shape, or form. Be it people who let movies raise their children crying about Disney princesses … Read More Ruining Fantasy?

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Writing History?

Hi Jim, I just finished reading Soul Siphon and really liked your character, Mary. As I kept reading, she started talking about historical events that she was involved in, namely the Jack the Ripper killings. I’m not a history buff, so I decided to google the Whitechapel killings to get a little context. To my surprise, you took Mary directly from the history books! … Read More Writing History?

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Hated Character!

Hi Jim, You speak a lot about characters that you love, can you comment on how you write characters you hate? Thanks, Linden Hi Linden, Base them on someone you don’t like. … Yeah, that’s pretty much all I can say about that. Do you need to write a character that you want to be thoroughly dispised? Take someone you don’t like, someone you … Read More Hated Character!

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Writing the Devil

So no one really asked me about this one, but it was a question that I thought I’d pose. Since most of my stories have a good vs. evil, religious, element to them (no they’re not preachy!), I thought I’d bring this up. How does one write the devil? Is there a right way? Is there a wrong way? Well… honestly I don’t know. … Read More Writing the Devil

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Writing Fantasy

I loved the Skyrim picture in the bottom… My request is: can you give me some advices about how to write a good fantasy story?. I`ve been writing since… forever, but I want to do things in a better way now. I apreciate the help. Thanks! Emaleth Hi Emaleth, Phew, that’s a loaded question. How to write a good fantasy… Well honestly what’s good … Read More Writing Fantasy