Tag: techniques

Karen’s Conundrum – The Illusively Elusive Ellipsis

“One fine winter’s day when Piglet was brushing away the snow in front of his house, he happened to look up, and there was Winnie-the-Pooh. Pooh was walking round and round in a circle, thinking of something else, and when Piglet called to him, he just went on walking.

‘Hallo!’ said Piglet, ‘what are you doing?’

‘Hunting,’ said Pooh.

‘Hunting what?’

‘Tracking something,’ said Winnie-the-Pooh very mysteriously.

‘Tracking what?’ said Piglet, coming closer.

‘That’s just what I ask myself. I ask myself, What?’        

‘What do you think you’ll answer?’

‘I shall have to wait until I catch up with it,’ said Winnie-the-Pooh.”

~A.A. Milne – Winnie-the-Pooh

As I was walking round and round in a circle in my office, thinking about which of the many conundrums that fill my head I was going to share with you in this post, it struck me that there was no time like the present to address the proper usage and appearance of the almighty ellipsis. Continue reading “Karen’s Conundrum – The Illusively Elusive Ellipsis” →

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Creating Characters

Writing Installation Art image
Creating characters doesn’t have to be messy… unless you want it to be.

There are as many ways to tell fictional tales as there are people writing them, and every writer uses different methods to tell their stories. Creating a believable character is particularly challenging to some because it’s far too easy to slip up and express stereotypes without really intending to. For instance, someone writing a work of fantasy set in the Civil War might unintentionally create a Colonel Sanders (late owner of Kentucky Fried Chicken) type of character which, while possibly humorous, might not be what they wanted. Worse yet, relying on stereotypes could catch a writer by surprise, should they unintentionally offend a portion of their readership. Ideally, should a writer like to include a character with a different background from that of the writer, they should do a certain amount of research on the subject – be it through anthropological and historical studies, or talking and paying attention to people who might fit the bill.  Continue reading “Creating Characters” →