Cool stuff I’ve read, fiction writing edition: Dana Stabenow on writing crime fiction, Janice Hardy on stage directions, and a handy scene checklist from Fiction Notes

Today I’m kicking off what I hope will become a regular feature around these parts: cool stuff I’ve read. Today’s edition covers blog posts about the craft of writing, but I hope to share non-writing things too: stories, podcasts, weird news, interesting science–whatever crosses my desk that would in normal times make me get out of my office chair, barge into your workspace unannounced, and say, “You have to read this.”

So what cool stuff have I read lately? Glad you asked.

7 Tips for Writing Crime Fiction – Dana Stabenow

Dana Stabenow, famous for her crime novels set in Alaska, gives us fellow crime writers a useful and occasionally funny listicle. My favorite quote:

have read far too many novels in which I cannot find a single character to like, to identify with, to root for. Have at least one person in your book whom the reader can cheer on. If you don’t, you might not lose anyone else but for sure you’ll lose me.

I couldn’t agree more. I didn’t like Gone Girl or Girl on the Train for exactly that reason.

Find the Right Balance With Your Stage Directions – Janice Hardy

How much detail do you give about what your characters are doing? Do you describe every breath they take? Every move they make? (Now that song is stuck in your head, isn’t it? You’re welcome.) Or do you focus only on the interesting stuff and ignore the rest? Spoiler alert: the answer is somewhere in between, and the key to getting it right is to a) be selective, b) select the right details and c) do it from your character’s POV. Janice Hardy’s post provides examples of the same passage written different ways, which shows the power of balancing the right amount of stage direction with dialogue and internalization.

BTW, I heartily recommend Janice Hardy (hardily recommend? I’ll show myself out.) for clear, practical advice on fiction writing, usually illustrated with excellent examples. I’ve recommended her book on show, don’t tell (affiliate link) on this blog before. If you want to improve your fiction writing, put her at the top of your to-read pile.

Scene 30: Scene Checklist – Fiction Notes

This is the final post in a series called 30 Days to a Stronger Scene, and it’s just what the title implies: a checklist for evaluating and revising each scene in your novel. I’ll be using this post when I tackle scene-level revisions for Delta Dawn–which, at the rate I’m going, could be sometime in the next millennium.

How about you, dear reader? Read/watched/listened to anything interesting lately?