1 Write your story statement: Uncover the secret of Germany’s new weapon 2 In 200 words or less, sketch the antagonist or antagonistic force in your story. Keep in mind their goals, their background, and the ways they react to the world about them: The German secret service, and a traitor in their pay, drive the plot. The inciting incident is an attempt by a British aviator, Vanderwall, to understand the secret of a new German weapon; that fails, but he follows up by infiltrating enemy lines to continue his hunt. First the Germans disguise themselves to track the hero to see wha

NOWHERE MAN, Psychological Suspense—Rosemary DiBattista Comp Titles: Laura Lippman’s I’D KNOW YOU ANYWHERE, Emma Cline’s THE GIRLS Hook Line: A middle-aged woman is forced to reckon with her past when the serial killer from whom she escaped more than fifty years earlier is released from prison—and she holds the evidence to put him back there. Short pitch: Allison Russo knows that older women become invisible, which is exactly how she likes it—the serial killer from whom she escaped more than fifty years earlier is out of prison and determined to track her down.

In Eloghosa Osunde’s column Melting Clocks, she takes apart the surreality of time and the senses. Naudline Pierre, Lead Me Gently Home, 2019, oil on canvas, 96 x 120″. Photo: Paul Takeuchi. When I say the name Heaven, someone I love answers me through two realms and a time machine. It doesn’t matter where our bodies are in the world, what distance separates us, or what headlines are going on about, I say that name and we appear elsewhere. When we rechristened each other recently, we gave and received three names each. They call me [redacted] or [redacted] or [redacted] and the world stops.

Hidden Figures RECOMMENDED: Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly is $1.99! Carrie did a Lightning Review of it, and she gave it an A: This is a gripping read that keeps its focus on the intelligence and perseverance of the women who helped win the war and who made space flight possible. Its only flaw is that it’s so admiring of the women in question that it never presents them as having any imperfections. Otherwise, this is an entertaining and fascinating look at American history and the overlooked women of color who wer

I completely agree with Elise on this one. Having a computer program randomly generate your characters is a neat idea if you're just practicing, or warming up to the idea of writing a novel, but beyond that I don't find this video useful. In fact, I got really bored watching it and the novel idea that was created to demonstrate this plot structure was also boring and full of clichés. I realize that Shaylynn (or however she spells her name) was doing this spur of the moment, and I'm sure she did the best she could, but I think that's where the main problem began. This video could have been

My experience of LitRPG is still pretty limited having sampled a couple of SPFBO examples but only read two through to completion, the first being Demi Harper’s LitRPG debut God of Gnomes and the second it’s sequel Exodus of Gnomes. I like RPG games and I like fantasy books but I was wary as to how these two concepts would mix together. It’s the kind of question chefs of old must have wrestled with as they sat with chocolate in one hand and a chilli in the other and went “I wonder what if…” However, God of Gnomes brilliantly satisfied my curiosity and assuaged my concerns with a tale full of c

The Second Bell by debut author Gabriela Houston is a beautiful atmospheric blend of Polish folklore, coming of age and dark fantasy. The story centres around a mother and her newborn child who are abruptly banished from their village and cast out into the woods. Yet such cruelty is not without its reason, and this child is by no means an ordinary one, for you see she holds a second heart. It is believed that those born with the sound of double heartbeats are born a striga, a terrifying monstrous being that will wreak havoc, devour and kill humans. Fear drives the villagers to desperate measu

FIRST ASSIGNMENT: Story Statement A Parisian girl meets a native Georgia boy in an architecture school, falls in love with him, and must overcome her disillusions toward life to put her trust in him. SECOND ASSIGNMENT: Antagonistic Force The antagonistic force comes from within. While May’s resilience allowed her to survive the male-dominated world of architecture, it also made her distrustful of men. Her past invades the narrative as she recalls her hazing at the Beaux-Arts School in Paris. The second year was the worse, as the guys of her year resented that she, a girl, would

We are thrilled to bring back longtime contributor Lisa Cron for a guest post today! When we learned that Lisa had a new book coming out, STORY OR DIE, we knew we’d need to do whatever we had to do in order to get her here for a guest post. Turns out, she was as happy to be back here as we were to have her. And in case you’re new to WU, or don’t know Lisa, let’s fill you in: Lisa Cron is the author of Wired for Story, Story Genius, and Story or Die. Her TEDx talk, Wired for Story, opened Furman University’s 2014 TEDx conference, Stories: The Common Thread of Our Humanity. Lisa has worked in

We are excited to announce a brand new reader review event featuring The Little Book of Big Knowing by author and intuitive seer, Michele Sammons. Read the reviews of this inspiring book and enter to win a copy for yourself. The Little Book of Big Knowing is filled with tiny bursts of insight to nourish your heart, warm your Soul, and help you to remember your true self. If you find yourself asking big, deep life questions like, “What’s my purpose?” and “Why am I here?” then you’ll want to curl up with The Little Book of Big Knowing. Three reasons why you’ll love this book: It includes gen

“Give me a decent bottle of poison,” Agatha Christie reportedly said, “and I’ll construct the perfect crime.” As it turns out, she did it countless times: nearly half of Christie’s 85 mystery novels involve poison. And these are not fictional poisons, nor passing references; on the contrary, her toxins are well-known to science and often placed at the very heart of her stories. Christie’s ingenious ability to build complex narratives around poison—including their administration and macabre effects—was due, in part, to her time as a war nurse during WWI. In 1917, she passed the examinations re

Another week, another batch of books for your TBR pile. Happy reading, folks. * Laurie Flynn, The Girls Are All So Nice Here (Simon and Schuster) “A sharp, pitch-black thriller that takes the mean-girls trope to another level.” –Kirkus Donna Leon, Transient Desires (Atlantic Monthly Press) “Atmospheric . . . The action builds to a thrilling denouement involving coast guard boats and navy commandos.” –Publishers Weekly J.T. Ellison, Her Dark Lies (MIRA) “Mesmerizing…Fans of Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca will want to check out this compulsively readable tale.” –Publishers We

The historical roles of women in combat during the Second World War have always interested me. When I started my research into the women who served their countries for my upcoming novel, The Paris Apartment, I was introduced early to the biographies and memoirs of women in combat on the Eastern European front, where the war had come to the cities and towns with unspeakable savagery and a shocking number of casualties for both civilians and soldiers. From this horror emerged lethal snipers such as Klavdiya Kalugina, Lyudmila Pavlichenko, and Roza Shanina. Sergeant Mariya Oktyabrskaya was award

I’ve always loved my science fiction/fantasy and romance with a touch of suspense—and lots of action. Those are the types of stories I gravitate towards in the books I read and the movies I watch, and they’re the stories I have the most fun writing. When I first thought about the GhostWalker series, I knew I wanted it to revolve around a group of soldiers who have super-human abilities as the result of a secret experiment. From telekinesis to DNA modifications, the GhostWalkers have seen a lot of paranormal activity, and most of the science fiction is based on real science somewhere along the

If you prefer silliness in your eardrums, and/or you really like the podcast episodes where Amanda and I hang out and talk about all the things, and/or you’re feeling the awful year anniversary of the Quarantimes hanging over you (UGH) (me, too) come hang out with us! We have MANY OPTIONS for silliness in your eardrums. http://smartbitchestrashybooks.com/WP/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Stardew-Valley-SQStream-e1612367089506.jpg Sundays & Wednesdays: SmartTwitches on Twitch! Twice a week we’re streaming on Twitch, usually playing Stardew Valley. Sunday streams start around 3pm ET, and Wedne