Writer’s Craft

JL NICH blog beats article, Dramatic Scene Cutaway: The Ultimate Writers Tool. Cover art for blog

Dramatic Scene Cutaway: The Ultimate Writers Tool

Dramatic Scene Cutaway: The Ultimate Writers Tool In this blog, I want to show you a monster technique for writers to add suspense and deepen reader immersion. The impactful dramatic cutaway is a powerful tool.  The three varieties can enhance pacing, build suspense, and deepen immersion in a variety of mediums, and are a leviathan […]

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JL NICH blog beats article, Virtual Realities and Magical Realms: Where SFF Literature is Headed in the Coming Years. Cover image of woman wearing VR glasses in a magical realm

Virtual Realities and Magical Realms: Where SFF Literature is Headed in the Coming Years

Virtual Realities and Magical Realms: Where SFF Literature is Headed in the Coming Years In speculative fiction, we find ourselves on the brink of an extraordinary journey. Step into a realm where Virtual Realities, Metaverses, and Magical Realms seek paths toward the next frontier of Science Fiction and Fantasy (SFF) literature. As we stand on

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JL NICH blog beats article, Parallel Pasts: Crafting Worlds through Alternative History in SFF. Cover image for blog, image of 1800 style dress man with pocket watch, and advanced digital eye gear

Parallel Pasts: Crafting Worlds through Alternative History in SFF

Parallel Pasts: Crafting Worlds through Alternative History in SFF Alternative History in Science Fiction and Fantasy (SFF) is a growing sub-genre as authors weave intricate tales, they daringly reshape the course of history, introducing readers to worlds where pivotal events took unforeseen turns, magic intermingles with reality, and the boundaries between the possible and the

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JL NICH blog beats article, In the Company of Growth: Friendships as Catalysts in Narrative Arcs. Blog cover image of two sci-fi-women

In the Company of Growth: Friendships as Catalysts in Narrative Arcs

In the Company of Growth: Friendships as Catalysts in Narrative Arcs As a writer, how you develop character relationships can impact the growth level of the Main Character (MC) in various ways.  This area of study is a rich and multifaceted topic that can be approached from many angles. Human experience in friendships emerges as

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JL NICH blog beats article, Shaping Tomorrow: Exploring Diversity in SFF Narratives. Cover image of albino girl holding a white book with a rainbow shining out of it.

Shaping Tomorrow: Exploring Diversity in SFF Narratives

Shaping Tomorrow: Exploring Diversity in SFF Narratives Within the pages of Science Fiction Fantasy worlds, characters of myriad ethnicities, races, genders, and orientations come to life, each bringing a unique lens through which to explore the fantastical and the extraordinary. From character development, cultural settings, and intergalactic backdrops of adventures, SFF novels stand as beacons

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JL NICH blog beats article, Imagining Tomorrow's Climate in Sci-Fi and Fantasy Realms. Storm with tornado and lightening

Imagining Tomorrow’s Climate in Sci-Fi and Fantasy Realms

Imagining Tomorrow’s Climate in Sci-Fi and Fantasy Realms Novels like The Drowned World by J.G. Ballard deal with a future where the ice caps have melted leading to a submerged world or explore visual stories like the movie Waterworld or The Day After Tomorrow, where the ice caps are melting.  One leads to a submerged

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JL NICH blog beats article, In Praise of Brevity: A Journey into Novella and Short Story Publishing. Cover image of typewriter with the sentence "to make a long story short"

In Praise of Brevity: A Journey into Novella and Short Story Publishing

In Praise of Brevity: A Journey into Novella and Short Story Publishing In this literary haven where brevity meets brilliance, the power of being concise takes center stage in storytelling. This blog takes a journey into the world of publishing novellas and short stories—an often-overlooked realm brimming with storytelling potential. Whether you’re a seasoned writer

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JL NICH blog beats article, SFF Writing Resolutions for the Future: 3-Year and 5-Year. cover image of scrabble tiles spelling the word future

SFF Writing Resolutions for the Future: 3-Year and 5-Year.

SFF Writing Resolutions for the Future: 3-Year and 5-Year This blog is not about New Year resolutions, but since 2024 has come swooping into view, let’s talk about long-term writing goals and how they relate to New Year resolutions. These goals would still follow the resolution rules. Check out my blog Charting the Unknown: SFF

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