Posts by Pam Uphoff

It’s a Mystery to Me

I’ve had a few of my SF/F books veer off into the mystery genre before, but they weren’t what you’d call “well crafted.” Fortunately, I’ve read enough mysteries that my subconscious had a good grasp of framework so I didn’t make a complete hash of it.

But now I’m trying to do it on purpose, and I’m finding it heavy going. Read more

Oops! Fifth Friday, and No One has a Post!

So put up a link to your books in the comments.

I’ll start with the first book in a series, and the most recent.

Weaving a Series

[This is going to be short, as I’m on vacation, escaping the Texas heat]

What do you do when you are avoiding writing by looking at all the horrible half written stories that never got finished . . . And you realize you’ve got your hands on exactly what your series needs.

“Yes!” The Muse clutches it in delight. “It’s perfect! Get writing!” Read more

On Killing

“One Death is a tragedy, one million deaths is a statistic.” Allegedly spoken by Joseph Stalin, so it’s regrettably a Real World Thing.

But it’s also something for writers to keep in mind.

You can have all the galaxy spanning wars you want, kill entire planets full of humans and aliens. But if you want to make your readers really feel it, you have to kill a character they know well enough for it to hurt. Read more

Jackie Chan on Action Comedy

So, you need to write a fight scene? This is how to film one. Think about the equivalents in writing.

https://www.invidio.us/watch?v=Z1PCtIaM_GQ&fbclid=IwAR2P0iz_eiLRF-0AFp4YYTo9ate4YRFV-hlioq6kRJYSyKQi21C2rgzV2VY

The 9 Principles of Action Comedy
1. Start with a DISADVANTAGE
2. Use the ENVIRONMENT
3. Be CLEAR in your shots
4. Action & Reaction in the SAME frame
5. Do as many TAKES as necessary
6. Let the audience feel the RHYTHM
7. In editing, TWO good hits = ONE great hit
8. PAIN is humanizing
9. Earn your FINISH

Picture credit: Image by Andrew Martin from Pixabay