If you caught my post on Friday, you know I’m doing the A-Z blogging challenge next month. What that means is that there won’t be any more Monday Mentions posts until May. Unless I’m helping with a cover reveal or new release, then I’ll put out a special post.
This week, I have 5 posts to share. I may not have much commentary on them as there is a good bit.
Earlier this month, I read this post about strong female characters vs being complex. I agree with a lot of this. My female characters might not always be able to kick some ass. They often make mistakes, bad decisions, and they may have to ask for help. You know, the way male characters are often allowed to be. Or, rather realistic.
And from Kait Nolan, 5 Ways to Combat Failure. These are some really nice tips on how not to beat yourself up too badly when things don’t work out for you.
From Ava Jae, a post on How Important is Originality. Sometimes too much emphasis can be put on originality and uniqueness. I read a book by one author who marketed it as being so unique. And…I didn’t like it. It didn’t feel like anything even happened in it. I just want a good story, even if it’s similar to something else out there. Each other will put their own spin on a story. That is what makes a story unique or original. Not just being something completely new.
I’ve been following this blog series from A.M. Leibowitz. I may have mentioned on here before, although probably vaguely, but while writing Flames of Retribution, I discovered one of the side characters was bisexual. It wasn’t really so much a decision on my part to make him this way(seriously, I may have resisted a bit because…fear of screwing it up). But, if I want to tell his story, then I want to do it the right way. And certainly avoid any problematic tropes and stereotypes.
And, finally, a post on Superfluous Scenes(and why they’re not so bad). I think #1 on this list is the most important. A lot of times I’ll start a scene with no idea if it’s really necessary, and it ends up being rather important. It can be hard to tell what’s important and what isn’t until the whole thing is finished. Which is one reason I don’t like to edit until I’ve written the whole first draft.
That’s it for this week. What do you think? Read any good posts lately? I’ll be back with more posts I find interesting in May.
fallonbrownwrites 
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