Blog

Even in the modern world that takes pride in diversity, equal opportunities, and tolerance, there is a significantly worrying trend emerging — using certain behavioral standards as weapons to mute, bruise, and punish people with conservative ideologies. Codes of conduct that were designed to manage…

Recently, I went to Blue Sky (which I do not do frequently) and witnessed all sorts of unkind slurs being directed at people who, for the most part, were trying to articulate reasonable opinions that contradicted the current leftist ideology. Out of curiosity, I conducted some informal observations…

Different narratives are bound to deal with human behavior, and in such a case, freedom of expression is dynamic: it serves as the very vein to creativity. For fiction writers, this liberty is the building block upon which creativity, invention, and telling the truth rest. Without it, the stories…

Let’s discuss pets in novels. I’ll confess: I have a number of pets. My home office is pretty much a veritable land mine of dog toys and rawhide in various states of softness and mastication. When I write, there is usually some creature lying at my feet. Though I’m sure that they’re secretly…

Hot take: Anyone who does not think Christmas is the greatest holiday is weird. Actually, I want you out of my life, right now, forever. The irrefutable, and objectively correct, truth is that Christmas is the best. For writers in all genres, it has long been a lair for inspiration, especially in…

When discussions about book banning arise, the narrative often centers around school boards removing books with graphic content from libraries or curricula. While these actions spark significant debate and media attention, a less visible but more pervasive form of book restriction exists in the…

Today we have a fascinating article from guest blogger Jenna Sherman, a mom of three who hopes to help other parents acquire the skills to raise future leaders by providing valuable, up-to-date, authoritative resources. She created parent-leaders.com as an avenue for parents who want to make sure…

The allure of Black Friday—a day marked by frenzied shopping, midnight doorbusters, and crowds that swell to the tens of thousands—provides a fertile ground for horror narratives. This annual event, teetering on the edge of chaos and consumerist obsession, can serve as a compelling backdrop for a…

Voice is one of the fundamental elements of narrative in the vast landscape of literature that sets one narrative apart from the other. It’s not only the words used in a story, but the unique voice, tone and style that an author or character adds. Voice is the heart of storytelling, the pulse of…

In keeping with our Halloween theme, this post will concern bugs. Full disclosure: I absolutely hate bugs, and squeal like a little girl (literally) if one gets close to me. I don’t care that they’re useful or that spiders aren’t technically insects. I spend about $85 each month on a pest control…

The only thing scary about the horrible store-bought Halloween costumes of the 70s and 80s was getting cancer from everything toxic you touched. It always just felt disgusting to me, the way they slapped pictures and logos on the awful polyester shirt and didn’t even try to make a kid look like a…

With all the exciting projects he has going on, we are very grateful that David Badurina has taken some time to contribute to the blog as a guest writer to help inform his fellow writers about self-publishing. If you want to know about real-world issues when considering self-publishing versus…