(520) 546-9992|admin@editorialdepartment.com

THE WRITER’S CRAFT explores various principles, techniques, and guidelines to help authors of all genres improve writing and storytelling craft.

The Role of Mystery in Fiction An editor's take on the value of mystery in all genres of fiction

[by Peter Gelfan]

Unlike nonfiction, fiction’s motor doesn’t run on information, but on its opposite: mystery.

I’m not talking about mystery as a genre, but as the essential quality in all fiction that cultivates curiosity, stimulates the imagination, invites participation, and generally keeps readers reading. Every step of the reader’s journey should be fraught with questions, not only […]

By |2024-01-06T21:03:15+00:00|The Writer’s Craft|Comments Off on The Role of Mystery in Fiction An editor's take on the value of mystery in all genres of fiction
Read More

Don’t Confuse Plot with Plot Event An editor's thoughts inspired by Robert Ludlum, Matt Damon, and Jason Bourne

[by Ross Browne]

It wasn’t all that long ago that the news hit Hollywood that Matt Damon was considering bowing out of his leading role as Jason Bourne. The untitled film he considered passing on would have been the fifth in a series based on a trilogy that we have Robert Ludlum to […]

By |2024-01-06T21:11:19+00:00|The Writer’s Craft|Comments Off on Don’t Confuse Plot with Plot Event An editor's thoughts inspired by Robert Ludlum, Matt Damon, and Jason Bourne
Read More

Part III: Showing vs. Telling Rue the day you tell what's been shown

Almost every aspect of fiction writing can be analyzed by the degree to which you the author allow your reader to formulate his own pictures, thoughts, opinions and versions of your story. This is a delicate matter, certainly, because leaving too much out is just as much a travesty as directly telling the reader exactly what […]

By |2019-06-19T19:27:49+00:00|The Writer’s Craft|Comments Off on Part III: Showing vs. Telling Rue the day you tell what's been shown
Read More

Everyone Needs an Editor: A Final Lesson from the Harry Potter Series Principle Five: All good writing needs good editing

“So why couldn’t Malfoy have brought that necklace into the school?”

“Oh, Harry, not that again…”

Many readers, ourselves included, echoed Hermione Grangers’ frustration at that point in Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince.

Readers of this blog know how much we enjoy looking at JK Rowling’s Harry Potter books even after all these years, and the lessons that […]

By |2025-02-12T22:35:51+00:00|The Writer’s Craft|Comments Off on Everyone Needs an Editor: A Final Lesson from the Harry Potter Series Principle Five: All good writing needs good editing
Read More

A World to Remember: More Lessons from the Harry Potter Series Principle Four: Create a world the reader will remember

This blog is part of the Storytelling lessons from Harry Potter series. For part one, click here. For part two, click here. For part three, click here.

Diagon Alley. The Quidditch World Cup.The Chamber of Secrets. The Cupboard Under the Stairs. Platform Nine and Three-Quarters.

These were not places […]

By |2025-02-12T22:35:38+00:00|The Writer’s Craft|Comments Off on A World to Remember: More Lessons from the Harry Potter Series Principle Four: Create a world the reader will remember
Read More

Heroes Have Hormones: More Lessons from the Harry Potter Series Principle Three: perfect heroes are uninteresting ones

This blog is part of the Storytelling lessons from Harry Potter series. For part one, click here. For part two, click here.

It’s Harry Potter time here at The Editorial Department, and in honor of the release of the newest addition to the series, Harry Potter and The […]

By |2025-02-12T22:35:26+00:00|The Writer’s Craft|Comments Off on Heroes Have Hormones: More Lessons from the Harry Potter Series Principle Three: perfect heroes are uninteresting ones
Read More
Go to Top