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Infodumping, Emotion Dysregulation, and Writing Fiction

Infodumping, Emotion Dysregulation, and Writing Fiction

A conversation with ChatGPT For a while, I've been struggling with two problems with my writing. The first problem is that I love infodumping and I'm not entirely sure how to write it in fiction. I have ideas, and I know it has something to do

I received the WORST BAD REVIEW...and I love it

I received the WORST BAD REVIEW...and I love it

I'll explain why, what I've learned about myself and my writing, and why I feel motivated to write more. Back in the late 2010s, I was writing erotica. I self-published a handful of books and did freelance work for private customers (an entirely different blog

25 Struggles and Myths Neurodivergent Authors Face

25 Struggles and Myths Neurodivergent Authors Face

1. Respect the structure of your brain. Your brain will only work the way it is structured to work. Forcing it to work another way will only cause stress, anxiety, and failure.

Autism Assessments Test for Nontraditional Storytelling Skills

Autism Assessments Test for Nontraditional Storytelling Skills

I underwent autism and ADHD assessment in early 2024. The doctor administering the assessment gave me a task: tell a story using the images from David Wiesner's book Tuesday. This YouTube video is a nice montage of the pages. There are images of frogs floating into a town

Nontraditional Plot Structures for Neurodiverse Writers is NOW AVAILABLE FOR FREE!

Nontraditional Plot Structures for Neurodiverse Writers is NOW AVAILABLE FOR FREE!

Download the FREE ebook Nontraditional Plot Structures for Neurodiverse Writers

Coming soon

Born from a rejected dissertation proposal and reworked over the course of 15 years into a compelling exploration of narrative, Nontraditional Plot Structures for Neurodiverse Writers challenges conventional storytelling norms. This free ebook delves into how nontraditional plot structures resonate with neurodiverse writers, offering creative frameworks that align with their

COVER REVEAL

Nontraditional Plot Structures for Neurodiverse Writers Check out the cover reveal for this free ebook that introduces neurodiverse writers (and neurotypical) to plot structures beyond the commonly used hero’s Journey. These plots are emotionally accessible, highly creative, and more “traditional” than you’d expect. Born from a rejected dissertation

What is a "plot" and why "subplots" don't exist

The following is a section from my upcoming free ebook Nontraditional Plot Structures for Neurodiverse writers. It comes out May 1 and will be available on this blog! WHAT IS A "PLOT"? This may seem like an unnecessary section. Any writer who chooses to read this book already

Asymptotes and God from the Volvo

Asymptotes and God from the Volvo

an excerpt from my forthcoming ebook Nontraditional Plot Structures for Neurodiverse Writers There is a version of the Journey plot structure that I refer to as an Asymptote. It is very, very common and, as far as I can tell, ignored in discussions about writing and plot structures. A Journey

Professional Wrestling: a story told using Ritual and Force

neurodivergence

Professional Wrestling: a story told using Ritual and Force

Professional wrestling is an evolution of street theater, the most ancient and unknown forms of theater. It predates theater buildings, amphitheaters, dramatic texts, and formal actors. It could very well go back thousands of years. Street theater has three simple elements: performers, an audience, and a story. Professional wrestling has

Fragments of Chaos: Organizing Chunks of Random Notes Into Whole Stories

Fragments of Chaos: Organizing Chunks of Random Notes Into Whole Stories

I wrote a post on Instagram asking for neurodivergent writers to talk to me about their notebooks. Every neurodivergent writer I've ever talked to has had a trove of notebooks filled with ideas and partially written stories. I asked each person who generously responded about their notes, how

INFORMATION: Another Story Structure for Neurodiverse Writers

INFORMATION: Another Story Structure for Neurodiverse Writers

I've been thinking about plot structure for over ten years. I couldn't understand why I could explain a conventional journey structure, but struggled to construct one. Then in the middle of a doctoral theater theory course, my professor asked, "Does a traditional plot structure reflect

Adapting "Little Miss Muffet" into a Chaos-structured story

Adapting "Little Miss Muffet" into a Chaos-structured story

I've written about Chaos before. First, in my post about the concept in general, and then in an analysis of "Hey Diddle, Diddle" as a manifestation of a Chaos structure. Now, I'm going a step further. I'm doing an adaptation of "

"Hey, Diddle, Diddle", a Nursery Rhyme Built With Chaos

"Hey, Diddle, Diddle", a Nursery Rhyme Built With Chaos

"Hey Diddle, Diddle" (HDD) makes no conventional sense. Theorists and literary critics cannot agree about HDD. Some believe it's "literary nonsense". Others insist it is "gibberish". These are actual literary distinctions. I want to reinterpret and clarify a nursery rhyme that can

CHAOS: an Alternative Plot Structure for Neurodiverse Writers

neurodivergence

CHAOS: an Alternative Plot Structure for Neurodiverse Writers

I've been working on this for a long time. Only recently have I taken on the name of Chaos to describe this alternative plot structure. It's nothing new. I'm only describing a form of writing that's existed on the edges of literature

Star Wars Isn't Star Wars

Star Wars Isn't Star Wars

I watched an Instagram vid this morning all the way through. That's a rare event as I have only a modicum of patience for vids. The vid was done by Jason Pargin. I've watched his vids before. He writes about film and culture. This piece was

#AI PIRACY: A short #play by #ChatGPT and various uncredited, unpaid authors

The Descent of Lasagna A Cruel Culinary Confession **Setting:** An abstract, distorted kitchen. The space is surreal, with oversized forks and knives hanging from the ceiling, a stove that breathes heavy, smoky breaths, and a table that seems to pulse and move as if alive. The lighting is dim, reddish,

#ADHD #actuallyautistic #auDHD At the beginning of the year, at the age of 49, I was diagnosed auDHD and I haven't talked about it.

I'm one of many women diagnosed late in life. We were also misdiagnosed for many, many years. For me, it began at 20, with a diagnosis of major or clinical depression, bits of OCD, PMD, an eating disorder, and an anxiety disorder. I didn't go on

My former playwriting professor David Rush Died two weeks ago

U r a wundrful writr One of the first things David ever said to me, in our first conversation as mentor and student, was, "I accepted you because you're a woman." When he showed me the Emmy he had won, I said, "Yeah, but, aren&

Brain Experiments Reveal Ways To Develop Creative Flow States, or, Why Your Brain Needs Creative Writing Coaching

https://www.sciencealert.com/brain-imaging-experiment-reveals-the-secret-behind-creative-flow Whether or not you sign up for my coaching, this is very important. Creative people, in fact anyone that does anything that has creative elements, can get into a "flow state". Essentially, this is being

#WritersCoffeeClub Day 7: Describe an action moment you’re most proud of. Share an excerpt.

This is from my novel Dying in Pleasure. It's an excerpt from a gladiator battle. "Pompeii,” he said, "I give you Diana, the Virgin Huntress.” The gladiators pulled the curtains and revealed Diana in the cage, helmeted so her face was covered completely; chains wound about

Nudist Chicken Theatre Company, or, I Didn't Know Nudity Was An Option For Chickens

Nudist Chicken Theatre Company

Nudist Chicken Theatre Company, or, I Didn't Know Nudity Was An Option For Chickens

Nudist Chicken Theatre Company the performance is already in progress There's a manifesto. There must be. I had to keep with ancient tradition. Click the naked chicken above if you wish to know more. You can try a chicken burger. I recommend that highly. It's a

Why Creative Writing Coaching? I'll Tell You Why, As Plato

[I'm going to structure this one like Plato] WRITER: No, just no. Not going to do it. PLATO: Why? WRITER: I know how to write. I've written ten novels and a thousand short stories. Creative writing is supposed to teach me how to write stories, right?

PROFESSOR DAVID RUSH TAUGHT ME HOW TO CRITIQUE

This format for critiquing is one used by the former playwriting professor, David Rush, at Southern Illinois University, Carbondale. The point of a critique is to determine whether or not the writer has created a work which conveys his or hers intentions. If the author wanted to write a horror

PROFESSOR JOHN HAHN GAVE US A POEM

A poem entitled Listen, author unknown. i no longer plead with heaven or go rummaging in books for answers to the questions life contains now i listen listen listen to this inner thing resounding in the pulsing and the pounding of my infant ancient veins. i no longer seek instruction