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Books by D.J. Butler
Category Archives: How to Write
The Adults Problem: A Tale of Two Monster Hunters
I finished Rick Yancey’s The Monstrumologist this weekend. It’s a fine book, for older middle grade readers or young adults who are not averse to gore and horror (the book’s jacket markets it for readers aged fourteen and older; the … Continue reading
Posted in How to Write
Tagged E.J. Patten, Return to Exile, Rick Yancey, The Adults Problem, The Monstrumologist
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Serials
I’ve recently read two great novels that were written as serials, Michael Chabon’s Gentlemen of the Road and Charles Portis’s True Grit. Of course, lots of classic novels have been written this way. Dickens, for instance, wrote serials. I’m writing … Continue reading
Writing to the Punchline: True Grit
I’m reading True Grit now, and it’s fantastic. If you saw both movies and wondered, the Coen Brothers and Jeff Bridges hit it closer to the mark. Here’s a short excerpt from early in the book. I share it because … Continue reading
The Other Fantasy
For a lot of people, “fantasy” literature means Tolkien, and his many followers. This is what is often called “epic” or “high” fantasy. Robert Jordan, Brandon Sanderson, Peter Orullian, Stephen R. Donaldson, Steven Erikson, etc., all write high fantasy. From … Continue reading
Posted in How to Write
Tagged High Fantasy, Low Fantasy, Scott Lynch, The Lies of Locke Lamora
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Sequels and Expectations
When you write the first book in a series, you can do anything you want. When you write the second, you can still do anything you want… but whatever you do that repeats or echoes the first book, becomes part … Continue reading
Posted in How to Write
Tagged Dan Simmons, E.J. Patten, Harry Potter, Hyperion, J.K. Rowling, Return to Exile, Sequels, Story Monkeys
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Magic, Hard and Soft
There is a distinction you will sometimes hear made by writers and readers of fantasy fiction between hard magic and soft magic. Soft magic is magic that just does what the author wants it to do in every case, with … Continue reading
Posted in How to Write
Tagged Gandalf, Harry Dresden, Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling, J.R.R. Tolkien, Jim Butcher, Kvothe, Magic, Patrick Rothfuss
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Short Pitching
I’ll be at the show this week, and hopefully around lots of book professionals. I’m thinking today about quick elevator-pitch type explanations to hook an editor into being interested in Witchy Eye. So far, I’ve got a high concept and … Continue reading
The Adults Problem
Plot is a character fighting obstacles to achieve a goal. The Adults Problem (I am making up my own technical term here) is a problem in writing middle grade / middle reader fiction (herafter, MG). In MG, you want your … Continue reading
Martin Silenus on Writing
“Dislinear plotting and non-contiguous prose have their adherents, not the least of which am I, but in the end, my friends, it is the character which wins or loses immortality upon the vellum. Haven’t you ever harbored the secret thought … Continue reading
Sympathy (2)
“Charlie Pondicherry ain’t got no mum!” Charlie ducked, trying not to get hit by the rock this time. There would be a rock. There was always a rock. “What are you talking about, … Continue reading
