Links

I've added a new links page (above) with relevant links to resources for writers. For the past year, I've been part of a writing group comprised of enormously talented individuals. They've been a tremendous help to me in improving my craft and helping back to publishing.

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Mirror, Mirror

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Recently I bought a copy of a pretty well reviewed and promoted speculative fiction novel.  About two chapters in, the main character looks in a mirror and describes themself.  I literally closed the book and stopped reading.  The novel had other issues, but this put me right out of the story.  This technique - being generous here - occurs a lot in first person narratives, about as often as a story beginning with the main character waking up from a dream.  The mirror device is best avoided, but not necessarily because it's so overused - it's best avoided because simply put, it's so easy.  A character, especially a protagonist, should never be described; they should be imagined.
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