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SPEAKING OF HOLIDAY DISASTERS ...
I suppose I asked for this one with all my stories about holiday disasters last week. On Thanksgiving, my roommates and I put everything...
Candice Bellows, The Story Engineer
Nov 30, 20202 min read
19 views
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WHAT JUST HAPPENED?
How I probably looked under my mask I think we've all heard horror (?) stories of crazy things people have seen and overheard at Walmart....
Candice Bellows, The Story Engineer
Nov 24, 20202 min read
10 views
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8 THINGS FANTASY WRITERS NEED TO QUIT DOING. RIGHT NOW.
Years ago, I started noticing an alarming trend in fantasy. As one of my English professors commented when we were discussing it: "It's...
Candice Bellows, The Story Engineer
Nov 16, 20204 min read
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THE ONLY 3 THINGS THAT REALLY MATTER IN CHARACTER NAMES
Today's post is partly inspired by one of my favorite Peanuts strips. I've silently (or not) echoed Lucy's thoughts more than once! There...
Candice Bellows, The Story Engineer
Nov 9, 20201 min read
43 views
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WHAT WRITERS NEED TO KNOW ABOUT PTSD
As writers, we put our characters through the wringer. Sometimes it happens "onscreen"; other times, it happens long before the book...
Candice Bellows, The Story Engineer
Oct 27, 20204 min read
40 views
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WHAT IS LOVE? PART 2
Pinterest, I'm finding, is one of the most versatile and useful writing tools we authors have at our disposal. I'm not talking about just...
Candice Bellows, The Story Engineer
Oct 26, 20205 min read
16 views
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THAT'S CHEATING! (OR IS IT?)
Recently, I re-stumbled across one of my favorite Pinterest posts (pardon the bad spelling, etc.): 🤣 This is an excellent example of...
Candice Bellows, The Story Engineer
Oct 22, 20203 min read
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WHAT IS LOVE? PART 1
As promised, today we'll start looking at aspects of healthy romantic relationships so we can portray them accurately in our writing. Of...
Candice Bellows, The Story Engineer
Oct 16, 20202 min read
11 views
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THAT'S NOT LOVE
This past weekend, the current West End (?) production of The Phantom of the Opera streamed for a day or two from London. I watched part...
Candice Bellows, The Story Engineer
Oct 15, 20203 min read
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WELL, *THAT* ESCALATED (SUSPICIOUSLY) QUICKLY
This story popped up in my Google News today. 😵 #whatjusthappened I don't care who you are or what your political beliefs are. That's...
Candice Bellows, The Story Engineer
Oct 8, 20202 min read
22 views
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I'M PROUD OF YOU
Lately, I've been tutoring a high schooler named "Q" in English. The more I work with him, the more I realize that English is one of the...
Candice Bellows, The Story Engineer
Oct 2, 20203 min read
17 views
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YOU USED A STETHOSCOPE FOR WHAT?
Some time ago, I found this amusing post on Pinterest: I suppose this improvisation would work in an apartment full of medical-field...
Candice Bellows, The Story Engineer
Oct 1, 20201 min read
19 views
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BREAKING CHARACTER (OR NOT)
This weekend, I was working on a pair of scenes in my WIP. In this part of the story, my protagonist's (Patricia) overprotective father...
Candice Bellows, The Story Engineer
Sep 28, 20202 min read
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11 TIPS FOR WRITING TWEENS
I've been thinking a lot about kids recently. I've noticed that some authors write all child characters the same way, so anyone under...
Candice Bellows, The Story Engineer
Sep 25, 20203 min read
13 views
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THAT'S NOT HOW IT GOES! (OR IS IT?)
When I was a teenager, my church had an annual camping trip (known simply as Girls' Camp) for all girls ages twelve to eighteen and the...
Candice Bellows, The Story Engineer
Sep 24, 20202 min read
11 views
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WHOSE BOOK IS IT, ANYWAY?
A few days ago, I was talking on the phone with my five-year-old niece, "C1." When she asked what was new with me, I told her that I was...
Candice Bellows, The Story Engineer
Sep 8, 20201 min read
21 views
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I MUSTACHE HOW YOU'D DEAL WITH THIS
When I was a teenager, my family regularly vacationed in Door County, Wisconsin. One of the favorite activities for the parents and older...
Candice Bellows, The Story Engineer
Sep 7, 20202 min read
17 views
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1 COMMON MISTAKE AUTHORS MAKE WITH INCLUSIVITY (AND 4 WAYS TO AVOID MAKING IT)
The other day, I saw a section on a job application in which applicants could voluntarily disclose whether they had a disability. I've...
Candice Bellows, The Story Engineer
Aug 28, 20205 min read
40 views
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CHICK-FIL-A EN FLAMBÉ
I love Chick-fil-A, but no one can deny that it's pricey. However, I found a copycat recipe for their chicken sandwich online, so a few...
Candice Bellows, The Story Engineer
Aug 25, 20204 min read
15 views
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DEFINE "AMBIGUOUS," PART 2
Lord Viren, the main antagonist of The Dragon Prince (image from https://dragonprince.fandom.com/wiki/Viren?file=Viren_Official.png) When...
Candice Bellows, The Story Engineer
Aug 24, 20202 min read
17 views
0 comments
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