Barbara V Evers

I'm focusing the next few posts on my workshops and panels during Imaginarium. Although this serves as a poor substitute for the workshops, I can share some highlights. This week, we're going to explore pantsing and plotting. What do pantsing and plotting refer to? When a writer sits down to write, they approach story creation usually one of two ways:  pantsing or plotting. Pantsing means you write by the seat of your pants without an outline or organized structure. Plotting means you create an outline and plan before you write the first word. Before you ask, I tend to be a pantser. More about that in a moment. Plotting The first step for a plotter is to  determine what will happen in the story and in what order. They use an outline. It's often quite detailed. They've done their research in advance. Plotters know exactly where the book is going and how it's going to happen before they type the first word. Pantsing Writers who pants don't do those things. Pantser...

As promised last week, I'm going to focus the next few posts on my workshops and panels during Imaginarium. Although this won't substitute for the workshops, I can share some highlights. This week, we're going to explore point of view. What is Point of View? A story must be told from someone's experiences or mind. This is your point of view (POV) character. When we're in someone's POV, we only know and experience what they know and experience. If they can think it, smell it, hear it, feel it, assume it, etc., we can share that information.  For example if we're in Adana's POV in The Watchers of Moniah , we know what Adana knows. Not what other people in the scene know. That means we can interpret only through the filter of Adana's perceptions. Here's an example of Adana's POV when she sees Empress Gabriella of Belwyn for the first time. Adana paused on the edge of the gathering, surveying the area. A petite woman [Gabriella], an overabundance...

The Imaginarium Convention is in the books for 2021. What a great conference and wonderful people! If you've never tried this writing conference, you want to check it out. Back in March, I ran a google search for fantasy conventions near me. "Near me" is an interesting search term , because Imaginarium occurs in Louisville, Kentucky--a six hour drive if traffic isn't an issue. Their website really impressed me, and a few weeks after I applied, they invited me to be an author guest. From start to finish, this was an amazing conference and not only because I won an award. (More about that in a moment.) This regional convention brings in writers, authors, film makers, scriptwriters, and then some. It was great to teach a few writing workshops and sit on panels with people like F. Paul Wilson, Richard Knaack, Steven Shrewsbury, Cassandra Morgan, and Michael Knost.  On Friday night, I joined Paul, Steven, and Michael as well as four other professionals on a panel called B...

I'm headed for Louisville, KY this weekend for the Imaginarium Convention . After three other SFF fandom cons and a Meet-the-Author event, I'm excited to rub elbows with writers interested in advancing their skills and careers.  Speaking of Lasers & Lagers, the Meet-the-Authors event, I just got home from Panama City Beach after expanding that event into a family vacation. We had a great time swimming, checking out the shops, riding the Skywheel, and "trying" to swim with the dolphins (they were elusive thanks to recent storms). Lasers & Lagers occurred on the one rainy day which made it perfect! I talked to lots of people about books, mingled with the other authors, and had a chance to see the inside of a very unique establishment, Lie'brary on Beck . Special thanks to the proprietor and wonderful staff of this establishment where the decor focuses on books. Even the bathroom doors look like bookshelves! Pretty cool place to talk about books and raise mo...