Author: Peggy Bechko

Peggy Bechko: Writers’ Resurces Deluxe Edition

Resources-For-Entrepreneurs

by Peggy Bechko

You’re a writer, right? And I’m assuming since you’re reading this on TV Writer you’re leaning a bit more toward script writing than novel writing – or you may be doing both.

And you probably love the web for all the great resources you can find (remember what I told you in a fairly recent post about turning off your browser when you’re actually writing/working).

Regardless, presuming you’re that sensible, I’ve rounded up a few resources you can make use of. Some you may have found on your own, others, well, read on and see what I’ve dug up. read article

Peggy Bechko: Writing, Solitude, and Us (Writers)

white-cedar-beamed-ceiling

by Peggy Bechko

Solitude

Yes, that’s the subject for today. A writer can’t worry about being alone. A reader must welcome alone time to be able to read.

Solitude is the sunshine that allows creativity to flourish. In the quiet time your thoughts can take shape and you can focus. You can unwind, face inner demons, reach deep and find out who you really are. I focus more on the writer, but the same applies to the reader. There are times when we simply need to do nothing, to just sit and be, in order to feel the creativity rise up from the depths of cool solitude. Even while you do nothing, you’re doing something. In the stillness lies the kernel of creativity. read article

Peggy Bechko: Grandpa Was A Character – A Writer’s Inspiration

by Peggy Bechko

NIGHT OF THE FLAMING GUNSI have spent a bit of time recently reflecting on my early beginnings as a writer and the transformation that has happened over the years. Life is change after all and nothing ever stays the same.

Currently I write a lot of things. Novels, screen scripts, commercial copy, and pretty much anything that comes my way that sparks my interest. I’ve published with major houses, optioned scripts and done some self-publishing.

But, what I’m centering on here is my beginnings; that which brought me to this point. read article

Peggy Bechko: Writers Facing Conflict

godzillakingkong by Peggy Bechko

Have you really given thought to conflict? It’s the life blood of your story creation.

I mean think about it. When people have something exciting/terrifying/ dangerous happen to them and they survive to return home to their regular lives what do they talk about? Their regular lives of the out-of-the-ordinary thing that happened? The fact of the matter is, people generally relive those scary/exciting times even when it’s something they might like to put behind them (like a factory explosion, or wartime experiences of a soldier or the collapse of the towers on 9/11). Why are we like this? A psychologist might be able to tell you but I can’t. The obsession people have with thrills is something that’s been around forever. Consider the Romans, the Spartans…us!

But conflict isn’t just one person batting another over the head. There’s all kinds of conflict. And even if you’re the mellow sort who avoids conflict in your life, you can’t avoid it altogether because sometimes it’s brought to you. Additionally it would be silly to try to avoid conflict in your storytelling because you’d end up with no story. read article

Peggy Bechko: Abilities and Skills that Drive Characters

skills

by Peggy Bechko

As writers we create stories and with those stores are people, places and things. Simple, right?

We get wrapped up in the story, where it’s going, it’s moral (if there is one), how you’re going to wrap it up, where it’s going to be set, but do we really give enough attention to the characters abilities?

In order to make our created people (our characters) as interesting as it’s within our abilities to do so there are lots of times when giving him or her some special ability, skill or talent that makes him or her a real stand-out. That could well be anything from being a vampire (I think the skills and abilities are apparent though it would be cool, if you, as the writer came up with a whole new take and list of skills and abilities) to a person with amazing IT abilities (remember 1995’s The Net with Sandra Bullock), to someone like the hero in TV’s new Forever (do I need to say he can’t die?) to a book like Ender’s Game in which a child has incredible war tactic abilities. read article