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CHRISTIAN & WOMEN'S FICTION AUTHOR
M. L. Bull
INSPIRATIONAL RELIGIOUS FICTION
Touching Hearts One Story at a Time . . .
THE BRAINSTORM BLOG
TIPS, TRICKS, & "OUT-OF-THE-BOX" IDEAS FOR FICTION WRITERS

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Character Relationships: 4 Main Relationship Dynamics, Character Maps, & Story Scenarios
Character relationships woven within fictional stories aren't always discussed among fiction writers, but they play a significant role in the story layout and plotline of plays, short stories, novels, or books. Just like people in real life, characters also form and build relationships among other characters in a story, which either help or hinder their story goals and inner transformation journeys during a storyline. Let's go over the four main relationship dynamics writers
M.L. Bull
May 94 min read
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Character Voice: How to Distinguish Characters from One Another
Characters are complex fictional beings with different physical attributes, backstories, and emotional wounds, but one of the most overlooked ways to distinguish them is by character voice. Writers can get creative with how they present their characters and give them lifelike voices that will entertain readers. There are seven specific ways writers can show character voice, which include giving characters' accents, slang or jargon, diction or word choice, tone or volume, phra
M.L. Bull
Apr 206 min read
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Third-Person Omniscient Point-of-View: The Invisible Narrator
Third-person omniscient is the one of the least common point-of-views used by writers within short stories and novels. From my previous blog post, I discussed third-person limited point-of-view and mentioned there are actually two different third-person perspectives. Well, third-person omniscient is the second third-person point of view. It ' s also known as the "godlike" or "all-knowing" point-of-view, or what I call it, "the invisible narrator." This is because this persp
M.L. Bull
Jan 314 min read
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External Conflict: 7 Main Types of Story Conflict
Conflict is one of if not the most important story element in a short story or novel because it's what helps keep readers engrossed within stories and books. Similar to plot, conflict is an engine that moves a story forward. After all, if nothing is going on and there's nothing to overcome, there's no story to tell. External conflict is the obstacles and complications outside of characters in their story world, such as an altercation between two opposing attorneys, a fore
M.L. Bull
Oct 23, 20255 min read
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External Conflict: 6 Outside Forces in a Story World
External conflict is the impact of outside forces that come against characters in a story. There are a number of different types of conflict, obstacles, and challenges characters could face during the plotline, but specifically there are six forces that characters are more than likely to deal with in some way or another. These include natural disasters or storms , supernatural or evil spirits , governments or institutions , people or villains, animals or creatures, and socia
M.L. Bull
Oct 15, 20256 min read
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The Writing Process: From Start to Finish
When we think about the writing process, it's quite similar to an assembly factory or the water cycle many of us learned in science class...
M.L. Bull
Aug 25, 20253 min read
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Christian Fiction: 10 Popular Tropes in Christian Fiction Books
When we think about tropes, the first two genres that come to mind are oftentimes fantasy or romance. However, Christian fiction also has...
M.L. Bull
Aug 16, 20258 min read
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Christian Fiction: 7 Common Subgenres of Christian Fiction
Christian fiction is a main, broad category of Christian books that incorporates a Christ worldview, emphasizing themes of faith,...
M.L. Bull
Aug 8, 20256 min read
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8 Helpful Ways to Drive Traffic to Your Books (Without Social Media)
Social media marketing can be a powerful tool to use for book marketing. However, it's not the only way, nor the most effective when it...
M.L. Bull
Jul 4, 20257 min read
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The Anatomy of Story Structure
If writers really think about it, story structure can be similar to the functionality and foundation of different systems of the human body. There are four specific components of the anatomy of story structure that together make up the DNA of a cohesive, well-organized story. These four components include goals, characters, plot or story arcs, and scenes.
M.L. Bull
Jun 28, 20252 min read
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CHARACTERS: Creating Character Interviews & Backstories
Before writers write about their cast of characters, it can be extremely helpful to complete character interviews and backstories. Both...
M.L. Bull
Jun 21, 20253 min read
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Literary Devices: Foreshadowing & 5 Techniques
Foreshadowing is a common literary device that most seasoned writers have heard of before. It's when writers give hints of future events that are to come or will happen later within a story.
M.L. Bull
Jun 16, 20254 min read
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Literary Devices: The 3 Types of Irony
As I mentioned in my previous blogpost, there's three main different types of irony: verbal, situational, and dramatic. All three of these types of irony can be used creatively within writing to either add clever wit, create suspense, or add a little humor in stories.
M.L. Bull
Jun 11, 20253 min read
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Literary Devices: Irony
Irony is a literary device that can add wit and intrigue in one's writing, but it isn't commonly used as much as metaphors or similes....
M.L. Bull
May 30, 20253 min read
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Christian Fiction: 4 Don'ts of Writing Christian Fiction
Christian fiction is different compared to other book genres, so some things just don't belong in these types of books in my opinion....
M.L. Bull
May 22, 20258 min read
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Christian Fiction: Writing For the Heart and Soul
Christian fiction is writing for the heart and soul of readers, and a beacon of light among other genres in the book industry. Although...
M.L. Bull
May 15, 20255 min read
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The Stages of Writing: Stage 5: Revising
Revision or revising is a process that's similar to recycling trash. Let's face it, sometimes our first drafts, second drafts, or even...
M.L. Bull
May 8, 20253 min read
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The Stages of Writing: Stage 4: Drafting
Drafting ...no, I'm not talking about the United States Army or Airforce. This reference is what I call the fourth stage of writing. Some...
M.L. Bull
Apr 29, 20255 min read
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The Stages of Writing: Stage 3: Plotting and Outlining
Plotting and outlining together are the third stage of writing. These two forms of writing are sometimes used interchangeably; but...
M.L. Bull
Apr 25, 20255 min read
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The Stages of Writing: Stage 1: Prewriting
Just as there are steps for a recipe , there are different stages of writing. Knowing the stages of writing can be beneficial in breaking...
M.L. Bull
Mar 28, 20253 min read
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