What elements make for a believable character? What can writers add that aids in the complete and utter suspension of disbelief? Lots of thing come to mind like quirks, back stories, associations, inner thoughts, tribulations - and the list goes on and on. However, something many authors have done with beloved recurring characters is to give them hobbies. Certainly Sherlock Holmes had several and varied 'pursuits'. Agatha Christie had Miss Marple constantly knitting. Let's try rounding out
Argumentative Arguments
The word argument has many different meanings: debate, dispute, statement, reasoning, or you can even view it from a mathematical point of view. Feel free to pick an interpretation of your liking and twist it into a prompt answer.
PT #155
Write an argument that starts in bed.
PT#156
Write a heated argument with an internet troll where you have to stay polite on the surface.
Please include the prompt number either in your story/ch
August 8th 2023 - Holidays and Observances
(click on the day for details)
Ceasefire Day (end of Iran–Iraq War) (Iraqi Kurdistan)
Christian Feast Day:
Altmann of Passau
Cyriacus
Dominic de Guzmán, founder of the Dominican Order.
Four Crowned Martyrs
Largus
Mary MacKillop
Saint Smaragdus (and companions)
Summer is still going hot in the north, so why not feature a heated love story by northie? Plus, I'm always a sucker when one of the characters is described as shy.
Soul Music: Love Encountered
by @northie
Length: 57,168
Description: Geoff is shy, lacking in self-assurance, and not out to his family. When by chance, he meets Tony, a fellow musician, he can't believe that anything will come of it ...
A Reader said: Just finished reading and I have to say I love this st
August 7th 2023 - Holidays and Observances
(click on the day for details)
Assyrian Martyrs Day (Assyrian community)
Battle of Boyacá Day (Colombia)
Christian feast day:
Albert of Trapani
Cajetan of Thienna
Carpophorus and companions
Dometius of Persia
Donatus of Arezzo
Donatus of Besançon
Donatus of Muenstereifel
John Mason Neale and Catherine Winkworth (Episcop
Comedy is the hardest literary form to write. Humor is extremely subjective and can very subtle and nuanced to the point where the joke is missed. Humor can also be offensive to some while enjoyed by others. There are many times of comedy from puns (the lowest form of humor, in my opinion) to dark humor (the kind that's so shocking and offensive, you don't know if the person is laughing because they genuinely find it funny, or they're just extremely uncomfortable and don't know what else to d
August 6th 2023 - Holidays and Observances
(click on the day for details)
Blessed Anna Maria Rubatto
Hormisdas
Justus and Pastor
August 6 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan's Accession Day. (United Arab Emirates)
Independence Day (Bolivia), celebrates the independence of Bolivia from Spain in 1825.
Independenc
Well we just had a false alert go off in my GA and I'm 100% blaming Myr He made misleading comment about one of the better selling gay books becoming a movie. So naturally I ran to Amazon Prime to watch it. To heck with the Weekly Wrap Up until much later I get to Prime and I'm thinking those rat bastardsions, they are not showing it in Canada!!! Then go back to the post and see it is only a trailer on YouTube.
I seem to be doing this more and more often, not reading everything. Is it ag
Art Official
There has been a great deal of talk about the idea of artificial intelligence becoming so much more advance these days, that it may be able to create and weave stories all on its own without really having any real need for authors or artists or models or photographers, etc, at all. And I will admit, I’ve seen some passages ‘written’ by computers that have been fed enough information and influences that it can look pretty convincing to anyone who isn’t experienced with reading in
August 5th 2023 - Holidays and Observances
(click on the day for details)
Christian feast day:
Abel of Reims
Addai
Afra
Albrecht Dürer, Matthias Grünewald, and Lucas Cranach the Elder (Episcopal Church (USA))
Cassian of Autun
Dedication of the Basilica of St Mary
August 4th 2023 - Holidays and Observances
(click on the day for details)
Christian feast day:
Aristarchus
Euphronius
Blessed Frédéric Janssoone
John Vianney
Molua (or Lua)
Raynerius of Split
Sithney, patron saint of mad dogs
August 4 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
Coast Guard Day (United States)
Constitution Day (Cook Islands); first Monday in August
I've been enjoying some especially bad pulp fiction books, gay features with racy, but certainly not graphic, stories like: 'To Want a Boy', 'Summer in Sodom', and 'Queer Pen.' These are the pulp fiction books ordinary gay men would buy for stories about other gay men. Most had a kind of morality tale embedded within the story where despite the main character's best efforts, he couldn't resist his urges. Or, conversely, blameless, innocent men were lured to their destruction by vice and weakn
August 3rd 2023 - Holidays and Observances
(click on the day for details)
Anniversary of the Killing of Pidjiguiti (Guinea-Bissau)
Armed Forces Day (Equatorial Guinea)
Christian feast day:
George Freeman Bragg, W. E. B. Du Bois (Episcopal Church)
Lydia of Thyatira
Myrrhbearers (Lutheran Church)
Now that the Secret Author contest is behind us, it's time to start focusing on the anthology. What better way to kick off this year's Leap of Faith anthology than with a guest article by our Secret Author contest winner, @Libby Drew? Libby, like me, is a big fan of the short story medium, and has written a superb article about writing short stories. Remember that anthology stories can be as little as 1,000 words, and when done well, those words can pack a huge punch. So, read Libby's articl
Did everyone enjoy the Secret Author contest? I certainly did, both writing and reading. But now that it's the first Wednesday of the month, it should be no secret what's coming up. Time for another edition of Ask An Author!
This month, we have @Salander! Let's see what questions we got for 'em...
• • • • •
Salander
1 Story / 121,143 Words
What brought you to GA?
I honestly don’t remember…I started following GA as a lurker back in high school (10-ish years a
August 2nd 2023 - Holidays and Observances
(click on the day for details)
Christian feast day:
Ahudemmeh (Syriac Orthodox Church)
Basil Fool for Christ (Russian Orthodox Church)
Blessed Justin Russolillo
Eusebius of Vercelli
Peter Faber
Peter Julian Eymard
Plegmund
The dangerous kingdom of love by Neil Blackmore
My rating: 5 out of 5 stars
How do you like your Bacon?
Francis Bacon is an important cog in early seventeenth-century Jacobean royal circles - not titled, not a favourite, but he has the ear of the king nonetheless. James I (and VI) has been transplanted from Scotland to the English court. Bacon's role as administrator, facilitator, maybe procurer, to the crown means he's a man to be watched. James is different from old Queen Elizab
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Everybody is undefeated at the start of the season. Whether the fan's cheery optimism is justified gets sorted out by playing the games.
Except for Cleveland fans. They are cursed to suffer.
I could spend a goodly amount of time on this one, but won't. I chose to focus instead on his last quote for the word of the day.
Pathological Liars, Psychopaths & Natural Liars - Differences
I am going to suggest a test that each you may try and is impossible to cheat at????
You would only be fibbing to yourself.
The Test!
This is a three part(3), times test. Close your eyes and say one of the types, whose face or what faces come to mind.
Do thi
The following covers how Pathological is generally used:
adjective: of or relating to the practice of pathology
adjective: caused by or evidencing a mentally disturbed condition
adjective: caused by or altered by or manifesting disease or pathology
Pathological is regularly used in common speech and writing, especially with the second meaning, but it is not used in diagnosis (apart from "pathological fract
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