Who hasn’t had a mentor in their life? Perhaps it was a parent, teacher or friend. Writers often have special writing mentors. This could be a creative writing tutor, or authors who’re generous with their advice to newbies. As in life, fiction is awash with mentor figures. But what is their dramatic function in a story? And how can you use the mentor archetype to strengthen your novel? Continue reading
When I began writing this blog post I thought it was going to be a simple introduction to one of my ‘side-characters’ Aelfric. But I found myself not talking so much about the character himself as what his role was in the novel. What did I mean by that? Sure, every character has a role to play in a novel. If they don’t they shouldn’t be in it. But what was Aelfric’s role? In other words, what was his dramatic function? Continue reading