As you can see, winter has arrived in Illinois. With it has come some changes to my writing. I had been doing the prep work for my third story (Fantome Fatale), when I suddenly realized that the isolated mansion/family curse scenario was being shoehorned into my impossible footprint ideas. Basically, I was trying to force… Continue reading December ’25 update
I've finished a solid draft of the second story. Looking back at my post announcing the idea, I noticed that it took about one month to write. That makes me happy. It means I've done consistent work and my process of outlining has gone smoothly. I do have a few issues with it. One more… Continue reading November Update
I'm still working on the automaton story, temporarily titled Pistol Pete. It’s about an inventor who’s found dead inside a locked room—one that’s constantly watched. No one else is inside, so suspicion falls on the only possible culprit: his cowboy automaton. I've also been mulling over a second story about a multiple murderer. This killer… Continue reading July 24, 2025 Update
I recently read Boris Akunin’s Murder on the Leviathan. It’s as good an Agatha Christie pastiche as you’re likely to find: a closed-circle mystery with an international cast, full of elegant clues, class tensions, and the familiar contrast between social decorum and violence. Akunin writes in lucid, accessible prose that keeps the narrative crystal clear.… Continue reading 7-5-25
The precise difference between story and plot changes depending on your source. A friend of mine once said that story contains all the meaning—theme, character, the DNA of a work’s soul. Plot, he claimed, is just the roadmap. I didn’t argue. I like maps. I'm a plothead. The idea that one bad decision could destroy… Continue reading Story vs Plot
James Scott Byrnside 