Category Archives: writing

January 5, 2026 · 6:00 am

What is an archetype and how does it fit into my work? #writing

If you write fiction, you are making use of an archetype, whether you know it or not. In literature, the word archetype describes the kinds of characters and plots featured in stories across all cultures and eras of human history.

Even in our ancient past, when we had little communication with other cultures, our myths and legends shared common, recognizable characters we call archetypes.

The Writer’s Journey, Mythic Structure for Writers, by Christopher Vogler, details the various traditional types of characters that are featured in mythology and our modern literary canon. His work is based on Joseph Campbell‘s book, The Hero With a Thousand Faces,

The following is Christopher Vogler’s list of character types [1] who are the heroes and villains in every story:

  1. Hero: someone who is willing to sacrifice his own needs on behalf of others.
  2. Mentor: all the characters who teach and protect heroes and give them gifts.
  3. Threshold Guardian: a menacing face to the hero, but if understood, they can be overcome.
  4. Herald: a force that brings a new challenge to the hero.
  5. Shapeshifter: characters who constantly change from the hero’s point of view.
  6. Shadow: a character who represents the energy of the dark side.
  7. Ally: someone who travels with the hero through the journey, serving a variety of functions.
  8. Trickster: embodies the energies of mischief and desire for change.

So, there we have the characters. Now we need a story. Christopher Booker, author of The Seven Basic Plots: Why We Tell Stories [2], tells us that the following basic archetypes underpin the plots of all stories:

  1. Overcoming the Monster

  2. Rags to Riches

  3. The Quest

  4. Voyage and Return

  5. Comedy

  6. Tragedy

  7. Rebirth

  8. I would add an eighth: Romance

We feel comfortable with these basic recognizable storylines, no matter how differently they are presented to us. No matter the story, if it is fiction, we have characters in familiar roles, acting out familiar plots.

Yet, despite the basic similarity of these characters and plots and their ancient origins, they are the basis of our modern literary canon. Every author has a story to tell, and it is their imagination, style, and voice that make it new and unique.

Let’s consider two famous novels. First, we’ll look at The Maltese Falcon, by Dashiell Hammett.

This is a detective novel, a thriller, nothing at all like our other novel, J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit, which is an epic fantasy quest tale.

However different it looks on the surface, The Maltese Falcon is definitely a quest tale.

The genre of this tale is classic thriller with a film noir flavor. Yes, it’s a quest featuring a hero and a villain, but delivered with a twist.

Sam Spade is a hardboiled, cynical private eye. He is hired to retrieve a jeweled statue, the Maltese Falcon. However, the statue itself is a MacGuffin. The MacGuffin’s importance to the plot is not the object or goal itself, but rather the effect it has on the characters and their motivations. In this case, the quest changes Sam’s life. The sole purpose of the MacGuffin is to move the plot forward.

In The Hobbit, home-loving Bilbo Baggins is a comfortable, upper-middle-class hobbit who is tricked into hosting a group of strangers for a dinner. Overcome by a moment of rashness, he joins the wizard Gandalf and the thirteen dwarves of Thorin’s Company. The obvious quest is for Bilbo to break into a dragon’s lair, acting as a burglar to reclaim the dwarves’ home and treasure from the dragon Smaug.

Through the process of fulfilling his burglar tasks, Bilbo finds the Arkenstone, an heirloom jewel prized above all else by the leader of the dwarves, Thorin Oakenshield.

It is a MacGuffin.

the one ringIn fact, the entire quest, from the moment he leaves home until the day he returns, is a MacGuffin. This is because its sole purpose is to force Bilbo’s personal growth and place him where he will find the One Ring, which will be featured as a core quest in later stories.

By the end of The Maltese Falcon, we learn that the object of the quest was not the purported “Maltese Falcon” after all, despite the lengths they go to acquire it and the efforts the characters expend in the process. The true core of the story is the internal journey of both Sam Spade (the hero) and Brigid O’Shaunessy (the ally/shapeshifter/trickster), two people brought together by the quest, and whose lives are changed by it.

Similarly, the true object of The Hobbit’s quest is not the reclamation of the dwarves’ heritage and treasure. It is how Bilbo Baggins is changed by his experiences and the people he meets on the journey.

So, The Hobbit and The Maltese Falcon begin with the same character archetype of the hero.

  • Bilbo (the hero) is hired to steal the Arkenstone for Thorin and the dwarves.
  • Sam Spade (the hero) is hired to obtain the Maltese Falcon for Brigid O’Shaunessy.

In both tales, another archetypal role that appears is that of the mentor: Bilbo has Gandalf the Wizard, and Sam Spade has Caspar Gutman. Despite their very different personalities and reasons for offering wisdom, both are mentors. Both offer advice that advances the plot.

Both Brigid O’Shaunessy and Thorin Oakenshield begin as allies but prove to be tricksters, shapeshifting and becoming the shadow.

In each tale, the hero endures hardship to acquire an object (the Maltese Falcon or the Arkenstone), only to find that it is no longer as important as he thought. In the process of their journeys, both find joy and sorrow.

Sam Spade never acquires the true Maltese Falcon but finds out who really killed his business partner. He loses much in the process and emerges a different man.

Bilbo Baggins loses his naïveté, and after all the work of finally finding it, he hides the treasured Arkenstone. He does this because of Thorin’s greed and uncharitable actions toward the Wood-elves and the Lake-men who have suffered from the Dragon’s depredations.

And as anyone can tell you, despite their being written in the same era, and the similarities of their archetypal plots and characters, they are radically different novels.

And that is the beauty of the deeper level of the story.

Something so fundamentally similar as plot archetypes and character archetypes emerges completely unique and (on the surface) wildly dissimilar from others when told by different storytellers.

So, while there may be no “new” stories, your voice, your originality and imaginative twists make the story new and memorable.

Credits and attributions:

IMAGE: The One Ring, Wikimedia Commons contributors, “File:One Ring Blender Render.png,” Wikimedia Commons, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:One_Ring_Blender_Render.png&oldid=1051100432 (accessed January 3, 2026).

[1] Wikipedia contributors, “Archetype,”Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia ,https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Archetype&oldid=1321105373 (accessed January 3, 2026).

[2] Christopher Booker (2004). The seven basic plots: why we tell stories. London: Continuum. ISBN 978-0826452092. OCLC 57131450.

Wikipedia contributors, “The Writer’s Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers,”Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia,https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Writer%27s_Journey:_Mythic_Structure_for_Writers&oldid=1324459018 (accessed January 3, 2026)

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December 29, 2025 · 6:00 am

Character development: #writing the mentor

No matter the genre, from sci-fi to romance, a mentor shows up to offer needed information that helps the protagonist succeed in their quest. I write fantasy, so certain themes figure prominently in my work. Often, the theme that shapes the main character’s arc is the hero’s journey or, possibly, coming-of-age. These are strong themes, and in stories where the character arc is shaped by them, one of the side characters can serve as a mentor.

Writing Craft Series: the mentorThe mentor can take many forms. Creating a mentor with depth and a sense of history without going off on a tangent is tricky. This is where my writing group is so helpful. Their thoughts and opinions enable me to narrow the focus, helping me create a character who empowers my intended plot arc, but doesn’t take over the story.

I often think about the people who guided me when I was young. In my case, my father encouraged me to never stop learning. But the person who had the most influence on my view of family was my maternal grandmother. She was an amazing woman, and I aspire to be the kind of person she was.

Some universal literary themes, such as bravery, fear, hope, etc.She never lectured or preached, but she knew things, and I learned by observing her. She had an Edwardian childhood and a Roaring Twenties adulthood. Family was the most important thing to her.

She understood that life is a series of learning from our mistakes but expected us to do what was right. Watching her taught me that true wisdom is not about having all the answers. It is about doing the best you can with what you have and finding joy in the small things.

Wisdom is a word that symbolizes a myriad of ideas. In a mentor, it can signify knowledge of fundamental human truths. Perhaps their naïve enjoyment of life has long gone, but in its place is the ability to enjoy the now, to be truly present in life.

The story will tell you what sort of mentor it requires. Some mentors can provide food and shelter, momentary comfort, and an opportunity to heal and regroup. Through their actions and conversation, these mentors can dispense needed wisdom.

Others are more formal: a leader who trains the protagonist in a craft, such as weaponry or magic, something needed to fulfil the quest.

Experience makes a person wiser and can change the personalities of our characters. Perhaps one becomes hardened as a form of self-preservation. That person can become the Han Solo kind of mentor.

Conversely, life experiences can make a mentor more understanding of human frailty.

Let’s look at Aragorn, from the Lord of the Rings Trilogy.

Cover image for The Fellowship of the Ring by JRR TolkienTolkien was crafty. The scene where Aragorn is first introduced makes us wary. The man we meet is mysterious and seems a little dangerous. Yet there is more to him than we see in the dark, smoky taproom of the Prancing Pony, and we wonder about him. At that point, he is only known as Strider, and in that role, he offers them the information they need.

In the chapter titled “Strider,” Frodo reads Gandalf’s letter. Having read it, Frodo says, “I think one of his (Sauron’s) spies would – well, seem fairer and feel fouler, if you understand.”

“I see,” laughed Strider. “I look foul and feel fair. Is that it? All that is gold does not glitter, not all those who wander are lost.” [1]

In the scene, Aragorn is quoting a poem that is later revealed to reference him and his birthright. These are wise words from a poem-within-the-story, a signature literary device Tolkien used regularly.

“All that is gold does not glitter,

Not all those who wander are lost;

The old that is strong does not wither,

Deep roots are not reached by the frost.”

With that quote, he cautions Frodo to look beyond the surface and see the strength that lies beneath. He suggests that the converse can be true, that beauty can disguise what is evil.

In Aragorn, we have a mentor who is wise from life experience and somewhat hardened to the discomforts of his exile. But he is also kind, a person who cares about even the smallest people. He is later revealed to be the heir of Isildur, the sole remaining scion of the fabled last King of Gondor.

Yet, at this stage, he is approaching middle age and may as well be heir of nothing. The respectable landlord of the Prancing Pony looks down on him, seeing Aragorn as little more than a vagrant. Here, he is only known as Strider, leader of the Rangers. These soldiers are not merely mercenaries; they are the Dúnedain of the North, the descendants of his ancestor’s knights.

In the guise of Strider, Aragorn is a good mentor from the first moment we meet him. The reader understands this because he is shown to have a history. Tolkien does this perfectly as the backstory is only hinted at.

Frodo knows nothing about him, other than he is a friend of Gandalf. But Frodo has a good sense about people, and something tells him Strider can be trusted. Our protagonist listens to his counsel even when he disagrees with it.

When we create a mentor character, we must give the reader reasons to believe they have the wisdom our protagonist needs.

At the outset, when we find Strider in the Prancing Pony observing Frodo making the worst possible blunder, we know instantly that there is more to this man than is seen on the surface.

“Well? Why did you do that? Worse than anything your friends could have said! You have put your foot in it! Or should I say your finger?” ~ Strider, The Fellowship of the Ring. [1]

Movie poster for the Fellowship of the RingIn that scene, we meet a person who knows about the secret Frodo carries. Despite Frodo’s error, Tolkien’s portrayal of him makes us believe that he won’t try to steal it, that he is honorable. Here is a person who genuinely wants to help Frodo escape the Black Riders.

We hope that Frodo will listen to him despite his (justifiable) paranoia and Sam’s misgivings.

When I create a mentor in a story, I hope to convey a sense of history without beating the reader over the head with it. I want to evoke a feeling of rightness, that this person knows things we don’t, that this person has knowledge our protagonist must gain.

Hopefully, the insights of my own mentors (my writing group) will guide me to write memorable narratives filled with characters who leave an impact.

Credits and Attributions:

[1] Quote from The Fellowship of the Ring, by J.R.R. Tolkien, Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt; Illustrated edition, published 29 July 1954. (accessed December 28, 2025) Fair Use.

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring theatrical release poster. Wikipedia contributors, “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring,”Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia,https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Lord_of_the_Rings:_The_Fellowship_of_the_Ring&oldid=1329784385(accessed December 28, 2025).

Wikipedia contributors, “The Fellowship of the Ring,”Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia,https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Fellowship_of_the_Ring&oldid=1329646864(accessed December 28, 2025).

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December 26, 2025 · 6:00 am

#FineArtFriday: “Bringing Home the Yule Log,” A Victorian Christmas Card

This lovely, whimsical card is a brilliant example of the art that can be found on Christmas cards, which became popular in the late 19th and 20th centuries, and while they have fallen out of favor for many nowadays, I still love the art.

About Christmas Cards, via Wikipedia:

The production of Christmas cards was, throughout the 20th century, a profitable business for many stationery manufacturers, with the design of cards continually evolving with changing tastes and printing techniques. The now widely recognized brand Hallmark Cards was established in 1913 by Joyce Hall with the help of brother Rollie Hall to market their self-produced Christmas cards. The Hall brothers capitalized on a growing desire for more personalized greeting cards, and reached critical success when the outbreak of World War I increased demand for cards to send to soldiers. [1]

I love the sentiment expressed at the bottom of this card:

“While Christmas is here, be all of good cheer.”

Christmas Day has gone, leaving behind the memory of cozy warmth, of a table laden with comfort food, sharing a holiday meal with one of my sons and a dear friend. Leaving the memory of talking with my other son and the daughters who live far away.

The old year is nearly over, and while the weather has been unusually stormy this last month, I have far more blessings than I can count.

My Christmas wish for you is: May you never lack for good food, warmth, and the companionship of people you love. May you always have books to read, and may happiness regularly cross your path.

Credits and Attributions:

IMAGE: Wikimedia Commons contributors, “File:Victorian Christmas Card – 11222221966.jpg,” Wikimedia Commons, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Victorian_Christmas_Card_-_11222221966.jpg&oldid=470244728 (accessed December 24, 2025).

[1] Wikipedia contributors, “Christmas card,” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Christmas_card&oldid=1321585292 (accessed December 26, 2025).

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December 22, 2025 · 6:00 am

My favorite audiobook, “A Christmas Carol,” narrated by @AaronVolner

It’s that time of year when I seek out and enjoy every version of my favorite Christmas story of all time, A Christmas Carol, by Charles Dickens.

The best version is the original. My dear friend (and one of my favorite indie authors) Aaron Volner is an amazing narrator. In 2023, he posted his reading of the original manuscript of A Christmas Carol on YouTube. It is read exactly as written by Charles Dickens and is a wonderful rendition.

My Sister's Ornament, cjjaspAaron’s interpretation of this classic is spot on. He has gotten all the voices just right, from kindly Fred down to Tiny Tim.

I think this is by far my favorite version of A Christmas Carol as it is the original manuscript and I listen to it every year. I confess now: the rest of this post is basically a rehashing of my post from 2024, as I still love this narration more than any other. 

A small warning: the original version, as it fell out of Dicken’s pen and onto the paper, is far scarier than most modern versions, and Volner’s interpretation expresses that eeriness perfectly.

Scrooge’s horror is visceral, and his redemption is profound.

Charles Dickens would have greatly approved of this reading. I give Volner’s performance five stars, which is something I rarely do. You can find this wonderful reading via this link: “A Christmas Carol” by Charles Dickens – YouTube.

It is divided into staves (chapters) so that you can listen to one a day or binge them the way I do.

Aaron’s narration of this wonderful story prompts me to revisit (again) a post on what modern writers can learn from Dickens, one posted several years ago.

Each time I read this tale or listen to Aaron’s narration, I learn something new about story and structure. The opening act of this tale hooks the reader and keeps them hooked. It is a masterclass in how to structure a story.

Let’s have a look at the first lines of this tale:

Christmascarol1843_--_040“Marley was dead, to begin with. There is no doubt whatever about that. The register of his burial was signed by the clergyman, the clerk, the undertaker, and the chief mourner. Scrooge signed it. And Scrooge’s name was good upon ‘Change for anything he chose to put his hand to. Old Marley was as dead as a doornail.”

In that first paragraph, Dickens offers us the bait. He sinks the hook and reels in the fish (the reader) by foreshadowing the story’s first plot point–the visitation by Marley’s ghost. We want to know why Marley’s unquestionable state of decay was so crucial that the conversation between us, the readers, and Dickens, the author, was launched with that topic.

Dickens doesn’t talk down to his readers. He uses the common phrasing of his time as if he were speaking to us over tea — “dead as a doornail,” a phrase that is repeated for emphasis. This places him on our level, a friend we feel comfortable gossiping with.

He returns to the thread of Marley several pages later, with the little scene involving the doorknocker. This is where Scrooge sees the face of his late business partner superimposed over the knocker and believes he is hallucinating. This is more foreshadowing, more bait to keep us reading.

At this point, we’ve followed Scrooge through several scenes, each introducing the subplots. We have met the man who, as yet, is named only as ‘the clerk’ in the original manuscript but whom we will later know to be Bob Cratchit. We’ve also met Scrooge’s nephew, Fred, who is a pleasant, likeable man.

These subplots are critical, as Scrooge’s redemption revolves around the ultimate resolution of those two separate mini stories. He must witness the joy and love in Cratchit’s family, who are suffering but happy despite living in grinding poverty (for which Scrooge bears a responsibility).

We see that his nephew, Fred, though orphaned, has his own business to run and is well off in his own right. Fred craves a relationship with his uncle and doesn’t care what he might gain from it financially.

By the end of the first act, all the characters are in place, and the setting is solidly in the reader’s mind. We’ve seen the city, cold and dark, with danger lurking in the shadows. We’ve observed how Scrooge interacts with everyone around him, strangers and acquaintances alike.

Now we come to the first plot point in Dickens’ story arc: Marley’s visitation. This moment in a story is also called “the inciting incident,” as this is the point of no return. Here is where the set-up ends, and the story takes off.

Dickens understood how to keep a reader enthralled. No words are wasted. Every scene is important, every scene leads to the ultimate redemption of the protagonist, Ebenezer Scrooge.

This is a short tale, a novella rather than a novel. But it is a profoundly moving allegory, a parable of redemption that remains pertinent in modern society.

In this tale, Dickens asks you to recognize the plight of those whom the Industrial Revolution has displaced and driven into poverty and the obligation of society to provide for them humanely.

This is a concept our society continues to struggle with and perhaps will for a long time to come. Cities everywhere struggle with the problem of homelessness and a lack of empathy for those unable to afford decent housing. Everyone is aware of this problem, but we can’t come to an agreement for resolving it.

A Christmas Carol remains relevant even in today’s hyper-connected world. It resonates with us because of that deep, underlying call for compassion that resounds through the centuries and is, unfortunately, timeless.

Ghost_of_Christmas_Present_John_Leech_1843As I mentioned before, this book is only a novella. It was comprised of 66 handwritten pages. Some people think they aren’t “a real author” if they don’t write a 900-page doorstop, but Dickens proves them wrong.

One doesn’t have to write a novel to be an author. Whether you write blog posts, poems, short stories, novellas, or 700-page epic fantasies, you are an author. Diarists are authors. Playwrights are authors. Authors write—the act of creative writing makes one an author.

And now, about the featured images. The two illustrations are by John Leech from the first edition of the novella published in book form in 1843.  We’re fortunate that the original art of John Leech, which Dickens himself chose to include in the book, has been uploaded to Wikimedia Commons. Thanks to the good people at Wikimedia, these prints are available for us all to enjoy.

From Wikipedia: John Leech (August 29, 1817 – October 29, 1864, in London) was a British caricaturist and illustrator. He is best known for his work for Punch, a humorous magazine for a broad middle-class audience, combining verbal and graphic political satire with light social comedy. Leech catered to contemporary prejudices, such as anti-Americanism and antisemitism, and supported acceptable social reforms. Leech’s critical yet humorous cartoons on the Crimean War help shape public attitudes toward heroism, warfare, and Britain’s role in the world. [1]

I love stories of redemption–and A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens remains one of the most beloved tales of redemption in the Western canon. Written in 1843 as a serialized novella, A Christmas Carol has inspired a landslide of adaptations in both movies and books.

Dickens was an indie, as all writers were at that time. His essays and many short stories were published in several well-known magazines, but that paid little. He still worked hard to support his family with his writing, touring constantly to sell his work.

But we remember him and his works today. His great talent for storytelling gives us permission to write what we are inspired to.

And that brings me back to Aaron Volner. If you need a narrator, Aaron is amazing, and you can contact him at  https://aaronvolner.com/contact/. And if you’re interested in creative, well-written fantasy, his book page is https://aaronvolner.com/books/. I highly recommend his books!

May the holiday season and New Year find you and your loved ones happy and healthy, and may you have many opportunities to tell your stories.

CREDITS AND ATTRIBUTIONS:

[1] Wikipedia contributors, “John Leech (caricaturist),” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=John_Leech_(caricaturist)&oldid=871947694 (accessed December 20, 2025).

Wikimedia Commons contributors, “File:Christmascarol1843 — 040.jpg,” Wikimedia Commons, the free media repository, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Christmascarol1843_–_040.jpg&oldid=329166198 (accessed December 20, 2025)

A colourised edit of an engraving of Charles Dickens’ “Ghost of Christmas Present” character, by John Leech in 1843. Wikimedia Commons contributors, “File:Ghost of Christmas Present John Leech 1843.jpg,” Wikimedia Commons, the free media repository, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Ghost_of_Christmas_Present_John_Leech_1843.jpg&oldid=329172654 (accessed December 20, 2025).

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December 15, 2025 · 6:00 am

Exploring theme and morality: contrasts #writing

A few years ago, I wrote a short story for an anthology on the theme of Escape, published by the Northwest Independent Writers Association (NIWA). My story was titled “View from the Bottom of a Lake.” The genre of that story is not fantasy, although it is a dream, a memory of a time gone by.

One of the requirements for that anthology was that all stories must be set in the Pacific Northwest. I set mine in an environment I knew well, the shore of the lake that dominated my early years. With my setting established, I went online and looked up every synonym for the second requirement, which was the theme: “escape.”

Then, after I had all the synonyms, I looked for the antonyms, the opposites.

Capture. Imprisonment. Confront.

Universal Literary Themes such as braverym coming of age, etc.Once I had a full understanding of all the many nuances of the theme, I asked myself how I could write a story set in an environment I knew and loved. My solution was to set it in the late 1950s. Anything that is history may as well be fantasy because the victors write the history books.

Then, I began plotting.

The main theme of escape had to form the backbone of the plot, that was a given. I asked what my character needed most in her effort to escape. My gut answer was courage.

The first subtheme, the one that formed my main character, was courage. She is underage, fearful of her narcissistic mother, and armed with the knowledge of what she must do to escape.

Every day, she escapes her mother’s disdain by swimming in the lake and staying underwater as long as she can. In those brief moments of freedom, she plans for her long-term escape, determined that once she goes away to college, she won’t return. Her grandmother, who is also a prisoner in that household, is determined to help her escape by paying for her education.

Plot is the frame upon which the themes of a story are supported.The story loops around my protagonist’s fractured family and their twisted relationship with the nearest neighbors.

The second subtheme is hypocrisy. This is a theme of morality, of “do as I say, not as I do.” The parents live out their failed dreams through their children. The girl is forced to take ballet lessons that she despises, and the boy must play football. The girl’s mother is a former ballerina who got pregnant and had to get married, ending her career before it got started. The boy’s father’s glory days were his years as a small-town jock, before WWII changed everything.

In their social world, appearances are everything. And everything is colored by her mother and his father and what everyone knows but cannot speak of.

The final subthemes of that story are hope and perseverance, and in many ways, those themes are the most important.

For the girl, romance with the boy next door is still only a possibility, but the seeds are there through their lifelong friendship. Their plans will come to fruition if only they can survive their senior year and graduate with high grades. All they have to do is endure the pressure cookers of their homes for one more year, and they will achieve their post-high school dreams.

Thus, contrasts drive that short story, and strong themes enabled me to write that tale in three days. The brilliant Lee French was the editor for Escape, and her input was invaluable. View from the Bottom of a Lake is (in my opinion) my best work. Ever.

So, what can I take from that experience to breathe life into my current work-in-progress?

First, I need to identify the overall theme for this half of the story. A comprehensive list of literary themes can be found here: A Huge List of Common Themes – Literary Devices.

The main theme, as I see it now, is two-fold. The theme of religion is explored in the war of the gods, and how a lust for power corrupts one of them.

Cartoon: I am their creator. Why do they not obey me?The mortals are the playing pieces in their great game. For the people who must live their lives in the shadow of this war, the more immediate theme of change in the face of tradition underpins the plot. It is explored through the protagonist’s quest to save his people despite their stubborn clinging to xenophobic traditions.

  • My protagonists do have some allies, but they must unite the tribes and convince them of the danger presented by the antagonist.
  • My antagonist knows how the more traditional tribes fear change and ruthlessly stokes that fire.

The enemy presents himself as the man who will keep to the old ways, even though it means abandoning the Goddess Aeos and switching their loyalty to the Bull God. He lies to them about that minor detail, but justifies it as a good lie, a necessary lie.

The 3 S(s) of worldbuilding: Sight, Sound, Smell.So, a third subtheme that runs through the second half of this story is morality. The antagonist can manipulate things and people to achieve his goals. He doesn’t see this as immoral. While the villain is spreading disinformation, the protagonist must try to convey the truth to people who don’t want to hear it. He must convey the facts in such a way that even the staunch traditionalists will see how the antagonist manipulates them.

In real life, everyone is a mass of contradictions we aren’t really aware of. Sometimes, it helps if I use polarities (opposites, contrasts) to flesh out a character. They help me flesh out the protagonist and also the antagonist.

  • courage – cowardice
  • manipulative – honorable
  • truth – misinformation

Now, while I fill in the plot, I am also noting ideas that will support the themes as they come to me. Good use of contrasts will (hopefully) illuminate my characters’ motives and intentions as they work toward the final goal.

Over the next year, I will expand on all these themes and bring this epic to the desired conclusion.

I talk a lot about craft, and yes, it is important. But I believe the most important aspect of the writing process is to have passion for the characters and their story. Writing always flows well when I am emotionally involved.

How is your writing going? Are you able to stay emotionally involved with the characters and their lives?Doing the math: Character + Objective + Risk = Story

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December 12, 2025 · 6:00 am

#FineArtFriday: Traditions of Christmas by Adolph Tidemand 1846

Artist: Adolph Tidemand (1814–1876)

Title: Norwegian Christmas Tradition

Date: 1846

Medium: oil on canvas

Dimensions: height: 69 cm (27.1 in)

Collection: Trondheim art museum

Inscriptions: Signature and date bottom right: A. Tidemand 46. Df.

 

What I love about this painting:

Adolph Tideman shows us a community gathering in front of a traditional Norwegian store house, a stabbur. Everyone is having fun, enjoying traditional winter activities. For me, the stabbur is the most interesting part of this painting. I love the architecture, the way it is constructed to protect the foods and items stored within it.

I also love the birds who circle above and roost on it. They are partaking of the feast offered by the sheaf of grain, apparently enjoying the festivities happening in the street below.

In Norway, the hoisting of a sheaf into the air during Christmas is a tradition known as Julenek or Kornband. They hang a sheaf of oats or grain on a pole near homes and barns to attract birds for an avian Christmas dinner. According to the article, Julenek – Christmas Sheaf A Norwegian Tradition | Norway with Pål, “It symbolizes good luck and is believed to bring prosperity for the coming year. Historically, it was thought to be an offering to the gods or a way to protect against evil forces. The sheaf is typically hung on Christmas Eve and is a common sight during the holiday season in Norway.” [1]

About the stabbur, via the Scandinavian Heritage Association website:

“Trunks with clothing and valuables were stored on the upper floor. Food and commodities were stored on the ground floor. Water and rodents were the biggest enemies in a storehouse. Stilts raised the floor level, the wooden steps did not come into contact with the building to reduce the possibility of rodent infestation and meat/cheese was hung from the ceiling.” [2]

About this painting, via the Trondheim Kunstmuseum:

” In this painting of modest size the pictorial space is packed with people who perform different tasks, all dressed in Norwegian national costumes. The store house is the centre of attention, and on the roof a sheaf is hoisted into the air, a Norwegian Christmas custom.” [3]

About the Artist, via Wikipedia:

Adolph Tidemand (14 August 1814 – 8 August 1876) was a noted Norwegian romantic nationalism painter. Among his best known paintings are Haugianerne (The Haugeans; 1852) and Brudeferd i Hardanger (The Bridal Procession in Hardanger; 1848), painted in collaboration with Hans Gude. [4]

To read more about this extraordinary artist’s life, go to  Adolph Tidemand – Wikipedia

Credits and Attributions:

IMAGE: Wikimedia Commons contributors, “File:Adolph Tidemand – Norwegian Christmas Tradition – Norsk juleskik – TKM-1-1867 – Trondheim kunstmuseum (cropped).jpg,” Wikimedia Commons, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Adolph_Tidemand_-_Norwegian_Christmas_Tradition_-_Norsk_juleskik_-_TKM-1-1867_-_Trondheim_kunstmuseum_(cropped).jpg&oldid=1030315615 (accessed December 11, 2025).

[1] Quote from Julenek – Christmas Sheaf A Norwegian Tradition | Norway with Pål © 2025 Pål Bjarne Johansen, Norway with Pål (Accessed December 11, 2025).

[2] Quote from Stabbur – Scandinavian Heritage Association © 2025 Scandinavian Heritage Association Contributors, (accessed December 11, 2025).

[3] Quote from Adolf Tideman – Trondheim kunstmuseum © 2025 Trondheim Kunstmuseum Contributors (accessed December 11, 2025).

[4] Wikipedia contributors, “Adolph Tidemand,” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Adolph_Tidemand&oldid=1325534158 (accessed December 11, 2025).

 

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December 8, 2025 · 6:00 am

Heroes and Villains #writing

If you read last week’s post, you know that I am working on both the hero and villain of my work-in-progress.

And now that it is December, I can expand on each character’s theme, a sub-thread that is solely theirs. A personal theme can shape how each character reacts and interacts throughout the narrative. The themes were established in the first book, but they (and the characters) will evolve as the story does.

Themes emphasize the motivations of our characters and underscore both strengths and weaknesses.

For example, a villain’s personal theme might be hubris (excessive self-confidence). It can also be a hero’s theme. It is a high degree of arrogance, and terrible decisions can arise from it.

A hero’s personal theme might be honor and loyalty. This might also be their weakness, as it can undermine their ability to act decisively. In trying to save someone she desperately loves, others might suffer. In Star Trek terms, the good of the one can exceed the good of the many, and people will die that could have been saved. Who is the villain in that case?

Sometimes, there is little distinction between heroes and villains in real life. Some heroes are jackasses who need to be taken down a notch. Some villains will extort protection money from a store owner and then turn around and open a soup kitchen to feed the unemployed.

Al Capone famously did just that. Mobster Al Capone Ran a Soup Kitchen During the Great Depression – HISTORY.

In reality, heroes are flawed because no one is perfect. So, don’t be too shocked and heartbroken when a public figure you admire is discovered to have personal failings. Most of the time, those failings are only a small part of their character, as we hope our own weaknesses are.

When I first designed my characters, I assigned them verbs, nouns, and adjectives, traits they embody. They must also have a void, an emotional emptiness, a wound of some sort.

The void is necessary because characters must overcome personal cowardice to face it. As a reader, I’ve noticed that my favorite characters each have a hint of self-deception. All the characters deceive themselves about their own motives.

The heroes we admire eventually recognize their flaws and become stronger, able to do what is necessary. The villains may also acknowledge their fatal flaw but use it to justify and empower their actions.

I like heroes and villains with possibilities. I like believing that the villain might be redeemed, or the hero might become the villain.

That is why in my current work, the tragic hero who becomes the villain is central to my story. In other stories, I have explored the broken hero, the one who rises from the ruins of their life to save the day. So, it just seemed right to consider a hero who fights with all his heart but for the wrong side.

My creative mind works by having plots and characters evolve together. When I sit down to create a story arc, my characters offer hints about how they will develop. Themes emerge, and their evolution can alter the course of different character arcs.

Who in your work will be best suited to play the villain? Character B?

Conversely, why is character A the hero?

In the early stages of a first draft, I know who the hero and the antagonist are. But until I know who they are when they are off duty and enjoying their downtime, I don’t really know them.

No matter what genre we write in, when we design the story, we build it around a need that must be fulfilled, a quest of some sort. The story needs a theme, each character needs a theme, and once I know what those themes are, I will have the heart of it.

Of course, for my protagonist, the quest to unite his world is the primary goal. But he has secrets, underlying motives not explicitly stated at the outset. There is a theme to those secrets. The same goes for my villain.

Now that I am building the second half of the story, my supporting characters also have agendas that conflict with the hero’s. Their role in that story is affected by their personal ambitions and desires. My hero’s first quest is to get them to shed their xenophobia.

The antagonists also have motives, both stated and unstated. They need to thwart the protagonist and must have a logical reason for doing so. They have a history that goes beyond the obvious “they needed a bad guy, and I’m it” of the cartoon villain.

No one goes through life acting on impulses for no reason whatsoever. On the surface, an action may seem random and mindless. The person involved might claim there was no reason or even be accused of it, but that is a fallacy, a lame excuse they might offer to conceal the secret that really drives them.

Half of this story is written and will not be published as a novel until its sequel is ready for publication. I can see the whole story, but the details are blurry. So, I have an idea of what the entire story will be. And now as I write, the second half of this story unfolds.

As a reader, I dislike discovering the author doesn’t really know how to get what their protagonist wants. I always have the urge to tell them that a working relationship with a trusted editor could have helped a great deal. A strong personal theme would help identify what each character needs and wants. Random events inserted to keep things interesting don’t advance the story. But motivation does, and using themes can lead the writer to it.

Character creation crosses all genres. I write fantasy, but even if you are writing a memoir detailing your childhood, the basics of story telling come into play. You are telling a story about the person you were in those days. What were the themes that bound your experiences together? You want the reader to see the events that shaped you, not through the lens of memory, but as if they were observing them unfold.

No matter the genre you write in, some things are universal. Who are your characters? Who do they love, and who do they despise? How can a strong personal theme emphasize a character’s personality?

I hope your work is progressing well. In the darkness of December, the Christmas lights decorating the apartment building across the way cheer me up. They make the eternal Northwest rain seem less oppressive.

My favorite comfort foods and a cup of tea make for cozy evenings spent thinking about how I want this plot to go.  Writing is hard work, but it’s good work.

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December 1, 2025 · 6:00 am

#NovelNovember has ended, my book isn’t done, and once again, I’m clueless #writing

Today is the first day of December 2025. Over the last 30 days, I have written more than 50,000 words to finish the plot of a novel that is ½ of a duology. The story is too big and would make a giant doorstop of a book, so I am splitting it.

Book one is a complete first draft and desperately needs revising, but book two has barely begun. Here is the screenshot of my ProWritingAid’s NovelNovember dashboard yesterday, after I added my final wordcount for November.

I feel good about this experience, and I’ll probably do it again if they offer it next year.

As to my novel, I know how this story is supposed to end, as it is canon. The history mentioned in the series tells us that my protagonist is the founder of the Temple, and the College of Mages and Healers. The story told in these two books will end once my lovebirds clear the final hurdle to achieving those goals.

I have written the first draft of six complete chapters. It’s a good start in the main manuscript, so that is now at 16,010 words. I am now brainstorming the middle section in a separate manuscript. As of the time I am writing this post, that involves 39,112 words of thinking aloud and going back to the other books to ensure I don’t contradict myself.

Since I am rereading the main series that was published in my early days as a writer, I have found much that needs re-editing. Because I am an Indie, I can (and will) re-edit the entire series. I will do that whenever I am stalled on my current manuscript.

Unfortunately, the results of my written thinking aloud are good ideas that often don’t work for what I envision as the final product.

But they may become short stories set in that world. In the meantime, I have to make the answers to these two questions drive the plot:

  1. This is a continuation of the story that began in the previous book, so what do the characters want now that some of their goals have been achieved?
  2. What stands in the way of their achieving the final goal of defeating the Bull God’s stolen champion?

Thus, the background writing is moving along. I now have two major events to choreograph plot arcs for, and then I can connect the dots between my chosen scenes and give it an upbeat ending.

I do my mind-wandering in a separate document until I have concrete scenes. That brainstorming is productive because some of those rambles will become chapters.

The premise of books set in this world is that the gods are at war, and the world of Neveyah is the battleground. The gods cannot interact directly with each other or undo another god’s work, so the people of their worlds are the playing pieces, albeit pawns with free will and the option to struggle against their fate.Need drives the story. Objectives + Risk= StoryMy heroes and villains both see themselves as the protagonist because the fate of their world is at stake. There must be one god for each world, and the Bull God has imprisoned his brother in an attempt to steal his brother’s wife. He can’t kill Ariend but intends to claim Aeos and add their worlds to his. That was the Sundering of the Worlds, a catastrophic event nearly destroying three of the eleven worlds.

Now, a thousand years have passed and he is once again on the move. If the protagonist wins, the Goddess of Hearth and Home will retain control of Ariend’s prison and the world Aeos created. Conversely, if the antagonist wins, the Bull God will claim it all, and the imbalance of the worlds will once again threaten the stability of their universe.

So, now I’m plotting the midpoint crisis. An important festival and a council of elders is held. My protagonist must work to sway the skeptics in his direction. In their personal arcs, he and his wife must overcome their own doubts and fears and make themselves stronger.

Then I must work on fleshing out the enemy. This mage is not a terrible person. Once a devoted follower of Aeos, he triggered a mage trap and was forcibly converted to the enemy’s side.

Now he is under an unbreakable spell and his loyalty is given to the Bull God, the Breaker of the Worlds. The god manipulates him. My antagonist’s motives stem from his imposed conviction that the Goddess is weak and that the tribes have strayed from the traditions that made them strong.

My antagonist is featured three times briefly in the first half of this tale. That story is devoted to the protagonist surviving several events that give rise to the tales that turn an ordinary warrior-shaman into the legendary hero the children’s books say he was. Now, I must write my antagonist with empathy because his fall from grace was a tragedy and a terrible personal loss to our protagonist.

Both intend to prevail at any cost. What is the final hurdle, and what will the characters lose in the process? Is the price physical suffering or emotional? Or both? This is an origin story, so history tells me who succeeds. But what is the personal cost of that success?

I know my protagonist and antagonist will meet in a large battle, face to face. Several people we love will die, enabling the desired ending. I know who must die, and I have an idea of where that will happen, because whenever I have a thought about any aspect of this story, I write it down.

By the end of this book, all the threads that began in book one will have been drawn together and resolved for better or worse.

In real life, people live happily, but no one lives a deliriously happy-ever-after. Thus, the ending must be finite and wrap up the conflict. The future must look rosy for my protagonist and his companions.

Thank you all for listening to me rant about my work. What is your project and how is it progressing? What has been your greatest struggle?

Sometimes writing is a lonely craft. It helps to have a writing group to talk to. They help me reframe ideas in a way that works better than my original plan. And when it gets to the beta reading stage, they will be there with good suggestions.

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November 24, 2025 · 6:00 am

Why #writers need to keep reading #NovelNovember

I have a favorite author, one who writes both sci-fi and fantasy. I really enjoy all his work, in both genres. However, I’m not going to name him because I am going to dissect what I love and don’t love about his work.

I never write a review for books I don’t love, and I have reviewed most, but not all, of his work. In this post, I’m going to point out things I notice with my editorial eye and which I want to avoid in my own work, so I’m not naming names.

Let’s start by saying this: the things I don’t love about his work come from having a contract with deadlines to produce two books every year, installments for two widely differing series. That is a commitment he is well able to honor, as he has been publishing two and sometimes three a year since the late 1980s.

The upside of his meeting his deadlines is this: I get an installment in my favorite series every year.

But the downside is that he has a contract and deadlines he must meet.

First, let’s talk about what I like:

His main characters are engaging from page one. I’m always hooked and want to see where he is going to take them.

The main character always has a good arc of growth and is easy to like.

In most installments of my favorite series, the author’s worldbuilding is excellent. One can easily visualize the settings, whether we are in a future space environment or a world where magic exists. He creates mood and atmosphere with an economy of words.

Science is always grounded in known and theoretical physics.

He has excellent systems for the two types of magic inherent in his fantasy world. They fit seamlessly into the story and feel plausible. They both have a learning curve, and even inadvertent misuse of magic can be lethal, so learning is required.

The societies in all his worlds, whether sci-fi or fantasy, are shown through the main character’s eyes. They are believable and feel personal.

What I don’t love about his work:

While I deeply enjoy his work, the author could use a sharp editor, one who’s not swamped with deadlines. The line editing is mostly adequate, but in recent books, one descriptor (sweetly) is used more than a few times and not to good advantage. “I thought so,” she said sweetly.

I dislike that phrasing because it diminishes the female love interest, making her sound a little snarky, as if she feels superior to the protagonist. I doubt that is the author’s intention, but that turn of phrase occurs more than a few times in more than one novel. Whether the main character is a man or a woman, the love interest is often two-dimensional, and this has been a thing throughout the last five or six books in this series.

I forgive that, because I like the main characters, the world, and love the plots.

Structurally, things can be a bit rough. The characters repeat what they have already done at every opportunity, covering old ground and stalling the momentum. Also, they frequently use the phrase “you deserve it” whenever the rewards of their accomplishments come up in conversation.

The main flaw that is showing up in the most recent installments would be fatal in an Indie’s work. It is something that would be ironed out if our author had a full year to take his manuscript through revisions, rather than only six months. Each time the MC is introduced to someone, his accomplishments are brought up and discussed with awe. Whenever he runs into a fellow officer, which is fairly often, they have heard of his exploits through the grapevine and feel compelled to rehash them.

This is aggravating and slows the pacing.

Finally, proofing the finished product seems to have been rushed. This author has a big-name publisher, so one would think they would put a little effort into the final product.

Overall, this author’s work is good and deserves publication. None of these issues occurs often enough to derail the books, and a reader who isn’t a writer would likely never notice them. I can see how they flew under the radar.

It is important for authors to re-read the books they fall in love with. We rarely notice flaws on a first time through. If we do, we ignore them in favor of the story.

When you read a beloved book a second time, look at it with a critical eye.

Analyze what you like about the structure, worldbuilding, and character creation, and apply those principles to your work.

Recognize what doesn’t work and make notes when you come across something that slows the pacing or diminishes a character. Look for those flaws in your own work during revisions.

I have been making headway with my writing goals this November. Most of the plot is finalized, but it is still in outline form and will likely change as the story evolves.

On Saturday, I crossed the 40,000-word mark at ProWritingAid’s Novel November. Most of what I’ve written (30,000 or so words) is background, stuff that won’t make it into the story but which helps me sort out the plot.

I have learned to write the background fluff in a separate document. When I begin filling out a now-skeletal plot, I have the information I need to flesh out a scene.

And hopefully, when I finally get this novel to the revisions stage, I will have an eye for the flaws. My writing group is sharp and when they beta read one of my manuscripts, they give me good advice.

The real trick is keeping the lid on my own repetitive words and gratuitous rehashing. Hopefully, in a year or two, my finished product will be a smooth read.

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November 17, 2025 · 6:00 am

#NovelNovember: writing in the blender of life enables world building #writing

I have said this before, but life is like a blended margarita from the ice cube’s point of view. Every now and then, Ice Cube gets a little cocky, cruising along, thinking “The s**t-storm is over! Everything is going to be fine.” Invariably, that’s when the powers-that-be turn on the blender.

Let’s be honest. This is real life.

The s**t-storm is never really over. It’s just paused and lurking in the shadows, waiting to jump-scare you, turning the blender of life on … then off. On – off. The powers-that-be love a good blended margarita, so buckle up, Ice Cube.

This is why I write fantasy. Reality can be processed more easily when it’s set in a mythic alternate universe, one where the fundamental laws of physics allow the chaos to be tamed through perseverance and a light application of plot armor.

My personal plot armor has worn thin lately.

My husband suffers from late-stage Parkinson’s, with the accompanying dementia and myriad other health issues, and last week, emergency surgery. All is well for now, but the underlying problems are not going away.

The last two weeks have been difficult here. I spend three hours writing first thing in the morning. At nine a.m., I put on my “leaving the house” clothes (as opposed to my “hanging around the house” clothes) and don my raincoat. Then I make my way around town, accompanied by driving rain and clogged drains, getting groceries and taking care of other obligations. Daily, I drive through the gloom and poor visibility, visiting my husband, whether he is in the hospital or at the Adult Family Home.

During these two strange and chaotic weeks, I have written 27,318 words, according to the word counter at ProWritingAid’s Novel November challenge. Some of those words might even advance the plot, but I suspect most are just mental fluff.

For the writer of any fiction, real life provides fodder for world-building. Look around you and take what you know, and reshape it into the world of your imagination. Take the time to write a paragraph or two of description and save it in a file for random world-building. You might not use that environment today, but a story may come along that needs it.

If I were to write a page detailing the November weather in my town, I would open a new document and write what I see as a journal entry. I would title that document Scenes_from_November_Storms2025. That title tells me what is detailed, so later, when I need ideas for a day filled with blue skies over a wide field of daisies and birdsong, I don’t have to open file after file and get frustrated.

What would I write? I would write it as if it were a conversation with myself.

The streets everywhere are lined with brown, soggy, windblown cairns built from the corpses of leaves. Wind and torrential rain have stripped many trees naked. The tattered remains of their finery cover the sidewalks, making walking slick and a bit tricky. They fill gutters to the curb, blocking street drains and forming long, soggy, decomposing ridges down the centerline of streets and alleys.

The above paragraph is true. The street-sweeper trucks can’t keep up with the leafy onslaught.

This, I suppose, is the downside of living on the lush green side of the continent. Storms roar across the Pacific and stop here, heavy black clouds blocked by the high Cascade Mountain Range, dumping rain on the lowland cities.

One must be careful when traveling, always alert for surprises. Your vehicle “gets a bit loose” when you hit that innocent-looking puddle at 60 miles per hour. Jack-knifed semi trucks shutting down the freeway during each storm give evidence of that truth. Pooling water on the interstate, combined with the actions of inexplicably stupid drivers, has caused many wrecks over the last month.

I drive the slower city streets as I have no need to take the interstate. Even there, at speeds slower than the posted limit of 25 mph, driving through a surprise puddle can liven things up. The adrenaline almost counteracts the dark, depressing scenery.

Pumpkin Soup with Garlic Croutons

Once I am home and nursing a cup of hot tea, the rain pounding on my windows feels a little cozy. Pumpkin soup with garlic toast for supper pushes back the gloom, cheery comfort food made better when followed by an evening spent with a good book.

Sometimes, that good book is the one I am working on. Some evenings I feel rested enough to make a second stab at writing, adding another 700 to 1,000 words to my daily word count.

Currently, I have no need in my novel for a world covered in moldy leaves or parking lots ankle-deep in water. But someday I might, and I will have that brief description to boost my memory. If needed, I’ll use it to create the scenery and atmosphere that will serve as the backdrop for a short story or novel.

For now, drier days are on the horizon. Spells of sunshine will return, and despite the worry, darkness, and gloom of these last few days, life is good.

I will continue to write my fantasy stories and draw inspiration from the real world. And I will continue to log descriptions of the world around me for later use.

And I will leave you with an image of the beautiful mountains that halt the storms over the lowlands. This scene was found on Wikimedia Commons and is titled Sunset at Image Lake on Miners Ridge in the Glacier Peak Wilderness by Ron Clausen, August 2001.

It’s hard to justify complaining about the dreariness and storms of November when we of the Pacific Northwest are surrounded by such beautiful scenery the rest of the year. It’s times like these that make us appreciate the bounty that lies a few hours’ drive away.

Credits and Attributions:

IMAGE: Screenshot of ProWritingAid Dashboard © Connie J. Jasperson 2025.

IMAGE: Pumpkin Soup and Garlic Croutons © Connie J. Jasperson 2025.

IMAGE:  Sunset at Image Lake on Miners Ridge in the Glacier Peak Wilderness by Ron Clausen, August 2001. Wikimedia Commons contributors, “File:Image Lake Glacier Peak Wilderness.jpg,” Wikimedia Commons, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Image_Lake_Glacier_Peak_Wilderness.jpg&oldid=484627222 (accessed November 16, 2025).

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