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What type of series are you writing?

I've been thinking about the construction of series when it comes to fiction for some time. This is in part because I have several clients who are working on series, but I too am working on multiple different series myself within my own fiction writing.

How exactly one approaches a series will depend on the nature of the series itself. Each type of series comes with its own advantages and disadvantages. And there are some commonalities between the different types of series, but there are also some distinct differences.

In today's post, I want to break down the different types of series that might exist and point out some of the things that you will need to consider when working on a series of that type.

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Woman watching the sunset

Focusing on what I can control

For many years now, my husband and son have teased me about how I often get most of my "news" from social media. Occasionally, I get told by the hubby or the son about what is going on, but I haven't watched a news broadcast or read a newspaper in years. I don't feel like I'm missing out on much for having this attitude. And given the events of recent times, for the sake of my mental health, I need to even start cutting out some of the social media news too.

It's time to put a dose of sanity into the coo-coo of the world.

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The Mohr Story Structure Model

Regular consumers of story, either written or film, learn to recognize the patterns that come with the rise and fall of action. They develop this innate instinct about when things should happen. If something is off with the pacing of a story, the readers know. They can feel it. They may not be able to explain why the pacing is off, but they still know that it's off.

Story structure models help to provide reasoning and some mathematics to what the readers know by instinct. This is why story structure is more important than what some writers give it credit for.

However, in all my years of studying story structure, I've also noticed that emphasis is often given to the protagonist of the story, focusing on their actions and decisions. The antagonist is often treated as an afterthought or ignored completely. As such, the dynamic interplay between the protagonist and the antagonist is not leveraged to its full potential.

When I noticed this pattern, I started to develop my own story structure model that leans into the interplay between the protagonist and the antagonist. As I write this blog post, I'm currently writing a full book about the topic, defining the antagonist and looking at story structure in detail, incorporating the antagonist into the model. That book is slated for publication come February 2026, but it's time to start sharing with the world the base structure that I'm calling the Mohr Story Structure model.

The Mohr Story Structure model is an amalgamation of a lot of different models, but adds the antagonistic beats that are commonly missed or misunderstood. I employ a four-act structure.

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I’ve never read ‘The Lord of the Rings’

I'm a fan of fantasy and science fiction. I adore sinking myself into a good, thick tome. Sword and Sorcery novels can easily get me hooked so I read the full series. But there is one series that I have never read, and I never will.

The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien.

And the reasons have nothing to do with its contents or historical origins. It's 100% my husband's fault.

Sit back and let me tell you about what married life can be like at times.

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Should fiction writers use an NDA?

Recently, a topic came up in one of my many discussion forums about whether a writer should insist on using a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) when working with editors. It's not the first time that I've encountered the question.

I understand the rationale behind it, but I also feel that it comes from a place of fear and the lack of understanding of how copyright law works.

In today's post, I want to address this idea of using NDAs when working with editors, and I want to explain why I advise against them for fiction novelists.

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