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Your hero's backstory is more than just a collection of memories and experiences. It is a powerful tool in your writing skillset, and a strategically crafted backstory can even help you break through writer's block. In the How to build a Breakthrough Backstory playbook, I walk you through the 6 steps that will simplify and focus your writing time. Stop chasing plot bunnies and writing random scenes, and zero in on the choices that matter most.
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Early access for subscribers starting July 4

Coming soon to Storysmith U.
Character is the heart of story
When you start writing at the heart of the story, you miss out on all the possibilities that can trickle down from the heart of the character.
In this series of articles, playbooks, and the final course, you'll learn how to funnel the breadth of your character's life experiences into the depth of the story you want to tell.
Good character-driven stories should always start with character, and I'll give you the tools you need to craft memorable, dynamic heroes that will captivate your readers.
- The foundation of this learning series starts with the Powerful Character Transformations collection of free articles on my public website.
- My playbooks will guide you through how to connect all those little bits of knowledge into focused strategies for each step of building your character profile. See the 2022 playbook release schedule below.
- Then, in my signature course, you'll learn how to apply everything you've learned to your own work so you can start creating captivating characters readers will always remember. The Creating Captivating Character Profiles course is coming this November.

Here's what's coming this year: