Michelle Barker
@michellebark.bsky.social
đ€ 2098
đ„ 3839
đ 341
Senior
#editor
at DarlingAxe.com. Award-winning
#author
, Ironman
#triathlete
. michellebarker.ca
The German Emigration Center is maybe the most incredible museum I've ever visited. Interactive stations bring the history of emigration to life. Moving, effective, eye-opening.
#WritingCommunity
#Germany
about 1 month ago
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Bremerhaven! What an unexpectedly wonderful little town in Northern Germany. Highly recommend! Plus, it's amazing to finally see in person a place you've been writing about.
#WritingCommunity
#Germany
about 1 month ago
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Officially this is Day 2 of my German research adventure, but I was too tired to post yesterday. Insight so far: DO NOT trust ChatGPT for directions in a foreign country. The ones it gave me were stunningly wrong, right down to the "landmarks."
#WritingCommunity
#Germany
about 1 month ago
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#WritingCommunity
#BookSky
Love the classics!
2 months ago
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Just finished reading Hitler's People by Richard J. Evans. Great book. One thing that struck me was the number of high-ranking Nazis who were talented musicians. Like, a lot of them. Music didn't have the power to redeem them. I'm trying to figure out why.
#WritingCommunity
#BookSky
#History
3 months ago
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#Writers
, what's the best writing advice you've ever gotten? One that's been on my mind lately is: a problem that your character can walk away from is a book the reader can walk away from.
#WritingCommunity
3 months ago
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#MysteryWriters
don't neglect your setting! Here is a post all about how setting can work for you in your mystery novel.
#WritingCommunity
writershelpingwriters.net/2025/08/how-...
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Colonel Mustard in the Ballroom: How Setting Shapes Mystery
Setting is important in any genre, but especially mysteries where it can limit suspects, suggest motives, provide clues, and shape the crime.
https://writershelpingwriters.net/2025/08/how-setting-shapes-mystery/
3 months ago
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True or false: a
#writer
is someone who sits in their pyjamas all morning staring out the window and calls it work.
#WritingCommunity
3 months ago
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Easy, right?
#WritingCommunity
3 months ago
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#Writers
, are you using the weather in your fiction to its full potential? Winter means snow, which means leaving footprints behind. Summer heat can amplify tension. Rain can create delays, reflect mood. Choose your setting with intention.
#WritingCommunity
3 months ago
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What's the difference between omniscient POV, deep third, and head hopping? It all comes down to control. Ask yourself who's holding the camera? If it's being tossed around indiscriminately, you've got a problem.
#WritingCommunity
darlingaxe.com/blogs/news/p...
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POV: Whoâs Holding the Camera?
Intentionality is how you earn readersâ trust.
https://darlingaxe.com/blogs/news/pov-camera
3 months ago
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Would love to hear from
#writers
who do some (or any, or all?) of their work by longhand. Not many do anymore, and I feel like when I make the effort, the work comes out differently. Agree?
#WritingCommunity
3 months ago
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#Writers
, tell me a little about your current work in progress. I'm working my way through the second draft of a historical novel set in Berlin 1938. Filling some research holes, just generally doing it better. Time away from it made me see what it needed.
#WritingCommunity
3 months ago
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#Mystery
writers, if you're interested in structure and are fans of Sue Grafton, here's a breakdown of A Is for Alibi from our ongoing series on mysteries.
#WritingCommunity
#booksky
darlingaxe.com/blogs/news/a...
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Story SkeletonâA Is for Alibi
Grafton straddles the two mystery worldsânoir and classicâto create something unique.
https://darlingaxe.com/blogs/news/a-is-for-alibi
3 months ago
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At McLoughlin Gardens I was often up with the sun. I would grab a coffee, sit out on the deck and write as the sun rose. Couldn't ask for more inspiration than that.
#WritingCommunity
3 months ago
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reposted by
Michelle Barker
Septimus Brown
3 months ago
Writers in the Vancouver area! Come check out our presentation on narrative structure next month at
WriteOnBowen.com
đ (With
@michellebark.bsky.social
!)
add a skeleton here at some point
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Sharing another photo from my magical month as writer in residence at McLoughlin Gardens. Sometimes when I couldn't sleep, I'd stand on the deck and look at the stars. No light pollution. It was fantastic.
#WritingCommunity
3 months ago
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When you finally figure something out, you want to tell everyone đ . I could never quite explain why head-hopping bothered me so much and how it was different from omniscient POV. Suddenly I got it, so I'm sharing it with you.
#WritingCommunity
darlingaxe.com/blogs/news/p...
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POV: Whoâs Holding the Camera?
Intentionality is how you earn readersâ trust.
https://darlingaxe.com/blogs/news/pov-camera
3 months ago
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Hey,
#writers
, if you happen to be on Bowen Island the weekend of September 13-14, there's a great writing festival taking place: Write on Bowen. Come to our workshop! We'd love to meet you and talk story structure (one of our favorite topics).
#WritingCommunity
3 months ago
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reposted by
Michelle Barker
Rob Bignell, Editor/Author
3 months ago
#amwritingfantasy #amwriting #writingcommunity #indieauthor #indieauthors
inventingrealityediting.com/2...
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Stuff your book in a Little Free Library
If youâve written multiple novels, and especially if theyâre a series, you may want to consider sticking your book in a Little Free Library.A Little Free Library is a small container, usually âŠ
https://inventingrealityediting.com/2023/05/07/stuff-your-book-in-a-little-free-library
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Sharing one of my sunrises from the residency I just finished at McLoughlin Gardens on Vancouver Island. Absolutely magical. Great place to get lots of
#writing
done.
#WritingCommunity
3 months ago
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Calling all
#writers
! Great festival coming up on Bowen Island in September. Please join us!
www.writeonbowen.com
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WELCOME | Write on Bowen
https://www.writeonbowen.com/
4 months ago
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reposted by
Michelle Barker
Catherine Friess @ Story Snug
6 months ago
#Win
a Story Skeleton: The Classics
#ebook
writershelpingwriters.net/2025/05/read...
@michellebark.bsky.social
#giveaway
#writingcommunity
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Reading Like a Writer
Up your writing craft by doing an exercise that exposes the skeletons of published novels. Enter to win an EBook of Story Skeleton!
https://writershelpingwriters.net/2025/05/reading-like-a-writer/
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Writers who are interested in story structure, check out my most recent blog post with Writers Helping Writers:
writershelpingwriters.net/2025/05/read...
Includes a giveaway for our book, Story Skeleton: The Classics
#WritingCommunity
#BookSky
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Reading Like a Writer
Up your writing craft by doing an exercise that exposes the skeletons of published novels. Enter to win an EBook of Story Skeleton!
https://writershelpingwriters.net/2025/05/reading-like-a-writer/
6 months ago
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Great piece on why it's not enough to rely on beta readers for your novel.
#WritingCommunity
writersinthestormblog.com/2025/05/are-...
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Beta Readers HelpâBut Editors Make Your Book Great
Beta readers are passionate readers and valuable resources. But can they replace a developmental editor? Find out the differences between these two roles!
https://writersinthestormblog.com/2025/05/are-beta-readers-enough/?utm_source=newsletter-85&utm_medium=email
6 months ago
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Very excited to have a piece in today's
@theglobeandmail.com
all about the classics.
#BookSky
#WritingCommunity
www.theglobeandmail.com/life/first-p...
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The world changes but not human nature, thatâs why Iâm rereading the classics
Good fiction teaches something that we will always need: the ability to empathize. To stand in another personâs shoes and feel what they fee
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/first-person/article-the-world-changes-but-not-human-nature-thats-why-im-rereading-the/?utm_source=Shared+Article+Sent+to+User&utm_medium=LinkCopy&utm_campaign=Shared+Web+Article+Links
6 months ago
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BMO Marathon is done! What a day. Here is my race report for anyone who's interested:
michellebarker.ca/bmo-marathon...
#BMOMarathon
#Vancouver
#running
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BMO Marathon Race Report - Michelle Barker
The last six months have been all about running, and I havenât written anything about it because I was starting to feel superstitious. Getting to the BMO start line was uncertain thanks to injury, and...
https://michellebarker.ca/bmo-marathon-race-report/
6 months ago
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#WritingQ
What is your favorite genre to read?
#WritingCommunity
6 months ago
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âThere are three rules for writing a novel. Unfortunately, no one knows what they are.â â W. Somerset Maugham So true. And they change from one project to the next.
#WritingCommunity
6 months ago
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âThe scariest moment is always just before you start.â â Stephen King
#WritingQ
Agreed? I find it equal parts scary and exciting to start a new novel. Somehow, every time I'm fooled that "this one will be easy." Ha.
#WritingCommunity
6 months ago
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Spots are disappearing quickly! If you're interested, don't delay!
#WritingCommunity
add a skeleton here at some point
7 months ago
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My amazing colleague is coming out with a novel! Can't wait to read it!
#WritingCommunity
#BookSky
add a skeleton here at some point
7 months ago
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âThe road to hell is paved with adverbs.â â Stephen King, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft Agree? Agree slightly? Agree wholeheartedly? đ
#WritingQ
7 months ago
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âYou must stay drunk on writing so reality cannot destroy you.â â Ray Bradbury Sounds like good advice for our present times đ
#WritingCommunity
7 months ago
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Fans of noir, check out
@septimusbrown.com
's deconstruction of The Maltese Falcon on this blog post:
darlingaxe.com/blogs/news/t...
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Story SkeletonâThe Maltese Falcon
The Maltese Falcon doesnât just shift the tone of crime fictionâit shifts the structure.
https://darlingaxe.com/blogs/news/the-maltese-falcon
7 months ago
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New blog post is up that deconstructs The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency for our
#mystery
skeleton series.
#WritingCommunity
darlingaxe.com/blogs/news/n...
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Story SkeletonâThe No. 1 Ladiesâ Detective Agency
The novel is structured differently than a traditional mystery. Instead of a tightly wound plot with a single overarching case, it unfolds in a series of smaller unrelated mysteries, making it feel mo...
https://darlingaxe.com/blogs/news/no-1-ladies-detective-agency
7 months ago
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In today's big news: the Darling Axe's annual writing retreat is now open for registration! Hope to see you there!
#WritingCommunity
darlingaxe.com/pages/author...
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Rainforest Writing Retreat
Escape to a cozy writing retreat in British Columbia this February! Join us at Linwood House near Vancouver for an intimate, author-focused retreat. Workshops, workshopping, and dedicated writing time...
https://darlingaxe.com/pages/author-retreat
7 months ago
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Anyone else notice how when the going gets tough for Emma Bovary, she basically presses "Add to Cart"?đ Some things never change.
#BookSky
#WritingCommunity
darlingaxe.com/blogs/news/m...
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Story SkeletonâMadame Bovary
High praise surrounds Gustave Flaubertâs novel Madame Bovary. It has been called âperfectâ by many great authors, a novel that approaches poetry, and âthe best novel ever written.â
https://darlingaxe.com/blogs/news/madame-bovary?_pos=1&_sid=74b7be4cc&_ss=r
7 months ago
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Just 300 words/day, every day, for one year = a 109,500 word novel. "I don't have time" sounds true, but is it? I've been noticing lately how much time I spend on my phone. I have time.
#WritingCommunity
7 months ago
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Today's
#WritingQ
: Is there a bias in readers against first-person narration in adult fiction? I have heard this expressed by some readers and wonder if it's widespread or simply a subjective opinion.
7 months ago
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âDon't tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass.â â Anton Chekhov If there are any secrets to writing, I believe this is one of them.
#WritingCommunity
7 months ago
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Someone out there, convince me that The Big Sleep is a good book. I'm not seeing it.
#WritingCommunity
#BookSky
7 months ago
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âNo tears in the writer, no tears in the reader. No surprise in the writer, no surprise in the reader.â â Robert Frost So,
#WritingQ
, how does this quote impact how you feel about outlining? Curious.
#WritingCommunity
7 months ago
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Overused openings in a novel: the weather. Waking up. A fight scene. Dialogue without context.
#Writers
please add to the list. What have you encountered in an opening sentence one too many times?
#WritingCommunity
7 months ago
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âYou never have to change anything you got up in the middle of the night to write.â â Saul Bellow Ha. Most of what I write in the middle of the night seems brilliant at the time but makes no sense in daylight. Writers: agree or disagree?
#WritingQ
7 months ago
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âRead, read, read. Read everything -- trash, classics, good and bad, and see how they do it. Just like a carpenter who works as an apprentice and studies the master.â â William Faulkner
#WritingCommunity
#BookSky
7 months ago
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Did my last long run last weekend. Long taper for the
#BMOmarathon
, hopefully not too long, we'll see. Hope everyone's training/taper is going well!
#Marathontraining
#running
#Vancouver
7 months ago
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âFantasy is hardly an escape from reality. It's a way of understanding it.â â Lloyd Alexander
#WritingCommunity
And as a bonus: here's George R.R. Martin talking about writing fantasy. If you haven't heard this, it's brilliant and inspiring:
youtu.be/4hJhmxc3Arw?...
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On Fantasy - George R.R. Martin
YouTube video by sgtraveler
https://youtu.be/4hJhmxc3Arw?si=cblVEAzMdGxQbBKg
7 months ago
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Today's
#WritingQ
: Writers, why do you write? What got you started? What keeps you going? (Okay, that's more than one question, but I'm curious).
7 months ago
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Send me your favorite first sentences of novels! Here's one of my faves: "There was a boy called Eustace Clarence Scrubb, and he almost deserved it." CS Lewis, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
#WritingCommunity
7 months ago
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