(I'm writing this after a very long and hard day of mental and physical work so if it sounds ranty or convoluted…. eh, you've been warned :P )

Humans are competitive by nature. Somehow we have to rank everything- all things, from the most concrete to the most abstract ...

I recently took on the Sailor Moon Redraw Challenge. I was so excited to pay homage to the series that inspired me to take drawing seriously but most of all, I was curious as to whether or not I had a style. It took many years for me to realise ...

What made a character be who he/she is? What is it that drives them, and why?

That's the allure of any origin story: we get to see how characters we look up to or love or love to hate came to be who they are.

Most, if not ...

When I began working from home, it became clear very early on that my current work area needed a serious upgrade. My desk was surrounded by old letters, books and junk, I had piles of clothes on the floor, I kept knicking my partner’s chair because mine had begun ...

On any given day, I usually unwind from a long day at work by logging into Grand Theft Auto (GTA) Online. I use my avatar and beautiful sports cars to drive around the imaginary Los Santos, a city based almost entirely on Los Angeles and the outlying communities. It is ...

We grin and support John Wick as he ploughs through dozens of people per minute in his revenge quest over his murdered dog and ruined car, but we gasp with shock when the Wicked Witch of the East pursues a single person to take revenge for killing her sister with ...

In my early days as a junior designer. I had the good fortune to work under a talented graphic designer and I remember looking at her work thinking, “Oh wow! She’s so clever!” She saw me struggling with a piece of artwork one day. Leaning over, her voice conspiratorially ...

Writing what you know is one of those old canards that show up in writing advice, though it's not up there with things like “show, don't tell” and “this is supposed to be a literary essay - do not doodle in the margins”.

Or is that last one just ...

There are the mustache-twirling villains, that enjoy being evil. They're deliciously fun!

Then there are the nutjob villains. Those that are basket cases one way or the other, psychopaths or antisocial, unfettered madmen with a logic of their own that wreaks havoc upon the world. They're also very ...

A key aspect to creating a strong story is having believable characters. They are, after all, a key backbone to your narrative. So here are three tips that can help you put together a well rounded character.

1. Create a backstory
If you’re naming a character then you got ...