E. Paige Burks
How to Keep Your Readers From Asking, “Why Didn’t They Just…?”
Ugh! James asks me this question all the time! It always keeps me on my toes though. He’s my own version of this article.


by Stephanie O’Brien
My siblings and I have sometimes joked that we could take over several fictional universes with the power of “Why didn’t they just…?”
When characters fail to use an obvious solution, or forget a skill or superpower that could easily resolve the situation, it can be pretty frustrating for the readers.
It can also hurt their opinion of the characters’ intelligence, or of your attention to detail, even if the story is otherwise awesome.
View original post 782 more words