C. Wesley Clough

How a Rated R Movie I Watched When I Was 11 Opened My Mind to New Possibilities I was eleven years old the first time my parents wrote me a note so I could see an R-rated movie.That movie was Lifeforce (1985). Even at the time, that felt a little strange, most of my friends we…

Sci-fi month ventures into personal territory on the blog today, check it out! #blog
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Making Time Travel Make Sense (or at Least Feel Like It Does) Time travel is one of science fiction’s most beloved narrative devices, and one of its most treacherous. Few concepts offer as much storytelling potential: you can rewrite history, confront paradox…

As Sci-Fi month rolls along here on the blog we turn to some thoughts on Time Travel, why not check it out? #blog
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10 Real Scientific Concepts That Could Inspire Your Next Story Science fiction doesn’t need to invent everything from scratch. In fact, some of the most compelling speculative stories begin with real science, discoveries or theories that already exist, waiting…

As science fiction month rolls on, today the blog turns to real scientific ideas that might just spark your next story idea. Why not take a look? #blog
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Reforging the Past: How to Reskin a Fantasy Adventure Module for Science Fiction RPGs Tabletop roleplaying has never suffered from a shortage of fantasy adventures. Shelves groan under the weight of Dungeons & Dragons modules, Pathfinder scenarios, and countless indie quests tha…

This week the blog gives some love to gamer followers with advice on using fantasy adventures in your Sci-Fi TTRPG. #blog
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The Future Is Fragmented: Dystopia as Mirror, Not Prediction When we imagine the future, we rarely see it clearly. Even the most visionary science fiction writers aren’t prophets; they’re cartographers of the present, sketching tomorrow with the ink of today…

Today's blog post reflects on the sci-fi staple of dystopias, why not check it out? #blog
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7 Overused Sci-Fi Tropes (and How to Reinvent Them) Science fiction thrives on imagination and yet even the most visionary genres can fall into familiar ruts. From dystopian wastelands to chosen-one rebels, readers have seen many of the same ideas r…

Sci-fi month continues on my blog, why not take a look? #blog
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The Ethics of Invention: When Innovation Crosses a Moral Line Every act of invention begins with hope. Whether it’s a scientist building a better world, an engineer chasing efficiency, or a writer imagining the next great leap for humankind, innovation carrie…

This month my blog turns to science fiction, so if you read or write sci-fi, come on over and take a look! #blog
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Happy Halloween I hope everybody has a wonderful and safe time on this spooktacular holiday! (And remember, keep writing!) C. Wesley Clough Image by cristian vanegas salcedo from Pixabay

From the C. Wesley Clough: Crafter of Dreams blog to all of you! #blog
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When the Monster Looks Too Much Like Us What truly terrifies us is not always the alien or the grotesque, sometimes it’s the familiar. The reflection that moves when we don’t. The voice that sounds like ours but whispers different words.…

The horror continues for October with today's blog posts about the horror of recognition. Take a look! #blog
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Domestic Terrors: Turning Ordinary Homes into Places of Horror The home is supposed to be a sanctuary, the place where we feel safest. Doors lock, curtains close, and the outside world fades to a hum beyond the walls. Yet horror has always known that safety is…

Horror month continues on my blog, if you write horror, are thinking about writing horror, or read horror, why not check it out? #blog
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The Weight of History: Haunted Places as Characters Every haunted house, crumbling ruin, or ghost town carries something deeper than creaking floorboards and flickering candles. Beneath the grime and cobwebs lies the sediment of time, a record of hu…

This month we are focusing on horror on my blog, so if you are interested in writing horror and want some tips, check it out! #blog
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Spooky Season Every October, as the air sharpens and the nights grow long, something ancient stirs in our collective imagination. Folklore and horror walk hand in hand through harvest fields, down fog-choked str…

New post on the blog, why not check it out! #blog
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Liminal Spaces: Writing Horror in Places Between Horror thrives in uncertainty. Monsters lose their menace under bright light or in clear definition, but in the half-seen and half-understood, fear takes root. That is why so many great works of ho…

There is a new post on my blog today, exploring liminal spaces and horror, check it out if you get a chance! #blog
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Seasonal Horrors: Why Autumn Is the Natural Setting for Fright Horror has always been a genre bound tightly to time and place. While monsters may stalk us year-round, there is something about the shifting of seasons that seems to give them more power. Autumn i…

What makes fall the perfect spooky season? Today's blog posts explores the topic, check it out if you get a chance! #blog
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The Perception Gap: Showing How Different Cultures Interpret the Same Event When you write speculative fiction, you are not just inventing new worlds, you are inventing ways of seeing. A powerful tool for world-building is the perception gap: the differences in how culture…

New blog post today, check it out if you have the time. #blog
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10 Unique Death Rites and Afterlife Beliefs to Inspire Your Fantasy World Following up from our last post (Death, Burial, and the Afterlife in Fantasy Worlds) I thought I would offer you 10 examples, feel free to use or modify any of these for use in your own writing, as…

Today's blog post continues the theme from Monday with 10 examples of fantasy death practices that anyone can use. #blog cwesleyclough.wordpress.com/2025/09/26/1...

Death, Burial, and the Afterlife in Fantasy Worlds More Than the End of a Life Death is universal. Across every culture and era, human beings have grappled with what it means to die, how to honor the dead, and what, if anything, comes afterward. Fo…

New blog post today, talking about death, what to do with corpses, and the afterlife as tools for your fantasy world building. why not check it out? #blog
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The Fantasy City as Character Cities that Live and Breathe When most fantasy authors and game masters design cities, they think in terms of streets, walls, and buildings. A city is often treated as a backdrop, a stage on which …

Whether you are writing a fantasy novel or series, or designing a campaign for your TTRPG, the city the action takes place in can be more than just a location. today my blog has some ideas for turning that city into a character in its own right! #blog
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Inventing Holidays, Festivals, and Rituals for Your RPG Campaign More Than Just Looting Dungeons and Slaying Dragons When most players sit down at the table, they expect combat, quests, and maybe some downtime at the tavern. But what if the tavern is preparing f…

Today my blog takes a break from fiction writing advice to explore one of my other passions, tabletop roleplaying games. Take a look if you find that topic of interest! #blog
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Blending the Familiar and the Strange: Making Fantasy Worlds Feel Real Anchoring the Impossible Fantasy thrives on the extraordinary: dragons soaring above cities, enchanted forests, cursed relics. But if everything is strange, readers can lose their footing. The key …

Today's blog post is about blending the fantastic with the mundane, to help readers of your fantasy novel maintain their suspension of disbelief. check it out if you have time! #blog
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Building Fantasy Economies Without Boring Your Reader Beyond Gold Coins and Treasure Hoards When most people think of fantasy economies, the first image that comes to mind is a hero tossing a bag of gold coins onto the tavern counter. For decades, rol…

How much thought have you given to your fantasy novel's economic systems? Today's blog post has some advice. #blog
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The Logic of Magic: Why Internal Consistency Matters Magic Without Rules Feels Hollow One of the greatest joys of fantasy is that it makes the impossible possible. Wizards hurl lightning bolts, ancient spells unlock hidden doors, and enchanted artifa…

today's blog post has to do with internal consistency in your fantasy novels magic system, why not take a look? #blog
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The Benefits and Drawbacks of Choosing Third-Person Limited When Writing Fantasy Novels When crafting a fantasy novel, point of view (POV) is one of the first major choices you’ll make. It shapes not only how the reader experiences your world but also what kinds of stories you can mos…

Having trouble choosing a POV for your fantasy novel? 3rd person limited is a popular choice, in today's blog post we take a look at the benefits and drawbacks of using it. #blog
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The Day My Shoes Fell Apart It started with a sound I could not place. A soft clack at my heel with every third step. I thought it was a pebble caught in the tread or maybe a wayward paperclip hitchhiking on the sidewalk. I k…

Another Friday means another blog post, check it out if you have time! #blog
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The Weight of Years: Writing Believable Ancient Civilizations Ancient civilizations fascinate us because they feel heavy with time. That “weight” isn’t only age; it’s accumulation—of stories, laws, repairs, ruins, tastes, taboos, and misunderstandings that pi…

I post to my blog twice a week, mostly writing advice, but occasionally about my other interests such as the paranormal and TTRPGs, if you have time why not take a look! #blog
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The Monster You Never See: Writing Effective Off-Screen Threats Every writer knows that naming a fear can shrink it. The reverse is also true. When you keep the threat off the page and let the reader do part of the imagining, the fear grows teeth. Off-screen th…

Friday means a new blog post, take a look if you get a chance! #blog
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10 Ways to Make Your Setting Feel Alive Without Over-Describing It A vivid setting does not require pages of description. It needs carefully chosen details that invite the reader’s imagination to do some of the lifting. Think of yourself as a cinematographer who f…

New blog post today, check it out if you have time. #blog
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Shadows in the Margins: The Power of Subtext in Horror, Fantasy, and Science Fiction When most writers think about crafting compelling stories, they focus on plot, character arcs, and world-building. These are the bones and muscles of a narrative. But subtext (those quiet, unspoken…

Friday's new blog post is live, why not check it out? #blog
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Snarky Comments and Witty Banter: How to Craft Funny Dialogue Without Looking like a Try-Hard Humor is one of the most beloved (and elusive) tools in a writer’s arsenal. Whether you’re penning a contemporary rom-com or a grimdark fantasy with a roguish antihero, a well-placed sa…

I have a new post up on my blog, take a look if you have the time! #blog
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Paranormal 101: Shadow People In the realm of the paranormal, few phenomena spark as much unease as the mysterious figures known as “shadow people.” These dark, human-shaped forms are often reported in the periphery…

Looking at one of my other interests on my blog today, back to normal writing content on Monday, still why not check it out! #blog
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