Today, I’m guest posting on Storyfix, with a post on “How to Create Layers of Thematically Pertinent Conflict.” Here’s an excerpt: On the surface, conflict is a ridiculously easy concept. Have character punch each other. Or yell at each other. Or even just give each other the silent treatment. Easy, right? To some extent, that’s true. […]
July 10, 2013 by 19 Comments CharactersTwo Fast Tricks to Write Larger-Than-Life Characters
One thing authors are always focusing on is creating realistic characters. We want them to realistically flawed. Nothing is worse than an indomitable, invulnerable, immortal, invincible goody two-shoes who’s better than everybody else and wins every battle. Snore. In fact, can we just throw our popcorn at his head and get it over with? As […]
July 5, 2013 by 17 Comments Characters5 Ways to Limit Your Character’s Options – and Make Your Story Better
This post is by Mooderino. Given a predicament, a character in a story will have a number of options on how to proceed. As in real life, some of those options will be more sensible than others. Doing the sensible thing saves a lot of grief and trouble, which is why it is absolutely no good for […]
June 30, 2013 by 21 Comments Characters8 Promises Writers Must Make (and Keep) to Their Readers
A book is a contract between reader and writer. The reader promises to pay attention to the story and emotionally invest in the adventure. In return, the writer promises to fulfill certain expectations about the fictional experience. When you fail to fulfill this contract with readers, you are, in essence, breaking your promises to them. […]
June 5, 2013 by 67 Comments CharactersThe Secret Ingredient of Can’t-Look-Away Fictional Relationships
Almost without exception, fiction revolves around relationships, whether it’s a romantic couple, parents and children, friends, or a man and his volleyball. This is so because that’s how life works. Fictional relationships are the crucibles that test our characters’ mettle and show what they’re made of. They might be able to lie to themselves, but […]
May 26, 2013 by 67 Comments CharactersWhat if Your Antagonist Isn’t Human? 7 Types of Non-Human Antagonists
Good fiction is overflowing with excellent antagonists. In some instances, those antagonists end up being just as memorable, if not more so, than the protagonists they oppose. Hannibal Lector. Darth Vader. Agent Smith. But what if your story needs to feature non-human antagonists? I like to refer to the story’s opposing faction as the “antagonistic force,” […]
May 15, 2013 by 15 Comments CharactersAre Your Bad Guys Dying in the Right Order?
When it comes to a story’s Climax, you want to give readers the biggest bang for their buck. That might seem to mean always saving the biggest explosion for last. But there’s actually another consideration to keep in mind when ordering the events of your Climax. Now, before I get any further, let me just […]
March 20, 2013 by 33 Comments CharactersHow to Figure Out the Worst Thing That Can Happen to Your Character
Writers are always being told to think of the worst thing that could happen to their characters—and then to make it worse. Being something of a literalist, the first time I heard that, my original thought was something like, The worst thing? You mean like kill him? With maybe a few interpretative exceptions, death is pretty […]
March 3, 2013 by 26 Comments PodcastScene Structure Exceptions: Incidents and Happenings
After our recent series about scene structure, it might seem that everything in a book must be tied down hard and fast within that framework. But what about when something in your story doesn’t seem to fit into the goal/conflict/disaster paradigm of the scene? What if something happens (and needs to happen) that doesn’t create conflict and doesn’t end […]
January 16, 2013 by 39 Comments Structuring Your NovelThe Most Annoying Type of Story Conflict
If you’ve been following the series “Structuring Your Story’s Scenes” on my blog, then you probably know we’ve been talking about conflict quite a bit. But there is one aspect of conflict that I haven’t covered—and that is, in my opinion, the most annoying type of conflict an author can inflict upon readers. This is […]
