Story & Plot
Blogs
Step-by-Step Guide to Writing a Series Bible for Television and Novels, Part III of III
So far in this series, we’ve looked at the difference between a TV Series Pitch Bible and a Series Bible, and how to develop the first of these. Now let’s look at how to expand your initial efforts into a broader, more complete bible to serve as a receptacle for all the details and elements contained within the series.
Step-by-Step Guide to Writing a Series Bible for Television and Novels, Part II of III
Learn what to include in your writer’s Series Pitch Bible for television and novels. What to include and why. How to format it and where to find samples. Part II of III.
Story Problems: Four Major Issues Writers Face, Part III of III
The final story issue in our series concerns inconsistencies in your story, series, and world. In other words, contradicting facts in your story’s canon.
Story Problems: Four Major Issues Writers Face, Part I of III
Identifying and avoiding story-related issues in your writing that weaken the experience and characters. While the following list is not exhaustive, it does reflect some of the most glaring issues facing stories today. Ignore them at your peril. Three are character based and the final issue affects every aspect of story. This is part one of a three-part series. More to come.
Three Big Plot Problems and How to Fix Them, Part II of II
There are many ways a plot can go astray, but plot armor, deus ex machina, and plot holes are the most common. So why would you ever want to use these devices? And if you do, how do you use them correctly?
Three Big Plot Problems and How to Fix Them, Part I of II
There are many ways a script or novel can go astray. Today, we’re going to review three big plotting issues that face writers: plot armor, deus ex machina, and plot holes. All three fall squarely in the writer’s hands.
Concept vs. Premise vs. Story, Part II of II
In the first part of this series, we looked at the definitions and purposes of concept, premise and story. Now let’s look at how to build a good premise and break down one of the previous examples to see how the author built a stronger story from her concept and premise.
Concept vs. Premise vs. Story, Part I of II
Concept, premise and story are not the same things. Confusing them or using them interchangeably is a common mistake, but one that weakens writing. In this two-part series, we’ll explore what each of these terms means and how to use each technique to build stronger stories.
Finding the Theme of Your Story: And Why It Matters
Themes enhance stories, making them more meaningful. It’s theme that makes a story linger in your memory. It’s theme that provides the touchstone for what happens. It’s what informs everything that follows the opening sequence. Themes matter to the story and your writing. But most of all, theme matters to your characters.
Scenes: How to Strengthen Yours and Make Them the Heart of Your Story
Scenes make up stories. They are the building blocks that form narrative. As writers, we stack scenes together to tell a particular tale. How we write, build, and stack those scenes matters.
The Throughline: What It Is, Why You Need One, and How Do You Create One? (Part 2 of 2)
In the last blog we defined throughlines, loglines and taglines. Now let’s look closer at throughlines—the most important of the three.
The Throughline: What Is It, Why You Need One, and How Do You Create One? (Part 1 of 2)
The throughline is a single thread that winds through your story and off which everything else hangs. It drives the writing and organizes the plot, action and character development. The throughline is the main motivation driving the protagonist toward the ending. It is what holds your story together so it can be a story instead of a random collection of anecdotes and scenes. A good throughline is how you propel your story forward in a way that makes sense.
Interrogating Your Characters: How Asking Questions Will Lead to Stronger Writing (Part 2 of 2)
Interrogating Your Characters: How Asking Questions Will Lead to Stronger Stories (Part 1 of 2)
The only thing that matters in fiction is why. Why does what is happening matter to the protagonist and other characters? Why should we care? It’s not enough for things to happen to your characters. You have to know what it means to each of them and how it affects their lives. This means you need to know what makes your characters tick. Why they make the choices they do. Why they react the way they do. Why they don’t just walk away.
Opening Lines (Part 2 of 2)
In the last blog, we discussed what first lines of stories need to include. Now we’ll look at ways you can improve your opening lines.
Opening Lines (Part 1 of 2)
First sentences are paramount to stories. They are the first impression. The hook by which readers are tempted to continue on instead of tossing the book back on the shelf so they can keep looking. They are a portal to the story itself.
Timing, Pacing, & Tension: What Are They and How Are They Different? (Part 1 of 3)
Everyone knows that comedy is all about timing. A joke succeeds when the punch line is delivered at just the right moment. As they say, “Timing is everything.” But what does that mean in terms of writing a novel or longer form of storytelling? How do you manage timing? And how does it differ from duration and pacing? How does it influence tension? Those are the questions we are going to tackle in this short series.
Writing the Emotional Arc (Part 2 of 2)
A story hinges on the inciting incident—the event that pushes a protagonist outside of her status quo and forces her to move in a new direction. The inciting incident presents a choice: to stay and deal with the new circumstances or to move beyond what’s comfortable to go after what the protagonist really wants, facing new challenges along the way. It really isn’t a choice since it wouldn’t be much of a story if the protagonist stayed where she was. Thus, the inciting incident starts the journey.
Writing the Emotional Arc (Part 1 of 2)
The point of any story is to engage the audience or reader. It’s why the hook is so important; it’s the part of the story that grabs the readers’ attention and makes them want to know what happens next. But the ultimate goal is to make your readers’ care about what they are reading or watching.
It’s Complicated (Part 2 of 2)
The first part of this two-part series covered the importance of complications and how to test whether the complications you are are adding are within the framework of your story. In this blog, we’re going to look at the different kinds of complications typically found in stories.
There are many ways to add complications in your story. In a romance novel, it might be rival or obstacle that keeps the two main characters apart. In a mystery, it could be a serial killer or a lack of clues. In SciFi, it might be an alien invasion or a dystopian world that oppresses its citizens. The list is limited only by your imagination.
It’s Complicated (Part 1 of 2)
I don’t know many people who don’t lean in when they hear that phrase. “It’s complicated.” Two words that hold the power to intrigue and pique curiosity. They make us click to find out more. They prompt questions and promise a bevy of details. “It’s complicated” might not be a great way to live, but it sure is a good way to tell a story.
Complications make stories. As writers, we understand this. It’s why we cram complications into our stories and keep shoving until our characters can’t take it anymore…and then we add more.
Truth in Story and Setting
As writers, we create the circumstances and context for our characters. We create the world. The setting. The characters themselves. Then we offer it all to our readers with an unspoken promise that the story and characters will be worth their time. This promise is an acknowledgment that we will do our research and write a story that is not full of errors, factual, grammatical or otherwise.
Story Stealers
Story is everything. It’s the prime initiative. The raison d’être. Nothing should subjugate it. Nothing be held higher or given more attention. Sounds simple, right? Not so much.
I recently read a story that had amazing detail, setting, and concept, but the author spent so much time pushing her agenda she lost the thread of the story. It was lost among the message. It didn’t help that she presented her story in a fractured timeline, destroying any chance for tension. The characters were subservient to the setting. The setting used mostly as evidence in proving her cause. It was a missed opportunity. The book could have been great. It had all the elements, but needed editing and a strong hand.
There are steps you can take to ensure your story remains at the forefront. The biggest is to understand the big ways you can go off track. Here are some things have a tendency to take over:
Building a Story, Article or Script—It’s All About Structure
Structure is 85% of your story. Never heard that before? Yeah, that’s because I made it up. I don’t think anyone has an exact statistic showing the importance of structure, but maybe they should. Structure is essential, even if the math of the thing is not. All you really need to know is that structure is essential to a good story, whether that story is fiction or nonfiction.
It’s About Story…Or Should Be
It’s all about story—or it should be. When books and movies fall apart it’s often because the story gets pushed to the background. It becomes secondary to other concerns, like action sequences, special effects, pushing an agenda, or…insert reason here.
Go for the Feels—Emotions Are Key to Story
I remember the first time I performed a monologue in drama class and got some of my fellow students to cry. It was a heady thing. Such power. Such exhilaration making someone else feel the way I wanted them to feel.
Getting to those feelings are the goal of every writer. We want our readers to feel the thrill of the chase, the fear of a killer, and the joy of falling in love.
The Power of Three
You could argue that three is the most powerful number in the world. It is found throughout literature, music, and movies. It is the reason Mozart’s music, filled with major and minor thirds, soars. It is what governs photographic composition. And it forms the basis for most story structures.
Story Is Everything
I love stories. I love immersing myself in them, be they books, movies or episodes from my favorite television shows. I don’t care. Heck, you can plop yourself beside me and spin a yarn. I’ll listen. I’m a story addict. It’s so bad my family teases me about getting...
Music in Writing: Compose Your Story
I was a double major in college–Creative Writing and Music. While my parents were not thrilled with my choices, I was, even though it happened by accident.
I wanted to be a singer. It was my goal from an early age. I was that child who would hold her hairbrush and sing for hours, dancing around the basement or my room pretending I was performing in front of crowds. The only odd thing was that I always envisioned myself on USO tours instead of huge stadiums. I wanted to live that iconic image of the Bob Hope show for the troops in war zones, otherwise the touring did not appeal to me.
So off I went to college with the hope of someday cutting a platinum album and going off to war to sing. I was young. It is my only defense. That and being a military brat.