Interested in writing a story with a spiral structure? Learn what makes one successful.
The perceived freedom of the spiral structure is what attracts many writers. But as Jane Alison reveals, rule following leads to a successful one.
The perceived freedom of the spiral structure is what attracts many writers. But as Jane Alison reveals, rule following leads to a successful one.
There are two ways we cope with anxiety—worry and avoidance. Your job is to figure out how you’ll reveal this in your manuscript.
Often, change happens in opposition. When we understand the things working in opposition in our stories, we can use them to maintain our story’s tension.
Jane Alison encourages us to envision our writing not as a tsunami of story, but instead as a series of smaller waves that propel your story arc forward.
When building our characters we sometimes hack away at attributes, hoping to unearth something that will engage readers. Instead, do this.
So much of character development is about the push and pull between what our characters want and their biggest flaws.
Strong beginnings have common attributes that can be boiled down to one word–they all SUCK.
Baking a pie while blindfolded is a lot like writing a first draft. It’s messy, and even when you’re not sure what you’re doing, you must trust the process.
For the past six months, I’ve told you and every writer I know to buy Allison’s new book Seven Drafts. Now you finally can.
In Save the Cat! Blake Snyder discusses the three-act structure and shares his invaluable beat sheet where he maps out the moments every story needs.
A market-tested logline proves you have a story, but the hero is what makes the story work better. Once you know who this person is, go primal.
Great stories swing from both poles. Focus too much on plot, and your story will feel superficial. Hang everything on the inward journey, and we’ll wonder what’s causing your character’s turmoil.
Donald Maass says, “Action is an opportunity for us to feel something, not a cause of feeling something.”
To develop an invisible magnetic river you need a strong narrative arc, a powerful universal, and a continuous cause-and-effect chain that runs through your manuscript.
Of course, we need to amass words on the page, but what other resources must we stockpile? How do they help us shape the material we gather into something beautiful?
Great dialogue contains two messages–the one shared through direct dialogue and the unspoken or hidden message revealed through characters’ body language and facial expressions. We call that unspoken message subtext.
Dialogue is the lifeblood of any scene. When executed effectively, it catapults the reader into the heart of a story.
There are four backstory traps writers frequently fall into. Understanding them will help you escape them.
Receiving feedback can feel exhilarating. But as we prepare for revision, most writers wrestle with the same question: where do I begin?
I’m currently in the forest of revision times infinity. Can you help me find a way out?