Post History
Most of the time, it's important that the outcome — good or bad — follow from the main character's actions. If the outcome is determined by chance or randomness or coincidence, it's less likely to ...
Answer
#3: Attribution notice added
by
System
·
2019-12-08T06:01:24Z (almost 5 years ago)
Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/26382 License name: CC BY-SA 3.0 License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
#2: Initial revision
by
Dale Hartley Emery
·
2019-12-08T06:01:24Z (almost 5 years ago)
Most of the time, it's important that the outcome — good or bad — follow from the main character's actions. If the outcome is determined by chance or randomness or coincidence, it's less likely to feel satisfying. On the other hand, a certain amount of coincidence is fine if it complicates the main character's problems. But even there, an abundance of chance can make the story feel arbitrary. (Sometimes you can make arbitrariness work, if the character's response to the arbitrariness illustrates something coherent about the character.) My general rule of thumb: **Coincidence can make things worse for the main character, but never better.**
#1: Imported from external source
by
System
·
2017-01-30T00:36:27Z (almost 8 years ago)
Original score: 14