Posts by icanfathom
In this answer, Mark Baker makes a statement about story: All story ideas are basically a variation on one thing. A man (or woman, or child, or small furry animal) has two desires, both of which h...
Maybe this is all in my head, but it seems that novel writing for a lot of genres has become mainstreamed to the point of formula. We have articles, podcasts, and books telling us how to: Create ...
Based on your example, it sounds like you're looking for stakes in the form of "If (protagonist) doesn't help these people who need help, then (something bad) will happen." You want stakes in the f...
Is it better to push yourself in your writing? To attempt bigger and deeper stories than you've done before? K.M. Weiland says so. But then there's this thread (which is talking about music perform...
Self-preservation is an instinct we all understand, so that works. Readers will accept it. But it's ultimately self-focused if you leave it at that. Most people have more tangible reasons for why t...
I'm a fellow Writing Excuses lover. I discovered their podcast somewhere during Season 11 and then decided to backtrack and listen to everything that came before. I've listened to literally hundred...
I think the bigger problem with your story is that it sets the wrong reader expectations. Readers come into the story not having any idea what will be payed off, except maybe some hopes of what the...
Have you ever noticed that most main characters seem to be "special" in some way? It might be destiny, super powers, a rebellious attitude, or maybe they're just unlucky and got targeted by the bad...
You have to accept that different readers will have differing levels of patience for this sort of character. But the universal thing that pushes every reader out of a story is characters performing...
In this article about different categories of heroes, Matt Bird states that sensitive and unlucky heroes are hard to write because audiences have a hard time caring about them. He says: American...
I think what you're sensing is a desire to ramp up the conflict. Especially for a longer series, you need the stakes to increase with each book. First there's the enemy, then friends start turning ...
I would strive for variety in your writing, so the fact that you've already noticed a pattern means you need to be careful. Overuse of that single technique - even if you choose the perfect pair ev...
I'm unlike Amadeus in that I don't actually enjoy the act of writing. But I do enjoy having written - the feeling of achievement, of hours, days, and years spent in hard work, and the ability to fi...
I like your last example. Just keep the speedy action and remove the final sentence that seems out of place for your setting. If your character knows what she's doing, the action she performs will ...
I've noticed something about many books and movies. Just as two characters are getting into a deep conversation, either sharing something important or showing emotion or leaning forward slowly to k...
There's an amazing setpiece scene in the game Uncharted 4 where Nathan Drake is running from an armored vehicle, dodging bullets, leaping from one truckbed to the next, picking off his pursuers, an...
