Scenes
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Rath Darkblade
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Re: Scenes
Let's have a look at this, point by point:
1. Yes, interesting characters are vital. That goes without saying. Boring ones will sink your novel.
And yes, an MC thinking alone in his room (or something like that) slows down the story, which is why I use such scenes very sparingly and usually get another character to interrupt them ASAP.
2. Yes, don't over-use story beats. (I write adventure stories, and one of the beats there is the confrontation with the Big Bad. If every scene was a confrontation, the story would be ridiculous).
3. I think what they're saying here is that, when you write a story, the story arc may look similar to other stories in the same genre, but how you get there will be different. For instance, my adventure may be similar to another adventure story in the sense that the hero experiences trauma, grows up, matures, and takes revenge. Sounds similar to Batman, right? But the story itself won't be the same as Batman's.
4. To summarise #4 - Kill Your Darlings. Yes, sometimes us writers get diverted by something that someone else wrote, which we think is genius, and we try to work it somehow into our own stories. Should we do this? No. But it's a common trap.
5. Plot holes (“It was fun, but… it made no sense.”) Yep. Tie up your plot holes. Don't use symbols too much, strengthen your dialogue, and for gawd's sake, stay away from infodumps!
6. Foreshadowing ... yes. To summarise, this is another way to say "Chekhov's Gun" - i.e. if there's a gun hanging on the wall during Act 1, it must be fired during Act 2. If it's not, get rid of the blasted gun! It serves no purpose. See here for a fuller explanation.
An interesting article. Thanks, Rkcapps!
1. Yes, interesting characters are vital. That goes without saying. Boring ones will sink your novel.
And yes, an MC thinking alone in his room (or something like that) slows down the story, which is why I use such scenes very sparingly and usually get another character to interrupt them ASAP.2. Yes, don't over-use story beats. (I write adventure stories, and one of the beats there is the confrontation with the Big Bad. If every scene was a confrontation, the story would be ridiculous).
3. I think what they're saying here is that, when you write a story, the story arc may look similar to other stories in the same genre, but how you get there will be different. For instance, my adventure may be similar to another adventure story in the sense that the hero experiences trauma, grows up, matures, and takes revenge. Sounds similar to Batman, right? But the story itself won't be the same as Batman's.
4. To summarise #4 - Kill Your Darlings.
Yes, sometimes us writers get diverted by something that someone else wrote, which we think is genius, and we try to work it somehow into our own stories. Should we do this? No. But it's a common trap.5.
Plot holes (“It was fun, but… it made no sense.”) Yep. Tie up your plot holes. Don't use symbols too much, strengthen your dialogue, and for gawd's sake, stay away from infodumps! 6. Foreshadowing ... yes. To summarise, this is another way to say "Chekhov's Gun" - i.e. if there's a gun hanging on the wall during Act 1, it must be fired during Act 2. If it's not, get rid of the blasted gun! It serves no purpose.
See here for a fuller explanation.An interesting article. Thanks, Rkcapps!
There is nothing wrong with nepotism, so long as you keep it all in the family. (Winston Churchill)
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