Thirteen Cents Short

This week we're talking about the dreaded second act and why people struggle so much with writing it. Did you know it's about half the word count of your book? No wonder! Also, I apologize if you hear whistling in the background. I live in a 300+ year old house, and our steam heat system whistles when it's active. I don't apologize for the cat if you hear him. Neither does he.

I condemn the events that took place at the Capitol in the strongest possible way. I speak as a historian, not as partisan politics. But the insurrection inspired by the President of the United States cannot go unmarked or overlooked.I could not in good faith or good conscience continue with my usual blog this week and ignore the events of what happened. I hope to resume our discussion of structure next week.

Following our discussion on why structure matters, we take a hard look at what Act One needs to accomplish in the story. I touch on a number of subjects through this (including exposition and purple prose), but we sort of skate on through to see all of the points you have to hit.

With this episode, we start our journey into the way we use structure in writing and what that means for you as an author. The word gets thrown around a lot, but it's not as scary as it seems. I promise.

While you might not know much about them, tabletop games are a valuable tool for writers to test their ideas, learn more about their characters, and build their worlds. I strongly suggest them to everyone! If you're looking for a place to find a group to game, check out this website (I'm not sponsored by it; I just think it's valuable): https://www.rpgtablefinder.com/ It's a great way to find a group if you don't have anyone you know who runs it or is currently running games online!

In case there was any question, writers should embrace video games as a relevant and enjoyable source of studying narratives. Narrative is narrative, and we can learn from a variety of sources. So...yes. I give you permission (if you needed it). Play your video games, watch your TV shows and movies. Enjoy them. And learn from them.

A discussion of applying the principles we used last time to villains. We also discuss the different types of villains and their role in a story.

Developing good characters is something many writers struggle with. This week I give the three most important tools in creating a good character and how those tools work. Spoiler alert, I quote Kurt Vonnegut.