Ever written a story that just wasn’t working?
No matter what you tried, you couldn’t seem to get it right, and like a virus, this inability sent firestorms into your world, leaving you helpless.
Every writer I’ve met knows this feeling, as do I — in fact, I lived it everytime a new story came around.
That was, until I came in contact with the principle of antagonism.
I’ll explain what it means, why it’s one of the most important concepts in Storycraft, and how to utilize it and make your story the best version of itself.
But first, a…
Conquer bad dialogue with these tips from a master
I used to think that writing good dialogue was a gift I possessed until one short script kicked me in the teeth. I felt like a fraud for the first time. The character wasn’t sounding right, and without that, it felt flatter than plywood. What did I not try? I changed her speech pattern, going from regular English to Nigerian Pidgin. I lengthened her lines with more poetic phrases. Still no pulse. It was long and tedious. I pulled my hair out in search of answers. What I did not know then is what I will tell you now.
The 6 Tips
When…
And how to avoid them
Although nature thrives on mistakes, your stories could die if you make some of the mistakes outlined below. Some of these I learned the hard way, and others I gleaned from my observation of and interaction with many writers over the years.
I have structured each mistake thus;
- The mistake
- Why it is a mistake
- The solution
My reason for laying it out in this manner is to convince you of each point based solely on the merit of my argument. This helps me achieve two key things:
- It helps me keep this article from being a listicle that just…
Learn the rationale behind crowdloans and parachain auctions
Imagine you could invest in the next 1000x-potential decentralized project without spending a dime. Wouldn’t that be grand? In the traditional crypto world, this is impossible. To invest in a project you have to give them your hard-earned tokens (or money) in exchange for their tokens. The real problem with this isn’t about money changing hands, but rather, the lack of security for you the investor.
Most times, projects are funded via an initial coin offering. In real-world investing, most times a prototype is offered, a real product, or even a balance sheet of at least a few months. …
Learn how to tell great stories with Theme
It is no secret that stories are powerful. Their power is considered ultimate because stories can change a person’s mind, and if you can change a person’s mind, then you can change the world. The question is ‘which kind of story has the power to change a mind and thus change the world?’ To answer this question we must first answer the question: why do we tell stories?
You may be tempted to say “to entertain” and you won’t be wrong. But you won’t be 100% right either. We tell stories to entertain and deliver insight into the human condition…
Turn your story into a memorable experience
A well-executed plot twist has the power to turn even the weakest of stories into a memorable experience.
Recall how you felt when you learned that, contrary to what JK Rowling had you believe in the first 5 parts of the Harry Potter series, Snape had been protecting Harry Potter all along.
Or how you felt when Darth Vader informed Luke Skywalker in the third act of Empire Strikes Back that “I am your father.”
The impact of those twists was breathtaking — at least in the case of Harry Potter and Snape, my breath was taken away…for like 3…
The most sophisticated governance process in Crypto
History has proven beyond any reasonable doubt that human beings cannot work together without the need to alter the laws of their union. As such, one vital factor to the success of decentralized projects — blockchains and applications — will be the quality of the governance process. With DAOs (decentralized autonomous organizations) on the rise, there’s never been a better time to have a conversation about governance.
Most governance systems in the blockchain ecosystem use an off-chain governance mechanism, whereby proposals, debates, and referenda are all executed outside the network. …
Introducing — Value Quadrant, a tool like no other
The problem with many weak stories is that they have shallow conflict and little to no meaning. Meaning, in this sense, points to what a story tells us about the human condition. Many stories lack in this department because the storytellers do not understand the deep relationship between the three pillars of story — plot, character, and theme. This lack of understanding expresses itself as shallow conflict and empty meaning in their stories.
Thankfully, there is a tool that’s especially suited to the task of creating harmony between the pillars, thus creating deeper conflict and expanding the story’s meaning. When…
It’s a blend of Polkadot and Ethereum — in a sense
For years, many projects have been touted as ethereum-killers. If I’m being honest, I hate the term. It’s an unhealthy way of looking at a new industry and the enthusiasm driving it. The idea of an ethereum-killer is that it will replace ethereum. But I doubt many of these teams go to work building a project with the intent of annihilating the other. It’s a cultural idea propagated by people more concerned with the price of tokens than the ecosystem as a whole. …
It starts with interoperability but doesn’t end there
The decentralization revolution is brewing and it’s only a matter of time before it takes over. As a developer or social entrepreneur, you may have looked at this revolution and thought to join in.
But then as soon as you accepted this thought, you were bamboozled by the many decisions that lay in front of you. Do you build a blockchain or a decentralized application? Which ecosystem should you build on? Should you create another standalone blockchain and deal with the struggle of creating a whole new ecosystem from scratch? Where would you get funding? How would you get users…
Gilbert Bassey
I’m a storyteller who loves to teach other people how to tell stories. I also care about decentralization.
