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…
Boost the emotional power of your stories
Get a free copy of the happy-sad ending builder to help you create story endings that are both happy and sad.
I fucking love it when a story starts with two separate timelines that eventually come together in the end. When done right, this heightens the emotional impact of the story experience beyond what a single-timeline story can do.
For this reason, figuring out how to write a multiple-timeline story was a big deal to me. I learned while using the trick in three different stories. …
#6 Forkless upgrades
What is Polkadot and why should I care?
That was me two months ago.
When I first stumbled on Polkadot, I thought I understood it. Like many, I thought it was just another attempt to create a more scalable blockchain and get as many users as possible. But then I took some time to read the whitepaper, watch videos of Gavin Wood explain, read the wiki, and play around with the ecosystem. It dawned on me with each new discovery that Polkadot was more than just another blockchain.
Many things make Polkadot special but they are impossible to see from…
Boost the quality of your stories with plotting
FYI, boost your first-draft writing game with this free copy of How To Write A Killer First Draft in 6 Steps
How often do you feel like you have a great story but when you are done writing it, the feedback isn’t as positive as you expected? It sucks so bad, and I would know.
When I first started telling stories, I wanted so badly to kill this sucky feeling. I wanted to create the kind of stories I loved, those plotted with such expert precision that they held your attention from the first scene to the last and delivered…
Q1 is ‘what is your goal?’
The dreaded ocean of confusion spreads out before me. Do I write this or that? On and on I vacillate, taking each idea for a spin to decide which is right.
I’m terrified of choosing something that will bore me into abandoning it along the way. I want a decision that feels right. One that I know within my soul is the right decision to make. One that will keep me excited until and long after I am done with it.
Regardless of what you write — novels, screenplays, nonfiction books, articles, etcetera — there comes a time when you…
Don’t get left behind
If you’ve been around the crypto space long enough then you’ve heard about Polkadot. In early January, the DOT token grew to become the 3rd most valued crypto by market cap (it’s now 5th). This is quite a feat because it only just got released. This points to two things:
- Many people believe in this project
- They are willing to put their money where their mouth is
With regards to the second point, the proof lay in the fact that over 60% of the DOT tokens available are locked into the security of the network via staking. 60% of 25…
The secret is frames of reference
FYI, click the link if you would like to get a free copy of How To Write A Killer First Draft in 6 Steps.
Why is it so hard to change people’s minds regardless of proof? I mean, if we are rational, we should be able to come to logical conclusions based on hard facts.
Or are we not?
How often do you find yourself in an argument where you are certain that the other side is wrong? You can’t understand why they can’t see the flaw in their argument. …
How positive mindset shifts can promote creativity
Three years ago, every writing session felt like a constant struggle. I would chastise myself for shitty sentences, rewriting them until they seemed to pass my own gold standard.
It didn’t occur to me that there was a better way to approach writing until one journaling session helped me identify the root cause of my writing problems.
Gilbert Bassey
I’m a storyteller who loves to teach other people how to tell stories. I also care about decentralization.
