A throughline is the story’s core, the problem that opens in the beginning and concludes in the climax. Throughlines are essential for compelling stories, but many authors still struggle with them, so that’s what we’re talking about this week. We discuss why stories should open the throughline as soon as possible, how to apply throughlines across an entire series, and the Norwegian phenomena of Slow TV. What is Slow TV, and how does it apply to throughlines? You’ll have to listen to find out.
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Opening and closing theme: The Princess Who Saved Herself by Jonathan Coulton. Used with permission.
Show Notes:
The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet
For Hunger Games, I would have had Katniss in Haymitch’s position, involved in the rebelion and having to navigate the uncertainty of that. She’s an underdog in political situations, so she isn’t at an advantage, but is still powerful as a symbol of the Mockingjay. Maybe there could even be assasination attempts, or on her or by her. Plus, we could discover some of the aweful things Finnick and other champions had to go through but from Katniss’ perspective. Would she be passed around or does the relationship with Peta protect her? All the while, she is trying to stop two kids from dying. The moral dilema of this is now far more interesting since the kids from other districts aren’t a threat to Katniss herself, so how does she distance herself from them? (There would 100% be a sweet little 12 year old girl, and one of Katniss’ kids would kill her, possibly by accident.)