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Magic systems vary from colorful bears with tummy badges to ritual blood sacrifices. Magic isn’t real, so it can be anything we want. But that doesn’t mean all magic systems work equally well for stories. Some feel cohesive; others feel random. Read more »
Mike, Chris, and Oren discuss politics in modern genre settings. They question how Hogwarts is funded, debate government involvement in Buffy, and wonder about the jurisdiction of S.H.I.E.L.D. Read more »
Archetypes tell us what role a character plays in a story. Many of these roles are critical for storytelling, but some are just the opposite. Troublesome roles allow storytellers to cut corners, reducing the overall quality of the tale. Take these five archetypes: Read more »
Oren, Chris, and Mike discuss adaptations from one story medium to another. They describe why adaptations are better or worse then their source material, and list their favorite and least favorite adaptations. Read more »
Main characters are great. Without them, we’d have no one to project ourselves onto. But have you ever read/watched/listened to/smelled a story and been more interested in one of the side characters? Maybe they’ve got a good sense of humor. Maybe their backstory really speaks … read more »
In previous posts in this series, I discussed setting and meeting expectations for your story’s characters and plot threads. Now I’ll be discussing one last component: what I like to call a story’s worldview. Read more »
Chris, Mike, and Oren discuss how themes are a common part of worldbuilding. They describe worlds with memorable themes, contemplate how worldbuilders can add themes to their settings, and mention the advantages and disadvantages of doing so. Read more »
I outlined the Heroine’s Journey last week, but it’s more fun to watch it in action. Because this structure is about a character who’s out of balance and makes a course correction, it’s often used for villains who take a heel-face turn. Here’s five villains … read more »
Oren, Chris, and Mike discuss how black and white morality is built into worlds, particularly through magic systems. They examine how good and evil are represented in different stories, and question the difference between light and dark magic. Read more »
Have you ever wondered how to plot a series of novels instead of just one? Or how to structure a single event that takes only half a scene? If so, I have good news for you: you never have to be confused by scale again. … read more »