Story Shots: Endearing Ineptitude with Vaurien Scapegrace
Author Abigail Morrison dissects how inept characters can be endearing, using a character from the Skulduggery Pleasant series as an example.
storytelling
Writing update: Creating a hero I can love
Most writers will tell you that one of the hardest things to do is actually sit down and, well, write. There are all kinds of reasons for this: busy schedules, fears or resistance, or, as I recently discovered while reading Rachel Aaron’s 2k to 10k, simply because the writing isn’t fun. Now, for that last …
Story Shots: Competent leadership with Menion Leah
My dad and I have a shorthand phrase we use when we see incompetent leadership in stories. Whenever it happens, one of us always jokingly says, “Classic Star Trek chain of command.” It’s the trope of idiots presiding over supremely competent middle management and the canon fodder beneath them. It’s so common in sci-fi and …
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Story Shots: Hope through Tragedy with Hadestown
Author Abigail Morrison discusses how tragedy can be an opportunity to highlight hope in a story, using the musical Hadestown as an example.
Story Shots: Good guy antagonists with The Fugitive
Author Abigail Morrison explains how morally good antagonists can add depth and complexity to action stories.
Story Shots: Twisting tropes with Die Hard
Author Abigail Morrison shows how Die Hard uses tropes to efficiently develop characters, increase tension, and play off viewer expectations.
Three resolutions for my next book
Author Abigail Morrison lays out three resolutions for her next book.
Story Shots: Monkey D. Luffy, ronin at large
Author Abigail Morrison discusses how Luffy and the Straw Hat Pirates fill the ronin story function and how it can be used effectively in other stories.
Story Shots: Setups and payoffs with Bullet Train
Author Abigail Morrison discusses how setups and payoffs are used to create tension, humor, and catharsis in the movie Bullet Train.
Story Shots: Solving the Shonen problem with Juzo Inui
Author Abigail Morrison discusses how restraining overpowered characters via relationships, worldbuilding, and plot can lead to more effective stories.