Archive for the 'All-time Top-7 Plotting Mistakes to Avoid at All Costs.' Category
#5 Pace: Cracking or Grinding?
Wednesday, July 25th, 2007Your reader is into the third paragraph of your story and although she has already developed a connection to your main character, nothing seems to be happening. She’s beginning to feel the tug of the outside world. The main character doesn’t seem to be doing anything. The shopping list for this evening’s […]
#6 (Dull) Beginning, (Sagging round the) Middle and (Lame at the) End.
Monday, July 23rd, 2007Dull, sagging and lame. Who would want a life like that? Who would want to be like that? Yet, it’s amazing how many stories sitting in slush piles around the world seem to have been modelled, at least partially, on this the ‘Dull beginning, sagging middle and lame ending.’
Beginning
When you sit down to […]
#7. BS is for ‘Back Story’
Sunday, June 24th, 2007All your main characters have a back story that you should probably know inside out. However, your readers don’t need to be exposed to all the excruciating detail. A sure fire way to let your narrative pace slip away forever is to foist a chunky back story on them in the first chapter.
Back story, or […]
