Every story begins with an idea. Alas, stories can only be created when at least two vastly different ideas collide. The place where they meet is the BOOM, much like the weather. Storms erupt because two very different bodies of air meet…and don’t get along. Only one will win out. In the meantime, lots of …
Category: Antagonist
Feb 23 2018
Problems: Great Dramatic Writing Draws Blood & Opens Psychic Wounds
Problems are the essential ingredient for all stories. All forms of dramatic writing balance on the fulcrum of problems. The more problems, the better. Small problems, big problems, complicated problems, imagined problems, ignored problems all make the human heart beat faster. Complication, quandaries, distress, doubt, obstacles and issues are all what make real life terrifying…and …
Sep 18 2017
Bring on the BINGE! Creating Villains Audiences Can’t Get Enough Of
Many of us have been there. It’s late. We know we have “adulting” to do in the morning (which is in two hours). Our sensible self has been nagging us to get our @$$ to bed so long we smothered it with a pillow around midnight. Whether it’s a book, or Netflix or HBO or …
Apr 22 2015
Anatomy of a Legendary Villain
If a villain is wanting to rule, control, destroy, etc. they should have a really good/plausible/sympathetic reason for doing so. In fact, when we do a great job at creating the villain, our audience will struggle with who to root for.