by Pat Marcello | Jan 1, 2011 | Writing
Though the beginning of your story is crucial and needs to draw people in, your middle is what keeps them reading your story or book. You have to give them rising action, a climax, falling action, and the denouement or the resolution of all conflicts. Here’s...
by Pat Marcello | Dec 31, 2010 | Writing
You might be thinking, ugh… the middle… lots and lots of writing. Yep… That’s true, but you can have fun writing it, especially if you outline fun into the middle right from the start. Writing short stories should have an outline, too, really....
by Pat Marcello | Dec 30, 2010 | Writing
We all know that stories have a beginning, a middle, and an end. We’ve talked about the beginning over the last few days… that should be where you start your conflict or problem. But what happens next? That’s your middle. Here’s where you turn...
by Pat Marcello | Dec 29, 2010 | Writing
Conflict is uber important in any short story or novel. We’ve already covered why and how, but what makes it so important? Simple. Conflict makes people feel. Your readers should want to see your main character be successful. Or, in the case of a villian, they...
by Pat Marcello | Dec 28, 2010 | Writing
So, we already know that conflict is trouble and that if you don’t have that element early in your story, your readers won’t be engaged. But how do you create trouble, and what comes first? Characters or creating the problem? Image via Wikipedia What I do...
by Pat Marcello | Dec 27, 2010 | Writing
Yep, it’s true. If you don’t have a conflict, you don’t have a story. You need a problem for your character(s) to solve, and if it doesn’t exist, what you have is a long narrative that nobody wants to read. Image via Wikipedia Think about every...
