Reverse-Engineering Conflict in a Story
part one

Conflict is the basic material of a scene, and of a story. I've talked a lot over the years about structure and genre, and how all that stuff can work.

Another way to create a new story, and new characters, is to ...

It was a blustery, cold evening when Elias and Archimedes arrived at the Four Harts Inn. Upon arrival, the pair meet up with Yara Sistani, a guide to get them safely through the first part of their expedition. Out of nowhere, a haunting voice of a creature beyond the earthly ...

One of the things I love the most about comics, is the prep work, which may not be obvious by the countless amount of times that I’ve stated that I’m doing absolutely no prep work as of now for Scorned; but when I worked on Scarred Eden, that ...

Who doesn't love a good intrigue, some scheming in the shadows, some low chuckling behind a curtain?

The author.

It's the author that doesn't love it. Or rather, the sheer background work that needs to go into writing a good scheming plot, counter plot, and the whole ...

Some of my earliest memories are playing with Star Wars toys - my awareness of the first film and the toys are muddled together, but I clearly remember seeing The Empire Strikes Back, and vividly recall the couple-years-long wait after that, before Return of the Jedi would come and resolve the ...

Photo: Conan O’Brien and Andy Richter during a Cold Open for San Diego Comic-Con International (2016)

Seven years ago, on November 17, 2014, I wrote a Monday article on the Duck following the final taping of the Late, Late Show with Craig Ferguson. It was around that time that ...

I read some writing…advice? Or commentary? Or something like that years ago that pointed out how often amateur writers will create Protagonists who are writers. If I'm remembering correctly, this was expressed as a bad thing, probably because it's overdone. On the one hand, they say write ...

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There was ALL sorts of kerfuffle on the internet centred around the phrase “Heroes don't do that”.
It began with an interview of two people involved ...

It’s easy to fall prey to impatience when it comes to progress, even more so when we begin comparing ourselves to other people. However, so long as you continue to practice, you will see improvements in your work and speed. It takes time to make noticeable improvements but they ...

When we think of a Protagonist, the standard type that comes to mind is the underdog, maybe a young character who goes on a difficult journey and learns some lessons and faces many challenges, or a capable person who gets in way over their head in some kind of intriguing ...