CATHARSIS
from the Best of Banes Collection
A writing instructor once gave me brief advice on how to write a story, structurally speaking. It was 1/4 Act One setup, 1/2 Act Two complications and rising stakes (I think), and about 1/4 An Act Three “cathartic ending”.
I ...

Catharsis
Banes at 12:00AM, Nov. 1, 2018A Trilogy in Reverse
kawaiidaigakusei at 12:00AM, July 16, 2018
I spent the weekend doing something I have wanted to do for quite sometime: having a midnight pizza party while watching the early 1990s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle movies with the Jim Henson turtle costumes. Yes, the turtles were a thing when Vanilla Ice was still household name, but what ...
The Sizzle and the Steak
Banes at 12:00AM, May 10, 2018
For of all sad words of tongue and pen,
The saddest are these: “It might have been!”
Whether it's a webcomic, graphic novel, book, TV Show or movie, there is generally a “promise” made to the audience on some level. Maybe it starts with a thumbnail image and a ...
The Character Journey of Iron Man revisited
Banes at 12:00AM, April 26, 2018
Iron Man and the multi film arc - revisited
There are spoilers below for the Iron Man and Avengers movies, Civil War, and Spiderman Homecoming
The Marvel Cinematic Universe has been breaking new ground in movies with their various interconnected films for about ten years.
The MCU began with Iron Man ...
The Origin Stories of Webcomics | Part 2
Emma_Clare at 12:00AM, Jan. 26, 2018
Last week I decided to be indulgent and explain where I came from as a webcomic creator and this week I am finishing that story, at least up to where I am now. It was so lovely reading all your comments about your origins. It is very easy to look ...
The Power of Comments
Tantz_Aerine at 12:00AM, Sept. 23, 2017
Feedback from your audience has always been important- from the renaissance palace parlors to enlightenment salons to the modern art galleries, how much the audience is pleased by what the creator procures is central.
But in the age of the internet and webcomics, where comics are updated page by page ...
Reflecting on Reflection Characters
Banes at 12:00AM, July 20, 2017
Reflection Characters
When I was doing a little reading on the “Mentor” character type, I learned about something called “Reflection Characters”. It was an eye opener; I'd never heard of this before, though I could instantly see how it made sense in storytelling, and dozens of examples came to ...
Archetypal Events – Staples in Devising Plot (part 4)
Tantz_Aerine at 12:00AM, May 20, 2017
So here we are after the brief intermission, back to talking about archetypes from our friend Jung.
As of course is natural, all stories have to have a plot in order to be engaging and be in a position to make their points and get them across because the alternative ...