Characters want something - this is a basic building block of storytelling. Identifying what a main character wants is a big step in defining that character. Figure out how they go about trying to get it - that's the beginning of a story. Figure out what's stopping them from getting ...

You Can't Get What You Want til You Know What You Want
Banes at 12:00AM, June 20, 2024Do written fics and illustrated art go together?
Andreas_Helixfinger at 12:00AM, June 16, 2024
Hey all!
Been posting the first chapter of my serial story – Endbargo – on AO3 recently. Here’s the link for anyone interested in reading.
https://archiveofourown.org/works/56654398/chapters/144012661
I also recently brought up this topic on a facebook group I’m in about fanfiction writing, where I ...
Are We The Baddies?
Tantz_Aerine at 12:00AM, June 15, 2024
Last time I wrote about villains making amends, after they decide to change their ways, flip sides, or generally become support to the protagonist, rather than the antagonist.
But for them to get there, there has to first come the realization that they are the villain of their story. And ...
Where we Start
Banes at 12:00AM, June 13, 2024
I've started a few webcomics at this point, and all of them are ongoing…well, at least in theory.
There's always the question of where to start. What's page one gonna be?
With my first comic, Typical Strange, I LABORED over that decision for years.
Kind of ...
Comic stories as written fics or novels
Andreas_Helixfinger at 12:00AM, June 9, 2024
Hi there, Ducks!
Recently I’ve been utterly immersed in writing this story that is building up to be a serial story taking place in the same setting as my comics. It is set up to be sort of a prequel to one of the comics, exploring and showcasing the ...
Making Amends
Tantz_Aerine at 12:00AM, June 1, 2024
So your villain has just made a heel-face turn and is now one of the good guys. Yay!
…not so fast!
The moment where an antagonist turns on their own side and joins that of the protagonists is extremely powerful. But unless it is part of the overall story's ...
Becoming the Beast
Tantz_Aerine at 12:00AM, May 25, 2024
Humans can be scary, fascinating, mysterious creatures. Humanity is capable of the most amazing feats of compassion and the most debased acts of cruelty. And not necessarily at opposing ends of the spectrum. The same person can be compassionate in one context and appallingly cruel in another. They may not ...
Dem Rabbits
Banes at 12:00AM, May 16, 2024
I was thinking about the idea of characters who have a dream of something - a wonderful life, a perfect situation, and are living for the possibility of getting there.
For me, the story that hits this hardest is Of Mice and Men, where George and Lenny, struggling during the Depression ...
An Itch to Scratch
Banes at 12:00AM, May 9, 2024
I first heard the phrase “an itch to scratch” from the creators/writers of Better Call Saul. When they were expanding and deepening the “Saul” character from Breaking Bad, they needed to change a comedic side character into a fully rounded lead character. And Vince Giligan said that an early ...