Interior Monologue, by Richard Nordquist
From: https://www.thoughtco.com/what-is-an-interior-monologue-1691073, by Richard Nordquist DEFINITION In both fiction and nonfiction, an interior monologue is the expression of a character‘s thoughts, feelings, and impressions in a narrative. An interior monologue may be either direct or indirect: direct, in which the author seems not to exist and the interior self of the character is given directly, as though the reader were overhearing an articulation of the stream of thought and feeling flowing through the character’s mind; indirect, in which the author serves as selector,… Read More
Inner monologue examples: Writing characters’ secret lives
From: https://www.nownovel.com/blog/inner-monologue-examples-in-novels Internal or inner monologue is a useful literary device. Dialogue reveals character relationships, their converging or competing goals. Inner monologue gives readers an x-ray view of characters’ more private feelings and dilemmas. Read examples of inner monologue that illustrate how to use it well, along with tips: First, what is ‘inner monologue’? A ‘monologue’ literally means ‘speaking alone’, if we go back to the word’s roots. In a play, especially in Shakespeare,… Read More
The Complete Guide to Interior Monologue
From: https://www.novel-writing-help.com/interior-monologue.html Interior monologue is the fancy literary term for a character’s thoughts in a novel. In real life, the stream of thoughts we all have running through our heads at any given moment is more often called internal monologue, though the two terms mean precisely the same thing. While we’re dealing with definitions, a couple of closely-related literary terms are… Stream of Consciousness. This is where an entire novel, or at least large chunks… Read More
The Key Ingredient for Dramatic Tension–Understanding the Antagonist, by Kristen Lamb
By Author Kristen Lamb, posted in Antagonist on April 23, 2012 From: https://warriorwriters.wordpress.com/tag/role-of-the-antagonist Today I wanted to take some time to talk about the antagonist. Why? Well, not only is the antagonist THE most important character, but he is the most misunderstood as well. […] Whenever I blog about the antagonist, I generally get one of the following: “Well, my character is the antagonist. She is her own worst enemy.” “What if… Read More
Storytelling Strategies: Spotlighting Inner Conflict, by Paul Joseph Gulino
January 25, 2016 From: http://www.scriptmag.com/features/storytelling-strategies-spotlighting-inner-conflict Do your characters need an arc or inner conflict to make a screenplay work? Spotlight (written by Josh Singer and Tom McCarthy and directed by McCarthy) has been nominated for a slew of awards, including Oscars in Best Picture and Best Writing categories. The obvious reason for the attention is that it is a polished, well-crafted, and engaging film. Very likely, another reason is the subject matter:… Read More
Levels of Conflict, by John Vorhaus
From: http://writerunboxed.com/2013/07/25/levels-of-conflict By John Vorhaus on Jul 25 2013 at WriterUnboxed.com Whenever I have a problem I can’t solve, I immediately try to break it down into smaller, component problems. And I keep breaking problems down until I find one small enough to solve. This is a strategy I use over and over again when trying to get to the heart of the conflict of a story or scene I’m writing. For… Read More
The Drama Triangle, by Betsy Dickinson
THE DRAMA TRIANGLE PRESENTED BY: BETSY DICKINSON The Drama Triangle is a social model developed by Stephen Karman, MD. It defines the roles of persecutor, victim and rescuer in drama-intense relationship transactions. It models the connection between personal responsibility and power in conflicts and the destructive and shifting roles people play. The Persecutor and Rescuer is the “one-up” position. The Victim is the “one-down” position. Victim’s seek out persecutors and rescuers. Rescuers feel guilty… Read More
Insights Into Advanced Fiction Structure, by Donald Maass
From PNWA Master Class, Writing the Breakout Novel by Donald Maass, via DeeAnna Galbraith All about building layers and surprising the reader with something they didn’t expect Character Work/Openings Is your protagonist: An everyman? What quality in the life of the author can be shown in this type of character almost immediately? Are they in control, too busy, boring job? Already a hero or heroine? What is this character’s everyday human quality? Put this… Read More
Perfect Counterparts, by Erik Bork
From: http://blog.artella.com/post/141211270456/on-developing-story-ideas-by-pete-docter What makes an audience root for two people to be together? The Save the Cat books have a name for the type of story where the primary external conflict is that two people who are “perfect counterparts” have something big in the way of “living happily ever after.” It’s called “Buddy Love.” And it includes most types of love stories, including the classic “Forbidden Love” (Brokeback Mountain, Twilight, Moulin Rouge) or… Read More
Four Things House of Cards Can Teach Us About Writing, by Cris Freese
From http://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/there-are-no-rules/4-things-house-of-cards-can-teach-us-about-writing I think the general consensus among those writers who teach the craft is that you must read—and read widely—about the craft of writing, particularly those authors who write in your genre. But I think there’s a lot you can learn about writing from other mediums, too. Specifically television. Every other Monday, I’ll be bringing you takeaways from some of the best television shows out there. These are meant to be specific… Read More