Writing Essentials: Introduction

The aim of this blog series is to hand you the tools you need for effective storytelling.

Effective storytelling grabs the reader by the shorthairs from paragraph one and refuses to let go. It does so because it’s relatable, engaging, entertaining, and readable.

Relatable: your characters are well-rounded with recognizable traits anchored in the strengths and flaws that all us humans have.

Engaging: your plot is built around turning points that gives it a sense of momentum; events happen for a clear reason and one event builds seamlessly into the next.

Entertaining: your character/plot/world dynamic is balanced, creating a narrative dance that delivers points of intrigue on every page.

Readable: your understanding of the fundamentals means that, no matter what genre you’re writing in, your prose is focused on delivering the goods, ensuring a smooth reading experience for your audience.

Once you master these four aspects of storytelling, you’ll be able to write the kind of stories that a reader will want to come back to over and over again.

Readernip, if you will.

Together we’ll look at the storytelling building blocks that make the above aspects so irresistible. We’ll check out the core elements of character/plot/world and how they inform the direction we’re taking with our story. And we’ll dive into storytelling tools such as theme, symbolism, text/subtext, and outlining.

We will start by looking at the psychological aspect of creating, building, and nurturing our characters.

Because that’s where it all begins: With the people who are to populate our story, instigate our plot, and move through our world and its settings.

Let’s go!