The 7 Basic Plots: Bonus Plots!
So we went through Christopher Booker’s seven basic plots, and maybe you’re feeling a little sad. What’s left? That surely can’t be all!
You’re in luck. It’s not.
The Flip Side: Writing Villain Protagonists
We’re used to rooting for our protagonists. The easiest way to get an audience behind your character is to give them a moral compass that consistently points toward good. But what happens if your main character’s moral compass points in the opposite direction? Or if they have no moral compass at all?
Welcome to the world of the villain protagonist.
How to Kick Your Story Up a Notch With a Sidekick
Often in stories, the protagonist has a support system (unless your novel takes place on a deserted island and the protagonist is the lone survivor of a terrible plane crash, in which case a volleyball named Wilson will just have to do). These characters can take the form of friends, family, coworkers, roommates, or any other number of relationships, but often they fulfill the role of the sidekick.
The Danger of Beige Prose, Purple Prose’s Less Colorful Twin
We discussed purple prose a few weeks ago, and as Newton’s Third Law of Motion states, for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. Or something like that; my college Practical Physics class involved making ice cream with liquid nitrogen. And the equal and opposite reaction to purple prose is beige prose.
How to Be a Super Hero: Create an Alter Ego
If you want to learn how to be a super hero, you need an alter ego, but alter egos are everywhere, not just among those with super powers. The protagonist in your novel, whether super or not so much, can have an alter ego, too. In fact, alter egos are a great characterization strategy.
