The Essence of Standout Characters

Protagonists need reader identification and allegiance, but that alone doesn’t make them standout characters. A great character needs to evoke a strong emotion within readers. And there are three main qualities that allow such effect.

How to Create Compelling Story Action

Action is important for stories, but not all action moves characters. Here, we discuss three requirements for action in your stories using a questionable football analogy.

Escalating Complications

“Escalating complications” is my preferred term for what’s commonly known as “rising action.” What is rising action? And how can you use it to maintain reader engagement in the middles of your scenes and stories? We take a lesson from iguanas and snakes here.