Jun 18, 2019
maracate replied to your post: now that ive finished blackbird my next challenge...
Teach me the secret of writing novels cause everything I write is basically a short story
you know that part you get to where everything seems to be going right and wrapping up? make it go wronger.
#maracate#okay but seriously...#subplots are your friend. dig into the characters. why does the antagonist want what they want? why are side characters involved?#what non-antagonist problems does your protagonist face? for that matter what is the antagonist-related problem they are facing?#if the antagonist is Nature or The Self or something - is there a secondary sentient antagonist anywhere to keep things moving?#and of course the tried and true: How Can This Go Wrong?#let the protagonist have a small victory here and there but ultimately everything should get worse and worse#until its essentially Win or Die (or whatever your stakes are but they need to be right up against them with no way out - only through)#(also read a lot bc you get a sense of when certain beats should happen (like the introduction of a subplot))#im sorry for putting my advice in the tags orz
