by K. M. Weiland Find these and other great articles at: https://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/ https://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/mean-move-plot/ “Move the plot, move the plot—everything in your story must move your plot!!!” So rail all writing professors. Meanwhile, the writers themselves just want to bang their heads against their keyboards in desperate frustration. “Okay, yes, fine, great—I want to move the plot. … Continue reading Moving the Plot Forward →

by K. M. Weiland Find these and other great articles at: https://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/ https://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/archetypal-character-arcs-pt-5-the-king-arc/ If we view the human life and thus the six archetypal character arcs of the “life arcs” as taking on the classic story-structure format of Three Acts, then it is no coincidence that the all-important Midpoint marks the transition from the Queen … Continue reading The King Arc →

by K. M. Weiland Find these and other great articles at: https://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/ So you want to add complexity to your story. Most authors do. Complexity just sounds so… sophisticated. It sounds like one of those novels or films that are taken apart and analyzed by really smart critics and professors. It sounds like taking your … Continue reading 7 Tips for Adding Complexity to Your Story →

by K. M. Weiland Find these and other great articles at: https://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/ What happens after the happily ever after? This is a question we often ask but seldom explore. As discussed in previous weeks, the two archetypal character arcs that begin the cycle of six “life arcs” are the Maiden and the Hero. Together, they … Continue reading The Queen Arc →

by K. M. Weiland Find these and other great articles at: https://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/ How can you deepen your story’s theme? This is a question most writers find themselves asking at one point or another. And there are many answers. As an inherently abstract concept, theme can be approached from many different directions—and still feel hard to … Continue reading The Thematic Square →

Find these and other great articles at: https://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/ Ah, the hero. Heroic stories are so important and so prevalent throughout the history of storytelling that the word “hero” itself has become all but synonymous with that of “protagonist.” That the Hero Arc is in fact but one of many important archetypal character arcs does not … Continue reading The Hero Arc →

by K. M. Weiland Find these and other great articles at: https://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/ Cohesion and Resonance! So many pieces have to come together to create skillful fiction that it’s almost disingenuous to suggest there are only one or two that make or break the story. But turns out: it’s true. And if my marquee-style post title … Continue reading Cohesion and Resonance! →

by K. M. Weiland Find these and other great articles at: https://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/ The First Act of the human experience—roughly the first thirty years—may be thought of as a period of Initiation. It is a period of integrating the parts of one’s self. In many ways, it is a period in which the overarching, symbolic antagonist … Continue reading The Maiden Arc →

By K.M. Weiland Find these and other great articles at: https://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/ By its very nature, story structure is archetypal. It is a pattern we recognize emerging from story. It is a pattern as big as life itself, and therefore one about which we are always learning more, but it is also a pattern we have … Continue reading Archetypes and Story Structure: How They’re Connected →