Welcome to week one! This video goes through some basics of writing fiction; I'm not too happy with the sound quality but I hope I'll find a better microphone or setup.

This video is about 1 hour long; I recommend breaking it up into chunks and doing a few slides a day - I also included the PDF of the slides I was using down below.

What makes a story?

• Consistent tense / POV
• Linear timeline
• A character worth caring about (avatar)
• Something they want, and an inability to get it
• An event or challenge they cannot overcome
• ...that forces them to change.
• A barrier or active antagonist
• A setting (description)
• Interesting characters (cast)
• Obstacles (challenges)
• Difficult decisions
• A beginning and an end

Rewards must outweigh the risks (they must want goal enough to overcome dangers: must be completely committed to action). Pressure forces action, and keeps the momentum.

See if you can write your story in a few sentences, using this formula.

My character is a _____ who wants _____. But then when ________, they're forced to _____.

And they have to choose between ____ and ____.

In the end, they learn _____ (probable theme of the book; but don't worry if yours doesn't have a crucial or critical theme, it's not necessary.)