Smack Dab in the Middle

  You’ll remember previously I wrote about causal chains in my introduction to the Story Nerds.   Continuing the discussion,  I’ve enjoyed the ongoing discussions with Story Nerds. Not your typical writing group, we’ve taken a deep dive into the ‘bits’ of story-making  – causal chains, theme, language, world-building and setting, points of view, scene types, tropes and tone – to explore how these bits relate and/or connect in order to create   a more immersive experience for the reader.   Along the way, we’ve explored the possibility of bending traditional story shapes into exciting genre-blends.    In other words, as we explore how these bits need to fit together cohesively, which implies a certain universality to organizing some of these shapes and how they work, we also take a deeper dive into these bits to discover the potential for seeing new ways that they may fit together. Recognizing that there are no rules, just guidelines,...