At the Story Fortress, we believe you can learn something from every story. Whether its characters are flawless, the plot is boring, or its the best-written mystery of all time, we believe that you can become a better writer through analyzing any story — and that’s what we’re here to help you with. From the…
One of the very first articles Sophia and I posted on the blog was about how to write arrogant characters in such a way that your readers don’t want to close your book forever. There’s a way to do them right, so that your readers can understand their flaws, even if they don’t relate to…
It has often been pointed out that old fairy tales are not the most nuanced. The evil characters are just that — pure villainy. Our protagonist is the ideal of perfection. There are no antiheroes, broken protagonists, or even characters with any serious faults. While the conventional wisdom of modern storytelling is to allow your…
Side characters can seem like more trouble than they’re worth. After all, we’ve talked over and over again on the blog about how a well-rounded, truly relatable protagonist will draw in just about anyone. There’s something magnetic about characters with goals, desires, and fears that makes readers unable to put your book down. It’s those…
Some characters are just plain weird. They’re either constantly making stupid remarks, wearing the craziest clothes, or just being quirky for no apparent reason other than the writer wanted to force a laugh out of their readers. Sometimes these characters, such as Dewey from DuckTales or Luna Lovegood from Harry Potter, can become some of…
In the beginning of the month, I wrote an article on what not to do when writing a love triangle. I went through many of the common pitfalls and difficulties that come up when writers include a love triangle in their story carelessly. But it’s completely possible to avoid those traps and write a love…
Like we talked about last week, love triangles can easily ruin a novel. However, despite everything young adult stories such as Twlight or The Inheritance Games might have led you to believe, love triangles don’t always have to be that way. Some love triangles can move a plot forward, give each character a chance to…
Love triangles have been written in all kinds of stories. They’re immensely popular not only in the young adult and romance genres, but also across fiction in general. And while there is definitely a time and a place for love triangles, too many authors include them when they aren’t necessary, assume they’re quick and low-effort…
We’ve talked a lot about tone on the blog lately. Whether you’re trying to manage a darker, more serious story without being overly violent, or if you want to balance a lighter story with higher stakes, managing your story’s tone is a multifaceted topic that requires a combination of several tools to do well. Although…
Last summer, I wrote about how the majority of stories to fall into two general categories — cast-focused and protagonist-focused. In a more in-depth article, we explored the strengths and weaknesses of both kinds and how they change your story. Mixing the two types happens occasionally, but it has to be done intentionally or it…
Certain stories bring with them an almost tangible brightness. It’s hard to describe, but something about them just seems unbeatably optimistic, even if the characters themselves face challenges, heartache, and even grief. These stories are heartwarming and often glorify adventure, romance, or friendship, using these elements to brighten the story. Despite the darker themes and…