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…
Inheritance Games: Why Love Triangles Are Risky
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…
Thor Ragnarok: How To Use Your Plot to Leverage Your Tone
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…
Trollhunters: Letting Your Characters Grow
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…
One Piece: Balancing Tone and Stakes
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…
Just Add Magic: How to Write Flashbacks
Incorporating your character’s backstory into your novel can be difficult. On the one hand, you want your readers to understand the emotional depth behind your character’s actions, but on the other hand, you don’t want your readers drowning in exposition. Writing backstory requires a delicate balance, one that is often achieved by including flashbacks. They…
Migration: In Defense of a Low-Stakes Climax
Migration has almost everything you’d look for in a family-centered comedy: well-developed but humorous characters, hilarious gags, and its stunning visuals are truly unique, balancing the unique dynamic of classic 2D animation with three-dimensional depth. It highlights family themes, sibling relationships, and a call to adventure all within a refreshingly simple premise and plot. For…
You’ve Got Mail: How to Write an Adorkable Character (Who Isn’t Super Annoying)
There is a certain type of of characters out there who really annoy their readers. They try to be adorably awkward and quirky, but only end up coming across the page as cliche or just plain awkward. In other words, the writers try to contrast two personality traits (in this case, being both cute and…
Megamind: How To Write a Character Who Switches Goals
When I first read a story where the protagonist switched goals, I was irritated. The entire book had revolved around a certain goal. It had formed the central conflict of the entire story, the focal point of the protagonist’s development and internal conflict. And yet by the end the characters just… abandoned it. The story…
IF: Know Your Strengths
I think we can all acknowledge that no story is perfect. Even the very best fiction has some element that could be stronger, or at the very least a criticism that we can understand, even if we don’t agree with it. As writers, our own work is no different. No matter how many books on…
Sophie Quire and the Last Storyguard: The Power of Character Goals
Across many books, movies, and TV shows, writers often seem to include whole casts of characters who have very little reason to participate in the plot. They’re certainly interesting, often with complicated pasts, deep relationships, and meaningful dialogue, but they don’t have a clear reason to participate in the story. They might have a mild…