Author: Mara Scudder

Not all characters have to develop. This can be a little surprising, especially in a time when character development is so emphasized in the literary realm.  Please don’t get me wrong. Most of your characters should develop. The majority of them should not be static. I have an article coming about just how awesome writing…

Last year, when I was doing research for my first article on Big Hero 6, I came across an article contrasting the movie with The Incredibles. It offered several points that the author believed made The Incredibles a better movie, and one point particularly stood out to me. While The Incredibles offers character development and…

I recently rewatched Age of Ultron for the first time since it was released in 2015. For all the hate it has gotten, I expected to find a villain with no motivation or interest, a lack of a theme, or at least some serious deviation from the protagonists’ character arcs or personality.  But I found…

We talked about character choices in an article last year, and they seem to be stressed a fair amount in other writing blogs, books, and communities as well. But from a writer’s perspective, they can seem pretty pointless. When you’re in complete control of a plot, the side characters, and even the very world itself,…

Earlier this month we looked at circular storytelling, and how it elevates simple stories far above their predictable plots to create memorable tales that stick with readers and viewers. Disney utilized this technique especially throughout the Disney Renaissance, a series of highly successful animated movies that quickly became well-loved classics. From The Little Mermaid to…

Simple stories can come across as a little boring, especially to the writer. I mean, who wants to write just a simple, straightforward story with a few characters that fill very distinct, straight-forward roles? There is less opportunity for plot holes and complications, to be sure, but in a world full of stories with mind-bending…

Last week we looked at Agent Carter, and how that show absolutely nailed dealing with a character who faces discrimination. But that’s only one side of the coin. Necessarily, a character who faces discrimination must be discriminated against by someone, right?  And writing characters who discriminate can be hard. Too many writers fall into the…

There’s been a lot of storytelling about characters who face discrimination lately. Some of this is a good thing. In a lot of ways, it shows a culture that is willing to recognize humanity’s capacity for evil, and the often needless and violent reactions that come when different kinds of people end up “othered.” Good…