Knock-Knock - 2015.7.8 By Sasisage
Knock-Knock - 2015.7.8 by sasisage
More Posts from Othermanymore and Others
Phyllotaxy - the arrangement of leaves
Phyllotactic spirals form a distinctive class of patterns in nature, depicting the arrangement of leaves on a plant stem. The basic patterns are alternate, opposite, whorled or spiral, many of them arranged based on consecutive fibonacci numbers.
more on geometrymatters.com/archive
Among the tales of sorrow and of ruin that come down to us from the darkness of those days there are yet some in which amid weeping there is joy and under the shadow of death light that endure. And of these histories most fair still in the ears of the Elves is the tale of Beren and Luthien
I wish I knew how to outline stories. I’ve tried so many times but I never get it.
I need an outlining coach or tutor or some shit. Someone who will sit me down, talk over what’s supposed to happen with me, and walk me through the process of outlining.
Because this fic is plot heavy and I’m a total pantser and I’m gonna screw it up or hit a writers’ block of the “uh…what’s supposed to happen now?” variety if I don’t get my shit together.
Creating plots with the zigzag method
I’ve learned this method years ago and I’ve been using it ever since. The zigzag plot creator starts like this:
An crescent zigzag.
You can have as many up and downs as you want. I’ve drawn six to keep it simple. Alright, this zigzag is your storyline and every corner is an important event that will change everything:
Every down represents a bad thing happening to your main characters, taking them further away from their goal. Every up is a good event, taking them closer to their goal:
So, when the zigzag goes down, something bad must happen. When the zigzag goes up, something good must happen. The reason why we drew a crescent zigzag is because every down must be worse than the previous, and every up must be better than the previous. As the zigzag advances, events become more serious and relevant.
Let’s apply the zigzag method. My storyline is a detective trying to catch a serial killer in a futuristic city. Minutes later, this is what I’ve got:
Start: Detective, our protagonist, is just promoted
Down #1: Mass suicide happens in town, detective gets the case, the whole town thinks it might have been a religious suicide act, but detective suspects that someone single-handed killed all those people
Up #1: Detective finds clue about a possible killer
Down #2: A bigger mass murder happens, a true massacre, it’s a definitely a murder
Up #2: Detective finds the killer’s trail
Down #3: Thinking he is ahead of time, close to catching the killer, detective ends up dead in another mass murder
Up #3: Because of his notes and discoveries, the police is able to find the killer before they leave town
From this point on you can play with zigzag as much as you want. For example, changing the orientation of the zigzag for a bad ending:
Lots of ups and downs:
Or just a few:
It’s up to you (see what I did there?).
You can plot any type of story with the zigzag method. It’s a visual and easy process for a very complex task.
Marvels of Thedas | The Flooded Cave, Crestwood
aka Dragon Age Inquisition is freakin’ gorgeous <3
Paper Knives
Dated: Meiji Period (1868-1912)
Culture: Japanese
Measurements: overall length 27.5 - 34 cm
Both knives have brass blades engraved with floral motifs with grips featuring high -and bas-relieved effigy of birds.
Source: Copyright © 2016 Czerny’s International Auction House S.R.L.
