Today’s video is about how to build a story from the key components: world building, themes, characters and plot. Which is quite a big topic, and clearly not something one should try to cover in a 25 minute video. Yet here we are.
Things we’ll cover in the video:
What are the building blocks of a story? 🧱
Which genres require world building? (spoiler: it’s all of them)
How does world building impact a story?
The seven components of defining a world 🌏
How to not get lost in your own world building
The iceberg metaphor 🧊
Why plot is overrated
Using themes as a navigational compass for your story 🧭
How to quickly sketch character personalities 🎭
How mobile phones messed with a lot of established thriller scenarios 📱
Why food is important 🍜
As a bonus, in this video you also get to hear my creaky house and my croaky throat.
Let me know what you think down in the comments, especially if you have a different take or methods that might help other writers.
Last week I updated my Quickstart guide for Substack fiction writers. It’s slightly expanded, and I’ve got more up-to-date thoughts on generative AI:
Thanks for reading (and watching!). See you on Friday for more Triverse.
How to construct a story