Writing Roots

One of the easiest ways to consume a story is through a visual medium, which includes comic books or web comics. All it takes is a bit of artistic skill and the desire to tell a story. The art doesn’t even have to be detailed or complicated. Take xkcd for example, which is make, usually, through simple stick figures and has been an active and popular web comic series for more than a decade.

Whether you write and illustrate comic books, manga, or comic strips for newspapers, this medium has no bounds in the kind of story you can tell. It’s also a good way to build a dedicated audience, since there is a deep-seated fan culture surrounding each type of comic-based story. We talk in this episode about how that is an advantage, as well as a disadvantage, when pursuing a career in writing.

First aired April 21, 2022.

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If you’re looking to get paid to write, a good place to look is in journalism. Even if you don’t want to stay in the field, it’s a wonderful learning opportunity.

Being a journalist is difficult work. You write under strict, hard deadlines. Research often means going out to investigate and interview. Probably worst of all, you’re not writing about the bright and happy news in the world. What you write is about current events. Murders, crime, chaos. However, it is a guaranteed way to have readers. If you work for the right outlet, you get paid well to do it. You will also have a lot of opportunity to hone your writing skills and learn to pay attention to the important details. In this episode, we break down more of the advantages and disadvantages of such a career path.

First aired April 18, 2022.

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If you’re interested in making money with flash fiction, consider advertising. Honestly. Good commercials and ads tell some kind of story. They present a problem, and then the product provides the solution. And what is storytelling but writing a problem and a solution?

You don’t have to look far to find examples of stories within advertisements. One of the first that comes to mind would be the Allstate Mayhem commercials, or even something as simple as this ZipTax commercial. Each tells a story in just a few sentences.

There’s a lot that makes writing advertisements unique, which also makes it a challenge. We break it down in this episode.

First aired April 14, 2022.

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If you decide to write a script for a play, there are certain things you need to know and understand about the world of stage acting. Though some of the formatting may be similar to screenplays, writing for the stage means giving some of the control over to directors and actors. After all, they’re the ones that will be taking your words and giving them life.

As Brian Greene once said, “Writing for the stage is different from writing for a book. You want to write in a way that an actor has material to work with… and pulling out the dramatic elements in a bigger way for a stage presentation.”

That last part is important. Dramatic elements need to be bigger, need to show up bigger. That way the audience in the nosebleeds can still experience the emotion of the actor. While much of that is the actor’s responsibility, it’s also up to the writer to give them enough room to make it possible. Listen to this episode for more on how to be a playwright, as well as its advantages and disadvantages.

First aired April 11, 2022.

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Probably the second most-desired route to take as an author, besides writing for novels, would be writing screenplays. Choosing to write for movies or television takes an entirely different kind of skillset, as well as a focus on elements unavailable to those who write books.

In this episode, we discuss what it means to write screenplays, as well as the advantages and disadvantages to it.

First aired April 7, 2022.

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If you’re looking to get into writing but the idea of writing a whole novel is daunting, this series is for you. We’re starting off our series about different mediums for writing by discussing short form mediums written specifically to be shared online. This includes things like blogging, vlogging, and podcasting.

What we mean by a short form medium is a piece of self-contained writing which may or may not be part of a larger series, but which can stand on its own regarding the plot. Basically a bunch of short stories, but compiled together in a place easily accessible to anyone. Podcasting is widely popular for this. Not only do you have non-fiction and educational podcasts like ours, but there are fiction podcasts which tell stories in bite-sized segments for entertainment.

Though there are plenty of advantages to writing something for a short form medium, there are downsides as well, especially depending on where you choose to publish. Hosts Leigh and Ley break down how to write for something like an online blog in this episode.

First aired April 4, 2022.

The post S31E1 – Storytelling for the Internet: Blogging, YouTubing, and Podcasting appeared first on Writing Roots.

One of the main staples in any Young Adult fiction is the Coming of Age theme. This is when the main character experiences personal growth and change which relies on their emotional responses and ties to the larger plot around them. It’s when the character discovers something integral about themselves or the world. They’re learning what it is to be.

This trope most often accompanies drama and slice of life stories, and it is a common theme in LGBTQ+ stories. Often you’ll find the characters don’t fit in, or at least feel out of place somehow, and the story is tied to them finding a place in the world.

Coming of Age stories, especially in the slice of life genre, are not simple progressions of someone’s normal life. There still need to be challenges, a plot, and real struggle. That is, after all, how the character makes the key discovery. No one has an epiphany about their role in life without facing trials. For more on how to write a story using this plot trope, listen below.

First aired March 31, 2022.

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One way to keep the tension – whether comedic, romantic, or dramatic – going within a story is to make two characters at odds with each other throughout. Not in the protagonist vs. antagonist way, but in the way of allies working towards the same goal but not always seeing eye-to-eye. This can easily be achieved by using the Odd Couple trope.

The Odd Couple of often seen within comedies and crime dramas. You’ll have the law-abiding, by-the-book character working with the risk-taker with no rules character. They have some reason they’re forced together, when in any other circumstance, they’d likely never have more than a passing conversation.

When using this trope, balance is important. Both of the characters in an Odd Couple situation are equally the main characters. In the end, they both make the other a better person in some way. The focused one will help the zany one rise to responsibility, while the zany helps the focused relax. Listen to this episode for more tips and tricks to writing this plot trope.

First aired March 28, 2022.

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Not every narrator in a story needs to know everything. They don’t have to be omniscient, nor does the knowledge the get and share with the reader need to be accurate. You can, instead, have what is known as an Unreliable Narrator. This is when the narrator – whether intentionally or not – is deceiving the reader in a way that skews how the story is perceived. It’s not until the end that the unreliability is discovered and the real truth comes out.

There are exceptions to this rule, of course, such as the example of Odd Thomas we gave in the introduction of this episode. The narrator could be aware of their unreliability and share it with the audience for some reason. In most cases, though, there is something the narrator wishes to hide because it paints the story in a way that favors them. This is true in stories such as Gone Girl.

Having an unreliable narrator lends itself well to genres such as mystery, crime, and psychological thrillers. We discuss how to use this trope in this bonus episode. Listen now on Spotify, Stitcher, Google Podcasts, and Apple Podcasts.

First aired March 26, 2022.

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Among popular romance tropes, the Fake Dating scheme can be seen again and again. This is when two characters begin dating out of a mutual need rather than a mutual attraction. Often, this ends with real feelings developing and the characters fall in love. Another term for this trope is Faux-mance.

Though it has found a beloved home in romance books, you can use it to boost a relationship plot in any genre. There are just a few things you need to keep in mind to help the fake-to-real romance grow naturally. First is to make sure that it’s a balanced relationship – they both need something from it or they both know it’s fake. There also needs to be a reason for public spectacle. After all, why pretend to date each other if it’s only for the other’s benefit? It’s also helpful to put a timeline on the fake part of the relationship.

In this episode, we discuss all of these suggestions, as well as pitfalls to avoid when writing a Fake Dating plot. Listen here, on Spotify, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, or Stitcher.

First aired March 24, 2022.

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