#Narrative twists

[joncronshawauthor]

Fantasy Writing Lessons from It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia

In the labyrinthine world of fantasy writing, inspiration can bubble up from the most unexpected fountains. Among these, “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” might seem an unlikely muse, with its band of morally dubious characters and their often preposterous escapades. Yet, beneath its chaotic surface, this series offers a trove of insights for the fantasy writer willing to look beyond the…

[theaawalker]

Steps to Write Compelling Plot Twists

1. Plan the Twist Early

Decide the Purpose: Determine how the twist advances the story or challenges the characters.

Foreshadow Strategically: Seed subtle clues throughout the narrative that hint at the twist without giving it away.

2. Build Tension and Expectations

Create a Red Herring: Introduce elements that mislead the audience into expecting a different outcome.

Heighten Stakes: Ensure the events leading up to the twist are emotionally engaging and meaningful.

3. Deliver the Twist Impactfully

Time it Right: Place the twist at a moment of high tension or when it feels least expected but still logical.

Use Reversal or Revelation: Employ one of two main twist types:

Reversal: A situation is the opposite of what the audience believed.

Revelation: New information changes the context of prior events.

4. Maintain Credibility

Anchor in Logic: Ensure the twist is believable within the story’s world and doesn’t feel contrived.

Align with Characters: Make sure the twist fits with established character motivations and actions.

5. Reflect the Impact

Affect the Narrative: Show how the twist changes the story’s direction or character dynamics.

Re-examine Earlier Clues: Allow the audience to realize how the twist was set up through earlier hints.

Examples of Plot Twists in Films and Books

1. Film Examples

The Sixth Sense: The revelation that Dr. Malcolm Crowe is dead reframes the entire story and previous interactions.

Fight Club: The twist that Tyler Durden and the narrator are the same person shocks the audience and redefines the plot.

Parasite: The discovery of the secret bunker adds unexpected layers of tension and tragedy.

2. Book Examples

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn: Amy's manipulation and fake disappearance drastically shift the narrative’s direction.

And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie: The reveal of the murderer’s identity ties all the deaths to a chilling plan.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling: The twist that Sirius Black is not the villain but Harry’s ally surprises and deepens the story.

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[nicholasandriani]

The Marvelous Dance of Coincidence: When Destiny and Storytelling Collide

Writers and dreamers, gather ’round for a tale as old as time -aren’t they all?- a narrative element that has both captivated and confounded storytellers since the dawn of creativity: coincidence. Yes, my dear friends, today we embark on a journey to explore the craft of employing coincidence in our beloved forms of storytelling. We shall learn how to wield this powerful tool with finesse,…

[jonsnowunemploymentera]

Rhaegar Targaryen is easily one of GRRM’s best deconstructions of the genre and we don’t talk about it enough. He’s prince living in a world full of magic and wonder that has dwindled over time. His own family had a great monopoly on one of the most magical phenomena (dragons) to ever exist, but they lost this control over time and it was due to their own faults. But there’s an all encompassing hope that this magic, these dragons, will come back. They all live within the promise that it will all be back and with a huge bang. It’s all so romantic. Magical forces of ice and fire battling it out in a song.

Then there’s Rhaegar, a prince born for the sole purpose of being this song’s romantic hero. He already has his destiny mapped out and it will be a great one, greater than any other man who ever lived. It’s a song of ice and fire, and Rhaegar is its bard. You’d expect this to give him joy. Yet by all accounts, he was depressed as fuck. I think he’s unfairly earned the reputation of having an ego so big to think that he will be the hero….but that’s quite literally the point of his existence. He was born to be the hero. He paid the price at birth to be the hero. How can he revel and glory in this destiny when he has no say in it?

So it’s genuinely funny that when given the chance, Rhaegar immediately pivots to someone else taking on this burden. But how tragic for him that he cannot escape it too far. Because it will be none other than his own son who, under a “bleeding star”, is marked at conception for this great destiny without a say. More than his ego, Rhaegar is marked by the inability to escape this duty. His whole life is dedicated to fulfilling a duty he can never escape. He isn’t just a future king, prophecy dictates that the world’s survival is placed squarely on his shoulders. Even when he isn’t the hero, he’s now responsible for raising him…

…but then he makes one decision and it all comes crumbling like a pack of biscuits. He escapes this burden…but dies. And his successor dies too. And now the ones who will inherit his legacy are two people who never knew him. They never knew of his burdens, of this prophecy. But they too cannot escape its jaws. I think this does bring up some interesting questions about the nature of fate and destiny in the world of ice and fire. Can you really escape it? Rhaegar tried to, and paid the price for his defiance, but he never truly made it out because the burden instead jumped to the son (and sister) he never knew. Funny thing is that in a bizarre (and tragic, in its own way) twist of fate, this son was brought up entirely without the trappings of power that depressed Rhaegar. Rhaegar was a dazzling prince, Jon is a bastard. Rhaegar was marked by his great inheritance, Jon is marked by the lack thereof. Does fate say “well the first one got too depressed by having too much so let’s give the next one nothing?” Even Dany, who grows up a princess does not have the privileges that Rhaegar did. So how does upbringing craft a hero and the choices they make? Welll, GRRM had given us two versions of Rhaegar’s tragedy in Jon and Dany for us to see.

Rhaegar’s impact on the meta-narrative is honestly so massive. Like I’d put him right up there with Quentyn, Sansa, and Bran as one of the best genre deconstructions in the series and no one can tell me otherwise.

[favroitecrime]

Palestinian freedom fighters breaking out of Gaza and reclaiming their occupied territories. They’ve taken over israeli tanks and have chased out the settlers that were on that land. They’ve launched rockets everywhere and the iron dome has failed to intercept. This is about to mark a momentous event in history.

From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.

[robo-milky]

Rookugoka!

[L -> R]

Rakugo (落語, literally 'story with a fall')[1] is a form of Japanese verbal comedy, traditionally performed in yose theatres.[2] The lone storyteller (落語家, rakugoka) sits on a raised platform, a kōza (高座). Using only a paper fan (扇子, sensu) and a small cloth (手拭, tenugui) as props, and without standing up from the seiza sitting position, the rakugo artist depicts a long and complicated comical (or sometimes sentimental) story.

[Comments]

Just like our lovely Cloche here, pLEASE READ “AKANE-BANASHI” !! This manga about Rakugo is what inspired this short and I am BRAINROTTING WITH A RAKUGOKA AU- (unfortunately with Rollo cause it’s so different from his usual personality)

This year, I AM HERE TO RECLAIM MY TITLE AS ROOK’S TROPHY WIFE— …or not ahaha- Rook is still my type but Rollo’s taken more of mind lately 😔 Anyways— back to my doujin era for y’all!

[egophiliac]

WHAT DO YOU MEAN THE KNIGHT OF DAWN SPIRIT IS STUCK IN A RING

Please where does it say that I must know!!!!!!!

calling him "stuck" was mostly a joke (and I don't think he's really a floating little ghostie or anything, more like...just some kind of remnant?) but when he showed up at the end of chapter 5, I read it as his spirit being in/attached somehow to the ring, and I think the implication was meant to be that he (or what was left of him) was the one guiding Silver through Lilia's memories. that may be leaning a little too hard into my personal interpretation, but that's what I thought we were supposed to get out of it! 🤷

(now watch as they turn directly to the camera in the next update to explain that I've misunderstood everything and the ring is really a tiny little robot that we all must shrink down into to pilot) (which would actually be amazing, can we have that please)

[charybdiaa]

Listen Vik the kid has a point. he should actually get MORE dangerous gigs. to impress the ladies

[lotus-pear]

rewatched madoka magica again today bc i fucking hate myself and to absolutely no one’s surprise i went through all five stages of grief in a single evening

[fun-esta]

[joncronshawauthor]

The Riftwar Saga: Crafting Epic Fantasy Worlds

In the well-trodden landscape of fantasy literature, Raymond Feist‘s “Riftwar” series is akin to a magical tempest – it came, it saw, and it decidedly left its mark. This wasn’t just another saga of swords and sorcery; this was an epic that tore through the fabric of the genre and stitched it back together with a twist. With its blend of traditional fantasy and bold narrative innovations,…

[fancydusk]

He's so doomed. Don't ask me what happened to him, he just has a very very, VERY bad luck

[katabay]

ALAN WAKE

god GOD what a fucking game. easily game of the century. to me. its so much better than I ever could have imagined it being, and I have been thinking about Alan Wake daily for thirteen years. so so so many thoughts turning around in my head about it, but I wanted to get a drawing of Alan down first because I Cannot Contain My Enthusiasm for this game. holy shit. what an experience.

bsky ⭐ pixiv ⭐ pillowfort ⭐ cohost

[vaguely-concerned]

just had the thought 'in the end the most important thing varric taught rook was how to make a home for, with, and in other people' and then I had to go lie down on the floor and clutch at my head in unceasing agony for a few hours, as you may well imagine. hawke and the kirkwall crew........ in the end you kind of saved the world a bit in the most characteristically indirect and chaotic of ways. not by anything in particular that you did or achieved or accomplished (lmao imagine!), but just by -- having existed, and by the love that was always there, despite it all, in all its imperfections, even when no one was saved by it in the end. you're not here right now and you're not quite haunting the narrative but I hear your voices bickering and arguing and laughing from the other room. (and so, I think, does varric. all the time.)

'did you think you mattered, hawke? did you think anything you ever did mattered?' yeah actually, varric says with da2 and keeps saying through the series. you were here. and I loved you. and as it turns out that mattered more than almost anything in the world, no matter how long it lasted or how fucked up it was at the time or what else happens, because varric manages to pass that feeling, that intangible... home, that echo of you all as you were together, that love, hopefully the best parts of it, on to someone else for them to bring with them on their journey, with their family. and maybe the world will be kinder this time. you never know. merrill's line of 'Everything affects everything. We were born, a bunch of things happened, and now we're in a mess with our friends.' varric's greatest fear of becoming his parents. even through the wreck and the ruin of the world, ghosts upon ghosts upon ghosts of love -- malcolm hawke, who we never even see, but his life touched hawke's and hawke's touched varric's and varric's touched rook's and rook is passing it on to the family they're creating. the unbroken legacy of love shines through in ways that are stronger and stranger than any magic. help

[gib-mir-gift]

one thing wwdits s6 3 alternate endings taught me is that NONE OF YALL watch movies. 'the usual suspects' and 'rosemarys baby' are incredible staples in cinema history. guise you are killing me

[raayllum]

Thinking about how much Amaya hates Karim ("I won't shed a tear on the day of your execution") and how warranted it is, and even then she still tries to save him for Janai's sake, even if her wife won't admit it to her ("but Janai will" / "How can I ever forgive him? [...] set a date for his execution"). And how that's paralleled with Callum protecting/helping to save Runaan in S7 because of how much he means to Rayla. How someone's love for someone else can be a motivation due to your love for them, too