Today I have an infographic for you based on tips and advice on storytelling shared on Twitter by Pixar storyboard artist Emma Coats.
Emma set out "22 Rules of Storytelling" based on what she learned working for the animation studio (responsible for such blockbusters as the Toy Story series and Finding Nemo). In my opinion there are some real gems for fiction writers in all formats and genres here.
The infographic was created by Jessica Bogart of PBJ Publishing, and is shared with her permission.
Note that I had to reduce the size of the graphic to work on my blogging platform. If you can’t read it clearly, you can access the full size (5 MB!) version at this website.
If you would like a printed, poster-size version of the graphic, you can buy it from Jessica’s Etsy store (not an affiliate link).
I particularly like Rule 12: "Discount the 1st thing that comes to mind. And the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th – get the obvious out of the way. Surprise yourself." As a writing tutor myself, I can testify that one of the most common mistakes in new writers’ work is predictability.
I also love Rule 19: "Coincidences to get characters into trouble are great; coincidences to get them out of it are cheating." If you stick to this one rule alone, it will put you ahead of 90% of fiction writers immediately!
I hope you enjoy reading "The 22 Rules of Storytelling". If you have any comments about it or suggestions for additional rules, please do post them below.
This is a reprint from Nick’s Writing Blog.