Remember old Freytag and his pyramid?
He designed a diagram to help writers
visualize how their story lines need to progress. It's just a simple triangle that illustrates
how we should move from the beginning of our tales . . . all the way to the
end.
See - it's very simple and straightforward.
It can really help writers working
on sharpening their skills, to see how to structure their stories (or novels). The problem I've been finding is that people
seem to be taking it too literally.
Think back to when we first learned
about the pyramids of ancient Egypt. That's
how we pictured them - with straight sides.
It wasn't until somewhere in high school or college, when we found out
they were really built out of large squares of stone - and looked more
'chunky'.
It's not quite a stack of square
blocks. Instead, it shows how the plot
builds; then there's a bit of resolution; before the plot continues to intensify.
The reader needs little breaks - little
respites - sprinkled in the mounting tension.
Equally, once the main obstacle has been met and conquered, you want to
gently present resolutions to all the subplots; and perhaps, throw in one or
two new obstructions. Otherwise, you let
the reader down too quickly and that leaves them unsatisfied.
Leaving your readers hungry is not
the same as leaving them wanting more.
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