Mythcreants Posts for May

See what Mythcreants has been up to lately.

View this email in your browser   May Newsletter You can give us feedback via the contact form on our website. (If you reply to this email, we might not see it.) Have a wonderful month! Worldbuilding, History, Magic 377 – Post-Apocalyptic Fantasy By Oren Ashkenazi, Chris Winkle, Wes Matlock and Svend Phillips on 05/01/22 Civilization ended, so it's time for a robe and wizard hat. Read in browser » Analysis, Characters, Plot Who Wins: Antz, A Bug's Life, or Ant-Man? By Oren Ashkenazi on 04/30/22 Uh-oh, there are ants all over this post. Read in browser » Writing, Beginnings, Wordcraft Five Tips for Avoiding Disorientation in Your Opening Hook By Chris Winkle on 04/29/22 While readers are sorting out what you're saying, they can't appreciate your story. Read in browser » Roleplaying, 5E Spell Ranking, Game Mechanics The Five Best 3rd-Level Spells of D&D 5E By Ari Ashkenazi on 04/28/22 D&D's most iconic spell level. Read in browser » Storytelling, Mysteries, Plot, Prologue Should My Mystery Start With the Murder? By Oren Ashkenazi on 04/25/22 For a murder mystery, should I start with a body drop? I’m currently working on a murder mystery. One of the issues I am currently debating about is the opening, in which I’m unsure whether to start with the murder itself or whether I should start with the main detective in a more character-focused way. […] Read in browser » Storytelling, Characters, Likability 376 – Character Strengths By Oren Ashkenazi, Chris Winkle, Wes Matlock and Emma Riley on 04/24/22 What if a character was just nice and dependable? Read in browser » Commentary, Rules of Writing, The Writing Process How Useful Are Michael Moorcock's Ten Rules of Writing?  By Oren Ashkenazi on 04/23/22 An author who isn't afraid to share his opinions. Read in browser » Inspiration, Storytelling, Plot, Romance Seven External Plots for Relationship-Centered Stories By Chris Winkle on 04/22/22 Add excitement without sacrificing what's important. Read in browser » Roleplaying, 5E Spell Ranking, D&D, Game Mechanics The Five Best 2nd-Level Spells of D&D 5E By Ari Ashkenazi on 04/21/22 The support spells have a field day. Read in browser » Downward Arc By Bunny and Chris Winkle on 04/20/22 Why you should never turn your back on a friend. Read in browser » Social Justice, Disability & Neurodiversity Is It a Problem for a Disability to Be Integral to the Plot? By Chris Winkle and Fay Onyx on 04/18/22 In my fantasy novel my main character, Sam, is disabled. She is unable to do magic and is from a species where this is the not the norm. Her condition is so rare that there are almost no provisions for someone like her. She has had to adapt by using technology instead of magic. She […] Read in browser » Storytelling, Plot, The Writing Process 375 – The Story's Middle By Oren Ashkenazi, Chris Winkle, Wes Matlock and Tank on 04/17/22 How much of a story is middle, anyway? Read in browser » Analysis, Science!, Star Trek Five Inexplicable Planets in Star Trek  By Oren Ashkenazi on 04/16/22 They're super weird with no explanation at all. Read in browser » Social Justice, Storytelling, Candy and Spinach, Characters, Gender, Likability The Best Characters Eat Their Spinach — and Their Candy By Chris Winkle and Bunny on 04/15/22 This silly-sounding spectrum has a huge impact on how we respond to characters. Read in browser » Roleplaying, Game Mechanics, Unearthed Arcana Unearthed Arcana: Heroes of Krynn, Part 2 By Ari Ashkenazi on 04/14/22 Feat trees, in MY 5th Edition? It's more likely than you think! Read in browser » Chieftain's Daughter By Bunny and Chris Winkle on 04/13/22 Only the power of love can set her free. Read in browser » Storytelling, Characters, Plot Does My Protagonist Have to Solve the Problem? By Oren Ashkenazi on 04/11/22 Hey Mythcreants, I was wondering, how much impact does my protagonist have to have on the story’s climax? For instance, if my main character is a relatively low-level player in the overarcing conflict, how can I keep their impact in the story realistically limited while also not giving the audience the impression that the story […] Read in browser » Storytelling, Worldbuilding, Travel 374 – Travel Stories By Oren Ashkenazi, Chris Winkle, Wes Matlock and Steven on 04/10/22 Is it the journey or the destination that matters? Read in browser » Analysis, Plot Five Underwhelming Reveals in Speculative Fiction By Oren Ashkenazi on 04/09/22 What happens when storytellers make mountains out of molehills. Read in browser » Analysis, Social Justice, Characters, Gender Five Mediocre White Men From Big-Budget Stories By Chris Winkle on 04/08/22 Why root for a heroic protagonist when you can root for a mediocre white dude instead? Read in browser » Roleplaying, D&D, Game Mechanics, Unearthed Arcana Unearthed Arcana: Heroes of Krynn Part 1 By Ari Ashkenazi on 04/07/22 Dragonlance makes its D&D return. Read in browser » Uncanny Environment By Bunny and Chris Winkle on 04/06/22 Why there are so many Class M planets. Read in browser » Commentary, Short Stories How Is a Short Story Series Different Than a Novel? By Oren Ashkenazi on 04/04/22 I’m thinking of doing a series of short stories about the same characters, along the lines of, for instance, Sherlock Holmes. What differences would you see in this as opposed to, say, a novel about these characters? Thank you, Dave L Hey Dave, great to hear from you again!  From a purely storytelling perspective, the […] Read in browser » Analysis, Worldbuilding, History 373 – Speculative Westerns By Oren Ashkenazi, Chris Winkle, Wes Matlock and B.A. on 04/03/22 It can be horses or space ships, so long as someone has a duster. Read in browser » Commentary, The Writing Process Originality Is Dead. Long Live Novelty! By Chris Winkle on 04/02/22 Writing is hard enough without asking people to meet outdated standards. Read in browser » Copyright © 2022 Mythcreants LLC, All rights reserved. You are receiving emails from Mythcreants because you signed up on our blog. Our mailing address is: Mythcreants LLC · 19712 50th Ave W · Apt 3 · Lynnwood, WA 98036 · USA Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.

Mythcreants Posts for April

See what Mythcreants has been up to lately.

View this email in your browser   April Newsletter You can give us feedback via the contact form on our website. (If you reply to this email, we might not see it.) Have a wonderful month! Meta, Bad Advice A Sneak Peek at Six Articles We Are Totally Going to Write By Oren Ashkenazi on 04/01/22 Pay no attention to the date behind the curtain! Read in browser » Roleplaying, 5E Spell Ranking, Game Mechanics The Five Best 1st-Level Spells of D&D 5E By Ari Ashkenazi on 03/31/22 The first spells that actually cost a slot. Read in browser » Escort Quest By Bunny and Chris Winkle on 03/30/22 Everyone's favorite job. Read in browser » Storytelling, Plot, Villains Can I Have Multiple Antagonists Without Fragmenting the Story? By Chris Winkle on 03/28/22 I want (and need) to have multiple antagonists in my story, but how do I pull this off without the story or the goals becoming too fragmented? Do you have advice on how to write multiple antagonists or should I just forgo that idea? Thank you! Cathryn Hi Cathryn, Yes, you can definitely have multiple […] Read in browser » Storytelling, Foreshadowing, Plot 372 – Foreshadowing By Oren Ashkenazi, Chris Winkle and Jess Brownrigg on 03/27/22 Could you have predicted this podcast topic? Read in browser » Analysis, Plot, Tension Who Wins: Name of the Wind, Fifth Season, or Way of Kings? By Oren Ashkenazi on 03/26/22 Three books go head to head in a high fantasy battle royale! Read in browser » Writing, Lessons From Bad Writing, Wordcraft Lessons from the Empty Writing of The Alchemyst By Chris Winkle on 03/25/22 Check out this book about Nicholas Flamel. Did you know it's about Nicholas Flamel? Read in browser » Roleplaying, 5E Spell Ranking, D&D, Game Mechanics The Five Best Cantrips of D&D 5E By Ari Ashkenazi on 03/24/22 Small but powerful. Read in browser » Villainous Revenge By Bunny and Chris Winkle on 03/23/22 When the things you maybe sorta did come back to haunt you. Read in browser » Meta, Worldbuilding, Subversion Do You Need to Read the Later Books? By Oren Ashkenazi on 03/21/22 Hey. Wondering if you actually felt much of what you said in the WoK review. I was taken aback by how different your view was though I’ll admit I have the rest of the series read and was willing to allow the story to unfold given certain rules. I could see why certain cultural artefacts […] Read in browser » Storytelling, Characters, Plot 371 – Character Arcs By Oren Ashkenazi, Chris Winkle and Emma Riley on 03/20/22 Have you heard the Klingon proverb that revenge is a dish best served cold? Read in browser » Analysis, Plot, Tension, Turning Point Five Conflicts With Weak Turning Points, and How to Fix Them By Oren Ashkenazi on 03/19/22 When good conflicts turn bad. Read in browser » Storytelling, Character Arcs, Characters, Dark Stories, Endings, Plot, Turning Point Six Types of Downward Turning Points By Chris Winkle on 03/18/22 Downward turning points make failure feel satisfying. Read in browser » Roleplaying, Game Mechanics The Best Ancestries in D&D 5E, Part 2 By Ari Ashkenazi on 03/17/22 The very best bonuses and pointy ears. Read in browser » Fairy Tale Lesson By Bunny and Chris Winkle on 03/16/22 The wholesome teachings of our childhood. Read in browser » Storytelling, Characters How Do I Write a Character That's Smart but Lacks Common Sense? By Chris Winkle on 03/14/22 Hello! How are you? How do I write a character that is very smart bookwise and has good ideas, but doesn’t have common sense/acts very silly? Atlas Hi Atlas, That’s a wonderful question. The key is to identify exactly what areas are a weakness for your character.  A common and useful distinction is to have […] Read in browser » Analysis, Plot 370 – Good Adaptations By Oren Ashkenazi, Chris Winkle and Diane Fisher on 03/13/22 Hot Take: Sometimes the movie is better than the book. Read in browser » Analysis, Plot, Star Wars How The Book of Boba Fett Could Have Been Good By Oren Ashkenazi on 03/12/22 Fixing a Star Wars train wreck. Read in browser » Commentary, Social Justice, The Writing Process How We Can Beat Defensiveness By Chris Winkle on 03/11/22 To improve our work, we have to admit it can be improved. Read in browser » Roleplaying, 5E Ancestry Ranking, Game Mechanics The Best Ancestries in D&D 5E, Part 1 By Ari Ashkenazi on 03/10/22 Be the best so you can beat the rest! Read in browser » Aftermath By Bunny and Chris Winkle on 03/09/22 What to do when all we have is each other. Read in browser » Storytelling, Characters How Can My Angry Character Be Likable? By Chris Winkle on 03/07/22 Hello again, Mythcreants! I hope you all are well! I was just wondering how I could make a character with anger issues likeable? Even if I make their general anger justifiable when it comes to being triggered by daily events, I want them to be overly sensitive and upset in the least immature way possible. […] Read in browser » Analysis, Plot 369 – Bad Adaptations By Oren Ashkenazi, Chris Winkle and Wes Matlock on 03/06/22 More The Hobbit than Lord of The Rings. Read in browser » Commentary, The Writing Process Why Sequels Don't Erase Mistakes in the First Book By Oren Ashkenazi on 03/05/22 Each book in a series should be judged on its own merits. Read in browser » Storytelling, Character Arcs, Dark Stories, Endings, Likability, Plot, Turning Point How to Create an Unhappy Ending By Chris Winkle on 03/04/22 In a truly tragic story, the hero fails because they made the wrong choice. Read in browser » Roleplaying, D&D, Game Mechanics Six Poorly Designed Feats in D&D 5E By Ari Ashkenazi on 03/03/22 Just stick with the +2 stat bonus instead. Read in browser » Action Shot By Bunny and Chris Winkle on 03/02/22 Beware the zoom lens. Read in browser » Copyright © 2022 Mythcreants LLC, All rights reserved. You are receiving emails from Mythcreants because you signed up on our blog. Our mailing address is: Mythcreants LLC · 19712 50th Ave W · Apt 3 · Lynnwood, WA 98036 · USA Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.