Archetypes in fiction are not always clean cut. For example, a villain is an antagonist but an antagonist doesn’t necessarily have to be a villain. A monstrous antagonist like Frankenstein’s monster (who is arguably an anti-hero depending on how you look at it), can be compassionate; or conversely inhumane like Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Today I’m…
Tag: #buildingtension
Characterisation in Jaws Part 2
Welcome back to the Jaws universe and the second part of my characterisation study. I trust that you haven’t had any shark problems between then and now…I’ve been swimming in the sea between posts and managed to thoroughly creep myself out at the sight of a triangular shaped buoy! Part one focused on two important…
Characterisation in Jaws Part 1
Note: The film Jaws was based on Peter Benchley’s 1974 novel of the same name. After re-watching Steven Spielberg’s Jaws (1975), I realised that forty-four years have done nothing to remove it from its position at the top of the food chain. A feat of incredible storytelling, it contains some of the most memorable characters…
Using a Time Limit in Your Story.
After finishing the first novel in the Ringu trilogy by Koji Suzuki last week it was clear I hadn’t devoured a book so quickly in a long time. For those of you who haven’t read it or seen the film (the Japanese or American version), the basic plot is that of a journalist who, after…