Failures

I have a few stories on the back burner but one that I'm trying to wrap my head around is about two characters who find themselves as leaders of their kingdoms. Both characters are juxtaposed with conflicting worldviews, and personality traits which has them hating each other. The issue I'm having is finding their purpose. Stuff that they believe in. I'm a little worried that these two characters will just end up being 2-dimensional.

Opposing Leaders Still Need a Conflict

You have a good start to the story, but there needs to be a conflict. The conflict can't just be that they hate each other. What is the problem that needs to be solved in their external world and/or their internal worlds? That's the conflict.

These characters have conflicting worldviews, but what does that actually mean in your story? What are the issues in these kingdoms or in the story world where these characters stand in moral opposition? A good example would be in A Song of Ice and Fire, when Daenerys Targaryen came into power, she was opposed to slavery, which put her in opposition with the many leaders in Essos who upheld it. Another example would be the members of the rebellion in The Hunger Games, who were opposed to the brutal and oppressive regimes of the Capitol, which put the rebels in opposition with the current President Snow and his regime.

Without a conflict, you don't have a story. But the conflict doesn't have to be a problem in the character's exterior world. It could be a problem within the characters themselves. For example, you could do an exploration of the internal conflicts at the heart of their worldviews (or perhaps as a result of them), and then do a change arc with each character where they change for the better or worse as a result of the story events. And you could have these arcs happen in parallel, where they're both going through similar arcs for different reasons, or they can be opposing, where they still end up in opposite places.

By making sure your story has a conflict, you can ensure that there's a purpose to the story, and that purpose gives your characters purpose and gives your story a foundation to build upon. :)

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I’ve been writing seriously for over 30 years and love to share what I’ve learned. Have a writing question? My inbox is always open!

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Amazing, the World of Artist Management

The world of artist management is amazing. It is like being in backstage in a beautiful theatre in New York watching the play of Macbeth. What is right behind the curtain is the most wonderful sight that a student might be able to watch and enjoy. This is exactly what happened with this class in Product and Artist Management. It is that opportunity to see closely how things are done in all the aspects involved in the promotion and making of an artist.

  In the light of that, we learn in the course how to plan, because “the difference between success and failure in the promotion of an artist is planning”. Consequently the plan cannot go forward if there is no “organization” to assemble all the necessary resources to achieve that particular plan designed for the artist.

Also, we need to lead and direct people towards the goal and use all those resources at hand to achieve their success.

  As the artist's manager, our responsibility is to get the artist to the top of his or her career. In order to do that, we need to follow the plan by controlling the whole process, such as time, people, resources and finances. It is important to do a reality check and see if everything is going according to the plan. If it is not, we need to make some decisions. Do we fire some employees and look for new people that can do the job or change the plan? Would it be worth it? Would it be better to find a new person? How that is going to help us to achieve success?

  All these lessons are learned from Paul Allen in his book “Artist Management for the Music Business” that covers all of the aspects in the promotion of an artist.

  Personally, I have already applied some of these lessons in real world. We started a project with a couple of friends, and most of those lessons have been applied into this project. We are going step by step, little by little trying to give some shape to this adventure to see it through and successful. For this reason, this project in particular plus the lessons from that book, open our eyes and provide us with the knowledge to deal with these cases at hand at the present time, and indeed will be of great help in the future.

Sad? Insecure? Looking for a sign? This 2 minute song may change the way you look at yourself.

Shake up the happiness. A well written theme from Coca Cola to promote its brand... What is a brand? A person's gut feeling about a product, service or organization, according to Marty Neumeier in his book The Brand Gap.

How should I go about describing a character who goes through a lot, becoming more disheveled and desperate as the plot goes on?

Desperation is the emotion that drives characters to their limits, leading to their most intense and extreme behaviours.

By showing how characters become more desperate as your plot progresses, you can create characters that are interesting, dynamic, and relatable.

Here are some ways you can show desperation in your characters. As the plot moves forward, these elements can get worse, showing their decline.

How do they behave?

Obsessive and/or compulsive

Repetitive actions like hand wringing, or overuse of stock phrases

Self-destructive and risk-seeking

Enhanced aggression

Avoidant and isolationist

Manipulative

Exploitative

Short-tempered

Impulsive decision-making

Unrelenting pursuit of something

What physical signs do they show?

Heart palpitations and short, rapid breathing

Sweating profusely

Shaking or trembling

Sudden onset of nausea

Feeling weak or dizzy

Muscle tension

Headaches

Insomnia caused by worry and stress

Feelings of fatigue

Stomach pain and cramping

How do they interact?

Begging or pleading with others

Manipulating others to get what they want

Increasing paranoia and questioning other's motives

Pushing away loved ones

Becoming overly clingy

Either an inability to trust or being too quick to trust others

Self-sabotage

Single-focus conversations

What do they look like?

Unkempt hair and poor hygiene

Rumpled, slept-in clothing

Nervous tics, like fidgeting, pacing, or picking at nails

Extreme and unexplained weight loss

A haunted, faraway, or panicked look

Dark-rimmed, bruised eyes from lack of sleep or exhaustion

A constant sheen of sweat and clammy skin

Unusual clothing choices

What body language do they display?

Hunching over, as if trying to protect themselves

Fidgeting or pacing

Avoiding eye contact

Clenching fists or grinding teeth

Sweating or shaking

Staring intently at something

Repeatedly touching hair or face

Darting eyes and biting lips

Meek and under-confident stance

Pleading look

What is their attitude?

Feeling hopelessness

Sad and dejected

Becoming increasingly irrational

A loss of faith in themselves and others

Obsession to the point of resorting to extreme measures

A sense of helplessness

Blaming others

Feeling powerless

A sense of urgency

What are some positive things that can come out of desperation?

Increased motivation to achieve their goals or solve their problems

Resilience and adaptability in the face of adversity

Heightened creativity and resourcefulness

The ability to form deep and meaningful connections with those who share their struggles

Catharsis or character growth through their struggles

What are some negative things that can come out of desperation?

A tendency to become self-destructive or engage in risky behaviour

Difficulty forming and maintaining healthy relationships

Increased isolation or loneliness

Chronic stress and physical health problems

A tendency to make impulsive or irrational decisions

Prone to depression and anxiety

Todos piensan en cambiar el mundo, pero nadie piensa en cambiarse a sí mismo.

Leo Tolstoy (via elcielosobremi)

U.S. cities with the happiest workers More: http://nbcnews.to/1vsaFSM