*Magnify*
SPONSORED LINKS
BY ONLINE AUTHORS
Printed from https://www.writing.com/main/newsletters/action/archives/id/10925-Elements-of-Adventure-Writing.html
Action/Adventure: August 18, 2021 Issue [#10925]




 This week: Elements of Adventure Writing
  Edited by: Aennaytte: Free & Wild in GoT
                             More Newsletters By This Editor  

Table of Contents

1. About this Newsletter
2. A Word from our Sponsor
3. Letter from the Editor
4. Editor's Picks
5. A Word from Writing.Com
6. Ask & Answer
7. Removal instructions

About This Newsletter

Rope your reader into your adventurous plot with maximum suspense by including the tried and true elements of most action stories since Homer's Odyssey.


Word from our sponsor

ASIN: B01CJ2TNQI
Amazon's Price: $ 5.99


Letter from the editor

Elements of Adventure Writing


Here we go again with the hero's journey as identified by author and literary professor Joseph Campbell. Why does it keep showing up?

It keeps showing up not because it is a blueprint on how to write, but on how those stories were written.

Why do we keep using it like a blueprint? Because it works. From Gilgamesh to Luke Skywalker, storytellers of all ages (not the writer's age - the age of the time the story was written in) have followed the hero's journey whether they called it that or not.

To keep your reader glued to the page (screen), you must include these components:

The Hero

Just to get this out of the way: a hero is not always male. A hero can be female, male, undecided, fluid, or an animal. If you want to go wild, you can use plants or inanimate objects too. The whole point of the hero is to give the reader someone to latch on to. Someone to root for. Someone to follow around on the adventure.

The Quest

A problem needs solving. Something needs to be found. Something needs to be transported. Take your pick of these or write any other type of plot sequence that gives a reason for the story to exists in the first place. How many times have you read a story or watched a movie and wondered, "Why didn't they just to X?" Because if they had done X, there would be no story. So don't try and reinvent the wheel. Just make sure you story has something that needs to get accomplished.

The Environment

Ideally, you will give your hero a journey that goes from familiar to unfamiliar. There are many options here. Two typical storylines are a stranger comes to an unknown town, or the hero leaves to unknown pastures. Either way, being in a place that the hero can't control adds risk for the character and can be used to increase the story's tension.

The Villain

As the protagonist goes about the quest, there has to be an antagonist. This can be a person, nature, something else. The villain's job is to make the quest harder.

The Risk

No risk = no reward. If your main character never faces any perilous situations, you do not have an action/adventure on your hands. The quest has to make the hero face danger and force decisions that could put lives or at least health and limb at risk.

The Transformation

Going through the quest has to leave a mark on the hero. Not necessarily a scar, but it has to affect your main character's outlook on life, skill sets, and further plans. If there is absolutely no metamorphosis, why did the story even exist? The hero's adaptation to life after the quest, or a life of questing is the whole point of action/adventure stories.



Editor's Picks

SURVEY
Short Shots: Official WDC Contest  (ASR)
Use the photo to inspire your creativity. Write a short story and win big prizes!
#1221635 by Writing.Com Support

STATIC
Mittens and paws: original  (E)
Writer's Cramp submission 12/23/2020
#2240303 by Jon Little (they/them)

STATIC
The Opening Eye  (13+)
A walker stumbles upon a hidden world
#2256006 by Shaye

STATIC
Skullduggery on the Express  (18+)
First Place in The Bard's Hall Steampunk Contest
#2256084 by Graywriter

 
STATIC
On the prowl...  (E)
Billy and his friends go fishing for a lion... For the Writer's Cramp 8/7
#2256056 by Roari ∞

 
STATIC
A New Beginning  (13+)
A war veteran finds a way out from his self torments.
#2178477 by Kotaro

STATIC
The Boy with the Melting Face  (13+)
A deformed child is persecuted
#1212817 by W.D.Wilcox

STATIC
Old Soles  (ASR)
A story about a pair of soldier's boots.
#2255386 by Choconut ~ House Targaryen

STATIC
Gone Too Far  (18+)
will he make his way back this time...? A 2021 2x Finalist, HM and Quill Award Winner
#2243337 by Jim Hall - GoT Forest Child

STATIC
Fight to the death  (E)
Clive joins the military to save his country
#2254975 by Sumojo

 
Submit an item for consideration in this newsletter!
https://www.Writing.Com/go/nl_form

Word from Writing.Com

Have an opinion on what you've read here today? Then send the Editor feedback! Find an item that you think would be perfect for showcasing here? Submit it for consideration in the newsletter!
         https://www.Writing.Com/go/nl_form

Don't forget to support our sponsor!

ASIN: 0997970618
Amazon's Price: $ 14.99


Ask & Answer

There were no replies to my last Action Adventure newsletter "Your Story or Your Life!" 

*Bullet* *Bullet* *Bullet* Don't Be Shy! Write Into This Newsletter! *Bullet* *Bullet* *Bullet*

This form allows you to submit an item on Writing.Com and feedback, comments or questions to the Writing.Com Newsletter Editors. In some cases, due to the volume of submissions we receive, please understand that all feedback and submissions may not be responded to or listed in a newsletter. Thank you, in advance, for any feedback you can provide!
Writing.Com Item ID To Highlight (Optional):

Send a comment or question to the editor!
Limited to 2,500 characters.
Word from our sponsor
ASIN: 0995498113
Amazon's Price: $ 19.95

Removal Instructions

To stop receiving this newsletter, click here for your newsletter subscription list. Simply uncheck the box next to any newsletter(s) you wish to cancel and then click to "Submit Changes". You can edit your subscriptions at any time.


Printed from https://www.writing.com/main/newsletters/action/archives/id/10925-Elements-of-Adventure-Writing.html