A good villain intro scene should include two elements. First, they should cement the villain as someone formidable and memorable for the audience. Second, they should tell us as much about the type of villain they will become. Let’s first look at the example of Darth Vader, who is first introduced to the audience in the Star Wars film A New Hope. An epic fight scene ensues between the stormtroopers and the rebels onboard an all-white spaceship interior. Then, at the tail end of the fight, this masked figure cloaked entirely in black struts onto the ship, theme music playing beneath him. After a brief scene with R2D2 and C3PO, Darth chokes and kills a rebel trooper. This introduction not only uses color very strategically to make this villain immediately stand out, but the audience immediately sees him senselessly kill someone so they already know he is a formidable opponent.

Another great example of a villain introduction is The Joker’s introduction from The Dark Knight. Going into creating this scene, the writer and director know that their audience knows this character and it’s just about introducing this iteration of him in a fun and memorable way. The introduction scene involves a bank heist with men all wearing clown masks. As they expertly begin the process of robbing the bank, they speak about how they were hired by the Joker and what he’s like. As the scene unfolds, the heist becomes less and less seamless as the clowns begin to take each other out as they complete the steps for the robbery, citing that the Joker had asked them to kill each other so there would be fewer shares to divide amongst themselves. By the end of the robbery, there is only one clown left: The Joker.

This scene works well to get the audience excited for this villain for a few reasons. One, the bank robbery element establishes the Joker as the Gotham-style Batman villain that he always is in every iteration. Two, the fact that he turns his own men against each other establishes him as someone who isn’t just interested in a certain goal. If he wanted to assure that he got the money, he would’ve made it as easy for his men as possible. But instead, he made sure they all died in the process which means that he was more interested in creating chaos than the bank’s money. Finally, the quick pace, the sheer amount of death, and the callousness he displays shows that he is not only the type of person who likes to create chaos but that the violence we just saw wasn’t even a big deal to him. This fact makes him even more frightening.

Writing Prompt: Create a villain, this could be the antagonist in a story you’ve already created or one you make up for this exercise. Once you have a clear picture of them in your head, write a scene that introduces them into a story. This could be a scene from the POV of your protagonist, from an innocent bystander, from a victim, or even from the villain themselves (though the last would be the trickiest). Use the scene to tell the reader as much as possible about your villain and their motives up front. Also utilize the scene as a means of cementing your villain in the reader’s mind, making them both memorable and frightening to the reader.

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You also know your characters’ pet peeves, the hobbies that they hate, the people that would annoy them the most, and their least favorite activities. Getting even more specific, you know how the things that they like and dislike blend together. How there are certain hobbies or people that your character thinks they dislike but, should they give them a fair chance, they may actually enjoy themselves. The opposite can be true as well, having a character who loves a certain hobby but then, due to overindulgence or other factors, it can become something they despise.

This is where our writing prompt of the day comes in: opposite day. This exercise involves putting your character in situations where they would never normally find themselves in of their own choice. So if your character hates carnivals, write a scene where they’re forced to go to a local carnival. It doesn’t even have to be something that they hate either, it can simply be something they’d never normally do. If you’ve never thought your character would ever be inclined to try pottery, for example, write a scene where they’re taking a pottery class.

Brainstorming the scene or scenes you write for the exercise will allow you to chart out the different habits and nuances of your character. In addition, writing the scene itself will allow you to not only practice showing (rather than telling) the reader about the specifics of character-building, but may also allow you to learn new things about your characters.

Putting your character in scenes they’d never normally find themselves in will allow you to gain new insights about them. As any writer will know, you can plot and outline all you want but often the characters will run away with the plot themselves. So, oftentimes, we won’t truly know how a certain character will react in a situation until they’re actually in it.

Writing Prompt: Pick a specific character from your manuscript (or a character you’re working on) and put them in a scene or scenes in which they’d never normally find themselves. This could mean a setting or circumstance that they would dislike or one that is simply very unlike them normally. How do they react to being in this situation? Why do they react this way? Is their reaction different or the same as what they’d expect of themselves? If it is different, why is that?

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1) Just Start

This may seem like a fairly obvious one, but you have to start somewhere right? Admit it, for months every time you’ve set aside time to write you’ve chickened out at the last minute. You suddenly find yourself very busy with chores you’ve invented or… hey, who put that remote in your hand? Don’t you dare start a new Netflix show… If you want to get out of your writing rut, you need to set aside time to write and actually stick to it, no excuses.

2) Start Small

When you’re picking up a pen after a long absence, it may be too much to expect yourself to jump right back into working on your manuscript. You’ll never fully lose your writing mojo, but you’ll definitely be rusty. The easiest way to get some practice without putting so much pressure on yourself is to do some writing exercises. Find some fun and short writing prompts and set aside an hour to challenge yourself. Perhaps the exercise will task you to use a character from your book or maybe you’ll have to write something entirely new. Either way, it’ll get your creative juices flowing again and it’ll help you start to get your confidence back.

3) Make a Schedule

One of the excuses you’ve made over the past few months is likely that you ‘weren’t feeling inspired’ enough to write. Not only do you know that’s just a poor excuse, but if writers only wrote when they felt inspired it would take five times as long for them to finish their books. Instead of continuing to use that as an excuse to let yourself drift off schedule for another few months, create a diligent schedule that you know you can stick to.

When it comes to making your writing schedule, our number one suggestion is to be realistic with yourself. If you realistically can only write once a week for a few hours, just put that on your calendar. The last thing you want to do put too much on your schedule and then keep missing your writing appointments that you set for yourself. Because every time you miss one you’ll beat yourself up, feel like you’re not a real writer, and before long you’re back to where you are now. It’s much better for your schedule and your writing confidence to make appointments you’re sure you can keep.

4) Join a Writing/Reading Group

Look into local writing or reading groups in your area. If you can’t find a good one, start your own with a few close friends! It may feel intimidating, especially when you’ve been out of the game for a while, but these groups can be a great way to hold one another accountable and bounce ideas off of each other.

If you’re planning on starting your own, there are a few options on how to structure it based on your needs. If you want to try to read more books to help improve your craft, you can start a book club and hold discussions about the material. If you want to workshop some writing, you could do a writing workshop where you take scenes (from either your book or specific prompts) and read/workshop them. Finally, if you have a few friends who are working on books/scripts/etc. you can host a group to simply bounce ideas off of one another. You can meet once a month, run each other through what you’ve been working on briefly, talk about any points where you’re stuck, and see if they have any suggestions.

5) Forgive Yourself

This is the toughest one because, ultimately, it’s the reason your absence from writing got so out of hand in the first place. Is your writing always going to be perfect? No. Are there going to be weeks where you genuinely don’t have time to write? Yes. That doesn’t make you any less of a writer than anyone else. Every writer has written bad prose. Every writer has taken absences that have stretched out longer than they should. You have to forgive yourself when you miss your writing days and on days where you feel like your writing is bad. Don’t let these things make you feel bad and don’t let them make you too afraid to pick up your pen again.

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In a very literal sense, these phrases are utter nonsense. But, as anyone growing up in an English-speaking country learns, each of these phrases contains a nugget of wisdom or a ‘general truth’ that is being imparted on the reader or listener. Example: Too many cooks in the kitchen– when too many people are working on something, it can end up being more chaotic than helpful. You can’t teach an old dog new tricks– the older you get, the harder it is to learn new things or break old habits.

But imagine, for a moment, that these ancient phrases we’ve heard all of our lives are much more literal than we originally thought. What if too many cooks in the kitchen originated with a disastrous cooking experience hundreds of years ago? What if Pride cometh before the fall originated from a woman named Pride having bad luck, journeying from town to town, and catastrophes brewing in her wake?

The Write Practice has created an excellent writing prompt involving these odd old sayings, guaranteed to get your creative juices flowing. Here’s how this prompt works: Think of an adage. Obviously most adages have traceable origins, you may even know them in the back of your mind. But forget that, for now.

Think of why the adage you chose became a saying. Twist the adage’s meaning around, turn it on its head, be illogical or fantastical or highly scientific- whatever you like. It could come from an alien species galaxies away, from a historical figure, from a literal experience of the adage or a metaphorical one. Regardless of what direction you choose to go with it, think of how that adage came to be and how it made its way into our lexicon. Then write a story about it.

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Because we want to keep the fun in writing, we’ve put together three simple writing prompts that’ll help take away some pressure and either help get the creative juices flowing, break through writer’s block, or just help you to enjoy a few minutes to yourself doing what you love – writing.

In five years I’ll be …

This one should be interesting – a nice open-ended writing prompt to kick things off! Did your mind start whirling with ideas? Are you lounging on a tropical island leafing through a stack of your favorite books? Perhaps you’re traveling around the world promoting your five-star book? Or maybe you’ll be working on the second installment of your book series? The opportunities are endless! There’s no such thing as a dream that’s too big. Reach for the stars and see how excited you get as the words pour onto the paper as you outline your future.

If you could go back in time, where would you go?

Think about it for a second. If you could go back and experience any major historical event, or maybe even just relive an amazing memory of your own, what would you pick? Use this prompt to tap into the past; pick an event and explain why you would go and if you would change any of the events that unfolded.

Pretend you’re a fly on the wall …

You know you’ve wished to be a fly on the wall at least once in your life. You want to overhear an important conversation or you want the inside scoop on something that might be coming your way. Well, your wish is our command; we’re granting you the opportunity to turn yourself into a fly and observe something you’ve longed to experience!

What three features would you want your future house to have?

The year is 2065 and you’re building a brand-new home. What three features of the future will your house have and why? What would you want to see in this house? Would the house look like a traditional home that we’re used to? Or, would it look like something out of the Jetsons? Do you envision robotic maids that can anticipate what you need before you even think you need it? The opportunities are endless, so use your imagination and try and model the perfect house. If you can think of more than three features, don’t stop – keep writing!

Remember, writing doesn’t have to be a chore! It’s a fun experience that taps into your childlike imagination and allows you to create something you never even thought possible. The next time you’re struggling to find inspiration, use these writing prompts to help you rekindle your love of the written word!

Copyright Dorrance Publishing, 2017

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We all know that there’s a chance we’ll get stuck at the crossroads commonly known as writer’s block and have to find a way to navigate around it. One way of doing so is by free writing, which allows you to explore your creativity and hone your craft by writing about something other than your book.

In this blog, we’re giving you three ideas to jump start your imagination. Once you’ve read over the exercises, sit down and work on each individually. Or, if you want to get a little daring, connect all three prompts and see where it takes you.

Create a book title

Don’t be shy! Write down whatever comes to your mind. This isn’t the time to find the perfect title for your current work in progress – let your creativity flow! Try to create of a book title that’s outside of your genre. Push yourself to think outside-of-the-box and write about something you might not otherwise.

Create a character

It’s time to build a character. For this writing prompt, you’ll want to create a character outline. Start from the name and work from there. What role would this character play in a new story? Would they be a main character, or someone who will throw a wrench into things? What do they look like? Does he or she have a defining feature that would be an important piece in the story? Where did they come from? What event in their past helped shape them into who they are today?  Start asking yourself these questions and you’ll see that your imagination will hop in the driver’s seat and help you fill in the blanks.

Create a scene

Take the character that you created in the previous prompt and build some context for a new plot. Think about the setting – will your character be in a city, a countryside or a suburban neighborhood? What’s happening in the scene that you’re creating? Talk about the surroundings and paint a picture of what’s unfolding. What is your character doing? How are they feeling?

The only way to become a better writer is to keep writing, so take this challenge and have fun using your imagination to create something new!

Copyright Dorrance Publishing, 2017

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As we take some time to reflect on the past year, it’s time to set our sights on the New Year and how we can make 2017 the year that we reach and exceed our goals.

While the past can’t be changed, we can take what we have learned and put it to good use in the New Year. If you want to finally resolve to write the book of your dreams, here are three pieces of encouragement to get started.

Cultivate the book within you.

Our founder, Gordon Dorrance, wanted to provide everyone “with a book in them” the freedom to publish their work, and we at Dorrance have kept this pioneering spirit alive and well for nearly 100 years. That’s why at Dorrance Publishing, we encourage everyone to cultivate the book within them.  As a Chinese proverb once said, “A book is like a garden, carried in the pocket.” To us, we see our authors as gardeners. They take the seed that lives within their minds and plant it into the words of their stories. From there, they give it the attention it needs to grow and prosper, and ultimately they publish their book and share its beauty with others. In 2017, take the time to plant your seed and watch it grow.

Create a legacy.

Legacy —we hear this word frequently, and more often than not, it’s associated with famous athletes or celebrities. The power and esteem that is associated with the concept of leaving a legacy is something that many aspire to achieve. As an author, you too can leave your mark and create a legacy. When your musings are printed in indelible ink, your stories live on within the pages of a physical book, its newfound home. In this New Year, ask yourself this question: “What could I write that would help leave my mark?” Use this as the guiding force of inspiration to help you write about anything that comes to mind. The story that lives inside of you is waiting to emerge, and 2017 is the year that you can make it happen.

Just start writing.

Sometimes the hardest part about the entire writing process is actually getting started. We’re in the first chapter of 2017, and there is no better time than now to pull those ideas from our imaginations and put them on paper. Though it might sound simple, for some it can be difficult. But rather than giving up, resolve to push past these boundaries and begin writing the first chapter of your book.

As we embark on a New Year, set your sights high and your goals even higher. This is your year to make your dreams a reality!

Copyright Dorrance Publishing, 2017

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It’s for this reason that we like to challenge writers from all over, every now and again, to think outside-of-the-box and hone their writing skills.

Creative writing is an outlet that many writers use in order to refine their craft, learn something new, break through writer’s block and get their creative juices flowing.

In this Dorrance blog, we want to share with you three creative writing prompts to get your mind moving in the right mindset to write your book:

1. Pretend that Google Maps and other GPS tools no longer exist and the only way that you can give directions to your house is through your detailed description. You’ll want to describe certain landmarks, the way the road curves and other descriptions that will clearly help the person navigate from point A to point B.
2. Imagine that you’ve just overheard a conversation at the train station. Create a journal entry that details the exchange and add what you think could happen because of that conversation. If you want to up the ante even more, pretend that you’re a detective and you’re listening in on a conversation that could potentially crack the case. What are they saying? How will you proceed?
3. In this writing prompt, pretend that you are standing at the edge of a mountain top. How do you feel? What are you seeing? What are you thinking? Do you feel exhilarated? Are you at ease? This prompt will allow you to tap into your core emotions. Channel that moment in time and let your creativity take control.

To become a better writer, you have to practice your craft every single day in some way, shape or form. Because we know that it can be hard to come up with topics to write about, we hope that you’ll use our three creative writing prompts to get you started.

When using these prompts, put yourself in that moment, tap into your emotions and let your imagination take control!

Copyright Dorrance Publishing, 2016

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