Story Demon

Outline everything!  Outline characters, story, look, themes, you name it. We will tell you how and why!   Celeste Prater's site celesteprater.com   My official website https://www.mirov.com/   Mirov is available now. https://a.co/d/i1rXvnm   Linktree https://linktr.ee/thedavidchoke   Facebook https://www.facebook.com/thedavidchoke   Story Demon https://www.davidchoke.com/story-demon   SMC https:/...

The ending of The Raiders of the Lost Ark is brutal in its depiction of evil toying with what it doesn't understand, respect, and value. Spielberg's ability to step through the processes of the scene, the ceremony, and then the slaughter of the bad guys is unflinching and pulls no punches. Imagine an entire work created with this mentality in mind. My official website   https://www.mirov.com/    ...

Before you write and in your planning, know your genre and your theme.  What are you writing? Who are you writing for? What do they expect to see?   Celeste Prater's site celesteprater.com   My official website https://www.mirov.com/   Mirov is available now. https://a.co/d/i1rXvnm   Linktree https://linktr.ee/thedavidchoke   Facebook https://www.facebook.com/thedavidchoke   Story Demon https://ww...

No scene might display the absolute tenacity and relentlessness of a hell-bent protagonist like the car chase in The French Connection! Editing, music, lack of music, acting, camera work, stunt work, all of it at the peak of perfection. Imagine a whole story infused with this burst of energy?   My official website   https://www.mirov.com/       Mirov is available now. https://a.co/d/i1rXvnm      ...

Story Demon w/ Celeste Prater & David C. Hoke - How we met and Learning Story Craft   Hear our story of how we met, our books, our adventures, and our journey to being published authors and screenwriters.   Celeste Prater's site celesteprater.com   My official website https://www.mirov.com/   Mirov is available now. https://a.co/d/i1rXvnm   Linktree https://linktr.ee/thedavidchoke   Facebook https...

Mirov - Die Hard and the beauty of peril   The last stretch of Die Hard is such a beautiful exercise in peril and heightened action, intensity, and emotion for a prolonged stretch. Perfectly edited, filmed, acted, directed, and executed. And the SOUND!   My official website https://www.mirov.com/   Mirov is available now. https://a.co/d/i1rXvnm   Linktree https://linktr.ee/thedavidchoke   Facebook...

Robocop's classic scene ED-209 vs Kenny scene influenced me more than anything else in my entire creative career. I even wrote a whole article about there right here: https://www.davidchoke.com/post/an-author-s-introduction-to-himself-and-his-story   The power of the big droid vs this little yuppie who didn't deserve any of this, taking place in a boring, corporate board room. It is just the perfe...

Star Trek II The Wrath of Khan is one of my favorite movies of all time and my favorite scene in the film is the first clash between Kirk and Khan. The timing and pacing are perfect and the flip from despair to getting out of a fix is executed to precision. I wanted to create a book that captured this type of moment over and over again. Hopefully I did so with Mirov. I used Star Trek II footage fo...

Does your story have a "MacGuffin"? If not, you probably ought to consider adding one.  It's more than just a plot device. Don't dismiss it as a contrivance. They work, they are fundamental, and the greats have used them plenty.   My official website https://www.mirov.com/   Mirov is available now. https://a.co/d/i1rXvnm   Linktree https://linktr.ee/thedavidchoke   Facebook https://www.facebook.co...

Conflict is story. Whether internal, external, humanity vs. nature, good guy vs. bad guy, it doesn't matter. Without conflict, you have no story. This applies to comedy, drama, horror, scifi, every genre.   The reader/viewer should dread what is to come. They should feel uneasy about the upcoming fight, upcoming battle, upcoming ball game, upcoming dance contest. When your audience feels a sense o...

Sidekicks give your audience an "in" to the world of your story. Either giving your protagonist someone to bounce questions off of or to give answers to. Whether it be information about that universe, location, or emotional insight, having someone to bounce off of gives your story more depth than you'd be able to conceive without it.   Learn to craft your novel, screenplay, or story. Is your story...

Bad guys can make or break your story. The better the villain, the better the movie, book, video game, comic, you name it. They have to have clear desires and have relatable--yet twisted--goals.   Don't be afraid to fall in love with your antagonist.   Learn to craft your novel, screenplay, or story. Is your story clear? Does it make sense? Can people easily tell what is happening, why it is happe...

Make a protagonist your audience will love, write fan fiction about, wear the t-shirts, and share the memes.   Don't be afraid to beat the hell out of your protagonist.   Learn to craft your novel, screenplay, or story. Is your story clear? Does it make sense? Can people easily tell what is happening, why it is happening, and what each character's goals are? If not, we will figure out how to make...

An interview with fitness and wellness coach Jerry Snider. How does an athlete's mindset help you in writing a book?   Jerry's site https://www.allinhealthandwellness.com/   Jerry's Podcast Links https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/confidence-through-health/id1467310269 https://www.allinhealthandwellness.com/confidence-through-health   Jerry's Books on Amazon https://www.amazon.com/Jerry-Snider/...

Learn to craft your novel, screenplay, or story. Is your story clear? Does it make sense? Can people easily tell what is happening, why it is happening, and what each character's goals are? If not, we will figure out how to make sure it does.   Filmed at Metro West.   My official website https://www.mirov.com/   Mirov is available now. https://a.co/d/i1rXvnm   Linktree https://linktr.ee/thedavidch...

The Rule of Three's can be put into action in a real, practical sense. You can use it to actually craft a story from just an idea. Use this method to go from a simple image that is stuck in your head and turn it into your own epic story.   See Part 1 here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-BMtlp_Vau4&t=539s   Filmed at Metro West.   My official website https://www.mirov.com/   Mirov is available no...

Learn to craft your novel, screenplay, or story. The Rule of Three's is the most fundamental rule to learn, first and foremost. If you learn just one thing, this is that one thing!   See Part 2 here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1QX6pfBlnQ&t=9s   Filmed at Metro West.   A Killing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8KhwgGXFykU   A Killing Script for the Short (Not the feature. That was not filmed)...

Welcome to Story Demon. There is a craft to storytelling, and I will teach you how to take an idea from just an idea and into a full fledge story. I write books, do marketing, sell stuff on eBay, and we have an ad agency. Check them out at the links below.  My official website https://www.mirov.com/   Mirov is available now. https://a.co/d/i1rXvnm Linktree https://linktr.ee/thedavidchoke   Faceboo...