Writing Roots

Another one of our favorite movies at Writing Roots is The Princess Bride. From amazing characters to an intricate story-in-a-story plot, this movie is a classic that has a lot to teach us about storytelling. In this episode, join us as we discuss what makes the characters and world stand out so much in this beloved tale.

If you're looking for good story and character structures to study, a great place to start is with Pixar movies. One of our favorites at Writing Roots is Up. Even the first 10 minutes is a perfectly encapsulated story structure that sets the viewer up for the rest of the movie. Listen along with us as we break down the characters, plot and worldbuilding into something you can use for your own creations.

To begin our sixth year of Writing Roots, we wanted to equip you with the knowledge of how to break down stories that you consume so you can use them in your own writing. We've discussed before different tricks and ways to take influence from your favorite books and authors. This month, though, we'll be working together.
We begin with an overview of what it is to analyze a story. We'll break down what we're looking for, and what to consider as you consume. At the end of each episode this month, we'll assign you homework to watch one movie, which we'll discuss in our next episode.

The crossover between writing and TTRPGs is nothing new, as represented by the long-running podcast Authors & Dragons. From character work to plot development, TTRPGs are the perfect place to get ideas or improve your skill in storytelling. We sat down with Rick Gualtieri, author of Bill of the Dead and The Girl Who Punches Werewolves and member of the Authors & Dragons podcast, to talk about gaming, writing and how the two can support each other.
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Tabletop games are a great place to test so many storytelling elements, from character dynamics to mechanics. It's also a great place to receive immediate feedback. You'll know if a joke landed if the other players laughed. You'll know a character makes sense if the other players can work well with them and the DM can integrate their backstory easily. There's a balance, though, to the feedback you'll receive in TTRPG spaces. Learn more in this episode of Writing Roots.

LitRPGs are rising in popularity in the writing world, especially among fans of fantasy TTRPGs or video games. In this episode, we discuss the LitRPG genre and how you can pull from your gaming experiences to help you craft an interesting and fun story.

Even if you aren't are looking to write a fantasy or sci-fi story, one of the best tools you can use to write anything from fight scenes to the world itself, is to look at the mechanics of TTRPGs. Each kind of book has defined everything from travel to fighting. Action economy can help you build scenes that make sense, monsters that pose a challenge. Listen for more on how you can use the game mechanics of TTRPGs to write your stories.

If you plan to write fantasy or science fiction, a great resource will be tabletop games. There is so much you can learn from the structure provided for gameplay, and especially for the magic and tech systems. Each system comes with pre-built structure, limitations, and capabilities. Even without directly copying those systems, you can still learn a lot through learning and studying how they work in order to create a complete and well-built magic structure of your own.

Backstories are a key piece to characters in tabletop games, such as Dungeons & Dragons. Players usually create that backstory, and the game master helps determine what to do with that information. Then they work together to weave the backstory into the current storyline. For writers, having practice at this through gaming can help you figure out where that line is between backstory and current story, as well as how to bring it up without info dumps.

From the other players at your table to the vast cultures available within the worlds, there is a lot to learn about diversity from engaging in TTRPGs. You can explore different experiences through your characters and their interactions. You can learn about team balance, where everyone has their unique role and contributions. All of this you can translate over into your own storytelling through writing.