"The writer's job is to get the main character up a tree, and then once they are up there, throw rocks at them."
—Vladimir Nabokov
We already talked about having our character to struggles and that the struggles will push the protagonist further, ending up the readers getting hooked.
If we cannot throw rocks and afraid about letting our babies get hurt, we won't keep the readers going. Remember that if your protagonist is having fun, your readers aren't.
The 'trees and rocks' metaphor was said to be seen in a three-act plays that can be also used in writing science fiction:
a. Act One: Exposition and inciting incident (Character starts up the tree)
b. Act Two: Rising action and Climax (Throwing rocks at character)
c. Act Three: Falling Action and Resolution (Character gets down the tree)
In order to have a good science fiction novel, you need to push your characters like they've never been pushed before. Take them out of their comfort zone and make them change. Each challenges must be significant to them, and would bear such different effects. It has to be big and with impact.
CITEȘTI
Interstellar: A Science Fiction Guide
SFA short, fast-talked Guide Book prepared by WritersPH for any Filipino Science Fiction aspirant writer. Written By: Admin Angel
