C.R. Langille
Follow Me
  • Home
  • Blog
  • About C.R. Langille / Press Kit
  • Published Works
  • Contact
  • Shop

The Stars are Right!

12/27/2013

0 Comments

 
Picture
That's all! This is the 'stache at almost five months of bulk. Now the question is, do I let it go further?

0 Comments

Conflict Part 1

12/21/2013

0 Comments

 
Picture
It's been awhile since I've had anything useful on the blog. I have no excuses for that. To make up for it, I'm going to do a mini-series on conflict and tension in writing. Buckle up, because it's going to be a crazy ride (Otherwise, it would be boring. See, we started already!)! The information found within comes from a variety of sources, as well as my own experience. I'd like to acknowledge Tim Esaias and Sharon Mignerey for imparting their knowledge of Conflict and Scene Craft.  As well as Scott Johnson and Tim Waggoner for helping refine my craft.

If a story itself is a sandwich, then conflict is the peanut butter and jelly to that sandwich. In other words, without conflict, your story is going to be bland and no one is going to want to devour it. As an author, you want your reader to say, "I couldn't put it down." How do you do that? With conflict and tension.

James Scott Bell said, "Conflict has long been recognized as the engine of story. Without conflict there is no drama. Without drama there is no interest. Without interest there is no reader. And no writing career." So what does it mean to insert drama into your story? Well, first you have to determine what your story is going to be about. 

To put this in a nutshell, conflict is when your character wants something and can't have it. The details come into the why and how of that character being unable to get what they want. Once you have that basic idea, ask yourself the following questions: Is your story a man vs. man tale? A man vs. nature? Is the conflict external or internal? 

Just keep in mind, that one side of the conflict has to involve someone or something that is sentient and conscious of their decisions. In other words, the character has to be able to make choices. A story about two tornadoes meeting in a field might be visually interesting; however, there's not much tension because nothing is at stake. However, throw a man trying to save his family from one of those tornadoes, and now we're talking.

These concepts may seem fairly basic, but you'd be surprised the amount how integral they are to your story. Without a clear grasp of the concepts, the rest of the story won't come together. 

The next step, is to make this conflict familiar to the reader. As an author, you can make this happen by making protagonists that are likable/connectable, and to write conflict that has emotional familiarity. What do I mean by making a protagonist who is likable or connectable? It means the reader has to understand where they are coming from. Generally, most authors will write a main character who the readers will like. If not, the readers at least have to be able to connect or understand (empathize with) where the protagonist is coming from.

For example, let's say our main character is a person who kills others. For most readers, we aren't going to connect with that or like it. However, if we find out he's killing others to save his family, or his tribe, or his country, then it shines a different light on the matter. We can now get behind his actions and root for him. (This is a simple example and not fleshed out, but a common trope in books and movies.) After you establish that aspect of your protagonist, your next goal is to work in some emotional familiarity into the conflict.

Coming up next: Conflict Part 2--Emotional Familiarity.


0 Comments

Mustache Fhtagn!

12/14/2013

0 Comments

 
Picture
That's right...the mustache sleeps, but soon the stars will be right and it will awaken. Who knows what will happen then. We're getting close to Christmas, which was the date I said I would go before trimming this bad boy. However, I'm considering waiting until after my college residency to trim it. We'll just have to see.

0 Comments

"Marketing Hell"

12/2/2013

0 Comments

 
"Marketing Hell"
-by C.R. Langille

Lucy kept the pink slip Lower Management gave her; it hung on the wall of her cubicle in a cheap frame. They had the nerve to fire her just before the holidays. That was the best time for marketing, and they canned her. They claimed it wasn’t her, it was the economy. That there wasn’t enough resources to keep everyone on. Buckets of bullshit coated in chocolate.

With her experience and wiles, it hadn’t been hard to find other employment. Unfortunately, that employment turned out to be an entry-level job at a target marketing corporation.

At first, she was excited; target marketing was her specialty. Lucy had an uncanny knack of knowing exactly what a client wanted. However, this wasn’t the working environment she had in mind.

Her cubicle was grey, tiny, and unremarkable. The pink slip decoration was the only thing that set her cubicle off from the others. Plus, the job didn’t offer the kind of target marketing she enjoyed.

Lucy missed the thrill of the hunt. This was easy, which meant it was also boring. Here, the clients came to you. Where was the fun in that? She had to make a living though, and they couldn’t stop her from freelancing during her lunch hour.

It was time to get some real work done. Lucy checked to make sure no one was watching; it wouldn’t do to have an audience. Others may not understand, or approve of her methods.

Lucy logged into her personal mail account and started hunting. It didn’t take long before she found her potential client. Victor Marx, a thirty-something living in Whogivesashit, USA. She scrolled through the information on Victor and stopped halfway through—perfect. An impish smile slithered onto her face.

It appeared that Victor used to play Battlecraft. Lucy had to hand it to Lower Management for making that game. Pure genius. That game was more addicting than a hit of meth.

Lucy sent Victor an email with a promotional offer. Return to the game today, and get two months for free, plus double XP! It wasn’t long before he took a nibble at the hook. Giggles of excitement bubbled through her as she made her next move.

She placed an ad onto his FaceHangOut account stream. Lucy could almost taste his desire to play. Just one last step and Victor would take the plunge.

Victor started the download. Lords of Darkness be praised! Lower Management had to take her back. They’d see that they had made a mistake when they fired her. She was the best damn devil Hell had. Maybe they would even promot--

Victor stopped the download. No! Lucy sent him another ad, but it was no use. Victor logged off his computer.

She banged her head on the desk. A slight cough sounded from behind her—her new boss.

“Miss Fur, we have a policy about decorating your workspace.”

She sighed and took the picture frame off the wall. Marketing was hell.



0 Comments

    Author

    C.R. Langille writes horror, fantasy, urban-fantasy, dark fantasy, and is considering stepping into the sci-fi realm. He has a grasp of survival techniques, and has been a table-top gamer for over 16 years.

    Archives

    October 2022
    March 2022
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    October 2020
    July 2020
    May 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    November 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    September 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013

    Categories

    All
    Author Interview
    Book Release
    Book Review
    Bushcraft Interview
    Conventions
    Cross Promotion
    Dark Tyrant
    Game Review
    Gamer Interview
    Gaming
    Horror
    Hunter Interview
    Hunting
    Movie Review
    Stokercon2017
    Survival
    Tales From The Storm
    Training
    Women In Horror Month
    Writing

    RSS Feed

Proudly powered by Weebly