“Theme, Characters, Story Elements”

"Unconditional Love is Universally Paramount."
“Unconditional Love is Universally Paramount.”

by
Donald L. Vasicek

All entertaining and creative writing springs from the writer’s ability to tell a story. And this story doesn’t have to be fiction. All effective writing springs from putting the story together in a coherent fashion.

A story must have a beginning, a middle and an end, and not necessarily in that order, but those three elements must “be there” in order to make what you are writing effective. The story must have a defining theme. A defining theme is the main theme of the story.

For example, if the story is about an apple, then everything in the story must relate directly, or indirectly to the apple. If the apple begins its life in the tree in the story and its struggle in the story is to become an full grown apple, then elements must be introduced in the story like the weather, the human being, the animal, etc. that are trying to prevent the apple from becoming a full grown apple.

It is the apple’s job in the story to fight and defeat each one of these “opponents”, with one of these “opponents” being the main threat to the apple. The main opponent should reflect what the apple wants, to become a full grown apple, but the main opponent, which is the villain or antagonist in the story, depending upon if the writer is telling a story about a fight between good and evil (villain) or a story that represents a competitive force (antagonist) to the apple’s goal.

This, then, introduces conflict, and without conflict in any story, there is no drama, and if there is no drama, there is no story, just a series of sentences that are saying something about the apple. And this could be where many writers are at in their writing dilemma. You must tell a compelling story that the reader can relate to on an emotional level, or you will lose the reader before they finish reading what you have written.

Get on the right track by “being yourself” in your writings. That is vital to be effective in your writing. So, what you need to do is rethink your approach to your writing style, perhaps rewrite something you have written utilizing the above suggestions.

If this resonates with you, good! If it does not then, I am hopeful that you continue your quest to be an effective writer. You’re never not that far off. You just needs to shift your writing a bit and you’ll be on your way!

Best Regards,
Don Vasicek

Donald L. Vasicek Introduces Himself

PAMELA'S FALCON
PAMELA’S FALCON

-Donald L. Vasicek

To introduce myself:

I’m an award-winning writer/filmmaker/consultant. Amongst many clients including writers, producers, production companies, directors, and actors, I have worked as a writer/consultant for MGM/Law Brothers Productions’ $56 million film, “Warriors of Virtue.” I also wrote, directed and produced “The Sand Creek Massacre”. It’s a story about how over 400 Cheyenne women, children, special needs people and elders were shot, raped, mutilated, and burned up by the Colorado 1st & 3rd Cavalries led by racist Colonel John M. Chivington on November 29, 1864.

“The Sand Creek Massacre” won best film in 3 film festivals. It received the prestigious Golden Drover Award and has been cataloged into Smithsonian Institute Libraries.

I’ve also written, directed and produced some other documentary films. I have written over 500 articles, books, short stories and poems during the course of the past 43 years. I am presently working on a narrative film about the hate that is engendered in race and religion in the United States.

I think the fine point of success in any endeavor resides in the passion one has for what they are doing. Without that burning fire inside of yourself, you will probably live in mediocrity, which by no means, is good or bad. It simply, is. So, as each one of you continue your life journey, take with you the fact that everything that you desire is contained inside of your brain. You simply have to instruct your mind to tell it that and off you go.

Peace and Light,

Donald L. Vasicek
Olympus Films+, LLC
The Zen of Writing & Screenwriting
http://michaelc.nextmp.net/wordpress
dvasicek@earthlink.net

Donald L. Vasicek’s The Zen of Writing

by
Donald L. Vasicek
http://michaelc.nextmp.net/wordpress
dvasicek@earthlink.net

Writing requires creative effort. Creative effort translated means that regardless of what you are writing, it must be put together in a fashion that grabs readers and keeps them reading. How is this accomplished?

Writing articles, blogs, personal letters, web site pages, books, poems, e-books, screenplays, radio scripts, video scripts, etc. requires a beginning, a middle, and an end without regard to linear or non-linear writing. A defining or main theme must be utilized to hold these elements of writing together. Like roots of a tree, a defining theme causes all elements of what one is writing to grow and blend together to be partial to the trunk and branches of a tree, as you write.

How is this accomplished?

The first step, and this is vital, is to use a pen and a piece of paper. It is advisable to sit down. Write down who caused you to come up with the idea about writing what you are about to write, what your situation was at the time, where you were, when was it, and why this particular writing idea surfaced. By writing down these answers with a pen and a piece of paper, it will cause the information that you impart to register in your subconscious mind. This, in turn, will give you the information you need to identify the main or defining theme for what you are about to write.

By following this approach to writing, creative effort will turn what one is writing into an effective piece of writing.