Inking Neon: Light Up Your Stories

Stuart says you’ve got to plot your stories. Cullen isn’t so sure! Maybe you can just fly by the seat of your pants? We lay out our arguments in the (timeless?) Pants vs Plot debate. Also featured: Joseph Cambell was a moron; is Save the Cat worthless?; the creativity of David Lynch; and examples of stirring scenes from Dune Part II and The Fellowship of the Ring.00:00 The Plotter vs. Pantser Debate 02:15 The Plotter Opening Statement: The Importance of Plotting in Speculative Fiction 05:29 The

Stuart J. Tanner and Cullen McHael trade examples of compelling antagonists in speculative fiction from Sci-Fi to Fantasy, deconstruct the role of the antagonist, and offer advice from hard earned lessons about how and when to consider your antagonist in your writing process. Cullen lists nine kinds of antagonist, which one are you?  0:00 Intro 5:28 The Role of the Antagonist 8:40 Antagonist Example: The Joker in the Dark Knight 15:41 The Antagonist Letdown 24:32 9 Kinds of Antagonist: Which One

Stuart J. Tanner and Cullen McHael share hard-earned lessons about getting your fight scenes right.0:00 Intro 1:34 What are Fight Scenes For? 10:00 The Fun Element 11:00 Problem Solving 14:39 Scaffolding, Worldbuilding, and Playing With Rules 24:22 The Great Challenge: Clarity 28:25 Examples of Compelling Fight Scenes 32:52 4 Things a Fight Scene Can Do 34:56 Establishing Stakes: Costs, Risks, and Invincibility 40:17 Reading: Altered Carbon by Richard K. Morgan 45:10 Analysis of Altered Carbon's

On this first episode of Inking Neon, journalist, author, and teacher Stuart J. Tanner is sent to Baghdad at the height of the Iraq occupation and discovers that and other strange worlds. We discuss what makes for compelling characters, the process of investigation in writing, and read from Stuart's book Devas: A Sci-Fi adventure in which a serial murder case spirals out of control when a detective discovers an alien civilization. 0:00 Intro 7:21 The Ultimate Challenge 10:15 Visitors in a Strange