What are inciting incidents? Why do our stories and scenes need them? What are the elements of a solid inciting incident? This week, Story Grid Certified editor Leslie Watts discusses these story event catalysts in the context of the opening of Drew Horstman’s fantasy novel, Nicholas Crumb. The editorial mission encourages you to collect inciting incidents by reading and watching stories—and from your own life. 

You’ve written lots of scenes for your work in progress, but how do you know whether they work? Does your scene satisfy basic story principles? In this episode, Leslie shows you how to analyze your scenes by looking at the opening of AW Moyer’s YA fantasy story, The Grim Book.