Notes & Commentary: Ep. 1
Hi, team.
I covered quite a bit of information in this first episode of the Monster Podcast, including why first chapters are so important, why characters are key to a good story, and the reasons why I made some of the decisions. As always, I’d love to hear your thoughts.
The loose notes I followed are below the audio.
Introduction to Nick Carson
Character is the most important aspect of a story. They must be relatable and interesting.
Why did I start here, and not the next chapter?
It is challenging making a “shopping trip” interesting, and a little risky as the first chapter.
My hope is that the hint at a lower hoodie, the M&M scene, and of course the last sentence of the chapter is what reels a reader in.
Nick has mundane daily routine and lack of ambition
His unkempt appearance and social detachment
The scene: Nick's encounter at the grocery store
Observations of a mother and her children
Crushing a child's candy maliciously
Noticing symbolic markings above the cashier's head
Nick's internal struggle
Flashbacks to a happier past
Guilt and sense of responsibility over the cashier's fate
Internal debate on intervening or walking away
What I’m hoping the reader understands:
Nick seems to be struggling with apathy, isolation, and perhaps depression.
There are hints of a traumatic past event that has impacted him deeply.
He has the ability to see some kind of symbolic markings connected to people's fates.
Despite his outward apathy, he grapples with a moral decision regarding the cashier's fate.
What I’m hoping the reader questions:
What do the symbolic markings represent, and how does Nick interpret them?
What happened in Nick's past that led him to his current state?
Will he decide to intervene and try to change the cashier's fate?
Is there more to Nick's abilities than what is revealed in this chapter?
How reliable is Nick as a narrator, given his potential mental/emotional issues?
