4 Secrets For Engaging Your Audience (Writing Advice)

Learn valuable techniques for keeping your audience gripped--with examples from Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Game of Thrones, and more!
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[@fleef69]

It amazes me how you manage to never stop coming up with new topics to cover, and how every single one seems to be exactly what I’m needing to hear whenever it comes out lol

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Haha to be fair, I pulled today's video from a writing guide, but I'm glad it helped!

[@fleef69]

@@WriterBrandonMcNulty the messenger is just as valuable as the message 😎

[@rogerelarrat]

I took a writing seminar once and the teacher talked about the power of jumping between dramatic irony (audience knows more than characters), suspense (audience knows as much as the character and they discover things together) and mystery (character knows something that the audience doesn't know yet what it is). "Rope" uses dramatic irony, "Silence of the Lambs" uses more suspense and "The others" uses tons of mystery. What is a mystery can become suspense or dramatic irony, back and forth, depending of the point of view character of the scene. This would be a fantastic subject for one of your videos.

[@LordBaktor]

"Guards! Guards!" by Terry Pratchett. I got so hooked on that one I read it in one sitting and finished it just in time to go to work the next day without sleep.

[@minutebooks3245]

Congratulations on the new book. Wishing you big success with it. 😊👍

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Thank you so much!

[@intergalactic92]

The dramatic irony is two-fold in that raiders of the lost ark example. There’s also a villain in the room, the monkey, whom is the poisoner's ally, and is responsible for Marion's "death"/capture. Whilst Indy is the target he is saved at the last minute by virtue of the monkey eating one of the dates first. The poisoner's plan is foiled by his own ally.

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Yeah! Goes back to that Revelation/Recognition pattern I mentioned. Such a great scene--and a great way to keep an infodump scene engaging

[@HerMajestyVelvet]

For me, I usually try to have at least one character not know a lot about their world/situation so they can discover with the audience but I’ve been trying to do something difference so this is definetly going to be useful I love this channel and I especially like how you use actual examples of what you’re talking about :)

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

That's a great worldbuilding strategy--getting the audience and character in the same discovery mindset. Builds a bond and makes the flow of info feel natural. Thanks for the kind words about the channel btw!

[@HerMajestyVelvet]

@@WriterBrandonMcNulty your welcome, and thank you!

[@DrasticSkuba]

Harry Potter is a very popular example of that sense of discovery. J.K. Rowling uses that strategy very well

[@ridleyformk1244]

8:59: Death Note. The greatest story ever. I can talk about it all day, but I keep it brief. You can say the story has arcs of sort. The first one is about Light getting the Death note, using it to become the serial killer called Kira, getting the interest of the detective, L, them meeting, a character called Misa gets involved, who is the second Kira fully heartily devoted to Light because he killed her parents' killer. Thanks to L stealing her phone, he ends up capturing her and to draw less suspicion to himself, Light turns himself in and ordered Misa's Shinigami, Rem, to give the Death Note to someone who would use it for selfish gain, drawing suspicion away from the pair. Which lead to the second arc. Light forfits ownership of the notebook, and his Shinigami, Ryuk, takes it away, and his memiores of the Death note vanish as well. Which leads to the now good Light wanting to help track down the new third Kira. But all good things come to an end as Light gets the Death Note back, resulting in his memories to return, and the first thing he does is to kill the third Kira, and with the helping of Rem, kills L. Which leads to the third arc when Light becomes the new L, and his confidence goes through the roof, resulting in his downfall by the hands of Near, L's apprentice and successor. With no more entertainment, Ryuk, Light's Shinigami, finally writes Light's name into the notebook, ending the life of the man who started it all. This is just a run down of the series, and you will a much better understand of it if you watch the show itself, which I highly recommend. This engages me because each story arc leads to the next flawlessly, adding to the over reaching story of a high school students with a bright future heading for him getting corrupted by the Death Note, resulting in his death. A negative character arc, my favorite one in all of fiction. This is unrelated, but I just finished my first draft in late March, and I gave myself a six week break from it. Do you know what I should do during this time?

[@mattsager914]

I feel like Needful Things by SK is a masterclass in dramatic irony. Not only are we, the reader, aware of the tricks being played on the people in town, but when they start casting blame we know who the real culprits are/were. It keeps me turning the pages!

[@jesusromanpadro3853]

Still one of my favorite demons in fiction.

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

LOVE Needful Things. That and The Dead Zone are the two most underrated King novels IMO. And you're right, part of what makes NT so engaging is that we know what's going on and we fear for those characters who don't know any better.

[@Barklord]

William Faulkner sets up the story of Light in August really well. First, we get an oddly incomplete backstory of a pregnant girl searching for her baby-daddy. Then, when she gets to the town where she hopes to find him, there's a mysterious house fire that allows for another mystery to keep readers invested.

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Oh man. I was supposed to read LiA back in high school, but I Sparknoted it and missed out. I'll have to add it to my reading list and redeem myself

[@dcle944]

@@WriterBrandonMcNulty lol. Were you a party boy in high school?

[@premium_chicken_nuggy]

No Country for Old Men is a MASTERPIECE of dramatic tension. It's one big cat-and-mouse chase between Anton Chigurh and his victim, Josh Brolin's character. It telegraphs Brolin's fate right from the start, but so much happens in between that it keeps you guessing what Anton will do next. Great freakin' movie.

[@Ajisai_Kiku]

I freaked out when your notification popped up 😭 Wasn't expecting a jumpscare at 1:30 pm-

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Haha well at least that's better than 1:30am. And I'm guessing you're in Europe? Greetings from across the Atlantic!

[@Ajisai_Kiku]

@@WriterBrandonMcNulty from Africa lol- but greetings good sir! 😃

[@577zkerr]

I'm halfway through writing my first fiction. You're so helpful. Thank you!

[@MaggieMiller1]

Your books are not in the genre I read - sorry. What I would like to read is a book written by you about writing. This is the best writing channel I've found on KZbin.

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Good news--I'm actually working on one. Hoping to release it later this year!

[@matteomariani5160]

@@WriterBrandonMcNulty yeah, you have another customer here then! By the way, congratulations on your new book!

[@freedomthroughspirit]

@@WriterBrandonMcNulty So glad to hear this!

[@RedFox8171]

Video suggestion: bittersweet relationships or endings. Really hard to write, but if anyone can explain it its you Brandon

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Haha yeah I do this in all my books. I'll see about cooking up a video on the subject. Thanks for the suggestion!

[@freedomthroughspirit]

Yes please this topic 😃

[@Ebelon]

Berserk has kept me enthralled since the first time i saw the Golden Age movies. Since then, I've watched the 97 anime series. Read both the manga and deluxe books. To this day, i still wait for chapters releases. Though the author Kentaru Miura has passed, he left behind an outline of how story was going go end. The day i see finisjed will probably one of the most emotional days of my life.

[@jetsdude8]

congrats on your new book brandon. speaking of hill house, it's one that kept me engaged start to finish. perhaps it's because i loved the show (which was very different), but i flew through it.

[@jkta97]

Kurosawa's movie "Stray Dog" engages the audience right away. The movie opens with a newly promoted homicide detective who gets his gun stolen while riding the bus. This immediately sets up what the story is going to be about: the search for the gun.

[@galfisk]

The video game Outer Wilds is my favorite story experience. Figuring out the mysteries in bits and pieces by exploring the world was so exciting, and gradually realizing the immensity of it all gave me chills over and over.

[@unicorntomboy9736]

What is your opinion on Subnautica? It has fascinating tension and suspense, where the player character is stranded on an alien ocean planet, taking cues from real world marine biology and oceanography

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Ohhh I need to play Outer Wilds. Heard so many great things about the story. Will probably snag the PS5 disc version when it releases

[@flattmeister1704]

I never got the chance to complete it, but the mystery is fascinating. Oh did you fly and land on the sun station? Hard trophy.

[@galfisk]

I've heard good things about Subnautica, and may try it some time. I've started on Return of the Obra Dinn, and it's good. Though right now I'm doing Shenzhen I/O, which only has a rudimentary story but is fun for completely different reasons. I can recommend getting the Echoes of the Eye DLC for Outer Wilds, it's like another just as good (though more creepy) game within the game. Edit: I never landed at the sun station. Maybe I'm no good at flying or maybe playing with a keyboard and mouse makes it too hard. I didn't find the other flying too difficult.

[@jahredcr916]

You are my writing goat, I’ve learned so much from your videos and I’m excited to read one of your books, will have to see which one tho, anyways keep up the great work

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Thanks so much for the kind words. Glad the videos are helping!

[@coffeecreateconnect]

Yay! Always a treat to see a new video from you. I appreciate your advice. Congratulations on your new book. 📚

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Thanks!

[@Crystar500]

Examples from Gaming! (While being very careful not to spoil) Telegraphing - Fallout 4. The example Brandon gave reminded me of the intro of this game for some reason. The Vault Tec rep offers a spot in the Vault to save the player character's family from nuclear devastation, essentially telegraphing how the game begins, as almost immediately after, the family runs off to the Vault to escape a nuke that's dropped on Boston. Dangling Cause - Infamous 2. Even near the end of Infamous 1, we're given a prophetic warning about The Beast, a being who apparently is going to destroy Earth. Much of Cole's journey in Infamous is trying to find a way to stop The Beast, because we know it is coming. It gives pressure and stakes to what Cole does. Dramatic Irony - Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII. A majority of the people playing Crisis Core know the fates of Zack and Sephiroth in the original Final Fantasy VII end up, so while playing Crisis Core you're expecting certain events to happen despite the characters being unaware. Dramatic Tension - Chrono Trigger. We're shown early on that a great cataclysm will devastate the planet at some point in the planet's future. And it's made clear that Lucca, Marle and Crono want to save the planet from this cataclysm by trying to change the past. This is the driving factor as we follow their adventures through time, along with all the trouble they face alone the way.

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

I still need to play Crisis Core. I love FF7, and I wanted to play Crisis Core when I got a PS Vita TV, but CC was taken off the PSN Store due to a copyright issue. One of these days I gotta snag the PS5 version. And Chrono Trigger is fantastic.

[@jimjo8541]

I wanna pick up Entry Wounds. Good concept.

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Thanks! If you check it out, I hope you enjoy it

[@LostRelicGames]

Love your info and passion for the craft, Thanks for another great vid!

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Thanks for watching!

[@evelynjoy4466]

I've been using a lot of dramatic irony lately. In my current WIP, which is a trilogy, the first book ends with a secret one of the characters was hiding being revealed. The second book rotates through the POV of the two main characters but the POV for the character with the secret is in the past so we're reading what happened before the Incident, knowing exactly what is going to happen to him, but not how or why. It's very far from perfect and I have a lot of work to do and I was really scared that I was doing this all wrong, but my writing group has commented on the fact that they know what the Incident is before it happens makes them more engaged and excited. I'm glad to know it's one of the tools you suggest, it really gave me a boost of confidence.

[@PaulRWorthington]

Coincidentally, my book coming out this month is Jekyll/Hyde in an office building! That aspect is actually the secret reveal, however, just as it was in the original J/H novella. I’d planned to make the relationship clear to the reader at the beginning for dramatic irony. But it worked much better as a reveal in the climax. No half-murders however - six full-on ones! Coincidence number two: just yesterday I was thinking that very same thing about Star Wars episode four, while listening to a podcast talking about the dramatic question. My take was only slightly different, however: The dramatic question was, Will Luke rescue the princess? That was his original goal and mission. And then when they escape the Death Star, that mission has succeeded. And then the story pivots to the Death Star moving to threaten the rebel base, and we have the climax.

[@lordfabulous6198]

Always appreciate your uploads. I've tried so many writing advice channels, and their tips are always either too dragged out to make sense or keep engagement (30+ min videos), or they're incredibly pretentious and black and white "this is the way to write, and any other way is wrong!" kind of thing, but yours are quick, simple, and open to interpretation. For that, you truly stand out. Thanks for the help!

[@1minion203]

I fell into an anime obsession over the past few years and some of those stories have been so consuming like Bleach or Attack on Titan, but Tokyo Revengers still has its hooks in me. Story starts with MC needing to change the future to save a girl but becomes more about the need to change the future to save everyone, the gang's leader most of all. The number of tears I shed over that story.. uncountable..

[@stagename2]

Great content, keep it up!

[@rylandunlap6986]

Encouraging to know I had 3 of these techniques in my story already, and I can implement the 4th one in very easily. Thanks 😊

[@Johnnybon3z]

Best part of my morning

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Haha thanks!

[@PurpleSun8933]

The story in the second book of the Deathworld series, The Ethical Engineer, kept me on the edge till the very end. Fascinating and engaging sci-fi novel.

[@Maratletoso]

I have took writing courses, and watch a ton of videos on writing, your videos have helped me improve a lot, I’m currently working on my 3rd comic book now (just one published online yet), so I’m making progress! CONGRATULATIONS on the new book!!!

[@grizzly_manbanimation8436]

Love this channel and it has helped me a lot in my pursuit of writing. I’m hoping to read at least one of your books at some point or another. Keep up the good work.

[@noldaker]

Thank you...Currently doing a re-write on one script and gearing up to write 2 others. Two films for suspense are: "What Lies Beneath" and "Somewhere in Time".

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Just watched Somewhere in Time back in December. My uncle recommended it to me, and when I found out Richard Matheson had written it, I couldn't pass it up

[@noldaker]

@@WriterBrandonMcNulty :)

[@NiteMarCasper]

You've been extreamly helpful. I appreciate your channel and commentary. Thank you

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Thanks for the kind words!

[@preparandoelcamino]

Great video. As for the question, virtually every single season of 24 kept me plugged into the TV for at least 3 episodes in a row. Going through these techniques, I think they used them all amazingly.

[@Shindai]

Spent the whole video thinking of Back to the Future. I've seen a bunch of people react to it, coz I enjoy seeing people enjoy stuff I enjoy, and a lot of them have picked up every hint and telegraph ofw hat's to come, but none predicted the things that go wrong along the way. Absolute masterful building of tension and payoff in those movies :)

[@bobpeterson7182]

The Thing kept me engaged the entire was through. So much meat on that bone, you can keep coming back for more

[@richardcohen2774]

I think one of the best films I've ever seen is Kurosawa's seven samurai. Not because it was cumulatively my favourite, but because I am so impressed that a 3+ hour film in a foreign language kept me so engaged. Not quite sure I can put my finger on why I was so engaged but I wasn't bored I found the story so compelling. I think it was probably due to the strong characterisation I tend to like character centred stories but I'm not sure

[@manaze85]

Congratulations on the new book.

[@ShinGallon]

In my recently-finished graphic novel I subtly hint at how the characters will get rid of a specific item in the story that the villain needs. I hint at (eventually explicitly showing) a character having what's called a "bag of holding" (for those who don't know it's a magical pouch that's bigger on the inside so you can carry a ton of stuff without needing to ruin your back). The thing about a bag of holding is if it's destroyed, anything currently inside it gets sent to another plane of existence, effectively removing it from your world. I felt like I set it up sufficiently so that when the heroes do just that to the villain's item it doesn't feel like a deus ex machina.

[@user-gm9gb7bu5l]

I've been a fantasy enjoyer for a long time, so when I couldn't put down the griping historical fiction, The Blood Years, by Elana K. Arnold..... I reconsidered my tastes.. It's a coming of age story about a young girl's experiences as a person of Jewish descent before and during WW2... very emotional story... and like you said, it always kept me guessing what is next... The writer also kept the themes very transparent on every page, and the tension ... very very real.

[@VividVisionary]

It’s not a book, but a game I played that hooked me to completion was a small indie game. Nexomon Extinction. Hilarious and meta storytelling. Along with a save the world plot and a twist that was engaging and entertaining.

[@Scifiotica_presents]

Another Fine Myth. I laughed from the beginning to the end. Love that book. Hope you speak again at the ALT writer’s club.

[@dizzybadger8988]

Of all the books I have read, only one captivated me so much I lost track of time. "The Eye of the world", book 1 of The Wheel of Time series. I have to say it had a terribly slow start for me where I almost gave up in the second or third chapter and then the fourth chapter is what hooked me. I didn't stop reading until book five. It was the fastest I had read anything. Granted the later books didn't have the same impact as the early ones, but they were still worth the time to read all fourteen of them

[@Greatermaxim]

Plenty kept me from beginning to end. The original total recall did it for awhile.

[@emeralddraegon]

A story that kept me engaged from start to finish? Basically anything by Brandon Sanderson. Haha Also An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir.

[@MrM0gus]

I love you brandon because never stop uploading

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Haha thanks!

[@t3amtomahawk]

The Glass Box by J Michael Straczynski A lot of what you mentioned was in the book. I got through it fast and hardly put it down until I finished

[@BooksForever]

You’ve Got Mail is one of the all-time greats. As for the answer to your final question, Layer Cake kept me engaged from start to finish thanks to the tightest screenwriting I’ve ever seen. After that movie, how could Daniel Craig ever NOT be the next (and greatest) James Bond?

[@grizzly_manbanimation8436]

As for the question of what story got me engaged from beginning to end. For me that would be the video game series hitman: world of assassination. It is by far one of my favorite games and if I had the chance to experience this story for the first time again I’d take it in half a heartbeat. Spoilers ahead. I love how we were introduced to a character with no name who we had to figure out as we continued to do missions. Lucas Grey’s introduction was so captivating and full of mystery. When we first met him, we didn’t know his name, his motive, or his background. Yet the way he is presented just made him more interesting. Before we got his name, we found out He clearly was involved in some shady business seeing as he did a trade with one of our targets one day before they even became one. In the same scene we see that he was involved somehow in the making of the contract once his business was concluded. The next time we see him was after a week had past since the second mission and we find out that he used Iago (first targets’ organization) to find out more about another organization called providence and is using ICA and seemingly Agent 47, as a weapon against them. Then we don’t see him again for a couple missions and only see the damage he was causing to the organization he had it out for. We still don’t know why he’s doing this, why he has it out for this organization, or even his name still. It’s a great example of mystery and suspense as well as dramatic irony because we know that ICA is being manipulated by this one individual. Then at some point ICA catches on and 47 and his handler Diana are tasked with chasing a “Shadow Client” who’s been secretly using ICA in their scheme. This is when we transition to suspense we know as much as the characters at this point and are finding out more info with the characters. I’m not gonna go into all the details but it was such a fun experience from beginning to end.

[@Xandycane]

Dramatic tension has to be number one. I can't care about a story if I don't care about the characters. I've read so many stories that were unputdownable (not a word, but should be lol). The one that comes to mind right now is the first book from the Kate Daniels series by Ilona Andrews. The scene at the beginning of her talking to a necromancer via a vampire asked so many questions and did a great world building moment while also showing these 2 character's personality. I needed the answers and to know more. Also, loved that her heredity wasn't a looming, very annoying question. I hate that type of unknown. I've literally skipped to the end of books to get the answer because it rarely pays off to have that question linger.

[@ludovico6890]

So many stories that keep me engaged through: Amadeus, The Godfather, The French Connection, Casino Royale... There's just as many stories that fail to keep me engaged. Might be an interesting topic for good/bad example, come to think of it.

[@VinnyTheory]

Stories that kept my attention start to finish: 1. Tomorrowland 2. Edge of Tomorrow 3. Ready Player 1 4. Harry Potter & The Half Blood Prince 5. Looper 6. Knight & Day

[@nunyabizness8919]

One movie I watched that kept me super engaged for a while was Significant Other. It has masterful use of dangling cause and uses a kind of "reverse" dramatic irony where the main character discovers something that isn't revealed to the audience until later, and it all leads up to an amazing plot twist that took me completely off guard. Unfortunately, after said plot twist the movie takes a nose dive due to an abrupt and jarring tonal shift.

[@ellennewth6305]

You shared perfect examples to illustrate the 4 secrets, Brandon. Excellent video! In my novel, a teenage girl has information about her best friend's upcoming murder. She knows who the killers are and when they will strike. But can she stop them?

[@Tora-no-shi]

I have a character that starts in the story as a duel personality type. It is caused by a program installed inside them. They are my knows more than the reader character. It is the other main character that helps them remove the program "freeing" them. The story is a two POV approach. One knows more than they are letting on and the other is like the reader and learning things as they go. The duel persona character is the fighter and the other is a tech genius. It is a sci-fi story that is not very far in the future. I decided to mix a few genres together. Cyberpunk and Biopunk mainly.

[@VinnyTheory]

I just have to subscribe. You’re awesome

[@nicklang6798]

I loved" Mrs. Brisby and the Rats of Nimh"

[@goalsavior]

When I watched Oppenheimer, I was on the edge of my seat for the entire film. I know we drop the nukes, I know the fallout and consequences of those actions. But the way the movie was written made me want more. I felt the tension around Oppenheimer and the antagonizing forces around him. Best example from a movie of keeping the tension throughout the entire story

[@unicorntomboy9736]

In my book I am working on, I used a flash forward prologue that shows my protagonist as an young adult at the end of their villain arc, at their lowest point conducting a torture sequence against one of the antagonist lackeys,, before cutting to chapter 1, showing my protagonist as a pre-teen child preying to the gods in a castle.

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Awesome, you've got some dramatic irony at work. Best of luck with your book!

[@stephenwashingtonjr1625]

Great video Brandon. I thinking keeping the audience asking questions is a great tip. I do have a favor if you are ok with it. I am currently writing my story with my superhero but I was wondering when I’m finish the first episode of you can read it and give me your feedback of what you like and didn’t like and whatever suggestions you have. It would be so helpful for me to

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Thanks for the kind words. Also thanks for trusting me with your work, but I’m much too busy these days to provide critiques. Best of luck with your story though!

[@Juzzi9]

Very powerful techniques. And even if one knows these, you have the ability to lay out their building blocks so well, its sure to improve peoples writing. Dramatic irony especially is so powerful, gets me to the edge of my seat easily! One question about it as a first time writer though: Is it possible to build dramatic irony with only "good guys" point of views? Alternatively, would it be bad to just have a villains pov for few brief moments throughout the book? Like not aiming to build villain-reader relationships, not to go deep into setting, little backstory if any, not turning black to gray, only a couple little pieces here and there to build tension?

[@Juzzi9]

I just realized with only good guys pov its possible to do with other character being somewhere else, gaining knowledge, and unable to reach the other char. How about single pov? Only by giving hints and puzzle pieces that make the reader realize something and then having the char not realize it? Id love a video going deeper into dramatic irony topic

[@r.lsteve1475]

What about songs? A movie releases its song before and when the movie is released, the song in the first scene helps in audience engagement OR when a classic song is used at a moment which helps in audience engagement? What is the technique in use here??

[@AlanFehr]

Your point about the dramatic question being answered then replaced has really got me thinking. Are there instances where the question is supplanted by a bigger question? But the answer is the same? I guess in the SW example, it would be 'Will Luke defeat Darth Vader? Wait, Palpatine has been pulling the syringe all along. If Luke defeats Palpatine, Vader will be defeated too. Will Luke defeat Palpatine?'

[@brianedwards7142]

I'm currently reading The Food of the Gods by HG Wells and he's done all 4 of these in the book. I wonder how he learned all this, did he read any books about writing? He studied Biology and Teaching but not literature. It's been a cracking good read.

[@Evan-tp7ur]

What about a story like the in movies Uncut Gems or Good Time where the protagonists have goals in mind but keep facing setback after setback and keep creating new goals? Would that just be dramatic tension like on rapid fire?

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

What are some stories that kept you engaged from start to finish? Let us know!

[@rowan404]

Probably not the answer you were expecting, but when I was a kid, I loved the _My Weird School_ series so much that I would sometimes read several in one day. I still think about its funny moments regularly to this day.

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

@@rowan404 Haha not what I was expecting at all! I had to look it up actually. Your comment reminds me of how I felt about the Goosebumps books when I was growing up

[@ThroughTheAftermath]

While many (most?) of Stephen King's recent books have not been good, IMHO, 11/22/63 kept me drawn in from start to finish. I couldn't put that book down.

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

@@ThroughTheAftermath 11/22/63 is a masterpiece. I started it thinking "Yeah, no way am I gonna be able to finish this 700-page mammoth" and then I was furious when I finished it in less that a week. Absolutely incredible blend of sci-fi, mystery, and romance.

[@stormwind7768]

I read "Ranger's Apprentice" series and It got me engaged for hours. First part seems to be calm, but it makes reader aks questions. Even travels are interesting.

[@MrHuh-gl7sy]

Can you make a video about writing adaptations/stories in an already existing franchise and maintaining continuity and canon?

[@anonymouselevenn.11]

Dayum Thanks a lot

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Thanks for watching!

[@johntabler349]

I was entralled recently with Pete the Cat and his new shoes. Maybe it was because my granddaughter was reading it to me, but I think it was the compelling story

[@katethedimensionexplorer273]

In the beginning of the story and throughout my characters have little to no knowledge of the outside world. They've grown up in a shettled village and recently ranaway to find a massive treasure. They follow the map, but its them going into the unknown and experienceing things for the first time.

[@nisch4496]

One more useful video let's go

[@TheRealAndrew5223]

The book "A Separate Peace" is a perfect example of dramatic irony. We know the truth, that the main character Gene deliberately crippled his friend Phineas. But Phineas doesn't know for most of the novel. The suspense comes from whether Phineas will find out the truth (and especially whether Gene's guilt will cause him to confess), and what will happen next.

[@MoonlightsMuse]

“The First Family” by Michael and Daniel Palmer! Without spoiling too much, the authors, pretty much dropped hints throughout the book to make the audience believe in this one answer to the book’s mystery. But it was all deliberate, because when the characters finally got to that solution, it was WRONG! I remember being very confused when that happened because of all of the clues. I went from “Oh, I know exactly how this is gonna go 😎” to “What HUH??? 😵‍💫” But, when the actual solution came up, it made sense in hindsight. The crazy thing is the characters even thought of that real solution like before the halfway mart, but then dismissed it. And it makes sense with the evidence they had at the time. The characters were focused on the “fake” clues as much as the readers lol I like saying “Oh, I can predict what happens next in a story! I know what to look for!” and the authors use that to their advantage. I haven’t read anything like it before.

[@TerraEshbaugh-et7qm]

Shane by Jack Schaefer. It's the only western I've ever read but I couldn't put it down.

[@rolandchang5338]

My biggest worry is that I love my point of view characters so much I may be blind to whether or not they are engaging to other. Sort of like when I talk to people endlessly about my children, oblivious to the fact that they don’t care and are listening just to be polite

[@Yelsktv]

What publishing companies do you recommend?

[@freedomthroughspirit]

Why is the Save option for this video not showing? This is an especially good one I'd like to save to my Writing library in KZbin. Alas, it's only showing the options for children's content. No Save. No Download. No Clip. No Report. Etc. 🤨

[@UncleIJT]

Currently I’m reading “Runaway Jury”. The film kept me engaged.

[@michaeljordan5630]

Can we talk about open ended ending and close ended ending. I’ve never been a fan of close ended ending. Mostly because I feel like saying what that character future is not worth telling in book form or not letting the audience interpret the character future is just wrong.

[@ait-reda]

Funny thing is that you're releasing the book on my birthday

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

That was the plan all along haha. Happy soon-to-be birthday!

[@ait-reda]

@@WriterBrandonMcNultyThank you very much I appreciate you so much Mr. McNulty. And thank you for your amazing advice on each video, I currently in Chapter 7 of my novel that I've been working on since 2022 and I was reliant on your wonderful advice. Keep up the great work!

[@reubenmanzo2054]

It's going to be a lot of people's birthday. Approximately 20 million.

[@ait-reda]

@@reubenmanzo2054 Interesting, thanks for the information

[@donsandsii4642]

Who Framed Rodger Rabbit has the Clover Leaf company. We know interstate clover leaves are, but not 1940s LA

[@jesusromanpadro3853]

I know is stupid, but I like that even with another cover of your books we can still see the Uzamaki book.

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Hahah I actually use Uzumaki as a sort of guideline for my camera

[@jesusromanpadro3853]

@WriterBrandonMcNulty just before starting to write, I noticed how he managed to keep horror and mystery in his stories. The protagonists are normal people who end up in a situation that they have no chance to fully understand. My protagonists are supernatural. So to keep some level of horror, I needed to tell their story from the point of view of other characters as much as possible.

[@jesusromanpadro3853]

Ok using it for the camera 😄

[@DanB.0]

👍

[@1adamantium1]

By far my favorite is: Thomas A. Anderson wants to know what the Matrix is?...

[@pferdebert]

Columbo is basically built around Dramatic Irony.

[@dcle944]

How do you use dramatic irony if you want to stay faithful with the character’s POV and don’t jump ahead of the character?

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Hmm... If you plan to stay grounded in one single character's POV, you won't be able to use dramatic irony. The closest thing you can do is show the character in situations where they SHOULD be aware of danger but they are oblivious to it. This CAN work, but it can also make your character look dumb, so it's something to be careful with. Might work well with kid characters though.

[@user-yj5ug7go5j]

№5 Injustice. Like Harry Potter living with Dursleys or Edward Stark being executed. The audience will be engaged untill the bad guys get punished and good guys get what they deserve.

[@Grynworzall]

Maybe it's just me but when someone says it's like this trope meets this cliche I instantly think that content is all sugar no nutrition and not worth consuming

[@4xzx4]

My answer to the question at the end of the video: Final Fantasy VII. Definitely Final Fantasy VII.

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

FF7, 8, 9, and 10 all did this for me. The stories in those games were absolutely gripping.

[@4xzx4]

@@WriterBrandonMcNulty I might give FF8 a chance then!

[@PavitraNigam]

Hello , I am writing this comment with very hope , I also write stories and i am just 16 years old , actually i have written a story mirage , everyone loved it but i want you to make a video on how to make a perfect sequel of a story , actually i have a story for its sequel and i think it's really good with climax but if the story is taking time in character development, others are saying it is slow and boring in between, even though it didn't take much time , maybe their reviews are like that because they are people who are interested in movies and reading might be bit tedious for them but I am really hoping that you will make a video on how to write a prefect sequel of any story, I have tried many elements like in the first part of my story everything was unsettling trees without leaves , cloudy atmosphere but in 2nd one , I used the element of contradiction and suddenly everything was changed trees with leaves and bright sun just to add suspense that how it changed. I am really waiting for your reply, please do tell when will you make the requested video.

[@catbiscuit6107]

You've really helped my writing, thanks sir :)

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

Thrilled to hear it!

[@rowan404]

I’m so early!

[@robertthomas6363]

Horror is the anti-genre for me, or I would be a lot more interested in buying and reading your books. Sometimes there is a mismatch. I appreciate your channel anyway, though -- always so well structured in presenting your lessons about structure.

[@mikitz]

Lots of comedy is predicated on dramatic irony. The trope usually involves two morons of which one is ever-so-slightly smarter than the other, berating the other for being stupid while providing an equally stupid solution to the problem they're in - while the audience still always remains more aware of their situation than the characters themselves. I would say that Beavis & Butt-Head are a prime example of this.

[@Cobalt004]

Is it possible to use all the 4 techniques in a story without “annoying” the reader??

[@BeeWhistler]

12 Angry Men.

[@wdotwreckvideos]

How many books do you have?

[@WriterBrandonMcNulty]

I've released two novels so far, with a third one at the end of the month. Aiming to release a writing craft guide later this year as well. Thanks for asking

[@brianedwards7142]

Nothing doing. I'm happily divorced, I ain't "engaging" ever again.