Sweet Encounters

That first meeting between two key characters can set the tone for their entire relationship. A meet-cute is a storytelling device where characters cross paths in a memorable, unexpected, or charming way. While the term originated in romantic comedies, the technique works in any genre to get readers invested in a new relationship from the very first spark.

A great meet-cute can be dramatic and life-altering. In Titanic, Jack saves Rose from a desperate leap, forging an instant, high-stakes connection that crosses class divides. By contrast, when Mr. Darcy snubs Elizabeth Bennet at a ball in Pride and Prejudice, his insult establishes the pride and prejudice that defines their entire story. This could be considered an “anti-meet-cute.”

The technique works beautifully for platonic bonds, too. In Finding Nemo, the frantic Marlin literally crashes into Dory, a cheerful fish with short-term memory loss. Their chaotic meeting showcases their opposite personalities and establishes the comedic and emotional heart of their journey together.

When your important characters meet, how can you engineer their encounter to reveal who they are and hint at the relationship they will share?

Have you been staring at a notebook full of story sparks with no idea where to start? Triaging your ideas allows you to prioritize a list so you tackle the most exciting items first.

You can try sorting your messy ideas into three piles:

• Explore Now: Ideas that make your mind buzz with questions. You can already picture scenes or feel the world forming. Give these a dedicated space to grow.
• Not Yet: Concepts that are interesting, but missing a hook. You can tuck these into an “Incubator” list for later.
• Compost Pile: Ideas that no longer excite you. Instead of deleting, consider archiving them in a dedicated file.

Why archive? Because no idea is gone forever. That quirky detail you dismissed years ago might be the missing ingredient for your current project. A “Compost Pile” gives you somewhere to dig when you’re stuck.

Learn more about triaging your ideas

Your characters have secrets. Maybe your villain’s fighting style is particularly gory, your protagonist swears like a sailor, or your romance leads have some very spicy preferences. You want all of this in your Codex for reference, but not every AI prompt or model needs to see it, and you want to avoid moderation every time you’re writing unrelated scenes.

In the Codex, you can mark details as NSFW (not safe for work). This ensures that only prompts also marked NSFW can see the detail, and allows you to keep your Codex complete without worrying about content flags derailing a simple brainstorming session. Your character’s extensive knowledge of medieval torture devices stays tucked away until you actually need it for that specific dungeon scene.

Learn how to set up NSFW details