Three hundred words on J&T today. Most of them were fine tuning the previous eight hundred. I know where the story is going (I can't believe I know where the story is going this time!) and I'm excited but I have to slow down until the education catches up.

I'm deep into reading about story structure and style, something quite frankly, I didn't know anything about. Three-act structure? Uh, what's that all about? I get that now though I'm still struggling with how exactly one goes about accomplishing it.

In an amusing moment, I discovered what structure style I use, one completely un-taught, the one I had always gravitated toward writing: The Slice of Life. I already knew what this was called but had always been told it wasn't a real writing style. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that outside of the westernized world, it's a preferred story structure. Apparently, it's accepted, somewhat loved even, in parts of Europe proving to me once again what I've been accused of in the past; that I'm more European than American. Funny that since my family has allegedly been here in the states since the mid-1500's.

To help me internalize the traditional three-act structure, I'm going to print up a cheat sheet of steps and requirements and keep it lovingly enshrouded in a clear, plastic sleeve, here on my writing desk. And whenever I find myself straying from turning points, temporary triumphs, reversals, and final obstacles through to climaxes and resolutions, I'll slap my hands and delete all that Slice of Life nonsense...until I'm no longer a newbie writer and can get away with writing in my former, preferred style once again while getting paid for it.