Domino is a popular game in which players try to match one domino with another. The dominoes have a specific pattern of dots, or “pips,” on one side and are blank or identically patterned on the other. The number of pips on each side determines the value of the tile. Each tile must have matching sides and be played to a domino that has at least one more pips than it does, or the chain will collapse. The value of a domino may also be described as its rank, weight or momentum.
Dominoes can be stacked to create a wide variety of structures, such as straight lines, curved lines that form pictures when they fall, and 3D structures like towers and pyramids. The best way to create a domino structure is by drawing a plan on paper, and then laying out the pieces. This allows the player to visualize how many more pieces are needed to complete the design and helps ensure that the structure will fit on the playing surface.
As with any puzzle, the challenge of domino is to find a good strategy to defeat an opponent’s efforts. In the game of domino, a player wins by knocking out all of his or her opponent’s tiles. The first player to do so gains a prize, depending on the rules of the game.
When a player plays a domino, it must be adjacent to the other dominoes on the table, except for the first doublet. In the case of the first doublet, a tile must be played to it perpendicularly so that its two matching ends are touching. This allows the other players to see which dominoes are available to play against and enables them to develop their own strategy.
If the player has a doublet with more pips than the other dominoes, he or she is the “leader.” The next players must play to that domino, or the players may draw from the stock until a match is made.
As a writer, you should think of your story in terms of the domino effect. The key is to keep the logical impact of each scene in line with the scenes that come before it. If a scene runs counter to what most readers would consider logical, the story will collapse, and you will lose your reader’s attention. Whether you compose your manuscript off the cuff or use a writing program like Scrivener to help you plot ahead of time, remember that each scene must build on what comes before it. Otherwise, your reader will get bored and move on to something else that’s more interesting. That’s no way to build a great novel. If you want your novel to have a long life, make sure that every scene makes sense in terms of the whole. Then your readers will be likely to read on, and recommend your work to their friends.