Building Scenes, Characters, and Conflict

“Writing is both compass and fire—guiding us through chaos while igniting the hidden genius we were created to release.”

~Dr. Steve Bonenberger

Storytelling as Life-Force

At the core of The Writer’s Covenant is the conviction that storytelling is not a hobby, it is a life-force. Stories define who we are, they shape our futures, and they serve as the building blocks of personal resurrection. To write is to claim authority over one’s own history and to create a pathway forward.

The Covenant insists that your story must be told. It is not optional. It is not incidental. It is essential. Writing becomes both remedy and resurrection, transforming wounds into wisdom and chaos into clarity. Every line you craft becomes a declaration that your life matters and that your voice deserves to be heard.

Scene Construction: The Architecture of Story

Scenes are the DNA of storytelling. They are not just backdrops but living frameworks where characters breathe, act, and transform. The Covenant teaches that building powerful scenes requires more than description, it requires intentional devices and techniques that give structure and depth.

A well-constructed scene is sensorial, pulling the reader into the sights, sounds, and textures of the moment. It carries emotional triggers, embedding tension and resonance. It is dialogue-driven, providing a vessel for characters to speak, clash, and grow. It is laser-focused, designed with at least one clear outcome in mind.

Scenes also contain cryptic details and foreshadowing, hints of the unknown that keep readers turning the page. They are backdrops that support character development and vehicles that hold emotional output. In short, scenes are the lifeblood of storytelling.

In Frame and Out of Frame

The Covenant introduces two key ideas for scene construction: “In Frame” and “Out of Frame.”

In Frame refers to the clarity of a scene where characters become fully aware of their role in the story. The author makes their function distinct, giving both reader and character a sense of purpose within the unfolding narrative.

Out of Frame refers to the shading around the edges of story, the hints that something unseen, perhaps ominous, is happening beyond the immediate scene. It is the whisper of foreshadowing, the presence of mystery that drives anticipation.

Together, these techniques build intrigue, layering depth and suspense into storytelling. They remind us that every scene is not an island but part of a larger tapestry.

Building Emotional Bonds

Every scene should strengthen emotional bonds, between characters, between the story and the reader, and between the reader and the larger world of the tale. Great literature is not remembered for its plot points alone but for how it made us feel.

When writers construct scenes with emotional resonance, they elevate their work beyond entertainment into legend-making. Scenes become hiding places for heroes, sanctuaries where vulnerability is revealed and courage is tested. Each scene must carry singular force, able to stand on its own while also weaving seamlessly into the fabric of the greater story.

The Covenant teaches writers to treat scenes as both standalone expressions and threads in a woven tapestry. A spreadsheet, a wall of notes, or a visual collage can help track these threads, ensuring every scene contributes to the whole.

Character Build: Beginning with Yourself

Before constructing fictional characters, the Covenant challenges writers to build the first and most important character, themselves. Writing begins with radical self-reflection, a shift in thinking that invites you to see your own life as story.

This process begins with creating a sacred place, even a small corner carved out for writing. Next comes the discipline of time, setting aside consistent moments each day for creativity. From here, a practice emerges, a rhythm of doodling, dawdling, sketching, experimenting, and stitching fragments together into patterns of meaning.

Finally, writing becomes a way of life. It is no longer something you do when you have time; it is the organizing force of your days. As the Covenant reminds us: woe launches wisdom. Even pain, disappointment, and hardship become compost that nourishes creativity.

Writing as Healing

Dr. Steve is candid: writing saved his life. What began as an act of desperation became a daily practice of healing. Journaling, sketching ideas, and dreaming aloud allowed him to rediscover the stories he had once ignored or buried.

For years, pain had silenced those stories, keeping them hidden in the basements of despair. But once he paused long enough to let them breathe, everything changed. Writing became a form of therapy, a way to transmute sorrow into wisdom, chaos into clarity, and brokenness into creativity.

The Covenant insists that this is true for all writers: the very act of writing is an act of self-restoration.

Inspiring a Million Creatives

The goal of The Writer’s Covenant is audacious: to inspire and ignite at least one million creatives. This vision is not just about writing books, it is about launching projects of every kind: novels, songs, films, guides, inventions, businesses, even meals and harvests.

The Covenant aims to provide inspiration, models, and collaborations. It is a reference guide, a how-to manual, and a life philosophy rolled into one. Its purpose is to give creatives something to chew on, to stir discomfort with the ordinary, and to invite people into a relentless pursuit of their defining work.

The belief is simple yet profound: everyone carries at least one defining work within them. The Covenant exists to help birth that masterpiece.

Imagine Chaos, Ignite Combustion

Writers are firestarters. Their role is to imagine chaos, excite collisions, and ignite combustion. Great stories begin with disruption, chaos that destabilizes the ordinary world. They escalate through collisions of characters, ideas, or forces, grinding against each other until sparks fly. Finally, they ignite into combustion, a conflagration of conflict that propels the narrative forward.

Conflict is not to be avoided, it is to be embraced. Writers must create tension, misadventures, broken promises, and dystopias. They must force their characters into impossible choices, knowing that readers crave resolution only after they’ve endured the heat of combustion.

Writing as Deliberate Healing

Beyond story, writing remains a deliberate act of healing. Some carve icons from wood. Some doodle and scribble. Some write verses or limericks. With the advent of AI, new avenues for composition are opening, but the core remains the same: writing is a way of repairing the self.

The Covenant calls writers to pick up pen and paper, to whittle, sketch, or compose, and to allow magic to happen. Writing is not just about creating art; it is about recovering dignity, reclaiming agency, and reigniting hope.

Audacious and Achievable

The Covenant is bold in its claims. Its motto: audacious and yet achievable. Writers are called to attempt the outlandish and the unthinkable, while also grounding their practice in brick-by-brick daily effort.

This is more than a personal ambition, it is a clarion call to action for society. Writing can reintegrate the marginalized, heal broken trust, and push back against forces of despair. It is both outlandish and practical, a daring dream and a reliable tool.

Writing as Polaris

Life is filled with failed searches, broken relationships, failed partnerships, betrayal by institutions, or even the self-sabotage of one’s own mistakes. These experiences shatter trust. The Covenant proposes a radical remedy: writing as your personal Polaris, your North Star.

By writing daily, charting possible outcomes, and imagining characters who navigate struggles, you recalibrate your inner compass. Writing becomes not just a creative act but a way of navigating life’s chaos. It is both map and compass, guiding you toward wholeness.

Week in Review: Creativity as Empowerment

Each week of the Covenant’s journey reminds us of a single truth: creativity equals empowerment. To create is to take back your power. To write is to step into personal agency.

The Covenant calls writers to outpace, outspend, outwork, and outspeed, pushing beyond limitations into empowerment. Creativity is not indulgence; it is resistance, resilience, and rebirth.

Conclusion: Travel Far

The Writer’s Covenant is not merely about writing, it is about life itself. It is about daring to imagine, daring to create, daring to build worlds when the present one feels broken.

It is a guide to scene construction, a call to build characters, and a roadmap for embracing conflict. It is a healing practice, a mission to ignite a million creatives, and a declaration that storytelling is sacred work.

Above all, it is an invitation to you: to dream again, to write again, and to travel far into the landscape of your own genius.