Domino is the name of a popular game where players try to knock over dominoes lined up in a row. These small blocks of wood or plastic have a lot of power, though. Just one little nudge can create a chain reaction that causes all the dominoes to fall over. The same principle applies in life — small victories can have a huge impact. For example, Admiral William H. McRaven made his bed every morning, a simple action that led to other positive behaviors and ultimately a life of great accomplishments. This concept is referred to as the Domino Effect.
Dominoes are also a metaphor for a successful business model, and they’ve become a symbol of teamwork, leadership, and success. This is because Domino’s pizza focuses on providing the customer with quality and quick service. The company has an extensive distribution network, and its business strategy has proven to be successful. It’s no wonder that this company has such a strong presence in the market today.
The word domino comes from the Latin dominus, meaning “lord.” Despite their diminutive size, they have a powerful impact when they are arranged properly. In fact, a single domino can push over things up to and a half times their size. This phenomenon is known as the Domino Effect, and it can be used to accomplish a variety of tasks. For example, it can be applied to computer science by arranging the hardware components in a particular way.
Like playing cards, dominoes are normally twice as long as they are wide. They feature a line or ridge in the middle to divide them visually into two squares, called ends. Each end of a domino is marked with an arrangement of dots or pips that identifies it, and the other end may be blank or identically patterned.
In the most basic version of the game, two players begin with a double-six set of 28 tiles. The tiles are shuffled face down into a pile known as the stock or boneyard, and each player draws seven tiles from this pool. The first player to play all of their tiles wins the game. If a player cannot play any of their tiles, they must draw more from the stock.
Similarly, in a novel, each scene is a domino. Each scene must logically impact the scene that precedes it in order to advance the plot. If a scene is not advancing the story, it’s time to weed it out.
Whether you’re a plotter who uses an outline program like Scrivener or write your novel off the cuff, you can benefit from this concept of the Domino Effect. Think about your story as a series of scene dominoes that are laid out in the right order to create tension and raise the stakes for your readers. Whether you’re writing fiction or nonfiction, each scene must contribute to the next. If not, the reader will likely lose interest.