Dominoes are black and white squares that some people like to line up in long rows and then knock down. Others play games with them or use them to create art. In the game of domino, each player must in turn place a domino onto the table touching one end to another. The other ends of the dominos must show a number or form some type of pattern.
The word “domino” itself has an interesting history. Its English root comes from an old French word meaning hood or cape, which may be why it is sometimes used to describe a priest’s cloak that covers his or her surplice. The word appears to have been in common usage by the mid-18th century.
In the game of domino, players can choose to start with two, three or five tiles. Each player then places a tile, edge to edge with an adjacent domino, forming a chain that grows longer as each additional piece is added. The first person to complete the entire chain wins. The earliest known domino games were recorded in the mid-18th century in Italy and France.
Many modern-day domino games are based on the same basic principles as those earliest examples. For example, some players place a single domino at the beginning of a path that then goes in a circle or over a set of stairs. Others create 3-D arrangements that are amazingly intricate. One artist named Hevesh has created a remarkable series of these displays. In her video, she explains that she works out the details of each part of her designs before she begins creating the actual structures. She also tests each section before putting them all together, which can take several nail-biting minutes. Hevesh cites gravity as the key to her incredible setups. This force pulls a domino over toward the ground, sending it crashing into the next domino and starting a chain reaction.
A similar effect can occur in writing. If a writer does not make detailed outlines of scenes ahead of time, he or she can end up with a story that feels like a series of dominoes that aren’t falling in the right order.
In order to avoid this problem, the writer should plan out a scene diagram and then fill in the details of the scene. This will help him or her to ensure that the scene is at the right point in the plot, and that it has enough logical impact on the scene that follows it. The writer should also include any relevant supplemental information to clarify the context of the scene. The writer can then follow his or her diagram as a guide as he or she writes the scene. The final product will be a story that flows in a coherent manner. It will be a story that readers will enjoy reading. These examples have been programmatically compiled from various online sources and do not reflect the opinions of Merriam-Webster or its editors.