Dominoes are small, flat blocks that can be stacked on top of each other to form long lines. When one domino is tipped over, it causes the rest of the line to tip over as well. People have used them to build complex structures and play games, and the concept of domino has become so popular that it inspired a common phrase: the “domino effect.” This describes a series of events that begin with one simple action and end up having much larger—and sometimes catastrophic—consequences.

In the world of fiction, you can use domino to help readers follow the logic of your story. A scene domino can be anything that advances the story, like a character making a bold decision outside of social norms or breaking the law. For your scene to succeed, it must be clear why that decision was made, so that readers can accept it as logical and understand the domino effect that would result.

The first Domino’s location opened in Ypsilanti, Michigan in 1962, and was owned by Tom Monaghan, who prioritized placing the pizza restaurants near college campuses. This strategy helped him attract a young clientele that craved quick delivery and affordable prices, setting him up for success. In the early 1970s, Monaghan began franchising his business, expanding rapidly until he had over 200 Domino’s locations by 1978.

To this day, Domino’s is still expanding its delivery business. The company has created special delivery vehicles, partnered with Uber, and is testing drone delivery. These initiatives aren’t just about delivering pizza faster—they’re also about updating the Domino’s brand and image.

For Lily Hevesh, a professional domino artist, the thrill of creating a domino rally comes from seeing how thousands of pieces fall in unison and forming an elegant pattern or shape. Hevesh explains that the key is the force of inertia—the dominoes’ natural tendency to remain stationary when no external pressure is applied. A domino’s inertia can be overcome with a small nudge, which allows the domino to pass its tipping point and push on the next domino to create a cascade of movement.

When writing a story, you can use the domino effect to show your readers how your characters’ decisions affect each other. If a character’s actions don’t make sense to the reader, they may not keep following your hero’s path. To avoid this, you can set up scene dominoes that help readers follow the logic of your plot. In this article, we’ll discuss how to do just that. A scene domino might be a single scene that illustrates an aspect of the story, or it could be an entire chapter that builds toward the story’s conclusion. Either way, these dominoes are crucial to advancing your readers’ understanding of the story and its theme.