a flat, thumbsized, rectangular block, each face of which is either blank or bears from one to six pips (or dots): 28 such dominoes form a complete set. Often called bones, cards, men, or pieces, dominoes are stacked on their ends in lines and angular patterns to play various games. There are many different games played with them; however, nearly all of them fit into four categories: bidding games, blocking games, scoring games, and round games. A domino is normally twice as long as it is wide, so that its edges may be matched to those of adjacent tiles and the two matching sides touch fully. The open end of a tile is called the tail and is used to mark its position in the line of play or in the chain of tiles, although it also has some value as a scorer or a marker for certain moves.
The most popular use of domino is to play positional games. A player in turn places a domino edge to edge against another in such a way that the adjacent faces match and either touch fully or form some specified total. The resulting string of tiles develops a snake-line shape on the table; this is the pattern that is used to win most of the games played with them. The direction in which the tiles are placed is a key aspect of the game, and some games have very specific rules for how the tiles are arranged. For example, doubles are always played cross-ways across a line of dominoes; singles are usually played lengthwise.
Domino Art
When Hevesh sets out to create a piece of domino art, she first considers its purpose or theme. She then brainstorms images and words to incorporate in her design, and she starts planning out how she is going to arrange the dominoes. She might plan out straight or curved lines, grids that form pictures when they fall, stacked walls, or even 3-D structures like towers and pyramids.
Hevesh’s designs range from simple to elaborate, and she takes great care to test them out before putting them together. She builds a prototype of each section of an installation and then tests it in slow motion to see if it works properly. She explains that it is necessary to do this to be sure the whole design will work before she puts down her final pieces.
As you read, consider how this concept of a domino effect applies to story structure. Whether you plot your novel off the cuff or carefully follow an outline, the process is similar. Each scene is a domino, and it is essential that all the scenes logically connect to one another. If you want your readers to be as fascinated by your story as you are, take the time to check that all of the scenes in your book will actually trigger each other’s reaction. Then your story will truly come alive for your readers.