Laidlaw's Law of Story Construction

[Jetthebinturong]

The term was coined by renowned author Neil Gaiman after this was tweeted by a man named Marc Laidlaw:


You're only allowed one book per post. Make it funny.

"It had seemed like a good idea at the time, hiding out at her old place in London. And then the murders began."
~Tanith Low and the Maleficent Seven by Derek Landy

[Feles]

My name is Boris Balkan and I once translated The Charterhouse of Parma. And then the murders began.~ The Club Dumas


Funnily enough, that's actually what happens in the story.

[Lady Amber]

"In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. And then the murders began." ~The Hobbit (duh)

[Luftwaffles]

"The Spring was no longer. And then the murders began" - Watership Down.

[Jukka the Sling]

"For the first fifteen years of our lives, Danny and I lived within five blocks of each other and neither of us knew of the other's existence.  And then the murders began."  The Chosen by Chaim Potok

[Kitsune]

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way – in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only. And then the murders began." ~A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

It's basically what happens.

[The Skarzs]

"Lauren Foster sat at the desk in her bedroom and sighed. And then the murders began." ~My Secret Unicorn, Flying High. By Linda Chapman.


Yes, it's a kids book. And I would totally read it if that's how the first lines went.

[Rosie Willowwater]

Now I'm wondering how you know that much of the book...

[The Skarzs]

I know nothing about it, really.

[Ashleg]

"It is nearly impossible to steal from a dragon, particularly a royal one with a palace and guards and very high walls. And then the murders began."
-Wings of Fire, The Brightest Night.

OH, wait...
Yeah, that isn't much of a stretch from what actually happens.
In fact, it's entirely truthful as to what goes down in that book..

[rachel25]

"Two days ago I should have been celebrating my tenth birthday at my home in Queen Anne's Square. And then the murders began." - Assassin's Creed, Forsaken. (Basically what happened in the book.)

[Jukka the Sling]

"The face of a Wearat is a sight to instill fear and loathing in any creature.  And then the murders began."  ~The Rogue Crew (probably obvious)

A little awkward-sounding, but that's literally the book.

[Feles]

Sun Tzu said: The art of war is of vital importance to the State. And then the murders began.~ The Art Of War

[Rosie Willowwater]

Shouldn't this be in the Forum Games thread?

[rachel25]

Probably.

"Year by year archaeologists push further into the past and reveal to us long-vanished peoples; some day we may talk familiarly of costumes worn by folk who died before the Egyptians had a civilisation. And then the murders began." - Historic Costume for the Stage -Lucy Barton (The closest book to hand)