When someone talks about a domino effect, they usually are referring to a series of events that cause one another to happen, much like a falling row of dominoes. The term can also refer to a particular system that is affected by other systems, like global finance or politics. It is important to note that a domino effect does not necessarily mean that all events in the chain will be positive or negative, but it may have a combination of both.
The name domino is derived from the Latin word dominium, meaning “flip over” or “fall.” Traditionally, a series of dominoes were used to demonstrate this concept by placing a small wooden block (usually called a “tile”) on a large flat piece of wood. Then, the player placed a second tile on top of it, and so on, until all of the tiles were laid out. The first tile would then fall over and knock over the remainder of the set.
Each domino has a unique identity on both sides. The identity-bearing side of the tile is marked with an arrangement of dots, or “pips,” like those on a die. The other side of the domino is blank or patterned differently. Some dominoes have pips only on the ends, while others have pips on both ends and in the center. The number of pips on a domino is called its rank, or weight. A domino with more pips weighs more than a similar-sized domino that is blank or has no pips on its ends.
A domino is typically twice as long as it is wide, which makes them more easily re-stacked. The two ends of a domino are often marked with a value that is divisible by five or three, and points are scored for each time those numbers are divided into the sum of the end-tiles. A scoring version of the game is played in British public houses and clubs.
The most common domino sets feature 28 tiles. The remaining half of the set, which is shuffled face down to form the boneyard, contains seven tiles. Each player draws a total of seven tiles from the stock, and each must place them on-edge in front of him or her.
As a domino falls, most of its potential energy is converted into kinetic energy, the energy of motion. A portion of that energy is transmitted to the next domino, providing the push it needs to fall over. This continues, from domino to domino, until all of the tiles have been laid down.
Whether you are a pantser who writes by the seat of your pants, or you use a software program like Scrivener to create an outline, plotting your novel will help you avoid a domino effect. If you have a strong understanding of how to plan your story, you will avoid creating scenes that have little or no logical impact on the scene before it, or that are at the wrong angle.