Domino, or dominoes, are small rectangular blocks used as gaming pieces that can be stacked on end in long lines and then tipped to cause them all to fall. Dominoes can be arranged to form very complex designs, and they are popular among children as well as adults who like to play games with them. Dominoes can also be used to illustrate a principle in physics known as the domino effect, where one simple action leads to much greater—and often more disastrous—consequences.
The game of dominoes has been around for centuries, and is the ancestor to modern card games. Its markings, called pips, originally represented the results of throwing two six-sided dice, though the European version of the game that we know and love today was developed in Italy and France toward the end of the 18th century. There are many different ways to play dominoes, but the games typically involve positioning tiles so that the ends match or to form a specified total.
In the early 1900s, Domino’s Pizza founder Tom Monaghan began opening pizzerias near college campuses, which helped him attract a younger customer base and establish his brand as a leader in quick, affordable food delivery. His strategy worked, and Domino’s rapidly expanded. In 1967, Monaghan established the first official Domino’s franchise in Ypsilanti, Michigan. The company continued to grow, and now Domino’s has more than 25,000 locations worldwide.
As a writer, you might consider how the Domino effect might influence your story’s plot. When you write fiction, each scene is like a domino—it doesn’t necessarily have to fall on its own, but it can help lead to more significant events. Each domino can be a point to advance information or an argument, or it could be a character who triggers a reaction that leads to even bigger consequences.
Dominoes can teach us a lot about life and the world, but they also offer a lesson in the importance of planning for the unexpected. Whether it’s an emergency situation that arises at work or in your home, or an unforeseen event in the news, being prepared for what comes next can prevent the domino effect from spiraling out of control.
Hevesh, a professional domino artist with millions of YouTube followers, creates intricate displays of thousands of dominoes. To ensure her designs will function properly, she tests each part of the arrangement individually. This allows her to make adjustments before putting the entire display together. The result is a jaw-dropping spectacle that can take several nail-biting minutes to fall. It takes this amount of time because each domino has inertia, a tendency to resist motion until there is an outside force applied to it. This is also true of stories—even the best-planned manuscripts can be overtaken by events out of our control. That’s why it’s so important to plan ahead when it comes to your writing.