Plot #9: Underdog: 20 Master Plots

[mbarker.livejournal.com]

original posting: Fri, 23 May 1997 10:07:07 EDT

Based on the book "20 Master Plots (And How to Build Them)" by Ronald B. Tobias. ISBN 0-89879-595-8.

Master Plot #9: Underdog

(p. 131) "The underdog plot is a form of rivalry plot...in the underdog plot, the strengths aren't equally matched. The protagonist is at a disadvantage and is faced with overwhelming odds."

"This plot is near and dear to our hearts because it represents the ability of the one over the many, the small over the large, the weak over the powerful, the 'stupid' over the 'smart.'"

"If you want your reader to feel empathy for your protagonist, make sure that her emotional and/or intellectual plane is equal to or lower than the reader's. ..."

Phase 1--in interruption or crisis in the protagonist's life, with a glimpse of life before, and the dramatic reversal that throws the protagonist into conflict and competition. In the underdog format, the antagonist immediately gains and exercises the upper hand, with the protagonist thoroughly disempowered, overwhelmed, supporessed.

Phase 2--something happens that reverses the descent. Humble, modest little underdog asks for something which turns out to be the strength or ally that empowers. And the phase really gets underway when the challenges begin! Can I? If you can find the needle in the haystack--and you did? Well, if...(don't forget, one down, two down, and three times a charm!) The real movement here is from being the victim to effectively challenging...

This often results in a split life, one secret victorious, the other public drudgery.

Phase 3--an equal and open competition or challenge ensues, where it at last becomes obvious to all who the secret victor is, and the antagonists are as thoroughly defeated as they deserve.

The real trick to this plot is making the underdog strongly enough motivated and realistic enough to believe in. The odds are stacked against the underdog, but there must be some way of winning through courage, honor, strength, and wit. Keep the audience rooting for the underdog, and make sure they feel like they had struggled through the depths and overcome all the obstacles with the underdog.

Checklist:

1. Are your adversaries unequally matched? The antagonist, whether person, place, or thing, should clearly overpower the protagonist.
2. Does your protagonist clearly fail in the first phase, change and recover in the second phase, and come back for the final climactic conflict?
3. Is there a real chance that the underdog will simply get crushed again? While the underdog usually overcomes the opposition, consider letting them lose, or otherwise vary the "expected" ending.

How about some "daily life" underdog situations? Perhaps we could start with a number from one to six?

1. A waitress being heckled and hounded by a customer
2. The clerk who keeps folding and rehanging the clothes for the rich teenager
3. A flight attendant being asked for a date
4. A cleaning person mopping the floor--and the bored truckers who keep walking across it
5. The donut shop person who gets screamed at for taking people in order, instead of waiting on Mr. Impatient
6. The employees who must get to the meeting on time, so that the boss can come in ten minutes late everytime...

While I suspect none of us has experienced any of these scenarios, perhaps you can imagine the feelings of the underdog, the oppressor(s), and the onlookers?

[don't like these? how about any of the "big business", "government sleazocracy", or other big crunchers against the individual scenarios? pick your David, line up a fine Goliath, and set the scene for us...]

Crank it up. Make us really feel sympathy for this underdog and disgust with the sorry example of humanity that is leaning on them. Give us a scene that makes that oppression ours.

Then transform it--the cook calls the waitress over and hands her a chocolate cream pie, with a wink? or maybe the radio reads out the daily double numbers, and our underdog grins?

And nail that sucker. A full pot of iced tea poured into his briefs? The boss reams out the employees, and then turns around to find his boss was waiting behind the door? Whatever, you're in charge, and make us enjoy the victory dance of the underdog, the moon baying charge of the beagle, the satisfying squelch of a dog's raised leg against the finesse of a well-tailored suit leg and polished leather shoe...

Simple enough?

Then write!

Plot #10: Temptation: 20 Master Plots

[mbarker.livejournal.com]

original posting: Fri, 18 Jul 1997 10:30:55 EDT

Based on the book "20 Master Plots (And How to Build Them)" by Ronald B. Tobias. ISBN 0-89879-595-8.

Master Plot #10: Temptation

(p. 138) "To be tempted is to be induced or persuaded to do something that is either unwise, wrong or immoral...."

It may be difficult for some of you to believe, but there are those of us who sometimes are attracted by things which we probably shouldn't indulge in, whether they are strictly illegal or just undesirable...yes, it is true, some of us feel tempted.

Structure

Phase 1. Establish the nature of the temptation and show the protagonist succumbing to it. May be some resistance, rationalization, and lots of opportunity for denial...

[You can do anything, but don't open the door...]

Phase 2. Show the effects of giving in. Denial, lying, etc. are all part of the package, with the effects growing. The protagonist tries to deal, but the more she attempts to wriggle free, the more oppressive it becomes.

[You did it? No, I didn't, really, not...]

Phase 3. The Crisis. The effects are unbearable, the conflict has risen, the stakes are so high...and will our protagonist continue to agonize or confess? Repent and be forgiven.

"The temptation plot isn't about action as much as it's about character. It is an examination of motives, needs and impulse. The action supports the development of character, and as such, it's a plot fo the mind rather than of the body."

To write about temptation, think about the nature of the 'crime' your character will be tempted with. What is gained, what is lost, what are the prices that are paid for giving in?

"Don't focus your story completely on the temptation and the cost of giving into it. Focus your story on the character who gives in to the temptation. Define the internal struggle raging inside the character. Is it guilt? If so, how does that guilt show itself in the behavior and actions of your character?...Temptation can reveal a wide range of emotions in your character. Don't create a character who is capable of only one emotional note. Your character will probably go through a variety of emotional states. The result of all the turmoil will be a realization about himself. He will reach a conclusion about giving in to temptation. What is the lesson learned, and how has your character matured?..."

Checklist:

1. What are the motives, needs, and impulses of human character underlying your temptation plot?
2. What are the changes in morality and the effects of giving in to temptation that drive those changes in your story? Where does your character start in terms of morality and where do they end, and what are the lessons taught about temptation?
3. What is the inner turmoil of the protagonist? What does she know she should do, and what does she do instead? How do you show this interior conflict, and how is it manifested in the exterior actions?
4. Does your first dramatic phase clearly establish the nature of the protagonist (and antagonist, if there is one)?
5. Does your story clearly show the nature of the temptation, the effects on the protagonist, and the struggles over the decision that the protagonist makes?
6. Does your protagonist clearly give in? Are there short-term gratifications?
7. Does your protagonist rationalize giving in?
8. Does your protagonist deny the whole thing, refusing to admit that they yielded to the temptation?
9. Does the second dramatic phase clearly reflect the effects of yielding? Do you show how the short-term benefits go sour and the real drawbacks start to become apparent? Is it clear that this was the wrong decision?
10. Does the protagonist try to find ways to escape responsibility and avoid punishment?
11. Do the negative effects build up, growing and increasingly involving more and more of the protagonist's life?
12. Does the third phase resolve the internal conflicts? Is there atonement, reconciliation and forgiveness?

So, do you feel tempted to write about Temptation? Feel that old snake slithering around the bottom of a tree? Those surges of sap rising?

How about a number from one to six?

1. finding a wallet filled with money (with ID or not? you decide)
2. finding an expensive piece of jewelry
3. an opportunity to look at something forbidden (what? porno?)
4. a chance to try out the forbidden fruit (a call boy? strip joint? gambling? you decide...)
5. an opportunity to secretly (and nastily, with emphasis on the prejudice) scuttle the competition's work
6. a chance to cheat on an important test (in school and life, we face many tests...and who is to say which part is the test?)

Take a few moments, a deep breath, (cold shower optional) and list at least five different ways that this could be a temptation. Ten is better, but dash them off as quickly as possible. Oh, and yes, write them down...

Now stop and think a moment. Perhaps a number from one to six again?

1. Eastern city
2. Eastern small town in the country (yes, they do exist)
3. West Coast city
4. Western small town
5. Southern city
6. Southern small town

[Don't like what you got? Okay, you may select slum, West Virginia back roads rough, ranch, Lower Sbogada, or other place at your delight...]

This is where the protagonist (yes, a real character) has grown up. Take a few moments to get inside their skin, to block out a key incident or five that has shaped our little twig, to make sure you know who this is...what's the backstory (yep, there's that word) behind the story we're going to write?

Now let's start putting it together. We need a scene where we discover the temptation--and the reasons our protagonist has for struggling. Then we need a scene or two where we intensify the struggle, define the moral agony, make the conscience of the reader sweat...leading into the climax, where we learn...well, what do we learn?

Roll your die, roll and choose:

1. "All men are tempted. There is no man that lives that can't be broken down, provided it is the right temptation, put in the right spot." Henry Ward Beecher, Proverbs from Plymouth Pulpit (1887).
2. "When temptations march monotonously in regiments, one waits for them to pass." Frank Moore Colby, "Some of the Difficulties of Frollicking," The Colby Essays (1926), v. 1.
3. "No temptation can ever be measured by the value of its object." Colette, "Human Nature," Earthly Paradise (1966), 4, ed. Robert Phelps.
4. "There are several good protections against temptations, but the surest is cowardice." Mark Twain, "Pudd'nhead Wilson's New Calendar," Following the Equator (1897), 1.36
5. "We are punished by our sins, not for them." Elbert Hubbard, The Note Book (1927).
6. "There is a charm about the forbidden that makes it unspeakably desirable." Mark Twain, Notebook (1935)

There you have it! A quotation from The International Thesaurus of Quotations by Rhoda Thomas Tripp, ISBN 0-06-091382-7, suitable for pondering. Consider our character (add in a few...the opposition...the watching chorus of modern-day noninvolved bystanders...characters to suit your tastes), the temptation (and why is this a temptation? pick one from your list, and roll with it), and how this puzzling little quotation might tie the whole package into a Gordian knot binding the Freudian slip of our tempting tale in place.

Write it up. Review it against the checklist above, revise it against your best standards, and make us feel every detail of this person's journey into temptation.

Plot #11: Metamorphosis: 20 Master Plots

[mbarker.livejournal.com]

original posting: Fri, 1 Aug 1997 11:01:23 EDT

Based on the book "20 Master Plots (And How to Build Them)" by Ronald B. Tobias. ISBN 0-89879-595-8.

Master Plot #11: Metamorphosis

(p. 146) "If any one plot is truly magical, metamorphosis is it. Most of the master plots are grounded in reality: They deal with situations and people whom we readily recognize because they're based in our experience. Even good science fiction and fantasy stories are ultimately as real in their portrayal of people and events as anything by Henry James or Jane Austen. Science Fiction author Theodore Sturgeon pointed out that a good science fiction story deals with a _human_ problem and a _human_ solution. Fiction, whether it happens in Middle Earth or in a galaxy far, far away, is always about _us._ Fiction reveals truths that reality obscures."

"...In the metamorphosis plot, the physical characteristics of the protagonist actually change from one form to another. ..." animal to human, human to beast, etc. with change that is physical and emotional. metaphor, allegory, and mixes...wolfman, vampire, beauty and the beast, etc.

Often the metamorphosis is the result of a curse, wrongdoing, an offense against nature. Then, of course, the cure is love!

(p. 148) "The point of the plot is to show the process (or failure) of transformation. Since this is a character plot, we're more concerned with the nature of the metamorph than with his actions. The metamorph represents mystery: What sin has he committed to warrant this change? What must he do to free himself from the curse? The metamorph is an innately sad person, burdened by his affliction."

Three Dramatic Phases (of the moon? depends on your metamorph, or your metaphor?)

Phase one: introduce the protagonist and the current state of his condition. Usually the curse has been in place for some time, and we enter the story at the point of change.

Also, introduce the antagonist, the "catalyst that propels the metamorph towards release." While the antagonist is usually "the one" that the metamorph has been waiting for, neither one necessarily recognizes the antagonist as the agent of change. May even be a victim or captive of the metamorph, often with real repulsion, hatred, or disgust building a wall between them.

Phase two - evolve the relationship between the two. Usually, pity, fear, or fairness start to change the initial dislike, and the antagonist starts to exert control over the metamorph through "beauty, kindness or knowledge." I.e., the two start seeing the real person behind the physical shells, and are attracted.

The main two complications in this phase revolve around escape attempts by the antagonist and expressions of bestiality by the metamorph.

Phase three -- the release happens, often through some unusual and unexpected twist, and the metamorph changes! E.g., the frog is transformed into a...well, a prince if you must. The scientist changes into a fly, trapped in a spider web. Or maybe the werewolf becomes a monk, praying for deliverance?

This is usually the point where the mystery of the curse and the secret causes of such abnormal punishments are revealed.

(p. 151) "This plot combines the grotesque with the curative power of love, and its appeal is as old as literature itself."

Checklist

1. Is your metamorphosis the result of a curse?
2. Is the cure for the curse love?
3. Which form of love? Love of parent for child, lovers, teacher-student, love of God, etc.?
4. Is your protagonist the metamorph?
5. Does your plot show the process of transformation back to humanity?
6. Does your story show us the nature of the metamorph, emphasizing the character over the actions?
7. Is your metamorph an innately sad character?
8. Is your metamorph's life bound by rituals and prohibitions?
9. Does your metamorph want to find a way out?
10. Do you identify a way out of the predicament, a form of release?
11. Does the antagonist carry out the terms of the release?
12. Why is your protagonist barred from hurrying or explaining the events or actions which the antagonist must perform to reverse the curse? (psssst...put your protagonist to sleep, don't let them talk, do something to keep them quiet)
13. Does your first phase show the metamorph in the midst of the curse?
14. Is the beginning of the story a reasonable point leading to the resolution of the curse?
15. Does your antagonist act as the catalyst that forces the protagonist toward release?
16. Does your antagonist start as one of the intended victims and then end as the 'chosen one'?
17. Does your second phase concentrate and reveal the evolving relationship of the two?
18. Do your characters move towards each other emotionally?
19. Does your third phase fulfill the terms of the release, freeing the protagonist from the curse, either returning him to his original state or killing him?
20. Does the reader learn the reasons for the curse and the root causes?

Enough from Tobias! Let's consider how you might put together a metamorphosis...

One of the first requisites is a good animal...suppose we start with a number from one to six, and pick one of the following:

1. dog or wolf (breed? you pick the coat of your dreams...)
2. cat (wild? tame? up to you...)
3. seal!
4. donkey, ass, horse, pick the beast of burden you prefer
5. pigs can be fun? or maybe some other barnyard pet?
6. rat, rabbit, squirrel...you pick one of the little rascals

[sigh. I skipped all the birds, reptiles, fish of any scale, the little bugs that bite and sting, jellyfish and their spineless relatives, the many worms of our lives, and other vegetation, mechanizations, and so forth. Well, if you really want an oddity, pick one, or just try doing the never-ending tale of "A Mushroom by Night, only Human by Day, He's Fungi Man!"]

Okay? Got yourself a prime example of inhumanity in mind? Make a list of ten characteristics about the specific animal (or other wonder) you are going to use as an "secret identity" for your protagonist (antagonist? sure, sure, play with the roles if you want).

[Aside: You might think about whether the transformation is complete or partial. A pig's tail on a policeman, for example, might almost be considered poetic justice?]

Now, beside each characteristic you've noted, put down how this relates to the characteristics which the protagonist has as a human! If he sheds everywhere in his animal persona, is he messy as a human? Or particularly neat, tidying up even where it isn't really needed? I.e., sketch out the similarities and points of difference between the animal and the human.

So we have our jekyll and hide...ah, how about we pick a direction? Flip a coin, or just pick odd or even, and:

1. start as human, change to animal
2. start as animal, change to human

If you insist, you may play with cyclical transforms (the moon! the tide? solar flares and gamma rays?) and other variations, of course.

The major element left is to determine the action(s) needed to reverse the transformation, to convert the curse into a blessing, or whatever. Shall we require a kiss (or something more blatant and involving)? Must we find the one and only authentic chalice of Moord, the Frog Goddess, and drink the blood of an innocent from it...offered without force? Are there seven keys to the doom of the Ancients, each to be found and the mysterious riddle turned to save the world from ourselves? Feel free to dream up your own narrow path of possibilities for the characters to tread, hoping to escape...

If you like, pick a number from one to six to determine the main thrust of your tale of change:

1. Love stops the transformation
2. Love reverses the transformation
3. Love does not change the transformation--but makes it wonderful!
4. Death stops the transformation
5. Death reverses the transformation (breaks the curse and restores the person)
6. Death does not stop the transformation, but it makes death bearable?

Now, with animal in one hand, human in the other, and method of salvation in mind...think of the other main character. Who is the victim/antagonist/foil that can make your brooding beast someone we want to reach out to, someone we want to take care of, someone we want to save?

Sketch out the scenes. What could happen to bring the two together? Why do they stay together long enough to learn what lies behind the mask of the beast, the rough pelt, the claws and anger that holds off the world? And what is the climactic event that changes these two lives forever, leaving them (and us) gasping at the wonder of it all?

Then, of course, put it together. Start at the beginning (what cursed animal inhabits this foul pit? it is a cyberspatial twink, and I must release the bits!). Go on to the middle (what? a twink has feelings too? if you turn off the switch, doth it bleed? nay, say it is not so, for in that network many bits have passed.). And, of course, when you get to the part where they're peeling their hearts, you can always close your eyes...sorry, when you get to the end, make us sigh, and say goodbye.

Write it up!

Plot #12: Transformation: 20 Master Plots

[mbarker.livejournal.com]

original posting: Fri, 26 Sep 1997 09:43:11 EDT

Based on the book "20 Master Plots (And How to Build Them)" by Ronald B. Tobias. ISBN 0-89879-595-8.

Master Plot #12: Transformation

(p. 153) "The plot of transformation deals with the process of change in the protagonist as she journeys through one of the many stages of life. The plot isolates a portion of the protagonist's life that represents the period of change, moving from one significant character state to another."

Some "standard" points of change: becoming adult; war and combat; search for identity; divorce and other family shifts; facing violence; deaths; and learning something new (remember Pygmalion?).

But the large-scale change is only one kind. Consider small events that may build and shake lives...

Structure:
Phase one - an incident that starts a change in the protagonist's life. Be sure the reader knows who the protagonist is before the change! Now let the ripples of the incident begin to stretch out..."There are lessons to be learned, judgments to be made, insights to be seen."
Phase two - show us the full effects of the transforming incident. What hidden parts of the main character are stirred up in the wake of the storm?
Phase three - show us (often via another incident) the results of the transformation. What does the protagonist (and the reader) learn? "It's common for a protagonist to learn lessons other than what he expected to learn. The real lessons are often the hidden or unexpected ones. Expectations are baffled; illusions are destroyed. Reality overtakes fantasy."

Checklist:

1. Does your plot of transformation deal with the process of change as the protagonist journeys through one of the many stages of life?
2. Does the plot isolate a portion of the protagonist's life that represents the period of change, moving from one significant character state to another?
3. Does the story concentrate on the nature of change and how it affects the protagonist from start to end of the experience?
4. Does the first dramatic phase relate the transforming incident that propels the protagonist into a crisis, starting the process of change?
5. Does the second dramatic phase depict the effects of the transformation? Does it concentrate on the self-examination and character of the protagonist?
6. Does the third dramatic phase contain a clarifying incident representing the final stage of the transformation? Does the character understand the true nature of the experience and how it has affected him? Does true growth and understanding occur?
7. What is the price of the wisdom gained? a certain sadness?

Thus spake Tobias (along with some paraphrasing).

Let's pick a number! From one to six, or thereabouts?

1. amphisbaena -- serpent having a head at each end (Greece)
2. dybbuk -- dead person's evil spirit that invades a living person (Jewish folklore)
3. ghoul -- evil being that feeds on corpses
4. lamia -- monster with the head and breast of a woman and body of a serpent that lured children to suck their blood
5. phoenix -- immortal bird that cremates itself every 500 years, then emerges reborn from the ashes (Greece)
6. windigo -- evil spirit, cannibal demon (Native American folklore)

[taken from the section on Mythological and Folkloric Beings in Random House Word Menu, ISBN 0-679-40030-3]

Now, back up and consider your character(s). How old are they? What change or shift in their life are they facing? For example, someone who is just starting high school has a little different viewpoint from someone who is about to graduate from college and face the world of work, or from the young couple about to have their first baby, or the slightly older parent thinking about their child leaving home, or... And don't forget, if you don't want to go with the big shifts, a little dabble do you! So think about the change they were facing...

Then mix in that delightful creature you picked up in the first part. Offhand, I'd recommend making a couple of lists. First, a list of points about the change--what's good, what's bad, what are we going to learn from it? Second, a list of points about the monster in our midst--what's good, what's bad, what are we going to do about it? Now, look at the linkages between the lists. Can defeating the monster be turned into a sort of metaphor for the change we are dealing with? What if we don't defeat the monster, but learn from it something about ourselves? Could defeating the monster be an "anti-metaphor," contrasted to the change which we cannot defeat?

What if we are transformed into the monster? Or what if there is no monster, just poor sad humanity, hiding behind the cloak of the monster?

Let's see. How about something borrowed, and perhaps blue? Pick a number, one to six, and let's see what you got:

1. a yellow highlighter
2. a red papiermache pepper
3. a 5 pound bag of sugar
4. a spoonful of hot fudge
5. a two year old comic book from a dentist's waiting room
6. a clipboard

There you go. Now you have a prop, a little bit of physical setting which you are going to cleverly weave into the story. And don't forget, if you mention hot fudge in the first scene, someone should have a sundae before we get done...

Put it all together, it spells...

Well, that's up to you!

Write!