TECH: Meandering Our Way through Plot and Structure (10)

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We are slowly working our way through Plot & Structure by James Scott Bell. In his chapter 4, he talks about beginnings. He suggests we need to get the reader involved, connect the reader with the lead character, introduce the story world, establish the general tone or genre of the story, force the reader to keep reading, and introduce the opposition. And that's just for starters!

The next section concerns the use of prologues. I'm not sure that I agree with Bell about using them, especially since so many editors advise new writers to avoid them. Get right into the action goes the cry. Still, since so many people want to try them, I suppose we should talk about how to use them best. Bell points out that effective prologues do one thing -- entice the reader to go on and read Chapter 1. Sounds simple, right? And there are only really three kinds of prologue.

First, the action prologue. A big scene, maybe a death. Suspense fiction loves to use these to kick things off. Excitement, suspense, what is going to happen? Then cut to Chapter 1. The prologue may or may not involve the lead character, but it needs to be big on action, relatively short, usually end with trouble, and at some point you want to tie it into the main plot or at least explain what happened. I suppose in some sense this is the disturbance writ large, upsetting lives before the story even starts.

Second, a frame story. This is where a character looks back and tells us the story. The inner story or extended flashback has consequences rolling into the now of the frame. One of the drawbacks to a frame is that we know this character will live, says he or she is telling the story in the frame. The frame needs to establish the feeling and tone for the main plot, should be interesting good reading in itself, and should show how the events of the past affect the prologue character now.

Third, there are teasers. A little scene at the beginning that happens later on in the book. Don't finish the scene, leave the reader wondering how it ends. And then when the scene happens in the ordinary sequence of the story, finish it out. Teasers need to be highly charged scenes, and stop short of resolution so that the reader wants to find out what happened. You can use the same words, or you can tackle it a little bit differently.

Okay. So one way to start the beginning is with one of these forms of prologue. In some books you'll find extended prologues, while others don't use the labels but still use the format. Fair warning, many editors recommend not using them, but just going ahead and starting your story.

The next part that Bell talks about is establishing a bond between the reader and the lead character. One of the tricks here is that the lead character needs to be a strong, rich character. Bell refers to Egri's advice "about living, vibrating human beings being the secret of great and enduring writing. Egri suggested that if you truly know yourself, deeply and intimately, you'll be able to create great, complex, and interesting characters." But when you have a character, how do you get readers to relate to him or her? Bell suggests four dynamics: identification, sympathy, likability, and inner conflict.

Identification means that we believe the lead character is like us. If circumstances were right, that could be us in the plot with those reactions. The lead character needs to be trying to accomplish something, be fearful and honestly react, and not be perfect. Normal human flaws are part of what makes us identify with a lead character. Superman without any flaws isn't someone we can empathize with. But give him some understandable fears and failings, and suddenly we can put ourselves in his shoes.

Sympathy strengthens the emotional investment in the lead character. Don't overdo it, but when the hero is in jeopardy, faces hardship that is undeserved, is coming up from behind (the infamous underdog), or has vulnerabilities -- that's when we feel sympathy and root for the lead character.

Likability, well, that's someone who does things that we like. They do favors for other people, they're witty, they make us feel good about ourselves. Think about people you like, and what it is that they do, then see if your lead character can do some of those things.

Inner conflict. Having doubts and concerns about what to do next makes the character more interesting. This doesn't mean waffling or grandiose extended bouts of self-examination, but just real honest uncertainty.

All right? So we've taken a look at getting the reader hooked and developing a bond between the reader and the lead character. You might take a look at the beginning chapter in a book you like, and consider how the writer got your interest and developed a link between you and the lead character. And don't forget, we've still got several bits of the beginning to go.

EXERCISE: Remember when?

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Originally posting 6 August 2007

Now that was amusing. Broomhilda today (over at http://www.gocomics.com/broomhilda/ [NOTE: The original strip is only available for pay now -- sorry about that] ) has a strip that starts out with the observation "TV has become such a wasteland." Then in the second panel, Broomie says, "I remember when TV shows had quality, dignity, and substance." The third panel . . . hold on, don't peek.

She goes on to bemoan the loss of some shows that don't exactly typify quality, dignity, and substance. I'll tell you which ones are in the strip, but take a moment to consider. What shows might you point to as not exactly fulfilling the premise of the good old days? What were the good old shows in your youth?

How about . . . Petticoat Junction? Or maybe Gilligan's Island? What about the Dukes of Hazzard? I'm not sure, since I don't remember all that many shows off-hand, but . . . who would you propose?

Make up your list.

Then consider Broomhilda saying, "Man, I miss Beavis and Butthead," while the furry sidekick says, "And let us not forget Ren and Stimpy." I think I saw Ren and Stimpy (that's a recent one, isn't it?) but I have to admit, I never saw Beavis and Butthead. Interesting how young the good old days are, isn't it?

Something to have fun with. What do people expect from the good old days, and what are the ironic truths? For example, I think it is funny sometimes that people tell me about the safe life of kids in the past - I was threatened with a switchblade in real life in my high school back in the '60s, just because I wouldn't let one of the local bullies browse through the student-organized lost-and-found. That was in an idyllic rural area that was becoming suburb - and the kid with the switchblade was one of those rural kids.

Anyway, have fun.

TECH: Waddling Slowly through Plot & Structure (11)

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Originally posted 9 August 2007

[drat, drat, I forgot to post this - sorry for the delay. Is it next week yet?]

Waddling Slowly through Plot & Structure (11)

Let's see. Somewhere in Plot & Structure by James Scott Bell? Oh yes, chapter 4, did getting your reader hooked and establishing a bond between the reader and the lead character. So it must be time for . . .

Presenting the story world! Or as Bell says, "What sort of world does your lead inhabit? Not merely the setting, though that is important. But what is life like for the lead?"

In other words, what is the life and routine that are about to become disturbed? What kind of work does the lead do? What do they want, what are they dreaming about? When they say, "there's no place like home," where do what they want to go?

Along with that, the beginning often sets the tone. This is the narrator's voice, his or her attitude, what kind of a book is this -- melodramatic action or laid-back contemplation? A mystery with a murder on every page or a romance with a kiss on every page? Serious, comic, dramatic, hard-boiled, overdone?

[We interrupt this chapter for a sidebar. Bell borrows from The 38 Most Common Fiction Writing Mistakes by Bickham the recommendation to start the story from the first sentence. Sounds simple, and yet often the story stalls with excessive description with no character or action in view, backward looks attempting to fill in the back story before actually starting the plot, or a lack of threat, with no disturbance or difficulty in sight. Get the story started!]

The next thing that the beginning does is to compel the reader to move on into the middle. An interesting lead character has a problem, a disturbance that pushes them into the middle, and the reader is dragged along. The beginning shows us the first door of no return, and the lead character walking through it. And the reader wants to know what will happen next.

But what about the information that we know the reader needs? Can't we just give him a dump of information? Just a chunk of exposition to move things along? Bell suggests that sometimes, if you keep it short, you can get away with this. The problem is that most of us don't really keep it short. In response, Bell developed three rules to help control his own expository tendencies. Here they are, although you'll need to read the book for details:

1. Act first, explain later. Always start with a character in motion, and then drop in little bits of information as necessary.
2. When you explain, use an iceberg. Give the reader the 10% that is necessary to understand what is happening, and leave 90% hidden for now.
3. Set information inside confrontation. Within intense conflict, the character can drop crucial information in front of the reader.

Skip past some examples . . .

And some exercises! Here we go.

1. Take a look at the opening chapter of your work in progress, or write one now, or even borrow one from a book that you like. What techniques do you use to grab the reader from the very first paragraph? Is there a feeling of motion? If not, try using some of the techniques from this chapter to rewrite.
2. What is the story world? Do you really know it in detail? What in your beginning gives the reader a detailed sense of it, without blocks of descriptive dump?
3. How do you introduce your lead character? What makes this character memorable? Brainstorm five possibilities for your lead character in each of the following categories:

   a.        Identification: how is the lead "like us?"
   b.        Sympathy: Jeopardy, hardship, underdog status, vulnerability
   c.        Likability: wittiness? Cares for other people?
   d.        Inner conflict: what two voices or agendas are battling inside your lead character?
   

4. What disturbs your character' s world? What change has set off ripples or waves?
5. Why is your opposition doing what they're doing? What explains the way they are acting? What aspects of their character are charming, attractive, or seductive? Remember that your villain is a hero in their own eyes.

Okay? So that is Chapter 4, all about beginnings. Frankly, I often think that we should start with the other parts of the story and then finish with the beginning. It's the hardest part of the story to get right, and probably will need the most revision, so don't sweat it too much if the first draft doesn't seem to have everything just perfect. I've seen at least one editor advise that you should spend 90% of your effort on the beginning, since that is the part that pulls the reader in - and if they don't make it past that, having a great middle and end probably won't matter. I think that's an exaggeration, but you definitely need to work on the beginning. I find that often just finding the right place to start takes a few versions and revisions.

So, let's see. We start with a LOCK: a lead character, with an objective, running into confrontations, with a knockout ending. Take the world and disturb it, then force them through the doorway of no return into the middle, and finally into another doorway of no return that leads to the ending. Wheel and deal and expand those ideas, then sort them out by looking for passion, potential, and precision. Once you get into writing the story, make sure that the beginning drags the reader in, gives them a bond with the lead character, shows them the story world, sets the tone, forces the reader on into the middle, and introduces the loyal opposition.

Write!

FILL: Selling Oil?

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Originally posted 13 August 2007

One of the Japanese who likes to quiz me about English recently asked me what phrase or translation I would use for "abura o uru." Literally, this means selling oil, but the connotation is about goofing off when you should be working. For example, when someone is sent to pick up something and takes a long time coming back, the comment that is likely to greet them would be "Where have you been? Were you selling oil?"

Apparently the reference is to the notion of someone who spends a long time explaining why you should buy oil - working hard to sell you - when of course, everyone needs oil (or at least in times past, it was a necessity).

I managed to get out of the discussion by pointing him at "snake oil salesman." When I explained that we used to have medicine men selling stuff in the streets in America, he suddenly got very amused, and said they had similar salesmen in Japan until 100 years ago. I politely didn't comment that there seem to be some still around - there are a lot of "healthy foods" sold in Japan with tonics and such.

Anyway, I'm still noodling around trying to figure out the right phrase if there is one. Goofing off? Daydreaming? Dilly-dallying?

In that scenario about someone coming back slowly, I think I'd be likely to say something like "Where have you been? Did you get lost?"

Interesting trying to get the languages to match up. I never would have thought about "selling oil" as a metaphor for wasting time. Any ideas for an English phrase like that?

TECH: Plodding Bewilderingly Through Plot and Structure (12)

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Originally posted 14 August 2007

Plodding Bewilderingly Through Plot and Structure (12)

So having almost forgotten to do this last week, where are we? Aha, chapter 5, middles. Those come after beginnings and I'm sure you're surprised to know they come before the ending. So what's filling the middle? Scenes! Scenes that stretch the tension, raise the stakes, keep readers worried, and build towards the climax in a way that seems inevitable, unrelenting, and remorseless. Actually Plot & Structure by James Scott Bell only has inevitable -- I added the other two. There's more detail coming up in Chapter 7, but this chapter focuses on the big picture.

Bell starts with death. Physical death, psychological death, and professional death. Action stories frequently have literal physical death hovering around the corner or down in the basement. But even coming-of-age stories often focus on a reason to live. Psychological loss -- the little death inside of us -- drives many great plots. Professional death, the loss of work, the meaninglessness of work, the professional duties -- the work world also drives many a plot.

A key to keeping the middle lively is a good opposition. Bell recommends a person, and even if it is a group pick a spokesperson who leads the opposition. Finally, make the opposition stronger than the lead character. Make the reader worry that the sympathetic character is going to be squashed. The other key point is to take time to figure out why the opposition character wants to stop the lead character, and what's good about the opposition character. You need to have empathy or emotional understanding even when the opposition character is a thoroughgoing melodramatic villain.

Now one of the important ingredients in a confrontation between your opposition and your lead character is adhesive -- glue. If the lead character can simply walk away and still achieve their objective, the reader may ask why they don't just ignore that stupid idiot. So you need a strong relationship or circumstance that holds the people together. Some other books talk about this as the crucible that forces the characters together. The lead needs to have a good strong reason to keep going and stick around. You have to figure out why the lead and the opposition can't withdraw from the action. The long middle then becomes various scenes of confrontation, mostly ending with setbacks for your lead forcing him or her to analyze the situation again and take some other action toward the objective. Some suggestions about glue:

1. Life-and-death. If the opposition has strong enough reason to kill, that's superglue. Staying alive is an automatic goal for most of us.
2. Professional duty. Lawyers, police, military people have duties that keep them involved even if they don't want to be.
3. Moral duty. When a child is kidnapped, the parents don't stop to count the cost and neither do nearby people.
4. Obsessions are strong glue.
5. Physical locations -- if no one can get off the island or escape the boat, then they have to face each other.

Okay. So that's the start of chapter 5, talking about the middles. We'll be looking at threats and opposition, and how you keep the opposition and the lead character together despite their ongoing confrontations. So next time we'll look at action, reaction, and more action -- ARM yourself!

And don't forget, write.
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