EXERCISE: You've been reading Oprah?

[mbarker.livejournal.com]

Original posting 1 May 2008

I have a confession to make. While I didn't appreciate Oprah on TV in the United States some time ago, I have started reading the occasional columns from CNN, and find them possibly useful for writers.

If you haven't read one, they usually point to some kind of problem that most of us face sometime, and then lay out several possible variations of the problem and solutions. See, these are proven items of interest to the general public. And some clues about how to handle the issues. So all you have to do is pick one, add characters and scenery, and . . . you've at least got the basis of a story, eh?

For example? Okay, here's one about the lonely season at http://www.oprah.com/spiritself/omag/ss_omag_200502_mbeck.jhtml (interesting, that's not the link that CNN gave me, but when I went to find the thing, I ended up going through the Oprah.com home page at http://www2.oprah.com/index.jhtml and their search - and that's the same article, at least). Aha, if I use the CNN search, I get http://edition.cnn.com/2008/LIVING/personal/04/23/lonely.season/ which is the page I remembered.

Sorry about that diversion into the minutia of finding articles on the web. Back to the main topic.

The problem that this article raises is loneliness. Martha Beck suggests that there are three kinds of loneliness, and provides quick fixes and long-term solutions for each kind.

First is absolute loneliness, a feeling that no one understands us and no one wants to. This kind of isolation hurts. The quick fix is to force interaction. Go out one way or another and meet people. The longer-term solution is to start developing social skills. Try to understand others and help them understand you. Try three steps: show real appreciation or an honest compliment (my gloss: or at least a comment that shows you are looking at them), followed by curiosity -- a question. The third step is optional, sometimes when they are clearly interesting or charming, volunteer some information about yourself. You don't have to start with deep revelations, just keep the conversation going.

There's hardly a teenager alive who hasn't run into this one a few dozen times and bloodied their head on it.

Second is separation loneliness. Changing jobs, changing homes, traveling -- modern life sometimes seems to consist mostly of separations. The quick fix is to use the separation to remind yourself or motivate yourself to reach out to the people you miss. Make that phone call, summarize your day in an e-mail, maybe even use the letter paper or postcard in the hotel room. Ask them what they've been doing, and pay attention to the answer. Long-term: think hard about whether that new job or whatever is causing the separations is really worth it. Decide what you want at your very heart and then go for it.

Running through the storms of middle-age, this kind of loneliness is a neverending windstorm.  (You knew I would get a metaphor in here somewhere, right?)

Third is existential loneliness. Every human sometimes has to face the fact that no one else really can take the risks for us, face our losses, or give us self-esteem. In some ways, we each face life alone. A quick fix is art. Whether it is great art, genre novels, dance contests on TV -- let those people remind you of the inspiration. Long-term: consider your own life as art. You don't have to be a great artist, but think about what conveys your real self, and use your own creativity to reach out to others.

(Please sing a verse of The Impossible Dream . . . one man, scorned and covered with scars, still strove . . . the unreachable star! Hankies, anyone?)

Interesting article -- and if you take a number from one to three, I think any one of these could be the core of the story. A character facing absolute loneliness? You can meet them in so many places, but show one breaking out of that pickup line of dishonesty into real interaction. Sounds like a good story to me. Or how about separation loneliness? How does the traveling salesman manage to keep in touch with that four year old? What about existential loneliness? When the world is just too much -- write?

Go ahead, dig through some of those Oprah articles, and see if they don't suggest some stories.

Did I tell you the one about the ten guys that women should avoid? Good basis for something over in the romance field, maybe? Take a look at http://us.cnn.com/2008/LIVING/personal/02/25/O.bad.men/index.html

(to try when your arms are too weary . . . )

TECH: Make A Scene #2

[mbarker.livejournal.com]

Original posting 4 May 2008

Make a Scene by Jordan E. Rosenfeld

Chapter 2: Strong Scene Launches

And we're back, with more notes from Make A Scene by Jordan E. Rosenfeld. The introduction and chapter one were last - do you remember what they covered? Right, that's it. Keep the reader entertained. And scenes are the basic elements of stories, with characters in action right in front of us. Each scene has a beginning where it gets started, a middle that fills in the conflicts and consequences, and an ending that sets up the next scene and wraps up this scene. Okay? For more details, read the last posting or get a copy of the book and read it -- it's pretty good! And now, on to the beginning of scenes, where we drag the readers into the scene.

First of all, since the beginning of the scene may actually pick up in the middle of action or continue something from before, Jordan suggests using the term launch -- where the reader's attention is engaged again. He suggests starting to construct a scene launch by asking two questions:

1. Where are my characters in the plot? Where did I leave them and what are they doing now?
2. What is the most important piece of information that needs to be revealed in this scene?

You need to think about which kind of launch to use. Jordan suggests four flavors: characters, actions, narrative summary, or setting.

Character launches focus on getting the main characters out there. You should probably think about the scene intentions of the characters -- what is the purpose, goal, or intention of the character? This involves four decisions:

1. What are the immediate desires of the character?
2. When do the characters achieve their intention or encounter some type of opposition?
3. Does the intention makes sense to the plot?
4. Who helps your characters achieve their goal, and who opposes them?

Scene intentions usually involve some kind of conflict. It doesn't matter what your character's intentions are, but you must know them from the beginning of each scene so that you can make sure that they are enacted, met, or thwarted.

Action launches are a good way to avoid getting tied up in narrative summary, trying to explain things. Just jump right in and start the action without explaining anything. You do need to pay attention to time and momentum -- it takes time for actions, but once started, they keep going until they are finished. The keys are:

1. Get straight to the action. Jump off the cliff, don't waste time looking at it.
2. Hook the reader with big or surprising actions. Big or surprising action at the launch of a scene allows for more possibilities within the scene.
3. Make sure the action is true to the character. It should create conflict, too.
4. Act first, think later. Lead with the action, then let characters react and think about what they have done.

Narrative launches. We've said so much about avoiding narrative summary, but the launch of a scene is one place where a short, well-written narrative summary can work out. We need to get to the action quickly, but a narrative summary can help sometimes. The keys are:

1. Use a narrative summary where it saves time.
2. Use narrative summary to communicate information before action. A little bit of background or setting can go a long way.
3. Use narrative when thoughts or intentions cannot be revealed in action. Some characters cannot speak or act easily, so narration can let the reader know what they think and feel.

Setting launches. If the setting details are important to the plot or character development, you may need to include the setting in the launch of the scene. In particular, unusual, exotic, or challenging locations that bear dramatically on the characters and the plot can launch us in the right direction. For effective scene launches:

1. Use specific visual details.
2. Let the scenery set the tone and the language of the scene.
3. Use scenery to reflect a character's feelings and perceptions.
4. Show how the character sees the scenery.

The real danger with scene launches for the writer is that they are short and easy to rush through, trying to get to the real meat of the scene. Don't do it. Take the time to get the scene launch right -- or at least go back and revise it into what it needs to be. The scene launch invites the reader to come along, and should be as intriguing and alluring as possible.

So we need to launch the scene, providing the reader with something that gets them oriented and interested in reading in this scene. I think that along with Jordan's question about what's the most important information to be revealed in this scene we need to think about how to make the reader curious about that this information. We want them to read the scene looking for an answer, trying to figure out that piece of information. You want them to be puzzled and curious.

I do think that every scene launch needs to involve all four of Jordan's flavors -- the characters, the action, probably a little narrative summary, and setting. I think the difference is likely to be more in emphasis. So a character launch shows us the characters more than the action or setting, an action launch emphasizes what's going on, and the setting launch tells us more about where we are than the others. But the character launch needs to have some conflict in it, the action launch certainly has to have someone who is doing all that dancing, and the setting launch needs to include someone looking around, at the very least. Still, I think Jordan makes a good point - think about which one you are trying to do, and focus on getting that emphasis right. Think about how that launch leads the reader into your scene.

So your assignment for this chapter is to take a look at a book or story of your choosing, and find at least one scene launch. Take a close look at how the author introduces the scene and gets you into it. Did they use a character, action, narrative summary, or setting launch? If they used a narrative summary, how long is it and what happens right after it? How does the launch orient you as a reader, and how does it get you interested in reading further? I think as writers we often try to explain too much, and miss the fact that some mystery and suspense can be very good for getting the reader interested.

When we write, we invite others to come along?