TECH: Where do you start?

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Original Posting 15 June 2010

"Where do you get your ideas?"

That question seems to be one that gets tossed at writing panels and such on a regular basis, to the point where many of them have stock answers that they return. "In the mail from New Jersey." And so forth, and so on.

I think there are various meanings to this question. One is the obvious one -- this story (book, whatever) came from somewhere. What was the seed, the initial thought that led to this? (With a hope that perhaps if I get a similar seed, I can do something like this?) But I think people may also be asking for a description of the process -- how do you get started, and what do you do to take that seed and turn it into this?

And that's kind of an interesting question. I can toss out a bunch of creative thinking tools and tips that might help you find a seed, but taking that seed and growing it into a story -- that takes some knowledge of the forms, some practice, and a bit of cut-and-fit.

Anyway, how do you start? If I said, "Hey, let's write a story!" Where would you go, or what would you do, to get started? What do you do to lure the muse?

TECH: The Seduction of Subtlety

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Original posting 19 June 2010

Writers Digest, May 2006, pages 42 to 45, has an article by Jessica Morrell with the title, "The Seduction of Subtlety." It's excerpted from Between the Lines by Jessica Morrell. It focuses on... well, what would you guess? No, not seduction...

Jessica starts out with the writing maxim, "less is more." "Subtlety is needed on all levels: in diction, style, voice and grammar, as well as in plot and characterization. A lack of subtlety leads to redundancy and overstatement, too-obvious characters, overblown dialogue, scenes that carry on or explode instead of delivering dramatic moments, and plots and subplots that take off like runaway trains."

"Subtlety is difficult to explain, but when it's present in fiction, the writing whispers and contains a poignancy that lingers..."

So where do we start with subtlety? How about setting and character? Some settings are blatant, but many merely suggest or hint at the menace, danger, or lurking disaster. Sometimes something as small as describing the river as turbulent can help hint at future events without necessarily drowning someone.

Similarly, characters with murderous intentions or dangerous secrets may simply have a mysterious note, evading answers, or being vague about their past. "Most characters, particularly antagonists and villains, must be unmasked over time, until their pasts and secrets are exposed in the climactic moments." Small oddities can hint at greater stresses, without shoving the reader's faces into the dirt at the start. Select details that murmur volumes, instead of an avalanche that shoves the reader over the edge.

Character descriptions are sometimes tricky. Fictional characters tend to be bigger than life, heroic figures striding across the fictional stage. Still, sometimes you'll want to have moments of normalcy, nuance, even subtle gestures. If nothing else, consider it as background to give the reader a chance to rest in between those huge actions. Intense scenes gain in intensity by contrast with quiet moments and reflections.

Be wary of spending too much time in the character's head. Unending rumination wears readers out. Readers don't need to know every thought. Save this for the explosive, painful realizations, the difficult decisions, and the hunting or painful memories. Don't be afraid to challenge your protagonist's beliefs -- that's often how change happens.

Emotions may be the lifeblood of fiction. Emotions are what energize characters, stories, and readers. And to write drama instead of melodrama, you need to be subtle with emotions. "The basic emotions are anger, disgust, sadness, contempt, happiness, fear and surprise..." with variations and combinations of each. Make sure you are working with these basic emotions, and that your character exhibits emotions physically. So what can you do for believable emotional expressions?

• avoid cliches and generic responses, like blinking back tears and pounding heartbeats. Find fresh depictions of emotions with images and language of your own.
• give your characters eccentric, specialized, individual ways to reveal emotions. Sure, the emotional core sets the reaction, but individual interests and twists shape how it gets expressed.
• analyze emotions in books, plays, and TV/video/movies, noticing how they are underplayed and portrayed (and sometimes overdone!)
• identify what your characters fear the most. Illness, poverty, loneliness, death? Is it rational or emotional? What will they do, how will they try to avoid their fears? What will they do to try to achieve their desires?
• avoid stating emotions -- and look for instances where you've written bald declarations, then rewrite them. Use actions and reactions to show us how the character feels.
• make emotions significant and motivating. Greed, love, hate, jealousy, guilt, fear, etc. make things happen.
• make choices emotional, and have characters regret their choices at times.
• let your characters have a range of emotions, from simmering to full boil. No one reacts with the same intensity to everything.

Finally, consider subtext. Readers expect to see emotions depicted in action, dialogue, and in subtext. So what is subtext? It's really unsaid or implied, and can be more potent than explicit text. Subtext can add tension, symbolism, and meaning. It's often small clues, or body language that suggests the subtext. It may be somewhat opposed to the overt action -- like a dog barking madly while backing away in fear. You might use props or tasks to let the characters reveal how they're feeling underneath.

"Fiction, like life, is often lived between the lines, and as in life, subtlety is a powerful and fresh means of being in the world. Find ways to insert subtlety -- the unspoken, the innuendo, the nuanced moments that aren't directly represented, and the actions that speak of feelings that are too volatile to express aloud."

That's what Jessica had to say. So..

Let's consider an exercise. Take a work in progress, or even a piece of writing from somewhere. Now go through it, and identify the various emotions being expressed. Consider how they are being expressed. Are these too direct, too cliche? Pick out at least one that you would like to make more subtle, and consider how to do that. Can you use a physical action, a line of dialogue, or that funny subtext? Go ahead and make that scene more subtle.

You might also consider the contrary exercise -- take that same scene and build it up into melodrama. Go ahead and let the heroine bat her eyelashes at the hero, who can pose heroically against the sunset. And so on...

Hey, have fun adjusting the level of subtlety in this scene.
Write!