TECH: Get That Novel Started (11)

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Originally posted 14 Jan 2013

I'll bet you thought I'd forgotten. No such luck. The book is called Get That Novel Started! (And Keep It Going 'Til You Finish) by Donna Levin. It's part of the Writers Digest Book series. Part one consisted of five chapters recommending that you start now, writing 10 minutes a day, working on writing, identifying the fears there in the way, and building a bank of ideas. Part two then launched into writing the novel, from basic idea, characters, building up a rough outline, and starting the story. Starting the story got a whole chapter on its own, as did kind of a survey of the important elements in a finished novel. Part three, which is where we are now, started off with a discussion of the problems of the middle of the novel, where things often get bogged down. Which brings us up to chapter 11!

Guess what. Nobody writes perfect first drafts. So just get through it, and plan to revise. Donna admits that a lot of us write a few chapters, think about it or get some feedback, and then rewrite them. That's okay, but after that initial restart, keep going and write the whole first draft. You don't know what you need to fix until you've written the first draft, all the way through. Give yourself permission to be bad. And then go back in and squash clichés, turn vague adjectives into specifics, and kill off the authorial recaps, where you repeat what just happened in case the reader didn't get it.

Take a look at your scenes. There's a pretty good chance that some of them are redundant, showing us the same information about the characters and the plot. If you're reading it and go, "Didn't I see this before?" then readers are really going to be confused. So, get out your machete cut out the redundant scenes. Okay, just don't repeat yourself.

You'll probably develop your own list, but some things to watch out for include the well loved info dump or extended explanation and description, things that are too obvious, things that are fuzzy or unclear or contradictory, mixed metaphors, and dropping into extensive passive voice in the best academic style.

Beware of flashbacks. Yes, sometimes there is some background information and back story that can be usefully shown through a flashback. But check each and every flashback and ask yourself does it really need to be there? Readers want to go forward, and flashbacks, as the name indicates, yank the reader the other direction. A rule of thumb is that flashbacks that exist solely to characterize, aren't necessary. Try this. Can you significantly alter the content of the flashback without changing anything outside of it? If so, you probably don't need that flashback. Cut it out!

So. Write your first draft. Read through it and see what you want to change. You may want to go back and revise the outline or tidy up the premise. Then start on the second draft!

All right?

EXERCISE: Your Last Meal?

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Originally posted 16 Jan 2013

There's a funny one for you to think about.

Recently, I was eating by myself, and my wife said get anything you want. There's a lot of different restaurants in the area, but I ended up getting something that I really like: fried rice, deep-fried shrimp and chicken with mayonnaise sauce... really simple Japanese fast food.

And I was thinking, suppose it was the last meal that you were ever going to have? The classical prisoner's last meal before his execution. What would I get if I could have anything I wanted in the world?

Well, one thing would be weiner schnitzel with a good dunkel or dark beer. That's from Vienna. I suppose I might also have a slice of Sacher torte. That's a chocolate cake, with a layer of I think it's apricot jam, and a coating that is just pure dark chocolate.

Or maybe some New Orleans Beignet with chicory coffee?

The thing is, when I think about it, there are some odds and ends that I would certainly enjoy trying again. But they're not high cuisine. Most of them are actually almost fast food or plain sorts of things. Calzone from New Jersey. Or maybe a good eggplant pizza from Boston. Some good Mexican food. Cornbread, Chile relleno, burritos. The kind of thing that I can buy in the food court in Hawaii, or get at a Mexican restaurant in New Mexico.

Oh! What's that greek or italian dessert? The one that's about a zillion little layers of flaky dough, with some kind of nuts chopped fine, and drowned in honey? Baklava?

But you know food doesn't really push me. I'd be just about as happy with a basic hamburger. Although, if you can get the one with the fried onions on it or something like that, I'd like it, but it's not going to drive me crazy.

It's interesting to speculate about what would you eat, and how do you feel about it. Why is or isn't it exciting?

What would you want for your last meal? If you can have anything at all...

Oh, yeah, those dim sum rolls from Chinatown. And maybe...

(burp!)

TECH: Get That Novel Started (12)

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Originally Posted 20 Jan 2013

The book is Get That Novel Started! (And Keep It Going 'til You Finish) by Donna Levin. This is basically the last chapter, although there is a short conclusion that we'll include here.

Chapter 12 starts out with the admonition to keep writing. Writing is the best way to learn about writing. However, you also should join the community of writers. It's good to have some other people to talk to! You might do a class -- lots of places have them, and they are one way to meet other writers. You might also try one of the various writing conferences. Do be careful -- there are some ripoffs out there. Things that you should look for:

1. A knowledgeable staff
2. Longevity
3. Testimonials -- try to talk to real live people that you know and trust.
4. Location
5. Feedback -- find out how your work will be critiqued.
6. Contacts.

Along with this, there is the tried-and-true method of a writing group. Don't expect the first group will necessarily be the best. You may have to spend some time trying out various groups to get one that works for you. You're going to have to develop the right attitude, and the right approach. Again, some things to consider:

1. How does the group operate? Are the rules in writing?
2. How many people are there? 6 to 10 works pretty well.
3. What is the focus of the group? If you're writing novels in a poetry group...
4. How often do they meet? Weekly is best, every two weeks is possible.
5. How do they share materials? Copies, reading, what.
6. How are critiques done? Don't defend, you're there to learn.
7. Who's the leader?
8. How are new members admitted?
9. Where do they meet?

Or as Donna says, "To get that novel started: find people with whom you can start. Find people who will keep you going."

The conclusion has the title, "How to Be Your Own Grandmother." Donna says her grandmother was a noodge. Nagging, pestering, pushing someone for their own good. And I points out that everyone of us needs to learn to do this for ourselves. We need to learn how to keep ourselves going, how to set those challenges and push ourselves to meet them.

"So the challenges remain, and the struggle goes on. What happens, though, is that doing the work becomes the goal. When the work is finished, published or not (yes, published is better), it's on its own, and you're writing something else."

"So in the writing of your novels, I wish you luck, but more than that I wish you stamina, persistence and faith."

Start writing.

EXERCISE: a collection of exercises and a random prompt. Not too moldy.

[mbarker.livejournal.com]

Originally posted 13 Feb 2013

You say you want a moldy oldie exercise?

Right over here, there's a whole stack of them.

http://writercises.livejournal.com/

Which actually reminds me... I was tinkering with a prompt generator recently. Here's one of the results:

A random prompt? All right. How about a character who is in the middle of a marital reconciliation finds out that their teenager is dating someone unusual (your choice as to gender, age, race, occupation, or whatever!). To help stir things up, in the community and situation there are troublemakers out to cause trouble for such dating couples. What does the character do? Tell us about these starcrossed lovers and what's a parent to do?

Incidentally, the suggested genre is that of the testing plot, with a noble character tested to the extreme. There are at least three characters in that situation -- the parent, teenager, and the date. I wonder which one is the noble character?

Go ahead. How would you write that story?

Tech: Make Your Story a Battle!

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Originally posted 13 Feb 2013

Technique of the month! (it was labeled that in Writer's Digest!) Writer's Digest, June 1995, pages 8 to 12, have an article by Nancy Kress with the title, "How You Can Make Your Story into a Battlefield." The little headline under that reads, "Transitions, foreshadowing and imagery can take you only so far. Here's how to make your fiction even more interesting."

Nancy starts out by pointing out that all the talk about transitions in foreshadowing and imagery sometimes feels like focusing on the trees and missing the forest. Especially when a student has a story that just doesn't work. "The language is fine, the characters are interesting, the scenery has the right scenes in the right order -- but it's inert. Flatlined. DOA. And the fool instructor is babbling over the corpse with advice on transitions."

But when we start talking macrolevel about what makes fiction work, we are all too likely to end up with some sort of mechanical plot diagram. However, despite all the possible problems with discussing what makes a story work, Nancy offers us one way to think about it. It's not the only way, and if it doesn't seem to make sense to you, that's okay. Stick with what works for you. In the meantime, for those who are interested in "a coherent way to think about what makes fiction interesting and what does not" here is one metaphorical thought system -- a lens to help us peer at what's going on.

The framing metaphor is very simple. "Every story is a war." Simple, right. You're not a carpenter building a house, you're a general organizing a battle. Recognizing this metaphor may help you decide what the right emphasis is for different elements. You're still going to have to write words, but now you know what's important. Who are the combatants and which side are they on? What's at stake? What are the battles -- "murderous actions in which both sides are struggling as hard as they can prevail?" What is the outcome of the war -- victory, surrender, exhaustion, default? How do you decide who won? Admittedly, just like with war, sometimes it's easier to see these after the dust is settled, and during the heat of battle, you know plans are going to change. Still, at least you know what you're trying to do.

Start with the combatants. Oh, yes, the unknown soldier is a great symbol, but you're in the business of making us believe your characters are real. So specifics are great. "Individual, specific characters are struggling hard because something they value is at stake." So you know you're going to have to answer these questions:
-- what are the two sides in this particular war?
-- What is at stake in this war?
-- How quickly do both sides understand, intellectually and emotionally, that this is a war? How do they realize this?

Maneuvers are probably next. What are the battles in your war? What about the resources, plans, support, and all the other stuff building up to your battles and afterwards? Now you've got questions like this to answer:
-- are the clashes between opposing forces bloody enough? Are people trying their hardest to attain their goals?
-- Does the opposition make logical counterattacks?
-- Does everybody care enough that the losers are bleeding?
-- Does every major incident or battle have all of the pressure, changes in tactics, and flying shrapnel that characterizes war? Do you have the confusion and mistakes that are going to happen? How can you make us feel that fog of war?

And the end of the war! There's some kind of outcome. Treaty, retreat, peace. One way or another, the hostilities are over. In fiction, if we don't have a complete resolution, we at least like to show who's likely to win. One way or another, you need a body count and some kind of official sign off. The body count is just what it sounds like -- how did the major characters succeed or fail? Who gained what, who lost what, who died, who's missing? Show us how each person changed. The sign off may be explicit, at least in the older style, or more of a subtle implication. So now you want to answer these questions:
-- the most basic question of all: who won?
-- What do the characters feel about this outcome?
-- What's the body count? Try to make it accurate and complete. Readers get annoyed with characters that they liked who just vanish silently into the mist.
-- What's the sign off? Is it implied or explicit?

"Viewing your story as a war may or may not appeal to you. But if you choose this approach, one thing at least is guaranteed: the story becomes significant."

So there you have it. Looking at our story as a war helps to focus on the major parts. Who is fighting, what are they fighting for, what are the battles along the way, and what's the end of the war? It's simple, but it's a metaphor that can help you decide what's really important in the swamp of words, transitions, foreshadowing, and imagery.

Write?

TECH: More Ideas?

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Original Posting 15 Feb 2013

Agus asked about how to generate ideas, and I was about set to point to a stack of old postings, and then I decided that would be silly. Let's take another shot at that problem.

So, I thought I would talk about an idea that's been kicking around for a while. Depending on where you are coming from, it might be called a morphological matrix, or maybe a Zwicky box (there was a guy called Zwicky, you see, and he probably didn't go near a bar, but he got his name on the things anyway), or I've seen them called simply idea matrixes (which should be matrices, but we'll skip lightly past the problems of English spelling today, okay?).

Whatever you call them, the basic concept is pretty simple. Take a piece of paper and draw columns on it (or a handy spreadsheet, or even a table in a word processor of your choice would probably work). Put your categories in it. If you're doing systems analysis, these would be the parts of your system. Since you're likely doing story stuff, try some categories such as setting, characters, motivation, obstacles?

Or if you are trying out scene-sequel sequences, I suppose you could use the categories from that. Let's see, Jack Bickham and Jim Butcher, incidentally, also recommend the scene-sequel sequence.  Goal, obstacle, failure, reaction, dilemma, decision? I think Jack used something like goal, obstacle, disaster, and then emotional reaction, rational consideration, and planning, but basically the same steps. Put those in the column headings.

I have to admit, I think this will work best with more of a generic set of categories. Might take one of the 20 Master Plots (psst? Over here http://writercises.livejournal.com/47510.html) and pull out the main elements needed as your column headings. Or perhaps settings, characters, and genre or plot (heck, use the Save the Cat genres and you already have one column filled in! Monster in the house, The Golden fleece, Out of the bottle, Dude with a problem, Rites of passage! Buddy love, Whydunit, The fool triumphant, Institutionalized, Superhero -- some details here http://writercises.livejournal.com/313019.html). Hum, add obstacles in there as a heading. Scene-sequel, while it does include steps, always feels like a very fine-grained approach to individual scenes to me. But use what you like!

Next comes the fun part. Mark out 10 or so rows under those headings. And take one column at a time, and fill in possible alternatives. That's right, dream up ten possible settings you would like to write about. Then forget those, and move on to the next column. Dream up ten characters you would like to write about. Fill in your table. As much as possible, don't think about the other columns while you are focusing on one.

This is where some random stimulation or metaphoric help can come in handy, incidentally. Random stimulation? Flip your dictionary, or try Wikipedia, a quotes site, or some such, and see what their random search pops up. Use that to kick your ideas. Metaphoric help? Well, the six most commonly used business metaphors in the US are journey, game, war, machine, organism, and society. So people tend to think of what they are doing in terms of some kind of journey. Or game! Sometimes war. Or perhaps they see it all as some kind of war? Then there are the various living comparisons, and naturally, social comparisons. Do you see some possible variations to fill in the boxes in your matrix from thinking about those metaphors?

When you have your matrix filled in, here's the next step. Using dice or something else to get a random selection, pick one from each column. That's right, just like role playing, but using your ideas. Pick a setting, character(s), and the rest. Don't discard it because you hadn't thought about your military character being stuck in a beauty parlor -- play with that idea, and see what happens!

All right? Set up the columns, fill in the rows, and then mix-n-match to see what kind of tale you are going to do today.

It's one way of organizing the generation of alternatives, and then forcing you to consider some combinations that you might not normally come up with. They may not all work for you, but it's something to try. And even when it doesn't work, you can look at what's not working, and use that to learn something. So you can't lose!

Write?

TECH: Scene and Sequel Plus?

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Original Posting 16 Feb 2013

Yesterday, when I was pontificating about a way to generate ideas, I mentioned that I don't really think scene and sequel by itself is enough to make a story. But then I got to wondering just why I thought that. So, if you'll lend me some bits, let me see if I can make that notion a bit clearer.

I mean, scene and sequel is one of those building blocks that's really useful for writers. Especially if something doesn't seem to be working, sitting down and making sure you have the pieces -- scene goal, obstacles, and disaster at the end, followed by reaction, thinking, and making a decision as to what to do next -- can help pinpoint problems. Skipping something, or getting them out of order, makes the story feel uneven. But... Just having scene-sequel, scene-sequel, scene-sequel sequences grinding along isn't really a full story.

I think it's a little bit of the strategic-tactical division. When you're fighting a war, the strategic goal is the big picture, we need to win, thing. But the tactical pieces making that up are landing on the beach, take that hill, blow up that factory -- a pile of little steps that together make a journey. So if scene-sequel is the tactical view, what's the strategic picture? That's where I drag in the 20 Master Plots or other lists like that, along with the structural arrangements of 3 acts, seven point structure, Hero's Journey, or the Save the Cat beats.

Now, between these big pictures and the fine details of the scene-sequel, we toss in some extra events to fill, but... It's still not enough. We also need the setting, which is where the history and world building and so forth come into the picture. Think of it as the stage setting, the backdrop and stage props, that are going to make the action feel real.

And, of course, we also need characters. That's the other big pole in the tent, I think. Along with what is going to happen -- that overall plot plus the little steps of scene and sequel -- who is doing this? Who are the actors on our stage? And as the method actor will say, what's their motivation? What do they believe they are doing on this stage, why are they crunching along the steps of scene and sequel?

Okay? We need to have the big picture -- what kind of a story is this? Who are the actors? Where does it take place? Then we need several scene and sequel sequences. For each of these, we'll need some characters, in a place, and what's going on there. Which is where the fine details of scene and sequel help us, as we lay out each step in the grand plot that ties it all together.

One way to practice this? I'd suggest taking a look at comics -- not the illustrated magazines, the short shows on TV. Shaun the sheep, Spongebob Squarepants, the Penguins from Madagascar, or even old ones -- Roadrunner? Whatever. They almost always are good illustrations of an overall plot -- getting apples from those rascally pigs -- and a whole bunch of little scene-sequel steps. They're fun, too.

So there you go. Take one wide view, with setting, characters, and genre/plot. Break it down with one of the plot structures to get the intermediate scenes. Then tackle each of those scenes with the scene-sequel chain of scene goal, obstacles, disaster, reaction, thinking, and decision. That gives you a pretty good set of tools to tackle figuring out which way the story is going.

Or, of course, you can do it by the seat-of-your-pants, in what is known as panting or discovery writing. Just let those words flow, and see what turns up.

Write?

FILL: To Think Or Not, that is...

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Original Posting 22 Feb 2013

Just some musing in the general vicinity.

Well, that's kind of interesting. Thinking about it, at one extreme we have Descartes, who decided he didn't trust any of it, and ended up starting with "cognito ergo summa" if I remember right (something like thinking, therefore existence). From there, he tried to deduce the world.

At the other extreme, we have various and sundry examples of people trusting too much in other people, the demagogues and so forth. Of course their leaders are more than willing to give their opinions about all and sundry. Whether anybody pays attention to them or not.

Indeed, the logical fallacy of ad hominem points to this very human tendency to assume that a bad person can't possibly say something good or true, and the matching mistake of thinking that good, smart, or whatever people must be correct in whatever they say, even when they are being foolish.

Unfortunately, as we know too well, good people can say idiotic things, and bad people whether we like it or not sometimes say good things.

Oddly, I think fiction may be a great training bed for thinking about this. After all, most fiction has characters that we know and like facing various problems and quandaries. Unlike the demagogues who simply announce, "This is what you should think," our characters in fiction need to be convincing, even when we can see all of their emotions and thinking.

So, yes, it is all too human to think "Well, if [insert admirable person of choice here] thinks this way, maybe I should, too?" It's also very reassuringly human to challenge that simple claim, to point out that just because someone is admirable does not mean that they've got a lock on clear thinking, reasonable statements, and so forth.

Thank you. Or maybe that should be think you, too?

TECH: Digging up plots (a.k.a. moldy oldie reruns!)

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Original Posting 27 Feb 2013

This is actually three well-aged articles from Writer's Digest. Nancy Kress in June, July, and August 1997 wrote about how to reuse plots. Basically, she's pointing out that all the good plots have already been done. And redone, and done again. That doesn't mean you can't use it again, it just means you need to know how to make it fresh again. Part of that is knowing what the archetype is. You need to know what the key questions are, and then answer them your way, making the characters and situation and setting your very own.

So let's take a look at the archetypal plots, and what you're going to want to use for each of them.

Pages 8 to 11 of the June 1997 Writer's Digest have the article "Haven't We Met before?" Here is where Nancy Kress introduces the concept of archetypal plots. Basic, universal plots that can be used like a pattern or model or blueprint for you to wring variations on. She actually starts out with a very sketchy description of archetypal plot: "a character becomes discontented with where he lives. He journeys to some other place that at first seems much better. But over time the defects of the second place make themselves known. The character returns home, better able to appreciate what he had."

This is an oldie! It's also widely used and reused. 17th-century European folktale about country mouse and city mouse? Sure. The Wizard of Oz? Of course! Bright Lights, Big City, Maybe I'll Go Home Next Month, the Dispossessed... Lots of variations.

Next, Nancy starts into a list of five archetypal plots. She admits that such lists are always open to criticism and carping, but the point is to give you something to work with, not whether or not it's a perfect list. So here's the first five:

1. Harry Victorious. Harry decides he wants something. He sets out to get it, encountering obstacles. Eventually, he overcomes the obstacles, achieves his desire, and returns satisfied. The hero on a quest, getting whatever it was he wanted. The questions involved are:
-- What does the character want?
-- What are the obstacles in the way?
-- How does the character overcome the obstacles?
-- How can you make the victory graphic and satisfying?

2. Harry Defeated. Harry want something, overcomes all the obstacles to getting it, and either comes close but fails or gets what he wanted but can't keep it. One way or another, Harry loses his desire. Why? Sometimes Harry deserves it. Sometimes the great defeat is a tragic victory. Sometimes the defeat isn't total, so Harry loses the desire, but gains something else. The key is to make sure the reader gets a compelling reward for suffering along. The questions?
-- What does the character want?
-- What are the obstacles in the way?
-- How will he try to overcome the obstacles, and why will he fail?
-- What does he or the readers get in compensation?

3. Harry Wins, Sort of. This time Harry fights the obstacles and gets his desire, but it's not as wonderful as he thought, either because the cost was too high or he misunderstood the situation. Sometimes "I-got-it-but-I-didn't-want-to-pay-the-price" is balanced by fulfilling a secondary character. Along the way, consider these questions.
-- What does the character want?
-- What is the cost to the character for this?
-- How do the cost and the benefits balance for him? How can you show this?
-- Do you want to soften the defeat by letting secondary characters win? Why did they succeed while the protagonist fails?

4. Harry Loses by Winning. Harry want something desperately. He strives to overcome all obstacles, attains it, but then... He starts changing it to what he had before, because that's all he knows how to handle. Satirical, funny, or just plain despairing. Be careful with this one.

Whoops. Nancy forgot to give us a list of questions. But it's pretty obvious.
-- What does the character want?
-- What are the obstacles?
-- What's the character do to overcome them?
-- How will you show us how the character reacts to winning by returning to what they had before?

5. Harry Wins by Losing. Harry doesn't want something to happen. He fights against it. But it happens. And slowly, Harry realizes that the new situation is better than he thought it was. This is an appealing plot because we all like to hope. Questions to consider?
-- What does my character want? (Or not want to lose?)
-- What insuperable obstacles make it impossible for him to get it, or keep it?
-- What does he choose, or settle for instead? What are the drawbacks? Remember, the character needs to lose.
-- What are the hidden advantages of losing? How can you show the character and the reader slowly that this is a good deal?

Okay? Harry wins, loses, wins but it costs too much, wins but can't stand winning, or loses and wins it all. They're all good stories. Add setting, characters, specifics and other twists and turns, and make it yours.

Coming soon, the next two articles. Four more archetypal plots, all starring good old Harry. In the meantime, you might consider how you would use these five in your writing.

Oh, and write!

EXERCISE: And then what happens?

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Original Posting 3 March 2013

In my magic mirror, I can see... Someone's fingers are just itching to write a story! So, here are some possible prompts. Pick a number from 1 to 6, then see which one you have selected! Then build up that scene and write a little story.

1. When the main character is offered a job, that's good. But when they start work, they are really attracted to someone in the office. That same day, the special person suggests spending the night together. What should the main character do?

2. The main character got to the airport early and checked in to get the window seat he or she wanted. But on the airplane, an old man asks the main character to change seats with his wife so they can sit together. The main character really doesn't want to sit in the middle. What does the main character do?

3. The main character's family says they haven't seen enough of him or her, and they want to visit. Just before they arrive, the main character's mate announces that she or he has been unfaithful. What happens next?

4. The main character has been out of work for six months. A large organization involved in practices that the main character disagrees with offers to hire him or her. What should the main character do? Note: criminal organization? Weapons maker? Feel free to make your organization and their practices whatever will make your main character have to struggle.

5. A friend asks the main character to write a reference. However, the main character feels that friend is poorly qualified. What should the main character do?

6. Soon after the main character's spouse dies, the 19-year-old daughter asks permission for her boyfriend to stay overnight. What does the main character do?

All right? Sex at work, airplane seating, unfaithful mates, work that doesn't agree with you, friendship or honesty, overnight guests. These are mostly based on dilemmas from the game A Question of Scruples. Of course, your story will be based on your thinking.

Have fun!

For bonus points: What was that early TV show that had a woman who looked through her magic mirror at us? I see Bobby... and Jane... Gene, quit picking on Anthony!