TECH: Scenes (1)

[mbarker]

Original Posting 2022/3/12

Hi, all. I noticed in my to be read pile I had this intriguing little tome. It's the Novelist's Essential Guide to Crafting Scenes by Raymond Obstfeld, and I think I'll walk through it, and share my notes with you. So... let's get started!

Chapter 1 is entitled What a scene is - and isn't. He starts out by reminding us that when we think of a movie (or any story) we generally don't remember the whole thing. No, we focus on moments, little pieces. Scenes, by any other name!

So what's a scene? Well, in theater, it means action in a single setting. In fiction, we tend to use the same rule, but... you could write a more complex scene spanning multiple settings. So what defines a scene? Raymond says it is the focus, the purpose. He suggests these are common purposes:
- giving the reader information needed to further plot
- Show the conflict between characters
- Highlight some specific trait or action to develop a particular character
- Creating suspense
Often, scenes combine these purposes. So, the writer needs to know why the scene exists and makes it memorable to justify it.

Memorable? Something needs to surprise the reader! Readers have expectations about the scenes, and you need to play with those expectations. Make the scene unexpected! Fresh dialog, an unusual situation, or maybe just wonderful style?

However... Raymond points out that while you want to make your scene do all this when it's finished, sometimes you need to just dive in and start writing. Then go back and make it wonderful.

Then Raymond reminds us that good writing often depends on misdirection, on keeping the reader interested in one thing while you slide some other goodies in where they aren't looking.

He finishes this chapter with a note that scenes are part of a bigger work, and need to be considered in how they contribute to that, too...

And for fun, he gives us a little workshop to finish the chapter. Basically, suppose you have a scene, and you are trying to decide if it belongs in your story or not. Well, fill in one of these four sentences.

1. Plot. The purpose of this scene is (finish the sentence!)
2. Character. When the reader finishes this scene, he should feel (finish it!)
3. Theme. When the reader finishes this scene, he should think ???
4. Suspense. When the reader finishes this scene, he should wonder (what?)

If you can't fill in one of these, what is that scene doing there?

There you go! Chapter one done, and 14 more to go! 

EXERCISE: What do you say?

[mbarker]

Original Posting 2022/3/13

We recently had lunch with the wife of a man we have known for quite a few years. He had died recently, less than a month before. And there's the puzzle, which I thought you might like to play with in your story...

1. Imagine a set of characters, and their interactions. Perhaps they have taken trips together, or whatever. And...

2. One of the characters has died. And now, the others are getting together for a lunch, dinner, night out... you decide what they are doing...

3. And tell us what they say to each other. Perhaps one of them has photos from their travels to share? Or at the very least, memories...

I suppose it's a bit dark, but we actually had a pretty good meal. We talked about the various times we had traveled together, and what they remembered. We also looked at photo albums which his wife had kept, and laughed about those young folks and what all they got into...

So, take that party of characters for a time, and see how they deal with the death of one of their members.

Write! 

TECH: Crafting Scenes (2)

[mbarker]

Original Posting 2022/3/24

Okay, here we go with chapter 2 of the Novelist’s Essential Guide to Crafting Scenes by Raymond Obstfeld. Title? Jump right in — the words are fine: Starting a scene. Raymond starts by reminding us that like a complete story, each scene has a beginning, middle, and end. So, what is the mission, the goal, of the beginning?

Simple, really. Hook the reader! Make the reader want to keep reading. Some of them also introduce conflict, establish stakes, or develop the theme, but the key thing is taht it makes the reader want more. So how do we do that?

One method is beginning in the middle, aka in media res. Grab the readers interest and make them care, then go back and fill in the details. Or sometimes start just after the action that kicks things off. 

Or maybe you like dialogue? That’s action, too, you know? Which gets the reader involved in trying to figure out the context, and it’s interesting, and helps a little with characterization. 

Or maybe you want to use a jump cut? After all, you may have just finished one scene, and now… give us a new bit of action or dialogue that seems disconnected from that old scene. Like a jump cut in a movie.

Yet another approach is the “big promise” opening. Often melodramatic, but it doesn’t have to be. Just give us a broad sweeping statement or claim, and make it interesting enough that we want to see how you follow it up.

Now, sometimes, you may want to just start at the “natural” beginning. For example, a description of setting when the setting plays a major role in what’s coming. Or maybe with someone waking up, although watch for the cliche… Or you might start with the catalyst action that kicks off the story.

Of course, another beginning is having one character describe another character. Often a side character describing the main character. You get immediate suspense about who is this character. 

Which brings us to beginning with character description. Usually, either self-description in first person POV, or maybe just description via third person POV. Fairly often, the self-description is… shall we say unreliable?  Not always, but often.

Hum, what about a dream? Well, Raymond warns that they can be irritating to readers, when you reveal that it was all a dream. But they can work.

So, wrap up. How do you know which one to use to start a scene? You don’t. You may have to try several different openings, and then pick the best.

Workshop? Raymond suggests you start with an opening line, and see where it takes you. Write an opening sentence that guarantees the reader will want to read the rest of the paragraph. Maybe more than one, then pick out the best. And then write the rest of the paragraph.

His suggestion for an exercise? Take this opening line, and write the next three sentences. Try writing it three times, once with a menacing tone, once with a comedic tone, and one with a combination. The opening line?

“Someone’s sitting there,” the man in the uniform said as Bill started to straddle the stool.

There you go! Write!

TECH: Crafting Scenes (3)

[mbarker]

Original Posting 2022/3/28

Here we go again! This time, Raymond turns his sights on size. How long should your scenes be? The title of chapter 3 is Size-wise: Determining Scene Length. He starts off by suggesting that beginning writers tend to make their scenes either too long or too short. Too long destroys the pace and momentum, while too short means readers can’t get involved. So…

What’s the right length? As long as the reader is paying attention and not one bit longer. Two things, the purpose of the scene and its position in the scenes, help determine the right length.

Back in chapter one, Raymond talked about the purposes of scenes. Here, we’re looking at how that affects length. Not so much word counts, as how long can you keep the reader’s attention. Attention span is the key here! Suggestions…

Go short for information dumps, scenes that explain the plot. Also, keep technical information short! Third, scenic descriptions can be short. Finally, erotic scenes should be short, unless you are deliberately trying for comedy. For all of these, imply or suggest, more than giving us every single detail ad nauseum.

Long? Conversations, especially when they reveal character. Emotional scenes, too, can be good at length. Suspense! When you keep the reader dangling, waiting, wondering…

So, that’s some suggestions or hints about length. What about positioning? Well, Raymond suggests it’s like visual arts. Contrasting elements bring out the differences, while similar elements tend to blend. So, put some contrast in to keep it interesting.

His final word, or summary, of this chapter, starts with a reminder. It’s simple. You don’t have to determine the length right away! When you start to write a scene, just write it. Then, later, you can stretch it out or trim it down to suit.

His workshop starts by pointing out that every scene has a hot spot, a moment that the scene is built around. So, he suggests, start by finding that hot spot, and draw a box around it (or highlight it, for electronic media). Then start reading backwards from there. Does that paragraph contribute to the hot spot? Underline or highlight anything that you think might not be useful. Then read the paragraph before that, and repeat. By going backwards, you get a different view of what the writing contributes to this scene, and can be more objective about trimming or changing anything that doesn’t help.

So, there you go! How long should that scene be? Well… 

Write!