writercises | Entries tagged with audience

Original Posting 2021/01/21

Writer's Digest, July 1991, pages 33-37, has an article by Robert W. Bly about your book proposal. Now, it's aimed at nonfiction books and traditional publishing, but it's still kind of interesting to consider. Basically, he suggests that publishers have five key questions that you need to answer. How do you convince them that your idea for a book is a great idea that they want to pursue. So, what are the five questions?

1. Is there a large enough audience interested in this topic to justify publishing the book?

This is probably one of the places where indie publishing and traditional publishing may diverge. Traditional publishing wants a large enough audience. Indie publishing can be more targeted. Still, you need to think about your audience no matter which route you are taking. Who do you think will be reading this? How many of them are there?

2. Is this a book – or a magazine article?

Bly has an example of an idea that he had that didn't quite work as a book. The time to write and publish a book, and the amount of material, just didn't match. But, it made a good booklet. So take a look at your idea, and think about what the right avenue is for it. Book, article, booklet, nowadays we need to add blog posting, podcast, even YouTube video as possible outlets.

So how can you figure it out? Well, first, see if there are other books like it. Check out the library to see what else has been written about it. If there's lots of stuff, then the topic is pretty meaty, there's a good chance that you have enough material. Third, take a look at your topic, and try organizing the information into chapters. How would you explain the topic and present the information? What are the major categories? Go ahead and make up an outline. This can help you figure out whether you've got a book or just an article.

Incidentally, this same approach can help you decide if you have a novel or short story! After all, if you start to sketch out the ideas, and it's just one short notion, maybe you don't have a novel there.

3. What's different – or better – about your book?

Go ahead and put together an overview of your idea. What is the book about, who is it written for, and what's going to be in it. And then make sure to tell yourself and the editor why your book is unique, different, better. You need a hook, something that makes your book stand out. You might want to list some competing books, and consider how yours is different.

4. Will people pay the price for this book?

Bly includes some price figures for hardcover nonfiction, trade paperback, and so forth. Again, this is more important for traditional publishing, but even indie publishing needs to consider are people going to put down their money or not. What will people get, will they decide that this was a good investment? I know some people have pointed out that you're competing for their beer money. Or maybe it's their relaxation time.

5. Why should the publisher hire you to write it?

Why are you uniquely qualified to write this book? Consider your writing credentials, and your expert credentials. If you're submitting a proposal for traditional publishing, tell the publisher about your expertise as an author. Also, point out to them why you are an authority, your experience makes you the right person to write this book. Admittedly, you can do research, and you don't have to know everything. But you do need some knowledge to write the book.

So, how big is the audience, how big is the idea, what's special about it, will people be willing to spend their time and money on it, and why are you the right person to write this book. Five big questions, and thinking through your answers to them can help you decide whether this idea is something you want to do right now, or maybe put away for later.

By the way, there's a sidebar on page 35 that lists several sections for your book proposal. It starts with the title page, just a cover sheet with the title, name of the author, and contact information. Next is the overview, what is your book about, who's going to read it, why is it important to them, and what is different about your book. Third is specifications, how big you think it's going to be, how many chapters, graphics, anything else about the book you expect to write. Fourth is the market, who's going to buy it, how many of them are there, and why are they going to buy it. Fifth is promotion, how do you think it should be promoted. These are suggestions for the publisher, not necessarily things you're going to do yourself. Six is competition. What other books are like this, and how is yours better? Seven is your bio, writing credentials, and your qualifications for this book. Finally, the eighth part is an outline or table of contents.

It's interesting to think about your fiction novel idea in terms of these questions. And just think, if you're doing indie publishing, you know the publisher, so you might have an easier job convincing him that you know how to answer all these questions. Still, you probably need to make sure you have the answers for him.

Exercise? The obvious one is to take your work in progress or an idea you've had, and try working your way through these five questions, putting together the answers. When you get done, you may want to go ahead and write the article, book, or whatever!

mbarker

Reposted 10/30/2020

Posted Saturday, October 29, 2016 7:15 PM

(You may think you saw this before! You're right! It's deja vu all over again! Still, I think it might be helpful as we rev up for nanowrimo!)

All right. Nanowrimo is just around the corner, but we've still got a couple of days to get prepared. And looking at the book Save the Cat! By Blake Snyder, I think we can get some pointers.

After all, Blake starts out in chapter 1 talking about the logline. The one line answer to the question what's it about. What's the heart of the story? In particular, you need to include four components.

The first one is what Blake calls irony, or the hook. Something unexpected, emotionally intriguing, something that makes you want to read that story.

The second one is a compelling mental picture. Something that sparks our imagination.

The third one is the one that you may not think you need. A good logline for the movie industry suggests who the audience is and how much it's going to cost. For your story, you probably want to think about the audience. Cost… Well, how big is this story?

Fourth, and final, a really good logline usually includes a killer title. Not generic, the headline of a specific story.

So spend a little time figuring out what your story's going to be about. You need some ideas?

1. Switcheroo -- take a dramatic, thriller, or horror story and make it a comedy. Or, take a comedy story and turn it into a dramatic, thriller, or horror story. Switch those genres, and see what happens!

2. Fish out of water -- name five places that no one would send an FBI agent to solve a crime, and then send an FBI agent there. Private eye, secret agent, teenager -- take a character and put them somewhere unexpected.

3. What kind of a school? Name five examples of unusual kinds of schools, camps, classrooms. What happens when someone tries to put your students in that school?

4. Opposites attract? Take a couple of people who would naturally be on opposite sides of a burning issue, and get them together.

5. Are you after me? Pick an unusual person, animal, or thing that someone might suspect of being a serial killer, murderer, arsonist, or something else. Why did your character suspect them? And what is your character going to do about it?

Psst? Let me toss in that Marion Zimmer Bradley said a good story is

1. A likable character
2. Overcomes almost insuperable odds (opposition, conflict!)
3. By his or her own efforts
4. Achieving a worthwhile goal.

I kind of think that filling in those four parts also makes a pretty good statement about what your story is.

All right. Once you've got your idea, your logline, you probably need to think about the genre. Maybe you already did, but take a minute and figure out which of these "standard" stories you're telling. It'll help you to figure out what needs to go into it.

1. Monster in the house -- there's some limited area, and a monster is loose in it.
2. The Golden fleece -- a quest by any other name.
3. Out of the bottle -- wish fulfillment.
4. Dude with a problem -- an ordinary guy in extraordinary circumstances.
5. Rites of passage -- change of life.
6. Buddy love -- two people. Odd couple, starcrossed lovers, all kinds of two-somes.
7. Whydunit -- a mystery!
8. The fool triumphant -- when the clown wins, we all cheer.
9. Institutionalized -- the system or the individual?
10. Superhero -- the extraordinary guy in ordinary circumstances.

20 master plots, these 10 genres, add in your own favorites. Right now cross genre mash ups seem to be popular, so if you really want to do a steam punk
romance with vampires, go for it. But whatever it is, figure out the general type of story.

Now, with your idea and genre in hand, Blake suggests you focus on whom it's about. Who is the hero? What do they want? Who is going to have the most conflict, the longest and hardest emotional journey, and a primal goal that we can all root for? Who can the readers identify with, learn from, be compelled to follow, believe deserves to win, and has a primal reason that the readers will buy? What's the key to your good guy and your bad guy?

Idea, genre, characters. The next step is where Blake recommends a 15 step pattern. His very own beats. Some people use the hero's journey, other people use three act structure, or a seven step story structure. One way or another, a lot of people recommend hanging your story on a standard scaffold.

Blake Snyder's 15 Beats
1. Opening image
2. Statement of the theme
3. Set up -- who are the characters, and what's the hero missing?
4. Catalyst -- What kicks off the action?
5. Debate -- wait a minute?
6. Break into act two -- The hero takes that step
7. The B story -- changeup
8. Fun and games -- let's try it out
9. Midpoint -- raise the stakes, hit a false victory
10. The bad guys close in
11. All is lost! The mentor dies, friends turn away
12. The dark night of the soul.
13. The break into act three. Aha! There is hope!
14. The finale. The climax. The hero wins.
15. The final image

You can find the hero's journey or the seven step story structure out there on the web. Briefly, the hero's journey looks like:

1. Ordinary world
2. Call to adventure
3. Refusal of the call
4. Meeting the mentor
5. Crossing the first threshold
6. Tests, allies, enemies
7. Approach to the inmost cave
8. Supreme ordeal
9. Reward (seizing the sword)
10. The road back
11. Resurrection
12. Return with elixir

The seven step story structure is

1. Hook: where does the character start?
2. Plot turn one: what is the call to action?
3. Pinch one: what makes this difficult for the character?
4. Midpoint: when does the character quit reacting and start acting?
5. Pinch two: what makes this absolutely necessary for the character?
6. Plot turn two: what is the final bit of information, the aha! that lets the
character save the day?
7. Resolution or climax: where does the character end? Do they save the day, or
lose it all?

Heck, here's a quickie 3 act, 2 door version:

1. Inciting incident
2. The first door of no return
3. Conflicts and complications
4. The second door of no return
5. The climax

The key to all of these is realizing that they are suggesting some key steps in the plot, some scenes that almost always are there. Show where the character is starting, and what kicks them out of that. Make them struggle, and then... take the first step! Now, in the middle, there should be tests, struggles, conflicts, leading up to... taking the second step! And, now, we have the climax, the point of the whole thing.

But aren't there more than (seven, 12, 15) scenes? Of course there. Blake suggests that most movies have about 40. So you need to add more scenes around
and between the key ones. This is where Blake suggests using a cork board, index cards, and pushpins. But you can also do this on paper. A lot of people simply write one sentence for each scene, and move them around as needed. I used to recommend "stepping stone" diagrams. Put your beginning at the top of the page, and your ending at the bottom, then put bubbles in between with a
phrase for each scene. This works reasonably well for short stories, but for longer works, the page is likely to get pretty crowded. Whatever works for you.

Blake does suggest an interesting structure for his cards. He starts off with the setting, where are we. Under this is the basic action of the scene in simple sentences. Characters in conflict, mostly. And at the very bottom,
there's a plus/minus which is where you write the emotional change that occurs in the scene. The other one is >< and beside that you should write the conflict, what someone wants, and what's blocking them.

You might also want to think about scene and sequel, the idea that we have a scene full of action followed by a sequel where the character reacts, analyzes, thinks about what to do next, and makes a decision.

Idea, genre, characters, broadbrush outline, and a list of scenes, with setting, action, emotional change, and conflict? Hey, if you have all that...

YOU'RE READY TO WRITE!

Psst? I'll write something later about brainstorming before writing scenes. For right now, just get your scenes in order!

Nanowrimo, here we come!

mbarker

Original Posting 5/27/2019

Writer's Digest, January 1994, on pages 44-46 has an article by Hal Blythe and Charlie Sweet talking about anecdotes. As the subtitle says, "Anecdotes told by one character to another are an effective means of accomplishing a host of storytelling objectives."

They start out by recounting part of Jaws, when Robert Shaw and Richard Dreyfuss are waiting for the great white shark to attack, and Shaw tells a war story. Even while it lets us the viewers catch our breath, it adds to the tension. Now, having characters tell anecdotes to other characters is fairly common in stories, on paper, stage, and movies. So, how can you add this tool to your toolbox? Why would you want to? Well, it at least provides variety, right? But it also has a number of other advantages.

First, it helps you deliver information. Sure, writers may get away with infodumping, but playwrights and others usually dramatize information. Even little stories about other characters can help with this.

Second, anecdotes are engaging for the audience! Show, right? Well, anecdotes make things very clear. "In short, the more your audience can picture what's happening (instead of trying to decipher abstractions), and the more they wonder about what's going on, the more involved though be in your story." Simple, right?

Third, anecdotes often are used to illustrate themes. "An effective means of simplifying a difficult concept is to create a narrative that dramatizes your story's major insights." These anecdotes "translate complex ideas into more easily understood situations, characters, and actions."

Fourth, anecdotes can deepen characterization. Readers need insight into characters, and a well constructed anecdote can give them that insight. Often, they can explain motivation.

Fifth, anecdotes can save words. You can accomplish multiple goals. Exposition, engaging the audience, characterization, and theme? All in a short anecdote.

So, what if you wanted to let your audience in on a character's motivation for a dream? Well, you could just describe it, perhaps in a flashback. But you want to emphasize it, so, think about dramatizing it. When one character tells another character about something, that anecdote gets a little extra polish. They provide an example in their article. Engagement, exposition, theme, characterization, all compressed into a few words. Not bad!

Now, to make the-story-within-the-story most effective, use it sparingly. If a short story has four or five anecdotes, people are likely to notice. You can vary the presentation, picking a different speaker and listener, and maybe changing the length. Remember that the anecdotes don't have to be autobiographical every time, for that matter, they don't have to be about humans. The old stories about animals may be just the right anecdote for your story. Do try to have your anecdotes serve multiple functions. It's not just content. "The fact that a character chooses to tell a story, how he relates it, and to whom he tells it can all divulge something about the teller."

So, kind of like the cream filling in an Oreo, think about adding a-story-within-a-story, an anecdote, to your story! Where can it add just the right touch?

tink

mbarker

Original Posting Aug. 28, 2018

(whoops? It looks as if I wrote this, but forgot to send it? Okay, let's kick it out there...)

Sorry about the delay. Lots of other things going on, and I lost track. So, this is me reading Story: Substance, Structure, Style, and the Principles of Screenwriting by Robert McKee rather slowly. Let's see, principles not rules, forms not formulas, and archetypes not stereotypes. So what happens next?

Story is about thoroughness, not shortcuts.

Remember, he's talking about his book, Story, and about screenwriting or screenplays. He starts out this little commentary by pointing out that a screenplay may take as much time to write as a novel. Screenplay pages often have a lot of white on them, which may mislead people into thinking it's faster writing. However, Robert says that it takes the same "density of world, character, and story." Yes, film writers spend a lot of time cutting their text down to the fewest possible words, but they're trying to express a lot in those few words. "Economy is key, brevity takes time, and excellence means perseverance."

Story is about the realities, not the mysteries of writing.

Oddly enough, there are no secrets about writing. Aristotle wrote The Poetics 23 centuries ago, and every library has the secrets on public display. It may even look easy! But, trying scene by scene to make a story work, it's hard. For one thing, everything is out front for a screenplay. There's no authorial voice, no soliloquy.

Which is interesting, especially for those of us who may be writing other genres. Do we really want to "hide behind our words," as Robert puts it. Or do we want to try to be as upfront as the screen writer?

Story is about mastering the art, not second-guessing the marketplace.

Knockoffs and retread stories are unfortunately common. But, the real winners are top quality, new stories.

Story is about respect, not disdain, for the audience.

Ouch. Robert suggests that bad writing usually stems from either an idea that you feel compelled to prove or an emotion that you're driven to express. On the other hand, good writing is driven by a desire to touch the audience. Simple, right?

Look at the audience. Admit that they have an incredible capacity for response. Robert says not only are they amazingly sensitive, but their collective IQ jumps 25 points! They're smart, they're focused, and they're waiting for you. You need to understand the reactions and anticipations. You need to satisfy their desires.

I think I'm going to stop there again. Thoroughness, reality, mastering the art, and respecting the audience. Well, he's certainly setting a high bar for what this book is all about.

mbarker.livejournal.com

Original Posting May 4, 2016

On one of the websites I follow (Baen's Bar), someone was bemoaning the fact that they easily dashed off a short review of a book recently when someone asked about it, but if they sit down to write a review, they find themselves stumped as to what to say. Now, aside from the possibility that this person has what I tend to consider performance anxiety holding them back, I got to considering that I haven't seen much guidance on how to write a review. Not that I've looked very hard, but...

Then I started thinking about what I would suggest as guidelines for writing a review of a fiction book. I think the first thing might be simply to let us know what kind of a book it is, what genre, or perhaps what books it resembles. After all, some of us prefer science fiction, fantasy, mystery, romance, or some other brand. And even there... A fantasy reader might prefer urban fantasy, epic fantasy, or some other splinter of the field. Letting us know fairly quickly what style of book this is helps.

Related to that, you may want to talk about who would like to read this book. Young adult, person looking for light entertainment, someone who wants a heavy puzzle? Some hints as to the kind of person who will enjoy this book.

Then there's the meat of most reviews, a general sketch of the characters, setting, plot... The bones of the book. Do avoid giving away any really important surprises or twists, okay? I mean, if you start describing the plot, and then the surprises -- stop after getting us interested in the plot, and let us be surprised!

Hum. If the book is part of a series, it's probably worth pointing out whether this volume is an entry point for new readers, a standalone book that doesn't need knowledge of the others, or one of those that really requires you to steep yourself in these others to understand it.

Who would be interested in this book, and why would it interest them? I suppose those are the two key questions as I see it that provide structure to a review.

What do you think? Do you write reviews of books you have read? What do you do with them? What structure, questions, or whatever do you use when you write one?

tink

Current Mood: backwards

mbarker.livejournal.com

[I know, it's long, but... I thought you might want it for your Halloween writing pleasure! Don't forget, we've got a contest running! So you might just be in the mood to write a story -- and Blake has some advice about how to do that.]

Blake Snyder, in his book on screenwriting with the title "Save the Cat!" describes a process for writing that you might find useful. This is my summary. For more details, of course, read the book. I think you'll find it worthwhile.

1. What's it about? Summarize your story in one line. Blake suggests that great loglines -- one line summaries -- have four key qualities. They're ironic, meaning they hook your interest. They create a compelling mental picture. They tell you who the audience is. Finally, they have a killer title. That's right, a one line summary plus a killer title!

2. What genre is it? Audiences want the same thing only different. The way you do that is figure out what it's like. Now Blake doesn't recommend the standard genres -- romance, western, and so on. He's got 10 that he thinks covers things pretty well. You're welcome to come up with your own, or use his.

1. Monster in the house: a confined space, somebody did something wrong, and there is a monster loose!
2. Golden fleece: the quest! A hero, their search, and their internal growth.
3. Out of the bottle: a wish fulfilled, and then...
4. Dude with a problem: an ordinary guy in extraordinary circumstances.
5. Rites of passage: growing up and other crises at any age
6. Buddy love: the odd couple learns to like it (romance fits in here!)
7. Whydunit: crime and digging into the hidden side of ourselves
8. Fool Triumphant: the underdog beats the institution
9. Institutionalized: the group versus the individual
10. Superhero: the extraordinary person in an ordinary world

3. Who is the main character? What is their primal goal? Who's the bad guy? What do they want? Use adjectives to let us know who these people are.

4. Fill out the beats. Blake uses 15 steps as the structure. I know, I know, that's so mechanical. But you can always start with these 15 points and then change it to suit yourself. Again, you'll need to read the book to get the details, but here's a short list:

1. Opening Image: the starting point
2. Theme Stated: someone poses a question or makes a statement that is the theme.
3. Set up: introduce the main characters, show what's missing, get ready
4. Catalyst: the life-changing event that makes things happen
5. Debate: the hero waffles. Do I really want to do this? Ask a question.
6. Break into two: the hero takes the step across the threshold
7. B Story: the love story, the other line.
8. Fun and games: the good stuff. Show off the idea and enjoy it.
9. Midpoint: up or down, the hero is at an extreme. Raise the stakes, and get set for all is lost a.k.a. false defeat.
10. Bad guys close in: the bad guys start to win.
11. All is lost: opposite of the midpoint, false defeat, everything has gone wrong. Often with a whiff of death, even in comedies.
12. Dark night of the soul. The main character really struggles.
13. Break into three: but maybe... The B story, the hero thinking it through, there is a solution.
14. Finale. The hero triumphs, the bad guys lose, and the world is changed.
15. Final image: usually the opposite of the opening image, shows that things have changed.

5. If that's too complicated, try this one. Blake suggests using a cork board and cards. 4 rows -- act one, act two, act two, and act three. Yes, act two gets split into two pieces, before the midpoint and after the midpoint. And there are five key parts -- the opening set piece, the break into two, the midpoint, the all is lost point near the end of the second act two, and the break into three. Aside from that, you can put about 10 cards on a row, 40 cards altogether. That's for a two-hour movie. Obviously, for short stories, multivolume epics, and other variations, you might have fewer or more cards.

Oh, and on each card besides a short description of the scene, you need two notations. One is the +/- notation. This is the emotional change in a character that happens in this scene. Second is the >< notation which is where you indicate the core conflict of this scene -- how are two people butting heads in this scene.

6. With those five, you're ready to write. So go ahead and write it out. Now in Blake's chapter 6, he suggests some helpful rules to consider:

1. Save the Cat: early in your story, have the hero do something so that the audience likes him and wants him to win.
2. The pope in the pool: exposition, infodumps, backstory are boring, so bury them in something funny or exciting.
3. Double mumbo-jumbo: audiences only accept one piece of magic. One incredible coincidence. Two times is too much.
4. Don't lay too much pipe: too much set up before you turn on the water
5. too much marzipan: too many great ideas spoil the broth
6. watch out for that glacier: slow danger is
7. covenant of the arc: every character must change
8. keep the press out: keep it cozy, not a worldwide mess

7. Last, but not least, revise your draft. Take a look at these questions

1. Does my hero lead? Strong goal stated, works to get information, active, tells people what to do?
2. Do I "talk the plot" or do the actors do things?
3. Is the bad guy bad enough? Does he challenge the hero?
4. Turn, turn, turn -- do things go faster and more intense as we move along? Are there more and more revelations, changes, and twists?
5. Emotional rainbow: mix it up!
6. Do you have flat dialogue? Take the names off and see if you can tell who's talking.
7. Take a step back: does the hero grow? Start far enough back to let the hero change.
8. A limp and an eye patch: even minor characters should be memorable. Speech, look, manner -- make them stand out.
9. Primal urges. Do your characters act out of primal, basic desires? Love, survival, protecting family, revenge?

That's it. Simple, right?

Now sit down and start writing.

Current Mood: furry

mbarker.livejournal.com

original posting 6 June 2011

While I was traveling recently, I acquired several books. Among them was a book with the title "Save the Cat!" by Blake Snyder. It's got a subtitle, "The Last Book on Screenwriting You'll Ever Need." I've seen it mentioned several places as a good book for writers, even if you're not interested in screenwriting. And being something of an omnivorous reader, well, I'm going to read it.
( Save the cat? )
More exercises, coming soon!

Current Mood: fiddly

mbarker.livejournal.com

Original Posting 11 Nov 2009

Writers' Digest, October 2004, pages 26 to 33, has a collection of short "nuggets of wisdom" related to getting published. Maria Schneider is the author of the compilation. Take a deep breath, and here we go:

"Don't strain to be trendy. Don't submit without knowing the magazine well. At least read a few issues first." Linda Landrigan

Just to keep moving ahead on these. This one almost seems contradictory, with the first hint suggesting that you avoid trying to fit the trends. For one thing, what you're reading or seeing published today actually is fairly well out of date compared to what the publishers are seeing today -- and by the time you write and submit and it goes through the publication processes, it will be much later. So go ahead and write what's important to you, without paying much attention to the hottest new trend.

On the other hand, Linda reminds us to check out the magazine or other market that we're submitting to. You get at least some idea of what the editors and the readers are looking for, and you can decide how well your writing fits into that. The latest splatter punk horror piece may not be well received at Ladies Home Journal (is there still a Ladies Home Journal?) Yes, mix-and-match genres are somewhat popular right now, but mystery magazines still want a mystery, romance still wants romance, and so forth. So at least consider the market, dig out a few copies and read them.

I think the real message here is try to find your readers. And that's tricky...

Current Mood: badoom

mbarker.livejournal.com

Original posting 30 August 2009

Writers' Digest, October 2004, pages 26 to 33, has a collection of short "nuggets of wisdom" related to getting published. Maria Schneider is the author of the compilation. Take a deep breath, and here we go:

"Knowing who reads the publication you're querying is crucial if you want to write for magazines. That's why many magazine writers often don't start by thinking up ideas and then looking for a magazine to suit them. Rather, they study a magazine to devise ideas appropriate to its readers." Writer's Market Companion

A different suggestion as to where to start. Rather than coming up with ideas, writing the stories or articles, and then trying to find a market, start with the market. Read the magazine, read the writer's guidelines, try to figure out what kind of readers ... what is the audience? Then write to the market.

Who reads this? What kind of stories, what kind of interests do they already have? Now can I write something that appeals to that? Or perhaps, in some cases, one decides that this magazine, this market, really is not what one wants to write, and moves on to other venues closer to one's heart?

Market research, one way or another. Do I want to write the kind of story that this magazine publishes? Then I can target that market. If I don't really want to write... zombie romances? or whatever... then perhaps I choose to avoid that market.

What do you want to write? What does the audience want to read? How much of a match (or mismatch) is there in those two pictures? Do you really want to try to convince readers that they should change their habits, or does it make better sense to look for readers that match your preferences? After all, there is nothing forcing readers to read your writing, is there? So you need to appeal to their interests, their desires...

Know your audience. Second-hand reflections in a magazine's selections are better than nothing?

Current Mood: reflected

mbarker.livejournal.com

Original posting 13 April 2009

Writer's Digest, August 2008, page 14 offers this writing prompt:

"Work the following elements into a single scene: a frightened animal, a civic leader, and a small audience." From the Pocket Muse: Endless Inspiration by Monica Wood.

Take a moment and list 10 animals -- and what frightened them? Then take another moment and list 10 civic leaders. What the heck, one more moment will get you a list of 10 small audiences. Now take a look at them and pick the animal, the leader, and the audience. Feel free to do some random combinations if you want to.

A frightened squirrel, the mayor of a small town, and the daughters of the American Revolution? What happens when they meet? Or what about...

Go ahead, write that scene.

Current Mood: desperation

mbarker.livejournal.com

original posting 26 April 2008

Make a Scene

Fair warning, I picked up a new book recently. I think it looks interesting, so I am planning to walk through it relatively slowly with postings here. The book is called Make a Scene: Crafting a Powerful Story One Scene at a Time by Jordan E. Rosenfeld, Writer's Digest Books 2008.

In the introduction, Jordan tells us that he's going to talk about scenes. And there's a useful little two paragraph bit at the end of the introduction:

"To help you avoid tactics that could bore the reader, I leave you with this caveat: the audience is watching. Never forget this. Even though the audience isn't actually present at the moment of your writing, you should write (and especially revise) as if the reader is sitting behind your desk, awaiting your finished pages. What this means is that, if your eye is ultimately on publication, is your job to entertain and inform the reader through clear writing and powerful scenes; if you are using fancy prose or showy strategies to amuse yourself or prove something, you aren't keeping your audience in mind."

"Though it's not wise to write first drafts with the super-ego breathing its foul, critical breath down your neck, your readers should be the most precious people imaginable after your characters. You see, most readers are not writers; they don't know how hard it is to write. They have very little patience or empathy for your struggles. They just want a good story, and they will put down one that doesn't hold their interest. It's up to you to ensure that they don't lose is in your story."

Interesting point, reminding us of the audience -- the reader. I know we've talked in the past about just who is the reader and what is their role in the business of writing. We usually come down to saying that you write to yourself as reader in some ways, or at least to an idealized friend who is sitting there listening to your story, waiting to hear how it comes out. Sometimes I think they must be very patient.

But I do think Jordan reminds us of an essential touchstone for our writing -- does it entertain the reader? Keep that in mind, and damn the critics, write!

Chapter 1: Functions of a Scene

Jordan starts out by saying that what makes stories really come to life is strong and powerful scenes. Unfortunately, he tells us that there really isn't a formula for scenes -- although he does offer to tell us some of the ingredients, and let us put them together creatively and see what happens.

[Remember W. Somerset Maugham's dictum? "There are three rules for writing the novel. Unfortunately, no one knows what they are." But at least Jordan offers us some ingredients for baking scenes . . . er, making scenes. I'm going to put chocolate chips in mine, they are good in most things :-]

So what's a scene? "Scenes are capsules in which compelling characters undertake significant actions in a vivid and memorable way that allows the events to feel as though they are happening in real time." Jordan then provides a list of basic ingredients:

Characters who are complex and layered, and who undergo change throughout your narrative
A point of view through which the scenes are seen
Memorable and significant action that feels as if it is unfolding in real time
Meaningful, revealing dialogue when appropriate
New plot information that advances your story and deepens characters
Conflict and drama that tests your characters and ultimately reveals their personalities
A rich physical setting that calls on all the senses and enables the reader to see and enter into the world you've created
A spare amount of narrative summary or exposition

The key to this is action -- events with people acting in what seems like real time -- but well-balanced scenes include many different things.

[people doing something, spiced with talk, a few clues, conflict, and served in a fine setting? Sounds like a fine tale, doesn't it?]

Along with these basics, Jordan promises that later chapters will talk about dramatic tension, scene subtext, scene intentions, pacing, and scene length. But that is later.

Jordan also talks about the difference between show and tell in a couple of ways. First, Jordan points out that telling, aka narrating or narrative summary, is explaining. And while we need a little, we need to avoid over-explaining -- trust your reader! Second, using detailed, specific sensory clues, we help the reader build visual images in the eye of their imagination. "You want the reader to see what you describe as vividly as you see your dreams at night." Narrative summary, however, is more like someone whispering in their ear, describing what's happening. You want your reader to feel as if they are in the scene, not having someone lecture to them about it.

This chapter ends with a very short section talking about scene length. Long scenes are 15 pages or more, and usually slow down the pace, or include a lot of detailed action or dialogue. Short scenes run less than ten pages. They can make the flow feel choppy, but are good for differentiating characters, picking up the pace, and making the reader feel the rush or urgency.

[or as the White Rabbit said, "Begin at the beginning and go on till you come to the end; then stop." Lewis Carroll.]

Jordan doesn't talk about the scenes that are just right, but they're probably in the range between 10 to 15 pages.

Jordan finishes his Chapter 1 with the comment that every scene needs to have a beginning, middle, and an end. The beginning is vivid, memorable, and drags the reader into the scene. Middles are where the stakes are raised, characters run into conflict, and consequences flow. Scene endings set the stage for the next scenes, leaving the reader with unforgettable feelings, tastes, or impressions. And of course, that's what the rest of part one is all about!

So that's Jordan's Chapter 1. Scenes are the building blocks of stories. They involve characters in action, doing things that feel like they are happening right in front of us. They come in long, short, and just right, sort of like the three bears' pajamas. And that's about it -- the next chapters talk about how to get the scene started, what to fill it with, and how to wrap up the loose ends.

Your assignment? How about taking a chapter in your favorite book or story, which could be one of yours, and identify at least one scene? Take a good hard look at how it starts, what happens in it, and what marks the end of the scene. How do you know that you are going from one scene to the next?

You might also want to consider the checklist:

Does the scene have strong characters? Do they change in the scene?
Is the point of view in the scene clear, and consistent?
Is there significant action in the scene? Does it happen in real time?
Is the dialogue in the scene meaningful?
Does the scene reveal information that moves the plot forward and deepens characters?
Does the scene have conflict and drama?
Does the scene have a strong physical setting, with all the senses engaged?
Does the scene avoid too much narrative summary, exposition, or information dumps?

Okay? Ready to make a scene? Or at least are you interested in seeing what else Jordan has to say about making a scene?

When we write, we let others see scenes of the mind.

Current Mood: inchworm

mbarker.livejournal.com

Original posting 14 Dec 2007

I first read Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card quite a few years ago. Recently, through a strange concatenation of circumstances, a new hardback copy passed through my hands. I sent it on to a friend, but while it was here, I took a quick look and found that Card had added an introduction! Rather interesting . . . a couple of quotes that I found particularly resonant.

p. xiv "I learned -- from actors and from audiences -- how to shape a scene, how to build tension, and -- above all -- the necessity of being harsh with your own material, excising or rewriting anything that doesn't work. I learned to separate the story from the writing, probably the most important thing that any storyteller has to learn -- that there are a thousand right ways to tell a story, and ten million wrong ones, and you're a lot more likely to find one of the latter than the former your first time through the tale."

p. xxi "This is the essence of the transaction between storyteller and audience. The 'true' story is not the one that exists in my mind; it is certainly not the written words on the bound paper that you hold in your hands. The story in my mind is nothing but a hope; the text of the story is the tool I created in order to try to make that hope a reality. The story itself, the true story, is the one that the audience members create in their minds, guided and shaped by my text, but then transformed, elucidated, expanded, edited, and clarified by their own experience, their own desires, their own hopes and fears."

Separate the story from the writing, and learn about rewriting to find the right way to tell a story.

And don't imagine that you are writing a story alone - it is a cooperative effort between the storyteller and the audience.

Words to write by, perhaps?

Current Mood: picayune

mbarker.livejournal.com

Original Posting 21 October 2007

The NHK (public television) folks put some odd programs on. Right now there's a visit with a circus camp in Monaco. One bit particularly caught my imagination - they were talking to the fellow who arranges most of the "big shows" for this group, laying out the musicians, lighting, acts, and all. They asked him about the underlying stories, and he responded quite emphatically that he doesn't have any stories in his shows. No, he said, "All I do is provide spectacles - great sounds, great sights - and the audience tells themselves stories." And yet he is known for engaging the audience, exciting them - and even the little clips of his shows that we saw were quite amazing.

Tibetan instruments with people trained in the monks' style of chanting - they said the leader could go for 20 minutes with a single "ooooooooo" booming away from his stomach. This with a single horse prancing in place, the rider quiet, under a spotlight.

Or a huge moon, with a woman suddenly swirling into sight in front of it, and then the lights move to a single figure muffled in white with huge billowing wings fluttering around it as it spins and dances in the center and snow falls. Then it crumpled to the ground, a white pile, and a horse wandered into the spotlight and up to the pile, as if to pull the figure back out, then stopped. And the lights went out.

Fun stuff. And I think I need to contemplate that notion of providing spectacle and letting the audience tell themselves stories.

Current Mood: spectacles

Profile

The Place For My Writers Notes

Navigation

February 2025

S	M	T	W	T	F	S
						1
2	3	4	5	6	7	8
9	10	11	12	13	14	15
16	17	18	19	20	21	22
23	24	25	26	27	28

Syndicate

Page Summary

Style Credit

Base style: Heads Up by momijizuakmori
Theme: A Brighter View by zaluzianskya and skylark_photos

Expand Cut Tags

No cut tags

Page generated Jul. 13th, 2025 03:27 pm

The Place For My Writers Notes

Entries tagged with audience

TECH: The Bulletproof Book Proposal (moldy oldie) (970 words)

TECH: Save The Cat Meets Nanowrimo (Replay!)

TECH: Telling Stories within Your Stories (moldy oldie)

TECH: Story Bits 02

TECH: What do you expect in a review?

TECH: Save the Cat!

TECH: Save The Cat! (1)

TECH: 101 Tips (52)

TECH: 101 Tips (46)

EXERCISE: A Scared Skunk? Keep writing!

TECH: Make A Scene #1

TECH: Quotes from Orson Scott Card

FILL: An interesting point of view

Profile

Navigation

February 2025

Syndicate

Most Popular Tags

Page Summary

Style Credit

Expand Cut Tags