Category Archives: Writing

The Perfect Story

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The Perfect Story

Natalie Bright

Generations of parents passed down bits of wisdom to their offspring in the form of stories before he could write those stories down. “Tell Me a Story” gave way to “Read Me A Story”; a long-held family tradition.

The story holds our attention because of conflict. At the core of every story are three basic plots for conflict.

Man against Man

Man against Nature

Man against Himself

The story that holds our attention whether it’s a blockbuster movie or bestselling book, contains a form of all three.

 

 

WHERE ARE YOU GOING?

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WHERE ARE YOU GOING?

Lynnette Jalufka

 

To me, plot is the road map of your story. It’s how to get from point A to point B to point C, and so on. Therefore, it’s helpful to have a general idea of how you want the story to go. Write it down. Keep it where you can see it, so you won’t get off track.

In editing my novel, I noticed that I could have a romantic mess between my heroine and these three men in her life. She could be forced to marry one and secretly in love with her best friend’s betrothed, while the last one tries to get her attention because he’s in love with her. But I’m not writing a romance. It’s not the purpose of the book. It’s about her pleasing her father when others think she’s crazy to do so.

In writing, nothing is set in stone. You may change your mind in the middle of the book, or your characters may change it for you. But knowing where you want the story to go helps with plotting, like a map helps get you to your destination.

What’s the Problem

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POSTCARDS FROM THE MUSE

 

What’s the Problem

By Nandy Ekle

You have people and these people speak. But what do they do? 

I used to feel rebellious when someone said, “What do they want. They all must want something.” I always believed that a story was simply about what the characters were doing. But then I realized there was no depth to a story where characters just walk around doing things and talking to each other. There has to be a reason for that they do and say.

This reason is your plot. 

This thing the character wants is what drives the story. And it doesn’t even have to be a conscious thing. It can be a goal they don’t realize they have, like surviving a bad storm. But there is a goal. 

One of the best examples of goal-driven plot, in my opinion, is the Harry Potter series. At first, Harry has a goal he doesn’t realize he has, but this goal continues with him all through the series. The goal becomes more apparent to him through the story, and by the end, he is so committed to this goal that he’s willing to pay the ultimate price.

Your homework is to analyze your favorite story for the deepest goals. Tell me what you discover in the comments below.

Plot Structure

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Plot Structure

by Adam Huddleston

 

Here is a blog submission from 2017 pertaining to plot.

I can’t recall exactly where I got this from (could have been on this Wordsmith Six site for all I know) but I found it to be very useful.

Plot Structure

Hook:

Inciting incident:

First plot point:

First pinch point:

Mid-point:

Second pinch point:

ONWAGD:

Second plot point:

Climax:

Denouement:

Show protagonist in “normal” (current) world- Protagonist is incomplete (reveal flaw/insecurity/secret want)

Inciting incident that forces protagonist from normal world- Increased awareness of need for change

Introduce key secondary characters; establish setting & tone- fear/resistance to change — comfortable in current life

Protagonist must make a choice/decision- Overcomes fear/resistance to change

Plot point #1: Journey begins as result of decision Mental/emotional commitment to change

Protagonist begins “living” in the new world Protagonist is disorganized (imagine the feeling of first day in new school)

New complications arise Protagonist is tested and begins adapting to new ways/questioning the old

Complications grow –Complications escalate to new crisis Protagonist is slowly growing, but still inauthentic–not committed to changed self

Mid-point: crisis forces new decision/direction Protagonist is confronted with their flaw/desire (often is the antagonist who holds up this “mirror”)

Protagonist catches breath (even if complications are brewing behind the scenes) Reward scene: protagonist has accomplished something and has brief moment of victory

Complications develop new level of complexity Begins accepting consequences of new life

Thoughts on Plotting

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Outtakes 375

Thoughts on Plotting

By Cait Collins

 

Every writer has to experiment with ways to plot his stories.  There is no one right way to craft a story. Personally, I prefer to sketch my characters.  I write just enough so that I know the basics.  Once that’s done, it’s up to the character to tell me who he is.  Same with the actual story development.  I have a few plot ideas but they can work on their own, or they can intermingle.  I decide where the story takes place.  And then I free-write.

I will admit that the free association has led me down some strange paths, But in unraveling the twisted paths, I often find a lead that creates new possibilities.  I guess you could call me a “pantser”.  I write by the seat of my pats.  It may not be the most practical method of storytelling, but it works for me.

What is a PLOT?

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What is a PLOT?

Rory C Keel

March is PLOT month here at Wordsmithsix.com. We are exploring all the information we can find that will give us understanding as to how a plot will help our stories.

So, what is a plot and why is it so important to a story? Well, James Scott Bell in his book Plot & Structure put it this way, “Plot is the power grid that makes it happen.”

A plot is what ties a story together from beginning to end.

To help you develop a good plot, ask these questions.

  1. What is this story about?
  2. Is anything happening?
  3. Why should I keep reading?
  4. Why should I care?

When I began my writing journey, I thought these questions had to be answered about the story before I could start writing, bogging me down. These are questions that need to be asked at the end of every page, as you write. This helps to advance your writing through the next page by the answers you find to the questions and keep your story tied together.

THE TORTURE CHAMBER

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THE TORTURE CHAMBER

Lynnette Jalufka

 

Novelist Angela Hunt once said, “Take a character and torture him for 300 pages.”

When I consider Hunt’s words, I think of Harry Potter. He dealt with the everyday challenges of growing up: schoolwork, competitions, and relationships. But he also had an evil villain who vowed to kill him, which greatly complicated his life. Throughout the series, Harry faced one obstacle after another, both physical and emotional, in his efforts to stop Voldemort. They increased in difficulty until Harry is left with one heartbreaking decision.

I’ve noticed in my own stories that I love putting my favorite characters into dangerous situations, including hanging off the side of a cliff. I can imagine one telling me, “You don’t like me very much, do you?”

Don’t make life easy for your characters. That’s boring. Readers want to see them overcome their situations. The more you throw at them, the richer your story.

 

DO THE TWIST

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Do the Twist

Nandy Ekle

Once upon a time a handsome prince came to a faraway castle and met a beautiful princess. They fell in love instantly. Her father, the king, saw immediately how much the prince and princess loved each other and arranged for the two to marry at once. And they lived happily ever after.

Ho hum. We have to find some way to make this story more interesting.  Luckily I took a writing class about a year ago and I know exactly what this story needs. This drab little tale must have some twists and turns.

Every plot must have a character with a goal and lots of problems ranging from very serious to very minor. And there is a very nifty way to create these obstacles.

I learned in the writing class that if you write down everything you assume is true about a character and/or a situation, then change one of those things, you have a nice little twist. So in the story above, what do we assume?

Well, we assume the prince and princess are young unmarried lovers. We assume they are sweet and charming. We assume their courtship is smooth and romantic. We assume they are earthlings and that they are human beings. And we assume the time is long ago.

Which one of those assumptions would you change, and how does it affect the story?

Congratulations.  You have just received a postcard from the muse.

Nandy Ekle

Favorite Quotes

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Favorite Quotes

by Adam Huddleston

 

For this week’s blog concerning dialogue, I wanted to resurrect an older blog containing some of my favorite quotes.  Enjoy!

“It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt.”  —   Mark Twain

“When I die, I want to go peacefully like my grandfather did–in his sleep. Not yelling and screaming like the passengers in his car.”  —  Bob Monkhouse

“I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by.”  —  Douglas Adams

When you are courting a nice girl an hour seems like a second. When you sit on a red-hot cinder a second seems like an hour. That’s relativity.  —  Albert Einstein

A government that robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend on the support of Paul.        —  George Bernard Shaw

Keep It Real

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Outtake 374

Keep It Real

By Cait Collins

 

When we are talking to one another, do we speak the King’s English?  “Of course, we don’t. We tend to do just the opposite.  We speak with crazy idioms, slang, and sentence fragments.  Many younger people have more limited vocabularies because their main communication method is via Facebook or texting.  Therefore, as writers we make conversations more real by employing the changes in style.  I’m not suggesting we write like we text.  “R u riding with me,” may be more convenient, but it’s not the way we write dialogue and it’s definitely not acceptable in a memorandum or a report.

Imagine saying, this.  “I sauntered to the convenience store this morning to purchase a quart of Borden’s eggnog and a pound of unshelled peanuts. I strolled along the parkway to my home, tossing peanuts to the squirrels’.  They are so delightful to watch scurrying around gathering their nuts and seeds before scampering up the tree to deposit their goodies in their holes.

Seriously, this is not the way we talk.  We don’t use fancy words.  We walk to the store.  The squirrels make us smile.  When the dialogue is too out there, it stalls the story’s progression and it can interrupt the story flow.

If your characters live in the Deep South use the moonlight and magnolias, but use it sparingly. Don’t allow the idioms and local vocabulary to take over the dialogue.  In the Northeast, alobstais colorful, and a stahis cute.  But do you want to see that on every page?  The local terms are spice only.

While profanity has a place, too much can be a turn off for the reader.  I don’t like it in the movies or on TV. The same goes in our dialogue.  A “hell” or “damn” carries more of a punch if it comes out of the blue.  Remember Rhett Butler’s parting comment to Scarlet?  “My dear, I don’t give a damn.” sent the critics into orbit, but it was such an appropriate response to the self-centered Scarlett.

Dialogue is action and well written dialogue moves the story and elicits a response from the reader. Keep it real.  Use local slang and pronunciation to add spice to the conversation.  If you use profanity, don’t over-do it.  Make the words appropriate for the character so that they add a punch to the verbal exchange.