Writing Ideas - New Novel, part 813, Climax Examples, Escape from Freedom

2 July 2016, Writing Ideas - New Novel, part 813, Climax Examples, Escape from Freedom

Announcement: Delay, my new novels can be seen on the internet, but the publisher has delayed all their fiction output due to the economy.  I'll keep you informed.  More information can be found at www.ancientlight.com.  Check out my novels--I think you'll really enjoy them.

Introduction: I wrote the novel Aksinya: Enchantment and the Daemon. This was my 21st novel and through this blog, I gave you the entire novel in installments that included commentary on the writing. In the commentary, in addition to other general information on writing, I explained, how the novel was constructed, the metaphors and symbols in it, the writing techniques and tricks I used, and the way I built the scenes. You can look back through this blog and read the entire novel beginning with http://www.pilotlion.blogspot.com/2010/10/new-novel-part-3-girl-and-demon.html.

I'm using this novel as an example of how I produce, market, and eventually (we hope) get a novel published. I'll keep you informed along the way.

Today's Blog: To see the steps in the publication process, visit my writing website http://www.ldalford.com/ and select "production schedule," you will be sent to http://www.sisteroflight.com/.

The four plus one basic rules I employ when writing:

1. Don't confuse your readers.

2. Entertain your readers.

3. Ground your readers in the writing.

4. Don't show (or tell) everything.

     4a. Show what can be seen, heard, felt, smelled, and tasted on the stage of the novel.

5. Immerse yourself in the world of your writing.

All novels have five discrete parts:

1.  The initial scene (the beginning)

2.  The rising action

3.  The climax

4.  The falling action

5.  The dénouement

The theme statement of my 26th novel, working title, Shape, proposed title, Essie: Enchantment and the Aos Si, is this: Mrs. Lyons captures a shape-shifting girl in her pantry and rehabilitates her.

I finished writing my 27^th novel, working title, Claire, potential title Sorcha: Enchantment and the Curse.  This might need some tweaking.  The theme statement is: Claire (Sorcha) Davis accepts Shiggy, a dangerous screw-up, into her Stela branch of the organization and rehabilitates her.  

Here is the cover proposal for Essie: Enchantment and the Aos Si.  Essie is my 26th novel.

Cover Proposal

The most important scene in any novel is the initial scene, but eventually, you have to move to the rising action. I started writing my 28^th novel, working title Red Sonja. 

I'm an advocate of using the/a scene input/output method to drive the rising action--in fact, to write any novel. 

Scene development:

1.  Scene input (easy)

2.  Scene output (a little harder)

3.  Scene setting (basic stuff)

4.  Creativity (creative elements of the scene)

5.  Tension (development of creative elements to build excitement)

6.  Release (climax of creative elements)

 

How to begin a novel.  Number one thought, we need an entertaining idea.  I usually encapsulate such an idea with a theme statement.  Since I’m writing a new novel, we need a new theme statement.  Here is an initial cut.

 

Red Sonja, a Soviet spy, infiltrates the X-plane programs at Edwards AFB as a test pilot’s administrative clerk, learns about freedom, and is redeemed.

 

I’m writing about how to develop the climax of a novel.  I’m giving examples from my published and yet to be published novels.  I’ll try not to introduce spoilers.  You can’t read some of these novels yet, but it’s worth writing about the process of developing the climax for them.  I have two contracted novels Sister of Light and Sister of Darkness.  These are supposed to be published in a three-in-one with Aegypt and individually.  The economy has delayed their publication.  These first three novels are called Ancient Light.  They include Aegypt, Sister of Light, and Sister of Darkness.  In addition to the Ancient Light novels, I’ve written some other novels. 

 

My publisher labeled my Ancient Light novels dystopian.  They are as dystopian as the history of WWII is dystopian.  So I wrote a real dystopian novel, Escape from Freedom.  Freedom is an island nation on a colony of earth.  The economy of Freedom is based in socialism and a controlled economy.  It is a “workers’ paradise.”  The citizens produce goods.  The armed citizens ensure order.  The party members rule over all and are the consumers of all the goods.  The citizens are provided food, shelter, clothing, sex, just about anything they could want.  They are also drugged and controlled and are allowed to work until their value decreases too much—then they are harvested. 

 

Freedom is not a nice place.  Reb is a high value citizen in Freedom.  Her greatest desire is to escape from Freedom.  She doesn’t know anything else, but she knows there is something terribly wrong about Freedom.

 

Scott, a heavy lifting shuttle pilot accidently crash lands on Freedom.  All the other nations are based in capitalism.  Reb saves Scott and hides him from the armed citizens and party members.  That begins their attempt to escape from Freedom. 

 

Scott is the protagonist.  His external telic flaw is that he wants to escape Freedom.  His internal telic flaw is that he knows it is impossible for Reb to escape with him.  You see the situation and the problem—Reb thinks Scott will take her away from Freedom.  The truth is that this is impossible.  The expected climax is that they will escape, but such a mutual escape is impossible.  The expected climax becomes the unexpected climax.  How we solve this is what makes a great plot a great plot.  This is the power of the unexpected in the expected.  The climax must also be resolved with action—in this novel, I give you plenty of action.

 

I’ll move to my science fiction unpublished novels.  I’ll look at the Ghost Ship Chronicles.  We’ll inspect Athelstan Cying next.           

     

More tomorrow.

For more information, you can visit my author site http://www.ldalford.com/, and my individual novel websites:

http://www.ancientlight.com/
http://www.aegyptnovel.com/
http://www.centurionnovel.com
http://www.thesecondmission.com/
http://www.theendofhonor.com/
http://www.thefoxshonor.com
http://www.aseasonofhonor.com  

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