Writing Ideas - New Novel, part 925, Publishing, Romantic Protagonist

23 October 2016, Writing Ideas - New Novel, part 925, Publishing, Romantic Protagonist  

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.

 

These are the steps I use to write a novel:

 

1.      Design the initial scene

2.      Develop a theme statement (initial setting, protagonist, protagonist’s helper or antagonist, action statement)

a.       Research as required

b.      Develop the initial setting

c.       Develop the characters

d.      Identify the telic flaw (internal and external)

3.      Write the initial scene (identify the output: implied setting, implied characters, implied action movement)

4.      Write the next scene(s) to the climax (rising action)

5.      Write the climax scene

6.      Write the falling action scene(s)

7.      Write the dénouement scene

 

Would you like to write a novel that a publisher will consider?  Would you like to write a novel that is published?  How about one that sells? 

 

Examples of Romantic and anti-Romantic characters?  A Romantic character has special human moral and ethical skills and qualities that make him or her the perfection of a human.  At the same time, the Romantic character is at odds with their culture and society because of their skills and qualities.  The Anti-Romantic character has immoral or unethical characteristics that set him or her apart, and is at odds with his or her culture or society because of it.  If you say, morals and ethics are in the mind of the beholder, I will tell you I’m sorry you don’t understand morals, ethics, logic, and your culture very well.  We all know exactly what it means to be moral and ethical in our cultures and societies—we must force ourselves to accept the immoral or unethical as moral and ethical. 

 

Tarzan is a classic Romantic character.  His special skills is his aristocracy, intelligence, wilderness skills… he is the truly noble savage.  However, Tarzan is not savage.  He is at odds with his society and culture because he would rather be out in the jungle eating raw meat rather than sitting in a drawing room sipping on tea.  Unfortunately, ERB (Edgar Rice Burroughs) never tried to eat raw meat, or he would know what humans had to learn to cook and cut to eat meat.  Oh well.

 

Another famous Romantic character is Howard Rourke.  Howard Rourke is the protagonist in The Fountainhead.  He is a premier architect, who designs buildings that people love.  He only wants to go about his business of designing and building buildings, but he gets caught up in a situation where society and culture directly oppose him on artistic grounds. 

 

Harry Potty is a Romantic character.  His skill is survival and magic.  He is the god of his age—the unkillable. However, the writer puts Harry at odds with his society and culture.  Everyone else is afraid of countering the evil Voldermort.

 

Sara Crew is a Romantic character.  Her skill is that she is a princess even when she is poor.  She acts like a princess and this sets her culture and society dead against her.  One can’t act and be a princess when one is a scullery maid. 

 

To have a successful character, I suggest writing a Romantic one.  The Romantic character is an archetype human whose skills put them at odds with their society and culture.  I don’t like anti-Romantic characters.      

      

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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