15 March 2017, Writing Ideas
- New Novel, part x68, Creative Elements in Scenes, Plot Devices, Ochi
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
I
finished writing my 27th 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 Sorcha:
Enchantment and the Curse.
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Cover
Proposal
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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 28th novel, working title Red Sonja. I’m also working on my 29th novel,
working title School.
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: transition from input to output focused on the telic
flaw resolution)
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.
For novel 28: 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.
For novel 29: Sorcha, the abandoned child of an Unseelie
and a human, secretly attends Wycombe Abbey girls’ school where she meets the
problem child Deirdre 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
Here is the beginning of the scene
development method from the outline:
1.
Scene input (comes from the previous
scene output or is an initial scene)
2.
Write the scene setting (place,
time, stuff, and characters)
3.
Imagine the output, creative
elements, plot, telic flaw resolution (climax) and develop the tension and
release.
4.
Write the scene using the output and
creative elements to build the tension.
5.
Write the release
6.
Write the kicker
Below is a list of plot
devices. I’m less interested in a plot
device than I am in a creative element that drives a plot device. In fact, some of these plot devices are not
good for anyone’s writing. If we
remember, the purpose of fiction writing is entertainment, we will perhaps
begin to see how we can use these plot devices to entertain. If we focus on creative elements that drive
plot devices, we can begin to see how to make our writing truly
entertaining. I’ll leave up the list and
we’ll contemplate creative elements to produce these plot devices.
Deus ex machina (a machination, or act of
god; lit. “god out of the machine”)
Flashback (or analeptic reference)
Ochi
– Current
discussion.
Story within a story (Hypodiegesis)
Secrets
Ochi: Here is a
definition of an Ochi from the link-- A sudden
interruption of the wordplay flow indicating the end of a rakugo or a
kobanashi. Rakugo (落語?, literally "fallen words") is a
form of Japanese
verbal entertainment. The lone storyteller (落語家 rakugoka?) sits on stage, called Kōza (高座?). Using only a paper fan (扇子 sensu?) and a small cloth (手拭 tenugui?) as props, and without standing up from
the seiza sitting
position, the rakugo artist depicts a long and complicated comical story. The story
always involves the dialogue of two or more characters, the difference between
the characters depicted only through change in pitch, tone, and a slight turn
of the head. The speaker is in the middle of the audience, and
his purpose is to stimulate the general hilarity with tone and limited, yet
specific body gestures. The monologue always ends with a narrative stunt known
as ochi (落ち?, lit. "fall") or sage (下げ?, lit. "lowering"), consisting
of a sudden interruption of the wordplay flow.
I
don’t really think this is a legitimate plot device, but I will include it
because I think we can use it. Most
specifically an ochii is a Japanese term meaning an ending construction. The ochii is somewhat contrasted with the
sage. The ochii is a sudden verbal stop
while the sage is a verbal trailing off.
Both of these are similar in form to the Western kicker.
In
journalism, a kicker is a short, catchy word or phrase over a major headline. In literature, a kicker is an end that cuts
off the scene, novel, or event with a catchy thought provoking point. The ochii is similar to the idea of a
kicker. The ochi suddenly cuts off the narrative,
conversation, or scene, and provides an immediate end that tells the audience
to laugh or at least to cogitate about the words and presentation. A kicker does exactly the same thing. Let me see if I can find some examples from
my writing. I do write with kickers, but
I like subtle kickers. Here is a great
kicker from Essie: Enchantment and the Aos
Si:
“I
need to know a little bit more, but that is neither here nor there. Why were you starkers in my pantry?”
Essie
stared a moment, “What is starkers?”
“You
didn’t have anything on. You were
naked.”
Essie
glanced at her, a little amazed at the question, “I didn’t have any clothes.”
“Yes,
that is the point. Why didn’t you have
any clothes on?”
Essie
glanced at the clothing she now wore, “I’ve never owned any clothing.”
“Never?”
“Never.”
Mrs.
Lyons pondered that a moment, then she answered, “Well from now on, you shall
wear clothing. I have plenty to fit a
girl your size. What else do I need to
know about you?”
Essie
made a face.
“With
that, I suspect you mean you won’t say.
That will be sufficient for now…except I’d like to know. Why didn’t you have any clothing? I can’t quite fathom that part. Every person wears clothing.”
“But
I’m not a person.”
Do
you get the kicker? Essie deliberately
states: But I’m not a person.” If this
doesn’t make the average person think, I don’t know what would. This certainly makes Mrs. Lyons think. The kicker excites the reader and encourages
the reader to continue reading. It is
too short to really be a cliffhanger and the force is not in the entire end of
scene, but rather in the single statement.
This is an ochii and a kicker.
Here is another example from Sorcha:
Enchantment and the Curse:
Shiggy
almost made it out of the grocery fully intact.
Unfortunately, when she knelt to pick up the grocery bags, a child
accidentally ran against her. She
dropped the bags and pitched forward on her face. Her bottom stuck up in the air. Shiggy felt hot on one end and cold on the
other. She felt every eye in the
building on her parts.
Sorcha placed her hand on her cheek and
exclaimed, “Ms. Shig, do not flash your panties—it is very impolite.”
The old cashier simply smiled, “They’re very pretty ones, dear.” She turned to the next customer.
This
is a kicker, and ochi, and a joke.
Shiggy flashes her knickers in the grocery. The old cashier makes a tongue in cheek
statement. The scene suddenly ends with
a funny, the cut off is the end of the scene and the indication of the lightening
of the atmosphere and the events. This
is exactly what an ochii intends—cut off the narrative for a joke effect. I suggest the end of every scene needs a
kicker of some type. An ochii is a type
of kicker—use it.
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
fiction, theme, plot, story, storyline,
character development, scene, setting, conversation, novel, book, writing,
information, study, marketing, tension, release, creative, idea, logic
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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