21 January 2018, Writing - part
x380, Novel Form, A New Novel, Plot and Climax from the Initial Scene, Deirdre
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.
These are the steps I use to write a
novel including the five discrete parts of 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
I
finished writing my 28th novel, working title, School, potential
title Deirdre: Enchantment and the School. The theme statement is: 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.
Here is the cover proposal for Deirdre:
Enchantment and the School.
The most important scene in any
novel is the initial scene, but eventually, you have to move to the rising
action. I continued writing my 29th novel, working title Red Sonja. I finished my 28th novel, working
title School. If you noticed, I started on number 28, but
finished number 29 (in the starting sequence—it’s actually higher than
that). I adjusted the numbering. I do keep everything clear in my
records.
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 29: 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 30: Lady Azure Rose Wishart, the Chancellor of
the Fae, supernatural detective, and all around dangerous girl, finds love,
solves cases, breaks heads, and plays golf.
This
is the classical form for writing a successful 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 (protagonist,
antagonist, and optionally the protagonist’s helper)
d.
Identify the telic flaw of the
protagonist (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
The
protagonist and the telic flaw are tied permanently together. The novel plot is completely dependent on the
protagonist and the protagonist’s telic flaw.
They are inseparable. This is
likely the most critical concept about any normal (classical) form novel.
Here
are the parts of a normal (classical) novel:
1.
The Initial scene (identify the
output: implied setting, implied characters, implied action movement)
2.
The Rising action scenes
3.
The Climax scene
4.
The Falling action scene(s)
5.
The Dénouement scene
So,
how do you write a rich and powerful initial scene? Let’s start from a theme statement. Here is an example from my latest novel:
The
theme statement for Deirdre: Enchantment
and the School is: 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.
Here
is the scene development 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
If
you have the characters (protagonist, protagonist’s helper, and antagonist),
the initial setting, the telic flaw (from the protagonist), a plot idea, the
theme action, then you are ready to write the initial scene. I would state that since you have a
protagonist, the telic flaw, a plot idea, and the theme action, you have about
everything—what you might be lacking is the tension and release cycle in your scenes.
With
a protagonist, a telic flaw, a theme statement, and an initial setting, I’m
ready to begin a novel. I’ll move to the
telic flaw for the novel. Since I am
going to provide the first chapter as a teaser any way, I might as well show
you the initial scene.
Here
is the theme statement as a reminder:
Lady
Azure Rose Wishart, the Chancellor of the Fae, supernatural detective, and all
around dangerous girl, finds love, solves cases, breaks heads, and plays golf.
With
a single scene—the initial scene (along with the characters, setting, and the
telic flaw), you have enough to write an entire novel. This was the wonderful discovery I made by
the time I wrote my eighth novel.
Let
me pass on some examples. My Aegypt (Ancient Light) novels were easy to write
using the way I described. That’s
because they all had a historical premise tied to historical events. The resolution and climax just fit into the
historical events. That’s part of the
power of writing and authorship. The
novels that were a little more problematic, but still easy, are my Enchantment
novels. Let me point out a little about
each one. I’ll continue with Deirdre:
Enchantment and the Curse.
This
novel likely shows the strongest influence of pure initial scene
development. In writing the initial
scene, I was completely focused on the scene and less on the characters. The characters actually grew out of the
initial scene. To make the scene work, I
needed to develop certain types of characters, but until I actually started
writing the scene, the characters weren’t completely developed. You might say, the initial scene actually
drove the character development. From my
previous comments, this is not my usual method for novel development.
Usually,
I design the characters and the setting first.
In the case of this novel, I also designed the setting to accommodate the
initial scene. In other words, the
initial scene drove plot, characters, and setting. To synopsize the differences, usually I hit
on a character and a setting and wrap an entertaining initial scene around
them. In the case of Deirdre, I conceived an initial scene
and designed characters and setting to fit the scene.
My
initial scene concept flowed from the idea of a girl hiding in a boarding school,
and not just hiding but rather attending school without anyone knowing she wasn’t
supposed to be there. I discovered this
idea through writing about initial scenes for one of my writing blogs. I was describing pathos developing
characters. A pathos developing
character immediately evokes an emotional response in the reader. A girl alone, illegally attending a boarding
school to learn is a pretty pathos type character, especially for readers
(readers are attracted to people who suffer for knowledge).
Thus,
I proposed a great initial scene for a girl who is clandestinely attending a
boarding school is when a new girl arrives who can see through the hiding girl’s
secret. Now the situation and the
initial scene gets slightly complicated.
I’ll give you a piece of it so you can see what I mean.
Deirdre focused back on the
classroom. She spotted only one other
person in the room. She knew she arrived
early—that was on purpose. She wanted to
miss the drama and unruly conduct—getting involved with drama and unruly
conduct is what got her in trouble before.
She couldn’t properly handle conflict or unruly conduct, especially in
the morning.
Deirdre stared at the other
girl. She sat in the last seat next to
the window. It was the seat Deirdre
always coveted. She sniffed—it was already taken. She cocked her head and squinted at the girl. Something seemed off about her. Deirdre scratched her cheek. There was something strange about the girl’s
clothing, but Deirdre couldn’t tell exactly what. She squinted a little more. The sun reflected across the courtyard and
burst through the windows. Deirdre
caught both a whiff and a view. As the
early morning sunlight cascaded across the windows, the clothing of the girl in
the corner desk suddenly changed. At one
moment, it appeared like the perfect uniform: pressed, dark blue, wrinkleless,
tie tied exactly and correctly. The next
moment, everything changed. The skirt
appeared faded black and not blue. The
sweater looked threadbare and washed-out.
The shirt was entirely white and not pinstriped at all. The tie was tied perfectly, but it was black
and not the color of any house.
Deirdre smelled it too. It was the sweet scent like honey in the
comb. Like boiled down sunlight and
dandelions. It could only be one thing,
the scent of the power of the fae. She
thought it smelled particularly like potent fae glamour. When the sunlight came back to normal
brilliance, the girl’s uniform looked ordinary again. Deirdre knew some tricks
she could use to cut through fae glamour, but she didn’t want to try them
now. She examined the girl. She was short, perhaps as short as
Deirdre. That was part of Deirdre’s
problem—she was short and very conscious of it.
The girl wasn’t well developed either—Deirdre was there too. The girl looked thin—almost as thin as
Deirdre.
She moved her attention to the girl’s
face. She was trying very hard to ignore
Deirdre. Her hair looked very dark—as
dark as Deirdre’s hair was light. The
girl’s complexion was pale, as pale as Deirdre’s sickening strawberry light
skin. Her face was heart-shaped with a
slightly pointed chin and thin cheeks.
Her dark hair fell long and loose.
Deirdre’s hair was strawberry blond and also long. She had put it up in a tight French braid
today. Deirdre couldn’t see the girl’s
ears. It suddenly became important for her to examine them. She moved sidelong toward the back of the
room and the girl.
When Deirdre came close, the girl
shifted her seat closer to the window and she turned her head away. By then, other girls began entering the
classroom. Deirdre didn’t take her focus
off the girl, but she kept an eye on the others. No one came close to her…to the two of
them—that was good.
Deirdre sat in the chair next to the
girl. She carefully scooted her chair
slightly away from the girl—she understood this exactly about herself. She assumed others would also be
uncomfortable with someone too close.
She could barely stand to have her mother, father, brothers, or sisters
hug her—she never wanted anyone too close to her. Deirdre checked her watch. It was an awesome pilot’s watch she got from
her sister, Sveta’s, husband, Daniel when they sent her off to Wycombe
Abbey. It wasn’t a girl’s watch at
all—she loved it. She still a little
time before class began.
Deirdre turned her head down and
slightly toward the girl, “Good morning.
I’m new here. Are you?”
The girl didn’t turn her head. She seemed to make up her mind and hissed, “Read
the atmosphere.”
Once an idea struck Deirdre, she
never gave up, “I’m not used to being ignored.
I’m trying to be pleasant. I’m
new, and I’d like to make friends.”
The girl gripped the desk with white
knuckles. She made a strange sound under
her breath and said a couple of ancient Gaelic words.
Deirdre waved her hands under her
nose, “There isn’t a problem with your glamour, sweet. It won’t work against me.”
The girl turned in shock toward
Deirdre. She stuttered, “It…it won’t
work?”
“Not a wit. I’m immune.”
The girl stood with a panicked look
on her face. Her clothing flickered for
a moment then came back to its visible perfection. The bell rang, and a tall smiling woman
wearing a severe blue skirt suit and a poufy white blouse breezed into the room. The girl sat firmly back in her seat. Deirdre noticed her eyes were light grey, and
her nose was slightly sharp like her chin.
Deirdre wasn’t sure if the girl was very beautiful or just very unusual
looking.
The girl quickly pulled out her
official briefcase and took out a pad, pen, and her Greek book for the
class. Deirdre copied her. When the sunlight touched the briefcase,
Deirdre noticed it looked much too worn with broken buckles and hand repaired
corners and seams. She didn’t get a very
good look. The Greek study book the girl
had also appeared significantly worn.
Everything put together, Deirdre thought this entire meeting and this
person was extremely peculiar. She was
so caught up in thought, she missed it the first time the teacher called her
name, “Deirdre Effie Calloway…are you present, dear?”
Deirdre called out a little overloud
and late, “Present.”
There
are lots of ways I could have designed this little initial scene. I chose to have the hidden girl using Fae
glamour (the power of the Fae) to hide her poverty and lack. Deirdre is able to see through Fae
Glamour. There are other ways you might
develop this type of scene, but I used this one. This is one of my signature styles and part
and parcel of my Enchantment
novels.
You
can see the immediate theme question and plot question that comes out of the
scene: who is this girl? I mean this
question in the broadest sense: who is this girl and why is she attending
school this way? There is much much more
to this. And I haven’t touched on the
other question the scene brings up: who exactly is Deirdre Calloway? It is one thing to have a girl using the power
of the Fae to hide in plain sight—it is quite another to have a girl who can
detect a girl hiding in plain sight.
I
love this initial scene. The novel it launched
was a fun write, and I think, a fun read. In this case, just the design of an initial
scene drove characters, setting, and plot.
I think this is a neat lesson in the power and use of the initial scene.
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
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
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