28 January 2018, Writing - part
x387, Novel Form, Designing a Plot from a Character, the Plot
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.
In
writing thirty novels, this is what I’ve discovered about developing a plot:
1.
Protagonist and setting are used to
design an exciting and entertaining
2.
Initial scene which provides a
3.
Scene output and a theme question based
on the telic flaw of the protagonist
a.
The scene output leads to the next
scene
b.
The theme question provides a basis for
the plot
4.
The scene outline provides the
continuing scenes and the theme question focuses the plot
5.
Resolving the theme question (telic
flaw) resolves the plot
Today: A character who is a
romantic character and pathos building is the perfect character to use to
develop a plot. The question is, now
that we have a character, how do we develop the plot. My simple answer is from the initial scene,
but I’ll take pity on you and try to build up to the initial scene.
The
first point is that a novel is the revelation of the protagonist. With a powerful protagonist all you have to
do is write about the protagonist. Think
about some of your favorite novels—the plot directed the path of the novel, but
the protagonist was the reason to read it.
Think of Oliver Twist, David Copperfield, Harry Potty, Emma, Jane Eyre,
Pride and Prejudice, A Christmas Carol, and all. Each of these novels has a distinct and well
developed plot, but they are novels that reveal the protagonist. In fact, all novels are revelations of the protagonist,
just some are better than others.
I
love novels about a protagonist who is exciting, interesting, has secrets, and
is bigger than life. I want to know
everything about that protagonist. Each
grain of information is fun to learn and brings me closer to the
character. Indeed, as I get closer to
the protagonist, everything that happens to them becomes important to me. This is why I like protagonists who are
romantic characters. I want characters I
can admire and love. I don’t want a
character whose morals, ethics, and honor I have to question all the time. I have to worry too much in real life about
that. The antagonist or other bad guy
characters can have their crises and issues.
I want my favorite protagonists to be surprising, but not to surprise
me.
For
example, Sir Knight is an honorable man who would never compromise his
values. If he does, then where is my
knight? Lady Lady is a woman of exacting
morals. If she compromises herself, then
there is a crisis in the novel—and it isn’t a good crisis. On the other hand, Mr. Bad Guy kicks kids and
dogs to the curb. If he doesn’t,
something is out of whack. Perhaps he is
changing for the better. But understand
this very clearly—if your readers don’t like your protagonist, you have a
serious problem. Whatever you build your
protagonist to be, make sure he or she continues to meet your reader’s
expectations. Revelation is one thing,
confessions are something else entirely.
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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