Writing - part x594, Developing Skills, How to Suspend Disbelief, Creating a Reasonable Worldview

23 August 2018, Writing - part x594, Developing Skills, How to Suspend Disbelief, Creating a Reasonable Worldview

Announcement: Delay, my new novels can be seen on the internet, but my primary publisher has gone out of business—they couldn’t succeed in the past business and publishing environment.  I'll keep you informed, but I need a new publisher.  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 29^th novel, working title, Detective, potential title Blue Rose: Enchantment and the Detective.  The theme statement is: 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.  

Here is the cover proposal for Blue Rose: Enchantment and the Detective. 

Cover Proposal

The most important scene in any novel is the initial scene, but eventually, you have to move to the rising action. I am continuing to write on my 30^th novel, working title Red Sonja.  I finished my 29^th novel, working title Detective.  I’m planning to start on number 31, working title Shifter. 

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 30:  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 31:  TBD 

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

          

Today:  Suspension of disbelief is the characteristic of writing that pulls the reader into the world of the novel in such a way that the reader would rather face the world of the novel rather than the real world—at least while reading.  If this occurs while not reading, it is potentially a mental problem.  To achieve the suspension of disbelief your writing has to meet some basic criteria and contain some strong inspiration.  If you want to call the inspiration creativity, that works too.  Here is a list of the basic criteria to hope to achieve some degree of suspension of disbelief. 

1.      Reasonably written in standard English

2.      No glaring logical fallacies

3.      Reasoned worldview

4.      Creative and interesting topic

5.      A Plot

6.      Entertaining

7.      POV

Worldview is the most important feature of any fantasy, science fiction, or magical realism novel.  In fact, I could argue that worldview is the most important feature of every novel. 

Novels that attempt to show the world of the time are a reflected worldview.  Novels that attempt to show the ideas of the time are a reproduced worldview.  Novels that build their own worldview are a created worldview.

How do we ensure the worldview doesn’t cast the reader out of the suspension of disbelief?  The problem becomes when the writer does not properly reflect or reproduce the worldview.

In science fiction and to a degree, fantasy, the author is creating a worldview.  I am advocate of building a worldview from reflection and reproduction and then turning that into a science fiction or fantasy worldview.  The huge point here is that you must be able to write a strong reflected and or reproduced worldview.  If you can’t do this, you will have a problem writing a science fiction or fantasy worldview.

In general, I advise you to read my novels or Jack Vance.  Jack Vance is a real professional at developing entirely new and creative worldviews in science fiction and fantasy.

I noted before that I use a reproduced worldview for my fantasy.  My magic systems and sorcery systems are based on the mythological magic and sorcery systems defined by James Frazer’s The Golden Bough.  This is what I recommend you do too.

If you base your created worldview on a reflected or reproduced worldview, you will write a reasoned and reasonable worldview that your readers will accept and enjoy. 

I don’t have many negative worldview examples for you because most unreasonable or poor worldviews don’t get published at all.  Harry Potty is an example of a poorly developed created worldview, but it is Young Adult and after the first very productive novel, people weren’t criticizing the author’s books much.

Some very well developed created worldviews are found in Dune, Jack Vance’s novels, Andrea Norton’s novels, and some other science fiction and fantasy authors.  Randal Garret in his Lord Darcy novels developed a wonderful created worldview based on magic and the Victorian Era. 

I’ll get into this in more detail.  In general, start with a reflected and or reproduced worldview and develop a created worldview.  This will produce a powerful and reasonable worldview.      

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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