31 December 2019, Writing
- part xx089 Writing a Novel, Developing Ideas
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 websites 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 29th 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
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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 am continuing to write on my 30th novel, working
title Red Sonja. I finished my 29th 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: Deirdre and Sorcha are redirected to French
finishing school where they discover difficult mysteries, people, and events.
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: Why don’t we go back
to the basics and just writing a novel?
I can tell you what I do, and show you how I go about putting a novel
together. We can start with developing
an idea then move into the details of the writing.
To
start a novel, I picture an initial scene.
I may start from a protagonist or just launch into mental development of
an initial scene. I get the idea for an
initial scene from all kinds of sources.
To help get the creative juices flowing, let’s look at the initial
scene.
1.
Meeting between the protagonist and the antagonist or the
protagonist’s helper
2.
Action point in the plot
3.
Buildup to an exciting scene
4.
Indirect introduction of the
protagonist
Ideas. We need ideas. Ideas allow us to figure out the protagonist
and the telic flaw. Ideas don’t come
fully armed from the mind of Zeus. We
need to cultivate ideas.
First of all, if you are writing
novels, you need to read novels. I am
reading three novels at a time. I keep
them in different locations and read them at specific times during the
day.
For the writer, reading the subject
or type of writing that is his or her style is critical to both learning to
write and ideas. If you don’t have a
stack of novels beside your bed or in your electronics, you are behind. You will never be able to write a good novel.
You must read modern novels. Novels have been evolving from their
invention. If you feed on a steady diet
of Victorian Era novels, you will be able to write like a Victorian, but you
will never sell a novel in the modern world.
Modern novels are very differently written than Victorian Era novels.
Read novels. Start with the classics and then expand to
the types of novels you want to write.
If you don’t like to read it, no one will want to read it. In fact, if you don’t like your own writing,
no one will like your writing. One of
the main ways I check my own novels is if I enjoy reading them. Everyone can be an honest checker of their
own work. The point is to look at your
own writing just like you would any professional writing. In fact, writers find their earlier novels
are less complex or less well-structured than their current novels. This is common. As a writer ages and increase his or her
writing skills, his or her novels improve in quality. They become better with each novel, and the
earlier novels appear worse by comparison.
You find this with all writers.
You need to be reading and reading
constantly—reading the types of literature you want to write.
Part of the kathartic method is to
fill your mind with all kinds of information, skills, and learning—kinda like a
Romantic character. The bottom line is
to obviously fill your mind with stuff related to your writing, desires, and
entertinament.
I’m not the kind of thinker who
thinks self-punishment will improve your writing. In other words, you shouldn’t torture
yourself with writing you don’t like to read or that isn’t in your style. Let’s qualify this. If you haven’t read nearly all the classics
in English literature, you aren’t capable of saying what is good, bad, or even
acceptable writing. If you don’t like
Dickens, the problem isn’t Dickens—the problem is you. Now, if you don’t like James Joyce, you are
erudite. Joyce is a terrible
writer. Dickens is a skilled author.
The first point of discovering ideas
is to read, read the classics, and read what you like.
I am looking at using the kathartic
method to get ideas for a protagonist and a telic flaw.
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
