Writing - part xx137 Writing a Novel, Art is adding Entertaining

17 February 2020, Writing - part xx137 Writing a Novel, Art is adding Entertaining

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 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:  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. 

1.     Read novels. 

2.     Fill your mind with good stuff—basically the stuff you want to write about. 

3.     Figure out what will build ideas in your mind and what will kill ideas in your mind.

4.     Study.

5.     Teach. 

6.     Make the catharsis. 

7.     Write.

The development of ideas is based on study and research, but it is also based on creativity.  Creativity is the extrapolation of older ideas to form new ones or to present old ideas in a new form.  It is a reflection of something new created with ties to the history, science, and logic (the intellect).  Creativity requires consuming, thinking, and producing.

If we have filled our mind with all kinds of information and ideas, we are ready to become creative.  Creativity means the extrapolation of older ideas to form new ones or to present old ideas in a new form.  Literally, we are seeing the world in a new way, or actually, we are seeing some part of the world in a new way.  Let’s look at an example.

The writer must create like an artist with the manipulation of writing (language) in the world through hard work to present something that is not natural, common, or previously existing in the world, and adds beauty to the world and humanity.

Art must add beauty (entertainment) to the world and humanity.  It must be entertaining or it isn’t fiction.  There are characteristics that make writing entertaining.  Here’s a list from Jeff Lyons at https://www.writersdigest.com/online-editor/write-better-the-7-qualities-of-high-concept-stories

1.High level of entertainment value

2.High degree of originality

3.Born from a “what if” question

4.Highly visual

5.Clear emotional focus

6.Inclusion of some truly unique element

7.Mass audience appeal (to a broad general audience, or a large niche market).

I have no idea what a high concept story is.  I’m not into high concept stories, I’m into fiction that is entertaining—and sellable.  So let’s redefine “high concept” as sellable, to readers and to publishers.  I’ll go for that.  With apologies to Jeff, let me look at this list because I agree with his list.  Let’s see how this looks.

Number one, high level of entertainment value.  Here’s what Jeff writes:

“Defining “entertainment value” is like trying to define pornography; it’s in the eye of the beholder. Here’s where you may need to get some outside advice, because you might not be the best judge of how your own work is perceived by others. Ask a trusted reader to explain, as best he can, what is purely entertaining about your idea or story. Get a second opinion, and a third, and a fourth. This can be invaluable feedback, provided that you recruit people willing to tell you the truth and not what they think you want to hear.”

I’ve been working hard to try to define and show you what entertainment means.  I agree with Jeff, you need to get the opinion of others and that can be a real problem.  Most of the time people aren’t really willing to tell you the truth about your writing.  They tiptoe all over the place.  When I review other people’s writing, I always give them a truthful review.  Most people even professional authors I know don’t want to hear it.  I love all feedback.  I use ever comment I’ve received from a reviewer except in one case.  I’ll get to that, but let me say this first.

Almost all the time, any feedback is like gold to an author.  Feedback allows you to fix your novels and improve them.  Feedback lets you see what another person thinks about your writing.  Plus, it means they read your writing.  This is very important.  Even feedback that I disagree with, I will make a change to the sentence, paragraph, or section.  The change might not be exactly what the reader expressed or intended, but I will make some change because the comment means the reader didn’t like something about the writing.  They might not fully understand what they didn’t like.  If they are specific, I will definitely make changes to fix the problem.

Now, I have had a very unusual experience of a reviewer who gave me a detailed private review about one of my published works.  They didn’t like any part of the novel.  They didn’t really provide me any helpful information, because they didn’t like the subject or the plot.  They basically gave me a tome of complaints about the topic and subject.  I can do something with detailed complaints, but I’m not going to rewrite the novel for someone who didn’t even like the topic.  I’m not sure why this very nice person provided such detailed complaints about the novel.  I was pleased and happy she read it, but it wasn’t a helpful review.  Personally, I have never read a novel for another author that I couldn’t appreciate on some level and provide them actual helpful information about their book.  The plot or subject might not be to my liking, but I’m not there to criticize their subject or plot.  I’m reading their novel to help improve their novel.  This means looking at details and not just editing.  I expect the writer to edit their own writing.  It isn’t the editing of the writing it’s the logical connections and development of the plot and subject.  The point is to give feedback that helps the writer make their work more entertaining.  Here’s what a writer needs to hear.

If you hit a sentence or construction that drives the reader out of the suspension of disbelief, bathos, poor dialog, poor constructions, illogical turns in the writing, deus ex machina, incomplete descriptions, confusing action or settings or information.  There are more, but I didn’t write anything about misspellings, grammar, punctuation, or capitalization.  I don’t need help editing—I’m glad to get any catches of problems in basics, but that isn’t what is really helpful.  As I noted, we are trying to help the author improve their plot and not change their plot or subject. 

I have remarked to some authors such information as, “I don’t think the use of first person is justified by the plot and subject,” or, “I think you should dump the prologue,” or, “I think the lack of definition of time in the setting detracts from the work.  I’d add more setting information,” and all.  These are usable. I expect the writer to take the remarks and review them.  If they don’t think they need to make changes, that’s okay.  I just try to give my opinions and help.  Like I noted, the subject and plot doesn’t need to be changes, the details of the way the subject and plot are handled might need help.

Let’s look at the other suggestions and see how we can use them to develop entertaining writing.

The beginning of creativity is study and effort.  We can use this to extrapolate to creativity.  In addition, we need to look at recording ideas and working with ideas.    

    

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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