10 November 2023, Writing - part xxx498 Writing a Novel, Building a Protagonist, Fitting, Refining the Protagonist, Details, Emotional Changes for Telic Flaw Resolution
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 31st
novel, working title, Cassandra, potential title Cassandra: Enchantment and the Warriors. The theme statement is: Deirdre and Sorcha
are redirected to French finishing school where they discover difficult
mysteries, people, and events.
I finished writing my 34th
novel (actually my 32nd completed novel), Seoirse, potential
title Seoirse: Enchantment and the Assignment. The theme statement is: Seoirse is assigned
to be Rose’s protector and helper at Monmouth while Rose deals with five
goddesses and schoolwork; unfortunately, Seoirse has fallen in love with Rose.
Here is the cover
proposal for Seoirse: Enchantment and the Assignment:
|
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 30th novel,
working title Red Sonja. I finished my 29th novel, working
title Detective. I finished writing number 31, working title Cassandra: Enchantment and the Warrior. I just finished my 32nd novel and
33rd novel: Rose: Enchantment and the Flower, and Seoirse:
Enchantment and the Assignment.
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 32: Shiggy Tash finds a lost girl in the isolated
Scottish safe house her organization gives her for her latest assignment: Rose
Craigie has nothing, is alone, and needs someone or something to rescue and
acknowledge her as a human being.
For novel 33, Book girl: Siobhàn Shaw is Morven McLean’s savior—they
are both attending Kilgraston School in Scotland when Morven loses everything,
her wealth, position, and friends, and Siobhàn Shaw is the only one left to
befriend and help her discover the one thing that might save Morven’s family
and existence.
For novel 34: Seoirse is assigned to be Rose’s protector
and helper at Monmouth while Rose deals with five goddesses and schoolwork;
unfortunately, Seoirse has fallen in love with Rose.
For novel 35: Eoghan,
a Scottish National Park Authority Ranger, while handing a supernatural problem
in Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park discovers the crypt of Aine and
accidentally releases her into the world; Eoghan wants more from the world and
Aine desires a new life and perhaps love.
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:
Let me tell you a little about writing.
Writing isn’t so much a hobby, a career, or a pastime. Writing is a habit and an obsession. We who love to write love to write.
If
you love to write, the problem is gaining the skills to write well. We want to write well enough to have others
enjoy our writing. This is
important. No one writes just for
themselves the idea is absolutely irrational and silly. I can prove why.
In
the first place, the purpose of writing is communication—that’s the only
purpose. Writing is the abstract
communication of the mind through symbols.
As time goes by, we as writers gain more and better tools and our
readers gain more and better appreciation for those tools and skills—even if
they have no idea what they are.
We
are in the modern era. In this time, the
action and dialog style along with the push of technology forced novels into
the form of third person, past tense, action and dialog style, implying the
future. This is the modern style of the
novel. I also showed how the end of
literature created the reflected worldview.
We have three possible worldviews for a novel: the real, the reflected,
and the created. I choose to work in the
reflected worldview.
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.
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.
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.
With that said, where should we
go? Should I delve into ideas and
creativity again, or should we just move into the novel again? Should I develop a new protagonist, which, we
know, will result in a new novel. I’ve
got an idea, but it went stale. Let’s
look at the outline for a novel again:
1.
The initial scene
2.
The rising action
scenes
3.
The climax scene
4.
The falling action
scene(s)
5.
The dénouement scene(s)
The initial scene is the most important
scene and part of any novel. To get to
the initial scene, you don’t need a plot, you need a protagonist.
My main focus, at the moment, is
marketing my novels. That specifically
means submissions. I’m aiming for agents
because if I can get an agent, I think that might give me more contacts with
publishers plus a let up in the business.
I would like to write another novel, but I’m holding off and editing one
of my older novels Shadow of Darkness.
I thought that novel would have fit perfectly with one potential agent
who said they were looking for Jewish based and non-Western mythology in
fantasy. That’s exactly what Shadow
of Darkness is, but they passed on it.
In any case, I’m looking for an agent who will fall in love with my
writing and then promote it to publishers.
That’s the goal.
The dependency I’d like to present in a
new novel is similar to Valeska but one where the protagonist falls
romantically in love with the focus. The
question is the focus.
Now, I’m looking and researching for a being
or character who would fit the needs of the book I’m proposing.
Don’t modify known settings, people, or
history unless you are writing alternate history. Modify, at will, those things that are not
known or recorded in history. That comes
to a very important point about historical fiction, even reflected worldview
historical fiction. That is that history
doesn’t record much of the mundane we wish to include in our novels.
If I’m going to develop a protagonist,
I need to bring out the protagonist outline.
I’ve got it somewhere in my writing—I just have to find it.
I
guess I’ll start with the Romantic part of the protagonist. Then I’ll move to the more specific pieces of
the protagonist. Most precisely, I’m
looking at the list of potential characters from my list of characters in my
other novels.
Here
is my list for the characteristics of a Romantic protagonist. I am
not very happy with most of the lists I have found. So, I will start
with a classic list from the literature and then translate them to what they
really mean. This is the refined list. Take a look.
1.
Some power or ability outside the norm of society that the character develops
to resolve the telic flaw.
I have
Áine as the potential focus of the novel.
She’s a Celtic goddess. This
focus isn’t set yet, but I need a protagonist, and I need to develop and design
one. I’m contemplating a son of the Stuarts
and the Calloways. Here’s the information
from my notes.
Elaina actually Evir Elisabeth Stuart, Gaelic:
Eamhair Ealasaid Stiùbhartach – The girl: she was blond with grey-blue
eyes and a very Nordic or Norman look.
Her long hair was tied in a tight French weave. She was tall and looked mature—much more
mature than Sorcha or Deirdre.
Old Raleigh
bike with a basket and a bell - an old Raleigh welded-steel frame girl’s
bicycle
Elaina actually Evir Elisabeth Stuart, Gaelic:
Eamhair Ealasaid Stiùbhartach g.
Oxford b. 1975 late to Wycombe Abbey a special student of Luna’s was being
groomed for work in Stela and the Organization.
He specialty is with the Fae.
They are bound to her because of her nobility and background. She is not Fae but commands the Fae to some
degree.
m.
James (Seumas) Donaidh Calloway b. 1971
c.
Eoghan (Owen) Ragnall Calloway/Stuart (Stiùbhartach)
c.
Aife (Eva) Eamhair (Evir) Calloway/Stuart (Stiùbhartach)
2. Set
of beliefs (morals and ideals) that are different than normal culture or
society’s.
He
knows the Fae, the creatures of the land, angels, the God, and the gods and
goddesses of the land. That gives him a
moral basis centered on an orthodox belief.
His family goes to church and practices all the strong tenants of
Christianity.
3.
Courageous
Still,
Eoghan and his sister gained some degree of training their mother and father
never expected. Eoghan is a park ranger
with the Scottish National Park authority.
He was taught at their special training in law enforcement and all its
attendant training. The British military
taught many of his courses, especially in hand to hand, weapons, and the
wilderness. He knows more than his
mother would like, and he is strongly attracted to this life and this
training. He would like to be part of
the military and has had overtures. He
is naturally courageous and naturally good.
Then he finds Aine, and she will give him a purpose for his special
skills.
4.
Power (skills and abilities) and leadership that are outside of the normal
society.
Just
be aware, it must have to do with the use of their powers of charm and
sensitivity in relation to leadership.
That’s the ticket.
5.
Introspective
Eoghan
must be an introspective character. We
have a protagonist’s helper to aid him in expressing his mind, but he won’t let
out much or as much as Aine wants and that will help drive the novel. Remember, in writing a novel, secrets are
your best friend.
6.
Travel plot
I
don’t expect a really powerful travel plot like I provided in Rose and Seoirse,
but we need to get Eoghan and Aine into the regular world and into regular
society—that’s where the differences and the interactions with people and each
other can really play out. Plus, there
is no way after about 1500 or more years in a crypt that Aine wants to remain
holed up in a rural or wilderness area.
She’s for society and culture, plus part of the real fun in the novel is
for them both to have new and exciting experiences together. The travel plot makes all this possible.
7.
Melancholy
Eoghan
is like his mother Elaina and his sister.
They are all touched by their mother’s and family’s depreciation of
their aristocracy. They lost all in the
game of promotion and house. They lost
in the game of thrones, so to speak, but they all have charm and sensitivity to
the Fae and beings of the land. That
makes them powerful in their own way, but powerless in society. This is what we will change in Eoghan. That’s one aspect of the novel’s telic flaw.
8.
Overwhelming desire to change and grow—to develop four and one.
This
is the desire that will consume and empower Eoghan. This is what will drive him and Aine forward
in the novel. He will have special
skills, but the reader will realize that it isn’t the skill but the dedication
and work behind the skill that leads to Eoghan’s success.
9.
Pathos developed because the character does not fit the cultural
mold. From the common.
I’m
sure there are other ways to develop this pathos in the novel. For Rose and in Seoirse, I used some other
methods and means based on Rose’s qualities and skills to develop pathos. In general, I used dependency and the
military situation in Seoirse to build pathos.
This is easy with females, but a little less easy with males. With females, the pathos becomes
situational. For men, the pathos is
dependency based. I’m planning and
building a male protagonist, so these are important considerations. With Seoirse, I could play off the female
development of pathos and the male pathos.
I think this is a great means of designing pathos. I might be able to do this for Eoghan with
Aine too.
10.
Regret when they can’t follow their own moral compass.
In the
end, Eoghan might regret some of his actions and the results of his
actions. This creates a situation that
provides tension and release. It also
continues the tension and release in what is called a sequel by some
writers.
11.
Self-criticism when they can’t follow their own moral compass.
In any
case, self-criticism will be a characteristic of Eoghan, and it will drive Aine
crazy. Aine will be from an era where
people made decisions based on life and death.
She isn’t used to second guessing.
I can imagine one of their discussions.
To
solve a problem, she says just kill someone or something. Eoghan says no, and that astounds her. Perhaps she will need to learn to be
self-critiquing.
12.
Pathos bearing because he or she is estranged from family or normal society by
death, exclusion for some reason, or self-isolation due to three above.
I will
point out that with many and normal Romantic protagonists, the exclusion and
self-isolation is intentional and permanent.
They desire it. The exclusion and
self-isolation caused by being an orphan or a partial orphan are also permanent
and tend to develop automatic pathos in the reader for the Romantic
protagonist. I won’t use this for
Eoghan.
13.
From the common and potentially the rural.
In any
case, we want our Romantic protagonist to be out of the common. We can work this in many ways, but the
ultimate point is to convince the reader that the Romantic protagonist is just
like them and not really special at all.
14.
Love interest
So,
we’ll have a great setup for this novel, this Romantic protagonist, and this
protagonist’s helper. What will really
be fun is seeing Aine totally outside her comfort zone for many reasons trying
to win over Eoghan. I need to think on
the details, but that’s what I’m thinking.
She’ll try all the wiles she knows and all the wiles she can figure out.
Meanwhile,
Eoghan will want her to be mellow and gentle, but that’s not her way. Can these lovebirds recover from each
other? Can they find love? Will Aine have her way with Eoghan, or will she
chicken out. We shall see. That’s what a love interest is all
about.
Here
is the protagonist development list. We are going to use this list
to develop a Romantic protagonist. With the following outline in
mind, we will build a Romantic protagonist.
1. Define the initial scene – I’m developing the initial
scene, and I’m building it in my mind. Here’s
what I’m thinking. Eoghan is a hard-working,
isolated, and very skilled man. His job
is taking care of the supernatural issues in the National Parks of Scotland and
Britian. He has been assigned a case
from his mother through Stela. Stela is
the group under “the Organization” that handles protecting Britian from the
supernatural. I should note there is a
significant system, not large in numbers, but high in power and connections to
do just this. They are under the Crown
and by “the Organization.” Eoghan’s
mother, Eliana is a real recluse who works for the Crown and who has
aristocratic roots, but from an old line of royalty of the British. She is touched. That means she has the power of charm and
sensitivity to the supernatural. That’s
why she’s in charge of the part of Stela that handles small issues of supernatural
problems. She works at home and investigates
so others can handle the problems in the field.
That’s what Eoghan does. Eoghan’s
sister wants to do work similar to Eoghan.
So far she’s not allowed.
Now,
for the initial scene, Eoghan has been sent to Loch Lomond and The Trossachs
National Park near Glasgow and Stirling to handle a supernatural nuisance. I think I’ll make this a very dangerous kind
of Scottish Fae. Eoghan has to apply
some strength and power against this creature.
In the end, he will be injured, but he will discover a hidden old
Anglo-Saxon graveyard with an inscription and a crypt. The creature will lead him there and his
injury with the power he has to exert will allow him to find the place. Perhaps to protect himself he’ll need to escape
to this hidden oasis of protection.
There
Eoghan will find the inscription and the crypt.
The injured and escaping Eoghan finds an ancient and secret Anglo-Saxon
graveyard in the wilds of the Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park. There, Eoghan finds the inscription and a
crypt. Of course, since he has nothing
better to do—he’s waiting for the dangerous Fae creature or creature of the
land to go away.
When
he inspects the inscription, he finds he can read it. He and his family are experts at languages
and especially ancient British languages, actually Gaelic and Celtic
languages. This is one of the skills of
Stela and a trained skill of Eoghan and his family. This comes from a deep and long running
training and experience of these families.
Because
Eoghan can understand the inscription, and I think I’ll make it an ancient but
kind of obvious Anglo-Saxon joke or riddle.
They really liked their jokes and tricks. The joke will be at Aine’s expense and saying
a curse or making fun of her will result in her being released from a spell
holding her. Then Eoghan will have to
rescue her from the crypt.
Aine
is an interesting being and focus. She
is an unbound goddess. This means she
has some life and some death. She is a being
with fettered powers who is not fully human but not fully a goddess. She is a being made to point to the eternal
and to the real Dagda. The Dagda is the
Celtic and Gaelic name for God. Part of
Aine’s problem is that she was made and then captured and interned before the
revelation of the Son of God. This is
something she will experience and learn in this novel. This is a recurring theme in my novels of
this type. This fits directly into the
mind and knowledge of Eoghan. If you
remember, as a Romantic protagonist, he has a moral compass and a ethos based
on Christianity. This will meet Aine’s
needs like nothing else and will endear her to Eoghan. Also, Eoghan will he a good teacher and
helper.
The
final part of this initial scene will be Aine and Eoghan’s trek back through
the wilderness. They will have to defeat
the creature of the land and make their way back to Eoghan’s home. There the creature of the land will become an
issue, and we shall see other interactions that force Aine and Eoghan to move
forward.
2. At the
same time as the above—fit a protagonist into the initial
scene. That means the minimum of:
a. Telic
flaw – I already wrote the theme statement for this novel. Here it is:
Eoghan, a Scottish National Park Authority
Ranger, while handing a supernatural problem in Loch Lomond and The Trossachs
National Park discovers the crypt of Aine and accidentally releases her into
the world; Eoghan wants more from the world and Aine desires a new life and
perhaps love.
b. Approximate
age – I already wrote that Eoghan is between 19 and 21. I think I settled on 20. Here’s the details:
m. 2005 James (Seumas) Donaidh Calloway b. 1971 m. at 34
y. 2028 57 y.
c.
b. 2008 Jan Eoghan (Owen) Ragnall Calloway/Stuart (Stiùbhartach) – 2028, 20 y.
c.
b. 2012 Aife (Eva) Eamhair (Evir) Calloway/Stuart (Stiùbhartach) – 2028, 16 y.
Aine
appears about 16 y.
c. Approximate
social degree
For Eoghan, he will be from an interesting
background that allows him some opportunities, but most of them will be due to
himself and not his background. This is
why I’d like to get Rose involved. Rose
has wealth and position, and she will know who should be her friends.
d. Sex -
male
As I wrote, pathos can never be directly
engaged. For example, having your
characters sit around and cry about something is the surest way to bathos,
however, having your protagonist face a trying and important emotional issue
without shedding a tear can have your readers reaching for the tissues. If you remember, pathos is the entire point
of tension and release and the novel itself, you are on the right track. The selection of the sex of your protagonist
and especially of a Romantic protagonist can have a great effect on your novel.
2. Refine the protagonist
You
can see the initial characteristic of the protagonist is his or her physical
description. This is vomited forth when
the character is introduced. This
defines the way the character looks plus some other characteristics that we
shall see. This is a very important
characteristic and perhaps the most important about the protagonist. I’m not in favor of the limited or zero
description of the protagonist that has become popular today. In fact, I think one of the most egregious
problems with modern writing is the lack of sufficient description. I go by the Arlo Guthrerie rule of thumb of
300 words of description for every major setting and character and 100 words of
description for every minor setting and character. We’ll see how all this works eventually, but
for now, we are refining the protagonist with the stuff we can show immediately
through description.
a. Physical description
Eoghan (Owen)
Ragnall Calloway/Stuart (Stiùbhartach) was a young man of average stature,
height, and build. He was so average you
might miss him in the crowd except he was a man no one could miss. His bearing wasn’t really different from most
other men, but you couldn’t miss him in any group. His height wasn’t taller than others, he was
average, but for some reason he always stood out. His face was pleasant and somewhat
nondescript, but it wasn’t nondescript at all.
It was striking in the most unstriking fashion. He just looked regal while seeming completely
normal. Women couldn’t keep from looking
at him, and men all wanted to be his friend.
They flocked around him, but never hid him or overwhelmed him. All the time, he seemed like the calmest and
most reasonable person. He was the
person you wanted to invite for any reason, tea, a meal, a game, a walk—just
being near him was calming and wonderful.
Even when words didn’t pass from his lips, the time was delightful. Men wanted to hear his voice and women to
touch his hand. His voice was
unimpressive and quiet, but filled with promises and strength. It was as if every word that came out of his
mouth bolstered and strengthened even when he didn’t say something erudite or
when he remarked about the weather. It
was uncanny and soothing, never unnerving or worrisome. Even his name, Eoghan Ragnall Stuart felt
noble while sounding so unnormally normal.
If you called him by his Anglicized name Owen Ronald Calloway, it still
sounded noble but normal. And then his
smile was always encompassing, but unassuming.
It had a slightly gloomy bent as if he took even happiness and
jovialness in a sober and thoughtful way so even the most lame jokes became
important and intelligent even when they weren’t. Eoghan was always the life of the party, but
unfortunately, he didn’t attend many parties at all. He was too busy as a Scottish National Park
Authority Ranger handling small difficulties for the Crown and Stela.
b. Background
– history of the protagonist
You don’t need to write it all down, but
you might as well. One of the most
important things I’ve learned about writing is to make notes when you write so
you don’t mess up your novel with conflicting information. For example, if you write that your character
has red hair, and then describe their beautiful blond hari later, you will have
a real problem. Let’s hope you or your
editor catches it. This is one of the
real killer problems that will knock your readers out of the suspension of
disbelief.
i. Birth
m. 2005 James (Seumas) Donaidh Calloway b. 1971 m. at 34
y. 2028 57 y.
c.
b. 2008 Jan Eoghan (Owen) Ragnall Calloway/Stuart (Stiùbhartach) – 2028, 20 y.
c.
b. 2012 Aife (Eva) Eamhair (Evir) Calloway/Stuart (Stiùbhartach) – 2028, 16 y.
Aine
appears about 16 y.
I
have more than just Eoghan listed here.
I’ve pegged his birth at January 2008.
At this point, I don’t think I need more fidelity. If the actual date comes up, I’ll likely put
it at 23 January. That’s kind of a joke
or an author’s input. My birthday
happens to be about that time. When I
need an actual date in any novel, I just use some month with the 23rd
day. That always makes things easy. Why not, if the actual date is not based in
history or the fidelity isn’t important.
Now, once you establish a date like that, you need to base the rest of
the time, when necessary on it. In this
case, I don’t think I’ll have to. If I
need a second date, I usually use another date from my history and family. It has no purpose except to give a specific
date to an event—especially an event that really doesn’t need that kind of
precision.
ii. Setting
– the setting for this novel is in Scotland and most specifically Stirling
between Glascow and Edinburgh. Eoghan
and his family live on the outskirts of Stirling in a cottage with three
bedrooms, a parlor, a kitchen and dining area, and a secret office. There is a garage that started life as a barn
with plenty of room for at least two cars and some extra space and a guest room
above it. I should get to the description—I’ll
do that in detail when I write the novel.
The main point is that Eoghan’s parents are slightly isolated because
they want to be. Eoghan’s mother
dislikes the effect she has on others and secludes herself away from society
because of it. His father is somewhat
similar. He doesn’t like attention
either—he got too much of it as a child, and he works in a nondescript office
in Glascow for the Organization. His
main job is organizing and managing the Organization operatives and agents
working in Scotland. It’s an important
job, and usually a quite one. It might
get a bit frenzied when Aine shows up with Eoghan.
Eoghan’s
mother works in the secret office. She
has enough internet speed and connections to do her job very well. She is an expert in her field which is
detecting and declaring the jobs Stela must handle in Scotland. She works mostly by herself, but gets help
from the main office. Usually, there
isn’t any help, the main office sends her information and she makes the
decisions. It has been very helpful for
her to use Eoghan to handle many of the suburban problems. She was frazzled when she had to interview
and assign agents to the work. Now, she
does it through the computer, text (iphones), and email. She can speak directly to her son when
necessary.
Perhaps I’m
getting too much into the family already.
I’ll get more about it when we get to family. This is mainly the setting part. I think we have enough details, but I’ll
proceed to the initial scene setting. This
is Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park near Glasgow and Stirling. This is one of two current Scottish national
parks. It’s a scenic area with some
wilderness. It has some real hidden gems
and hidden places. One will be the place
Eoghan finds the Cemetery and crypt. We’ll
describe this area and the places when we begin with the novel. There are some great pictures to use and I’ve
been to the general area before. It will
be in the height of summer. Next, we’ll write
about Eoghan and his life.
iii. Life
Eoghan’s
room is in a cottage near Stirling. The
cottage is old and small so his room must be old and small. There is a door that opens into a sitting
area with a large dormer that forms a sitting area. The dormer has three windows with a built in
seat that also acts as storage. Across
from the dormer is a single bed and at the foot of the bed, closest to the door
is a desk and chair. The walls are all
covered with drawers at the middle and built in cabinets at the bottom and
top. The only open wall space is on the
wall with the desk the sloped walls beside the dormer and the ceiling. Therefore, there isn’t anything hanging on
the walls except an old scouting poster above the desk. This is in a handmade frame with awards
encircling it nearly completely. It’s so
filled with awards from scouting and wilderness events. Everything is neat and tidy. Everything is in its place.
If you open
the cabinet doors you will find books on book about the wilds and animals of
Scotland. If you open the drawers you
will find all kinds of collections of animals, insects, and birds of Scotland. You won’t find any clothing. You will find some gear, knives, and equipment. You would have to open the large drawers
built into and under the bed to find Eoghan’s clothing neatly laid and folded
into place. He and his siter does
everything to take care of themselves and their things. He basically built most of the storage and
washes all his clothing. He and his
sister make the meals. That tells us a
lot about Eoghan just looking at his room and his life.
iv. Education
What did
Eoghan’s education look like? I’ll posit
that he had a very normal education except that he was educated and trained by
his mother and father in his special skills and abilities. In general, this means he learned language
skills from both in the fashion of his father’s family. The Calloways educated their family in languages
through their use in the home. The
Calloway family knew many Asian languages, but they passed to their families
Celtic, Gaelic, Welsh, Anglo-Saxon, French, German, Latin, Greek, and
Hebrew. The normal languages found in
British Grammer School and private schools are Latin, French, and German. The others are based on the family background
and trade. Their trade is in languages
and politics. I need to explain a little
about the Calloway/Stuart (Stiùbhartach) families.
So, for
Eoghan, I’ll posit that he has been in private schools from the beginning. The same for his sister. If I need to, I’ll produce the school names,
but the real turn for Eoghan is that while all his classmates went on to
university, Eoghan chose to go into the Scottish National Park Authority. This surprised his friends, but not his
family. He was already working part time
with the National Park Authority. That’s
to be covered in the work subject area.
v. Work
Eoghan
really liked the scouts and the military type discipline there. He loves the wilderness and the work he does
in rounding up and encouraging the Fae to play nice with humans. He would really like to be involved with the
military, he just doesn’t know about it and how to go about it. In spite of his education and his
opportunities, he didn’t fully comprehend the possibilities that were open to
him, and he isn’t necessarily stuck in his current job—he just likes it. He can’t imagine another job that would get
him what he really wonts, but he hasn’t met many in the military. I intend for that to change. He will meet Rose and Seoirse.
vi. Profession
Eoghan, on
the other hand, is quiet and subdued—the quiet kind of leader who you are happy
to entrust yourself with. This is a
different type of leadership, one I never broke out before in just this
way. Bruce Lyons was this type of
leader. He had been wounded in the past
and was a very hands-on but entrusted leader.
I really didn’t build much on this because I didn’t write any novels
where he was the protagonist. He was
always a supporting character. Eoghan
will be the protagonist and Aine his prod.
This will be similar to Tilly and Bruce.
Tilly was my very Tigerish character.
Aine will be more manipulative and just as bouncy as Tilly. She’ll be a girl with a heart of gold who
wants her man to be the very best for her and for the world. I see Eoghan as a man in the military who
fits in the Special Operations and Special Missions field and who becomes the
leader of an organization like the Organization. This is where many of my leaders go. The main point for me is to drive them in the
writing into those positions. I’m
running about five years ahead of the world.
We shall see where that gets us.
vii. Family
b. Setting – current – In looking at the background of
Eoghan, we’ve touched on the modern and current setting of Eoghan. I’ll mention again, his parents, Eoghan and
his sister Eva live in a small cottage in Stirling, Scotland. He works for the Scottish National Park Authority
and handles special problems for them.
His mother sets up the work. In
fact, she identifies the Fae issues or gets the information for them from Stela
in the Organization. The big deal here
is that Eoghan works for the Organization and Stela whether he knows it
directly or not. In fact, I might just
have him be ignorant of the entire situation about the Organization and
Stela. What would be luscious is to have
Seoirse or Rose explain to him, Aine, and Eva about these organizations in the
British intelligence structure.
I really do have much more to do in the
actual development of the character(s), protagonist and setting, but part of
this outline, is just that, it’s an outline.
I have all the real details I need, for example, to describe the characters
and the settings. What does that mean?
Well, unbeknownst to you, I researched a
place for their cottage and I already noted about the place they live. All I have to do now, is either imagine it or
find a picture and describe it. That’s
what I recommend to you. For very
important settings, like houses and such, I just look for the place I want,
then I describe it to the best of my creative ability. I might add a little bit here and there. That’s what I’ll do for Eoghan’s house. I’ll find a proper picture of a typical
Scottish cottage in the woods, and I’ll describe it in the novel. I’ll do the same with the people.
Let’s write about describing people. In the first place, normal people make
terrible characters and descriptions. Even
the most beautiful or handsome or the most interesting are generally not the
stuff of legend and novels. The best
thing to do is imagine and tack together your protagonist. I like to look for the unusual or very
interesting in characters. I suspect,
I’ll look for the most righteously Irish looking girl for Aine. I’ll take her description from myth and try
to find the most outlandish and amazingly Celtic girl to make her. I’d like her to not look like a modern person
thinks of as beautiful or perfect.
Ever seen any pictures of people from the
classical eras of painting and art? The
people don’t look anything like our idea of beauty today. Every remember Twiggy? She was the supper skinny model from the 1960s. She looked emaciated, but for a few years
that was the perception of beauty in the eyes of the illuminate.
One of the most interesting ideas in
historically based literature and especially reflected worldview is the way the
world, people, and their ideas have changed over time. Fully grown and full sized Fae women and men
are much shorter and smaller than modern women and men. That’s because they are very long lived and
their forms were made when the world and humanity was smaller. Likewise, a creature from the past like a
vampire might appear much different than we could imagine simply because of the
time difference and the society and culture the creature came out of.
I think I’d like Aine to look like a beauty
from her times, which means she might not be very appealing to many modern
people. Her looks might be very Celtic,
but very Celtic might be very different than the modern ideal of beauty. This little tension and this little bit of
difference is one of the powers of this type of writing. The point is to build entertainment through
these differences and intricacies.
i. Life
ii. Setting
iii. Work
d. Name -
Eoghan (Owen) Ragnall (Ronald) Calloway/Stuart (Stiùbhartach)
I waited until now to write about Eoghan’s
name. Let’s start with his first name:
Eoghan:
The
boy's name Eoghan \e(o)-ghan\ is pronounced Ohn/Own. It is of Gaelic origin,
and its meaning is "born of yew (tree); youth". In Irish legend,
Eóghan was the name of one of the two sons of Niall of the Nine Hostages (the
other was Conall). Anglicised forms of the name are Ewan, Euan, Ewen (mainly
used in Scotland), Owen and Eugene. It is not etymologically related to the
names Eóin or Owen.
This
isn’t all:
Gaelic Baby Names Meaning:
In
Gaelic Baby Names the meaning of the name Eoghan is: Young fighter.
Greek
Baby Names Meaning:
In
Greek Baby Names the meaning of the name Eoghan is: Well-born. Famous bearer:
Prince Eugene of Savoy; American playwright Eugene O'Neill.
Irish
Baby Names Meaning:
In
Irish Baby Names the meaning of the name Eoghan is: God's gift. From a Gaelic
word for youth. Also a.
Scottish
Baby Names Meaning:
In
Scottish Baby Names the meaning of the name Eoghan is: Young; youth.
Comes
from an old Irish word and means “born of the yew tree.” In Northern Ireland
the name Eoghan is found in Tir Eoghan, County Tyrone or “The Land of Eoghan”
and is often accompanied by Roe in memory of the Irish patriot Eoghan Roe (“Red
Eoghan”) O’Neill who won a great battle over the British at Benburb in 1646.
One of the reasons I chose this name is the many
meanings and the many connections to different cultures—especially the Gaelic
and Celtic cultures. The meanings are a
little different in each one. In addition,
Eoghan has connections in Greek as well as the ancient British languages. If you didn’t notice, the pronunciation is a
little different based on Gaelic, Celtic, or Greek. I also want to use this as an idea in the
novel. The meanings of the name will
come into play, but that’s just how I like to use the names of my
characters. The name gives the reader
insight into the character and especially the background of the character. Notice also there is an Anglicized equivalent. This is also important.
Let’s look at his middle name, Ragnall:
Ragnall, Raghnall, Raonall, and Raonull are
masculine personal names or given names in several Gaelic languages.
Ragnall occurs in Old Irish, and Middle
Irish/Middle Gaelic. It is a Gaelicised form of the Old Norse Røgnvaldr,
Rǫgnvaldr, Rögnvaldr. This Old Norse name is composed of two elements: regin,
meaning "(German) Gods"; and valr, meaning "powerful".[5]
It has also been suggested that Ragnall could also represent the Old Norse
Ragnarr as well. Ragnall can be Anglicised as Ranald and Ronald, and Latinised
as Reginald, Reginaldus.
The modern spelling is Raghnall in Scottish
Gaelic and either Raghnall or Raonull in Irish. Anglicised forms of Raghnall
include: Ranald, Rannal, and Ronald.
The final -ll sound of the Gaelic names are
de-vocalized, and to non-Gaelic-speakers this suggests -d sound. In this way
the name is similar to the various forms of the Gaelic Domhnall, which can be
Anglicised as Donald.
The name Ragnall comes from old Norse
languages that actually mean decisive ruler. The meaning of Ragnall is beside
the point in many cases because it would have been given to the firstborn son
of a family. It is a name that has lived on in a few spellings, and you still
find it used in Scandinavia today.
Yes, I wanted an Anglo-Saxon connection. Notice, there is an Anglicized equivalent,
Ronald. With his first name, we have a
meaning of: born of yew (tree); youth, freedom, and young fighter along with decisive
ruler and gift of the gods. These pair well
with his last names: Calloway/Stuart (Stiùbhartach).
Stuart and Stewart are clan names and the
names of the royal house of Scottland.
That’s where Elaina comes from. Stiùbhartach
is the origin of the clan and the name Stuart.
This is the classical name. So,
we have a protagonist whose Gaelic name is:
Eoghan Ragnall Stuart (Stiùbhartach) his
formal name has the Stiùbhartach as the family name.
His Anglicized name is:
Owen Ronald Calloway/Stuart
The Calloway stays because that is his
father’s name. So, in Britan proper, he
would be:
Owen Ronald Calloway
Now, you might ask, why the different names
and why use them? I’ll get to that,
next.
About names. I’m in the air on my way to Southeast Texas. I’m flying myself. Now, about names.
In my novels, the name matches the
characters and especially the protagonist.
The names have a historical meaning and reason as well as a personal meaning
and reason. Therefore, Eoghan Ragnall
Stuart has a meaning in history. This is
what a reflected worldview is all about.
The reader should be able to look up the name and the history of the
family and gain some degree of information about that name and family. The Stuarts are the royal family of Scotland. That should tell you something about
Eoghan. In addition, although I’m not a
fan of the idea of right of kings, I am a fan of the idea that different humans
and families have certain powers granted to them by the Dagda (God). This is exclusively a reflected worldview. The idea of such powers is religated to myth
and history, but it could be true. In
the past, and even now many people believe in such things. That’s the reflected worldview. In addition, I named my children for specific
historical and classical reasons—why shouldn’t a child or any person have a
handpicked name that means something important for their lives. Even if they don’t live up to the dream of
their names—that name has meaning, and in the reflected worldview, it has an important
meaning.
Eoghan means born of yew and youth, also
well-born and God’s gift. Historically,
and in myth it has meanings beyond just the name. In addition, it sounds so Scottish with an
Irish touch. That’s because it is an ancient
Gaelic and Celtic name. That’s the point. It will sit well with Aine. Already, I wrote that Aine will be smitten by
this young man Eoghan. How can she not
be? He will release her from an over
thousand year captivity. How can you not
love the person who did that. In
addition, Eoghan is good looking and charismatic. Aine will be as Irish as Irish and Celtic can
be. She will be not beautiful by today’s
standards, but beautiful by her times standards, therefore, she will think she
is beautiful. I need to eventually write
her description, but I know she will be too short for the modern world. She will be too skinny, and too brash, and
too outspoken. She will be dangerous
with and without a weapon, and she will wield power—the power of Aine. I need to define that too.
Now, about Ragnall. I wanted a name that ties Eoghan to the way
past, and Ragnall is a Gaelic and Celtic but comes from the Norse connections
to the cultures. The name means “powerful
god.” Aine will also understand this, plus
I get to give Eoghan a modern name too.
The anglicized names.
The reason for two sets of names is so
that I can legitimately give my characters aliases based on their historically
based names. I can also use their father
and mother’s names to refer to them professionally and in the peerage.
Although Eoghan isn’t really a member of
the aristocracy, he has aristocratic connections through his family. This provides the common with a secret. Here’s how it works. In the real world, everyone wishes they had
some connection to the aristocracy. In
the European nations, this is more prevalent than in the New World, but still,
people in the New World long to have some connection to royalty. This makes them special even if they aren’t. In a novel like this, we can take a protagonist
who is common and make him special by connecting him to the aristocracy. I did this with Rose and Seoirse, and it was
really fun. Eoghan will have less
connection to the aristocracy, but the small touch is enough to excite your
readers. Especially when the primary
doesn’t acknowledge the fact much at all.
There is much more about names, but that’s
probably enough for now. Suffice to say,
the names of all your characters are important, but for the protagonist, I find
it to be a critical aspect for them.
This is part of the reflected worldview.
What is really fun to me is the idea a reader might look up the names
and find out all about them. In addition,
I’ll mention the meanings and tie them into the novel and plots.
3. Refine the details of the protagonist – these are
secrets. If you remember only to show
and not to tell you will have no problems with this. However, since so many inexperienced writers
and some experienced writers do seem to have a telling problem I’ll write more
about it. I’ll give you some secret
details about Eoghan in further notes.
For example, Eoghan is really a very great and honorable man. He is always respectful to ladies and to other
men. These are secrets in that I shall
never express them directly in any description.
We might make sideways expressions that say something similar, but I
will never directly tell you about his internals, only his externals.
Some
writers might say that if you write he or she was like, that is a telling
description. It is not. That is simply a figure of speech and a great
way to express a description. Showing us
what a person feels is also not telling.
For example, writing that she wrinkled her nose at the smell is definitely
a description that shows us the effects of the smell. If you write, it tasted like chicken, that is
a little more problematic, but if she or he says “it tasted like chicken,” that
is definitely showing through dialog. Here’s
my basic rule for showing and not telling.
If it
is a description of anything physical, that is showing.
If it
is stated in a dialog, it is showing.
I know
you want some examples. Of description:
Her
eyes were wet.
He
smiled.
She touched
her lips.
He
frowned.
She
kissed him.
He gave
her a kiss.
These
all show something or other. The reason
may be in the context, but the point is that these are descriptions that show outwardly
the inward feelings of the person. What
about dialog.
She exclaimed,
“This snake tastes just like chicken.”
He
snarled, “It’s because I like you.”
She waved
her hand, “It’s just a scrape.”
He lifted
his head, “I smell something terrible.”
She shuddered,
“That really makes me feel bad.”
He moved
his mouth, “You’re making me feel uncomfortable.”
These
are all examples of showing and not telling.
Notice, we are giving some very strongly internal information through
dialog. I see no problem with this at
all. Her’s a very specific one I could
write about Eoghan.
She
smiled, “Eoghan is always very nice to everyone. He’s just a sweet guy.”
This
is telling through the lips of another character. How does the reader know this is truth—the reader
doesn’t unless we know more about the character who said it. The big deal is that we can express this type
of information through dialog, but never through description. I don’t want to give you an example of
telling, just examples of showing. It
should be enough to write show and don’t tell, and then to describe this as
description or dialog. We’ll get into
the secrets that can never be told, next.
a.
Emotional description (never to be shared
directly) – here’s just one of those big secrets that can (you read that right,
can) never be shared. This is why I’m
not in favor of first person novels. The
author can’t help but tell us all about what the protagonist thinks and is
thinking—that’s the way first person works.
When you are writing in I, me, my, mine, and myself (if you aren’t
familiar as you should be with first person), there is no way you can keep the
mind (including the emotions) of the protagonist a secret, but for good writing,
you must. Therefore, my advice is to
ditch the first person in novels. Yeah,
some people really enjoy it, especially the young adult crowd—that should tell
you something. For me, and for the
classics and for the best writing environment, and the most enjoyable, the third
person past tense implying the future of current is the best style of
writing. This is the modern style and
allows the writer to keep great secrets about the protagonist. That’s the point. Now, to the emotional make up of Eoghan.
Eoghan, if you didn’t notice is a quiet,
responsible, honorable, strong, decent, hard-working, gentle, quiet, thoughtful,
and studious man. I didn’t write about
his special skills as emotional points because he has some negatives. These come from his mother and partially from
his father. Let me list them:
Eoghan from a negative emotional standpoint
is: standoffish, uncomfortable around strangers and the outgoing, quiet,
formal, intentionally a wallflower, not forthright (that doesn’t mean he isn’t
honest.) The fact that he isn’t
forthright means he puts others ahead of himself all the time, which can be a
real problem. For example, a forthright
person would tell Aine right away that her ideas are bad. Eoghan would accept Aine’s ideas and wait for
them to fail, at the same time formulating some way to make them work out. I’ll try to portray this very complex
emotional piece for Eoghan, but I think you can see just how interesting and important
this will be. This will be especially interesting
when Aine figures out just what he is doing.
That’s what makes this emotional expression such a great secret and such
a great thing to hide from the reader until the principles figure it out. Do you see just how great this is?
If we were using the first person or we
vomited forth the emotional being of the protagonist, this wouldn’t be very powerful
or interesting at all. Since no one, not
even Aine or maybe Eoghan fully understands his own mental and emotional makeup,
this creates a perfect situation for revelation. We will observe Eoghan’s response to Aine
over and over, until she finally gets it.
That revelation about Eoghan will lead to a great revelation about
herself. She will know that her
personality is overbearing and overcontrolling when it shouldn’t be—that won’t
be a climax or resolution event for the telic flaw, but it will bring them
closer and her closer to Eoghan. This is
a psychological aspect of this kind of novel.
By the way, all modern novels had some degree of psychological plot in
them—they can’t help it. The third
person, however, allows the author to control the narrative and the power of
the revelation abut any psychological aspects—that’s the way it should be. Then there is the mental description (also a
secret).
b. Mental description (never to be shared directly) – what’s
the difference between a mental and an emotional description? Well, I’d say not that much. In some ways emotional is how a character
reacts mentally to a mental or a physical stimulus. In the past, this was much clearer to people
than it is today. In fact, I’d argue
that the mental and the physical were much better disconnected in the past. Today, people in general, and readers in
particular don’t relate much different between the physical and the emotional. This has made writing harder in some ways and
easier in others.
It's harder because readers don’t separate
the physical from the mental and emotional.
It’s easier because there’s less logic involved in the suspension of
disbelief. People who accept the mental
and emotional as physical can’t tell the difference between the two and will
accept a lot that earlier readers would never even contemplate. I don’t think that’s a reason to not always
apply logic and reasoning to your plots and developments, but people who accept
that the bad guys die with a single bullet shot and the good guys can take hundreds
of shots and still keep moving, will accept almost anything. I’m writing about the major movies that
supposedly entertain—I find most of them mindless and mostly insane, but that’s
my problem. Now, back to mental and
emotional—we already hit the physical, and I’m not confused.
The mental aspects of a character are those
ideas and things that make up their mind.
For example, how intelligent, educated, mentally strong, forthright,
leadership, hardworking, capable, fortitude, and I like to add spiritual strength
as well. How about spiritual, faith, belief,
morals, ethics, and the like. Let’s
repeat about Eoghan.
Eoghan is very intelligent but quiet and not
necessarily forthright in showing just how intelligent he is. He is quiet and though mentally strong, he
won’t necessarily say what he thinks or believes. He keeps his mouth shut. This is in direct contrast to Aine who can’t
keep her mouth shut. Eoghan sees quietness
as thoughtful and questioning, while Aine sees quietness as acquiescence and lack
of ideas or knowledge. Aine speaks aloud
to think—she’s an old world thinker.
Eoghan is a very faithful and faith based
person. He just doesn’t wear his ideas,
thoughts, or emotions on his sleeve.
Aine always does. She almost
always says what she thinks except those things that no one in her culture
could ever say. This is part of the
Celtic/Gaelic problem.
I’ll mention this because it is so important
in these cultures. The Celtic/Gaelic
problem is one of clothing, or lack thereof.
The Celts don’t like or abide nudity—this is a cultural issue from the
far past. This is a true historical issue. I don’t know how it affects the society
today, but it is a classic historical issue.
I play this with the Fae both the Unseelie and the Seelie Tuatha
Dé Danann. These are both Irish and
Celtic groups or at least touched by the idea of the Irish problem about nudity
and what things you can share with people.
One of the main ideas you can’t share freely is supposed to be likes and
loves especially about others. That’s
part of the nudity of the mind and soul, and that relates directly to mental.
c. Likes and dislikes (never to be shared directly) – likes and
dislikes can really tell you a lot about a person. I don’t mean the silly or the mental,
although those are interesting as well—they don’t tend to play well with the
normal crowd, but they are coming into vogue.
What do I mean by that? It’s the hypochondriacs
types—you know those with psychological fears they can’t deal with mentally or
emotionally. Today, these are considered
some kind of normal reality, but, in the past, and by actual science, they are
just mental illness. If you want
examples, it’s all the things children are supposed to get over with maturity:
fear of the dark, fear of insects, fear of heights, fear of people, and
all. These can be used in a character,
but these are usually considered character and mental weaknesses. As society becomes more and more inward and mental,
these types of characters have risen to some degree of prominence, but the
reality is that no one really likes them.
How can you have a strong leader type who has a fear of the dark, or a
tough woman leader who gets mental at the sight of a spider—it just doesn’t
work. In fact, that’s why these types of
aliments are considered mental illness—we just don’t label anything negatively
anymore. So, likes and dislikes are not
about unsubstantiated fears. In fact, if
you want to write about an unsubstantiated fear, write it such that the character
overcomes such a fear—that would help readers and society. In any case, what are likes and dislikes?
As I noted, these are never shared
directly. You can show them through
actions or through dialog, but never through telling. One of the biggest for most great characters is
that they love to read. Liking reading
is like bread and butter to most readers.
You really can’t have a protagonist who hates to read—unless you reform
them into a reader. That can work. In Aine, Eoghan loves to read, as do all the
member of his family. They are a family
of readers. Aine, on the other hand,
comes from an early and ancient culture that doesn’t have books at all. Do they have writing? Perhaps, but Aine missed out on the real
writing. She knows only about
protowriting. Aine will be intrigued with
and desire to learn to read. The real
problem will be that she can’t admit she wants to read—that’s one of those
Celtic things, like nudity. In that
culture and society, you usually don’t express your true desires.
What other likes? Eoghan loves his work—he just doesn’t know
what else he’s missing in the world.
Aine used to hate her existence.
She loves life, but was put upon by her society with little protection
but herself—she was punished for protecting herself from rape. This puts a mark indelibly on her soul. This means she really doesn’t trust anyone,
but she will trust her savior, Eoghan.
That’s a real like. Aine loves
Eoghan, although she can’t tell him that.
What other likes and dislikes?
There are obstacles for Aine to overcome. She isn’t used to the twenty first Century
modes and methods of movement. These
aren’t really things she dislikes as things she has initial fears about. Likewise, she has fears of so many people and
enclosed spaces. She just isn’t used to
them. An unprotected home is a great
source of fear for her. These aren’t
unfounded fears, they are real fears from her culture—she just has to get used
to them.
Another really fun like for Aine is
food. In the ancient world, there are
fears related to food based on the potential for death, but the Celts had few
of these. Aine will eat anything she
thinks is edible. This is a like, so to
speak, that we can use for laughs.
Eoghan is used to living on the land.
He’s used to no food and bad food.
This will play into the story as well.
I should note that Eoghan likes to live off the land. He’s really good at it and can make all kinds
of foods to happily eat on the trail. I’ll
also note, that from my own experience, food in the wilderness, no matter the
quality usually tastes very good when you are hungry and have gone
without. Once you get back to civilization,
the same food doesn’t taste nearly the same.
I could write many other likes and dislikes
for Aine and Eoghan, but there isn’t much need unless those likes and dislikes
fall into the plot or the storyline.
Let’s look at dislikes for a moment. I find dislikes as less interesting and
usable than likes, but that may be the optimism I have in life itself. I don’t personally dislike much, but the few
things I really dislike, I presume all civilized people dislike. I’m finding that fewer and fewer modern
people have a civilized attitude about the world. I think this is a real problem in real life
and one that can affect writing as well.
When we get to plots, I’ll write about the proselytizing
plot that I don’t use it. Unfortunately,
many writers do. Many writers presume
that writing isn’t about entertainment but about putting across your ideas to
others. That may be true in technical
writing, but not true at all in fiction.
Fiction is always and only about entertainment. Ever read Ulysses? How about Gertrude Stein’s writing? These are worthless because there is zero entertainment
in them. There is almost no cohesiveness,
structure, or writing in them. They are
not entertaining in the least and the only reason anyone would read them is
because some professor or professorete required it for a class. Now, what does this have to do with dislikes?
I dislike criminals, crime, and those who
commit them are reprobates and immoral.
This is what civilization does for you.
You dislike something that is harmful to society and you don’t need to
express any dislike because the society has a civil dislike for such
people. Likewise, the abuse of children
or women is a societal and civilized reflection on the world. In my worldview, no author needs breach these
as dislikes in a character because the entire society should also dilike such
things. You might ask, what about
phobias?
Phobias are individual mental illnesses based
on fantasy. Yes, they can greatly affect
a character, and sometimes are worth working with in a character. However, as I wrote before, mental illness,
though a possible plot and attribute for a character pulls most protagonists
out of the realm of the Romantic into the real and modern. Which might not be too bad. It is possible to have a bestseller along
those lines, but most readers despise a mentally damaged protagonist and a
Romantic protagonist will have a very hard road on the way to appeasing your
readers. This also has to do with
dislikes.
The Romantic protagonist has issues that are
deeply ingrained in them. This type of
protagonist is meditative, inner-reflective, melancholy, and all the other
inner attributes of this type of character.
We don’t usually see these as debilitating or mental illness. They are norms and the dislikes they engender
are norms.
Back to the dislikes of Eoghan and Aine. Eoghan could dislike pushy women. His mother is manipulative and not pushy in the
sense that Aine is. Aine is really
emotional, sensitive (not in the modern sense), and very pushy. She has no nuance about her at all. However, in spite of Eoghan’s dislikes, he
still love his mother and puts up with her manipulation. At the same time, he hasn’t really met or dealt
with a strong woman. Aine is a strong
woman, and extra strong woman. As you
can see, this isn’t as much about dislikes as it is about conflicts and
emotional and mental conflicts. That’s
what can really cause great entertainment in a cogent novel.
4. Telic flaw resolution – here’s the theme statement again:
Eoghan,
a Scottish National Park Authority Ranger, while handing a supernatural problem
in Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park discovers the crypt of Aine and
accidentally releases her into the world; Eoghan wants more from the world and
Aine desires a new life and perhaps love.
The
theme statement includes the telic flaw, and this theme statemen is very
blatant. The telic flaw is this: Eoghan wants more from the world and Aine
desires a new life and perhaps love.
Now,
you might say this is pretty amorphous, but it does tell us a lot about Eoghan
and Aine. This drives the novel—the telic
flaw is all about Eoghan determining what he wants as well as accommodating Aine
in some fashion. We can immediately see
how these two ideas could fit together, and that’s what I want to do with the
novel. I want to use about 100,000 words
to have Eoghan discover himself and discover his relationship with Aine. Sounds simple, doesn’t it. The main point in any novel is to put
together a set of plots that give us a resolution of the telic flaw. Note, there is a single telic flaw, and it
belongs to the protagonist. The rest is
simply a connection to the protagonist.
I
already wrote that I am making Aine the protagonist’s helper. This is how I love to write novels. The protagonist’s helper is one of the most
important characters in a modern Romantic novel. That’s because the protagonist must share
their inner thoughts, most specifically to be introspective. You can’t have introspection without either
telling or a sounding board. The
protagonist’s helper is a sounding board.
This character allows the Romantic protagonist to have dialog about
themselves, and Aine will be the perfect protagonist’s helper.
That’s
not to say, Aine won’t cut off information from Eoghan she doesn’t want to
hear. This is a real problem for and
with Aine, she is a very direct, honest, and selfish person, but she really
wants to please Eoghan. She will realize
her own deficiencies from the beginning, and although she will have constant
lapses, she will know when she has stepped on Eoghan’s toes too much. These events and incidents will drive the
plots and the resolution of the telic flaw, Eoghan’s telic flaw.
a. Changes required for the protagonist to resolve the telic
flaw – this is what the protagonist and especially the Romantic protagonist is
all about—the change. This isn’t what you
might think it is. In some overall plots
or themes this is obvious. For example,
the kid who wants to be a football player but is a 90 pound weakling. You know what must happen. I’ll state it, the kid must change physically
and potentially mentally to achieve the goal of becoming a football
player. How about the kid who wants to
become a rockstar? They must learn to be
a musician (maybe) first—that’s a change.
Most protagonist changes are much more subtle,
and they all are redemption plots. This
is basically the definition of the redemption plot. Even when you throw in the self-discovery or
the skills plot, change insinuates some type of redemption in the change. In fact, change itself defines redemption, and
in the most beloved novels, the protagonist is all about self-discovery and
change. That’s the entire point of zero
to hero and all.
Just look at Harry Potty. Harry must discover his magic and then refine
it to be able to be the messiah for his friends and world. This is a total redemption plot with a
messiah none the less. Other adult
novels are much more subtle. In Jack
Vance novels, the protagonist must understand the rules of the culture and
apply them. That’s his entire Romantic
protagonist development. In other
novels, the sparkly vampires, for example, the protagonist must become a
vampire, but again that’s a young adult novel and not very subtle.
In real past Romantic favorites, like
Ivanhoe. Ivanhoe must change his society
to achieve his desired goals. He still
gets a Saxon princess. In Robert Louis
Stevenson’s classic Romantic style novels, the protagonist must make incredible
discoveries, mostly about mysteries and secrets to eventually achieve the
redemption telic flaw resolution. Think Treasure
Island where the protagonist must deal with pirates and others but the
ultimate point is about friendships and betrayal. The Black Arrow gives us a protagonist
who must discover just who he is escorting to safety and why he (who is really
a she) is so weak and unmanly. He still
falls in love.
Even our favorite, non-Romantic, protagonists
make changes, but usually not in the same way.
For example, Sara Crew in A Little Princess, doesn’t change so
much as she comes to a realization of the life of the lowly and poor, and she
wants to do anything to get out of it.
Again a type of physical redemption, but Victorian protagonists don’t
change emotionally or mentally as much as physically. Sometimes, they have to just apologize. In any case, the protagonist and the Romantic
protagonist must change in some way to achieve the telic flaw resolution. In adult type and sophisticated novels this
change is subtle. In youth based novels,
this isn’t usually very subtle at all.
We’ll look at some potential redemptive changes for Eoghan.
i.
Physical changes – I could easily state there
are no physical changes necessary for Eoghan to resolve the telic flaw, but
that would be wrong. It isn’t just
internal changes or physical personal changes, but rather movement, wealth,
position, and etc. when we write about physical changes. Let me repeat the theme statement again:
Eoghan,
a Scottish National Park Authority Ranger, while handing a supernatural problem
in Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park discovers the crypt of Aine and
accidentally releases her into the world; Eoghan wants more from the world and
Aine desires a new life and perhaps love.
To achieve this resolution, Eoghan
must get more from the world. We’ve
defined this as achieving his goals in life, to some degree. We know that Eoghan has latent charm powers
which he has been trained to use, mostly through not interacting with
people. He lives his ranger existence
mainly away from others. He is self-isolated
mainly because his mother see this as the best way to keep his skills in
check. However, Eoghan will soon be
convinced to use his skills. We’ll get
to that, that is mental and emotional changes, but the physical changes are
still very important.
Physical
changes are what you do with your body and placement once the emotional and
mental decisions are made. The questions
we might have are: where will Eoghan and
Aine go? What will they do? How will Aine integrate into the world? What will the result of their romance
be? Is there any hope for their romance? What will Eoghan achieve? Where will they live, train, and exist? What will his work be? Who will he work for? All these questions are physically
based. They have to do with what happens
in the novel and the realizations the characters make.
At
this point, I can’t answer all these questions.
I have my own ideas, and I’m formulating them, but from my experience,
it does no good to fully outline and answer every single question, because part
of the power in creative writing is to figure out ideas on the wing. Especially the detailed ones. It’s enough to know they exist and they are
not direct physical changes. For example,
if Eoghan wanted to become a football (soccer) star in Britain, he might need
to make some real physical changes. That’s
something entirely different.
ii. Emotional
changes – the emotional changes or mental changes are the ones we mainly expect
from modern protagonists and especially Romantic protagonists. What’s the difference? Emotional are usually based on feelings while
mental are based on reason. Changes in
the emotional outlook, thoughts, beliefs, and perhaps feelings, as well as, the
interpretation of those things are mainly what we are writing about. There are very complex issues and points.
I’m mainly
writing about human interpretation of ideas and not the ideas themselves. Those ideas are the mental part while
emotions are about how the characters see those ideas. For example, an idea or a fact is a fact no
matter what anyone thinks about it. Let’s
use for example, Eoghan and his mother. How
does he view his mother’s interference in his life? Before Aine, I’d say he accepts it without much
thought. That’s just what his life and
life is all about for him. After Aine,
Eoghan begins to see his mother’s interference and actions as not positive at
all. His reaction will be driven by his
mother’s response and actions. With
reflection, we should see Eoghan begin to change and moderate his emotions and
thoughts about his mother, or specifically, how he reacts to his mother’s
actions.
So, what I expect
is that Eoghan begins to resent his mother’s actions and interference that will
lead to tension and release in the novel followed by a resolute focus where
Eoghan will begin to ignore and accept his mother’s negative views. We’ll see where this all goes. This is just one example of the many complex
situations about emotions I plan for the novel.
Another is
about Aine and her feelings about Eoghan.
There is much much more.
iii. Mental
changes
b. Alliances
required for the protagonist to resolve the telic flaw
c. Enemies
required for the protagonist to resolve the telic flaw
d. Plots
required for the protagonist to resolve the telic flaw
e. Obstacles
that must be overcome for the protagonist to resolve the telic flaw
I want to write another book based on
Rose and Seoirse, and the topic will be the raising of Ceridwen—at least that’s
my plan. Before I get to that, I want to
write another novel about dependency as a theme. We shall see.
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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story, storyline, character development, scene, setting, conversation, novel,
book, writing, information, study, marketing, tension, release, creative, idea,
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