Writing - part xxx534 Writing a Novel, Building a Protagonist, Fitting, Refining the Protagonist, Details, Telic Flaw Resolution, Plots, more Secrets

16 December 2023, Writing - part xxx534 Writing a Novel, Building a Protagonist, Fitting, Refining the Protagonist, Details, Telic Flaw Resolution, Plots, more Secrets

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 21^st 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 31^st 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 34^th novel (actually my 32^nd 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 30^th novel, working title Red Sonja.  I finished my 29^th novel, working title Detective.  I finished writing number 31, working title Cassandra: Enchantment and the Warrior.  I just finished my 32^nd novel and 33^rd 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)

So, my protagonist Eoghan will have the very special skills of charm and sensitivity to the creatures of the land.  He won’t have any other general powers of glamour. 

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

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

3.     Refine the protagonist

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

 

      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.

                                                                                                                        ii.     Setting  

                                         iii.     Life

 

iv.     Education

 

                                            v.     Work

 

                                            vi.     Profession

 

                                            vii.     Family

        

b.     Setting

   i.     Life

                                                ii.     Setting

                                              iii.     Work

c.      Name - Eoghan (Owen) Ragnall (Ronald) Calloway/Stuart (Stiùbhartach)

4.     Refine the details of the protagonist

a.      Emotional description (never to be shared directly)

b.      Mental description (never to be shared directly)

c.      Likes and dislikes (never to be shared directly)       

5.     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.

 

Aine is the protagonist’s helper and not the protagonist, but I intend to develop her in a very romance based manner.  The problem with Aine is her culture and her past.  She is used to aggressive men who deand what they want even to the point of rape against women they desire.  In fact, this rape concept is also called ancient marriage and was and is practiced by less civilized cultures.  The idea in ancient cultures is marriage is sex and sex is marriage.  When a man had sex with a woman, he took the responsibility for the progeny from that relationship.  He also was responsible for the woman.  This is very patriarchal, but in might makes right, you do have some choices.  Death and slavery is a couple of them.  Most of the time, slavery or concubinage marriage is better than death.  The rape concept of what is considered captive marriage is and was common.  That’s just how the American Indian culture worked.  In any case, that is the type of culture Aine is used to.  She’s in for a great surprise.

 

Eoghan is nothing like the men she is used to.  Eoghan is a man of honor and integrity.  That means in the sense of the modern culture and society.  He rescues Aine because he would rescue anyone, and Aine is unbelievably grateful.  The reason is that she thought all hope was lost.  I want to paint this very strong scene in a very poignant way.  Aine is completely willing to give up everything to Eoghan because he saved her from the crypt.  She would give up her virginity, her freedom, her everything, and from her cultural world, she expects Eoghan to take all.  Only Eoghan would never think of acting in that way to any woman.  Aine is horrified that Eoghan doesn’t want her right then and right in the open.  She’s a little insulted by it.  Already affected deeply and emotionally by his rescue, Aine has a lot to process and think about.  I’m deciding just how deeply I want the conversation to delve about this great problem for Aine.  In fact, this problem that starts as Aine’s will very quickly become Eoghan’s.  That’s one of the very entertaining and fun parts of this novel I’m developing. 

 

Aine is going to have to figure out how to capture not just the mind, but the heart and soul of Eoghan.  Once she learns what in the world this silly love thing is all about.  She will pursue Eoghan with a great fervor, but she has to figure out just what love is all about, in this modern age, and how to make Eoghan love her.  This causes mental changes for Eoghan.

                                              iii.     Mental changes – now we are moving into the norm for the modern novel.  I also want to remind you that the information here are sketches while the novel is the painting.  The point of this information is to define the protagonist and potentially other important characters while defining the scope and movement of the novel.  Mental changes are just he types of changes we in the Twenty-First Century are used to in our thinking about the protagonist.  In fact, physical changes, although the norm for most earlier literature, isn’t really what we think of in most modern literature.

 

For example, in Robinson Caruso, the major point of the novel is a survival and escape plot.  There are mental changes involved, but the main point of the novel is physical and not mental.  If we look at much of Charle Dickens’ novels, we see something similar.  The overall plots are not mental, but physical.  The escape from poverty or from the current circumstances.  Even George Eliot has a similar touch in her novels.  What we can gain from this is a couple of important points.  The first is that physical change in the protagonist can move mountains.  It can really produce a powerful novel and plot.  On the other hand, the Romantic protagonist gives us a type of filter into the mind of the protagonist.  With that filter, we can see the motivations and the reasons for the need of the protagonist to change.  We can’t tell this, we must show it.  The showing it part is always physical.  This leads to the mental.

 

In the case of the novel Aine, I want to show how Eoghan changes mentally by the influence of Aine and the circumstances around their lives.  The great hook in this novel is the emotional and physical disturbance that Aine causes in the world and specifically, in Eoghan’s world.  What changes does Eoghan need to make to achieve?

 

In the first place, Eoghan needs to learn to love Aine.  That means he must learn about loving a woman.  This isn’t as easy or flippant as it might sound.  Yes, we hope love comes naturally to people, but what does that love look like and how does it manifest itself.  We know, based on his character that Eoghan is a solid and decent young man, but he is young and inexperienced.  He just has no idea how to handle Aine and her personality.  I guess I’ll get more into this, next.

 

Aine is the problem.  She isn’t the telic flaw, but she is the focus of this novel.  In other words, she is the focal point that makes everything happen.  This is typical in almost every novel, but I’m not certain there is a name for this focus.  It could be considered the subject of the novel, and I’ve heard this referred to as the cause—that’s where we get the telic flaw concept from. 

 

A telic flaw is by definition (in the Greek sense), the cause and the resolution of the novel.  Telic, in Greek means the intersection of the horizon with a vanishing point.  This is both the beginning (cause) and the end (conclusion), although the Greeks wouldn’t put it exactly that way.  So, Aine is the cause of all that will happen to Eoghan, therefore, she could be called the telic flaw.  However, she isn’t the real problem.  Eoghan’s problems are extra Aine.  In other words, Eoghan has problems outside of Aine, but Aine is the thing, the cause, that will get Eoghan thinking and changing. 

 

For this reason, I’m calling Aine, and this concept in writing, the focus.  She is the reason everything happens, but not the telic flaw that needs resolution.

 

Now, what does this have to do with mental changes?  Aine is and will be a very peculiar person.  She is a being out of time, which is exactly what I aim for in my novels.  Almost all my novels are about ancient people and beings caught up in modern times.  This allows me to compare and expand for my readers the events of the past as well as the people from the past.  I want to do this intentionally as opposed to placing modern people in the past or writing a historical fiction novel.  The point is to enable a comparison between the times, the thoughts, and the people.  That’s what is so delectable about Aine.

 

Aine is no girl from the present.  I’m sure there are girls (women) like Aine in the modern world, but what is so powerful is that Aine represents a culture, the ancient Celtic and Gaelic culture.  This provides me a circumstance of writing about that culture and the ancient times.  Every reference Aine has is a reference from the past.  She has no idea or concept of the present or modern times.  Eoghan will be an enigma for her.  I’ve mentioned this before, and I’ll get into it next.  That is Eoghan as seen by Aine and the changes he must make mentally to resolve the telic flaw.

 

Perhaps the first major or main change in Eoghan is to accept Aine.  Eoghan has never met a girl let alone a person like her.  In his worldview, she is crass, crude, dangerous, violent, emotional, somewhat underhanded, driven to excess, uneducated, unrefined, uninformed, among other negatives.  Some of these just aren’t her fault.  She can’t really help being uneducated by the times—they passed her by.  The problem is to get Eoghan to see the world from her standpoint, and also to see success using her methods and her approaches. 

 

I’m not saying that Aine has better ideas or ways of living, but she does have many positives.  Let’s look at them.  Aine is a survivor.  She is educated in living in the wild and with nothing.  She’s used to having nothing and most of her life has been a real fight for survival and just to eat.  She is a deity, but what does that mean?  She doesn’t need food or sustenance to exist, but she desires it to live and for life.  As a Celtic deity, her desire is to provide and to receive adulation.  She is the sun goddess and represents the growth of the crops.  Most specifically she is “the Celtic sun goddess and goddess of wealth, sovereignty, and summer. In Irish mythology, she is also a fairy queen and goddess of the moon, earth, and nature, and could shapeshift into a red horse.”  These abilities don’t necessarily make her invincible.  They imply and give her powers and responsibilities that she then gives to the Celtic people.  These are also the things she knows and has power over.

 

In the reflected worldviews I use, the gods and goddesses have great powers, but their powers are significantly limited by the constraints of their environment as well as the limits of myth.  Aine can bring wealth, sovereignty, and provide summer, but she can’t make the world perpetual summer, that would destroy nature.  The longer and more power she applies to hold the world in summer, the weaker she gets.  Likewise, she can bestow wealth, but that requires actions to produce wealth.  The more she has to do to bring it about, the more power of the land it takes from her.  She is very like the Fae—they also use the power of nature to use glamour.  Aine controls glamour but also direct miracles. 

The main point of this is that Aine must convince Eoghan of her value and Eoghan must come to terms with Aine’s personality and abilities or lack thereof.  Aine must change and Eoghan must change.  That may be enough said.

b.      Alliances required for the protagonist to resolve the telic flaw – remember, none of this information is ever shared with the reader.  This information might and may be revealed, but only through actions and dialog.  We show alliances, we don’t declare alliances. 

 

Now, you might reach some point in a novel where the characters come to some agreement to work together.  Yes, that is an alliance, they can even call it an alliance, but that should never be declared in the narration or by some omniscient voice of the narrator, or any other such means.  If the author feels like a declaration of alliance needs to be made, then that is expressed in dialog—that’s showing.

 

I’ve done this in many of my novels.  I really haven’t called it an alliance perse, but my characters have made agreements and contracts with each other to support their goals, some mutual and some not so mutual.  Now, back to Aine.

 

The most obvious alliance is between Aine and Eoghan.  This will be carefully and deeply manufactured based on their personalities and likes and dislikes.  The point is to get the very strong willed Aine to agree that she must depend on Eoghan.  I think this will be easy to show and to work since Aine starts entirely and completely dependent on Eoghan. She has nothing in this world, no friends, no acquaintances, no support, no money, nothing.  She starts emotionally and physically dependent on Eoghan.  He’s just a nice guy.  He would never hold anything back from her.  Part of the fun of this novel will be the clash between these two with Aine constantly reminding herself of her own dependency and lack of everything.  Then there are the other characters who will bring great fun into the novel because of their closeness and alliances with Eoghan and then Aine.

 

This is the point, Eoghan naturally brings people into his camp—Aine does not.  I’ll get to those alliances, next.

 

What I want to do is to expand Aine’s world in the novel while bringing Eoghan into the fold of the world and others in the Organization and Stela.  At the beginning of the novel, Eoghan’s only connectiona to the Organization, which I’ve explained, and Stela, which I’ve explained, are his mother and his father.  He is an isolated person.  I’m not sure how I’ll play his earlier friends and acquaintances or if he has any.  What I really want to build up is the relationships with the characters I’ve developed and made in my other latest novels.  These are specifically: Rose (Lady Tash, Princess of the Fae), Seoirse (Lieutenant Wishart), Shiggy (Major Cross), Major Cross (Shiggy’s husband), Luna Bolang (Colonel Bolang), Sorcha (Lieutenant Colonel), Ms. O’Dwyer (Mrs. Marshall), and all.  There are many many more.  The point is to introduce Eoghan and then Aine to these people and bring him out of his shell and into the community of his work and those who work for these groups. 

 

The primary people I’d like Eoghan to meet are Rose and Seiorse, but I’m not sure how I’ll play this out.  The other person I’d like Aine to become acquainted with and friends with is Eoghan’s sister Aife (Eva).  That’s a start.  Eva has desires for much more than she currently has.  She wants more from the world and is something of a mirror to Eoghan.  Aine and Eva will collude together to use Eoghan to get what they want.  Perhaps the best first contact is with, Stela in the Organization.  That would be Mrs. Marshall (Ms. O’Dwyer).

 

Ms. O’Dwyer is the head of Stela.  She is the main connection to all the others.  There may also be some means of connecting Eoghan to the others through the Black Branch and the Red Branch.  The Red Branch is the Celtic training island for men analogous to the Black Branch which is the Celtic training island for men.  The Celts had strange ideas about warrior training.  They believed women warriors should train men and women warriors should train women.  Women were the trainers.  That’s odd in cultures.  What’s fun about this is that Aine is not a warrior of any kind.  Eoghan isn’t a warrior either.  On the other hand, Rose and Seoirse are warriors.  I want to contrast these two couples.  That’s part of the point of the Eoghan and Aine pairing.  These are the alliances I’d like to develop.  They will build on these to eventually resolve the telic flaw.  Then there are enemies, like the antagonist.         

c.      Enemies required for the protagonist to resolve the telic flaw – yes, there should and must be an antagonist.  In modern writing and literature, an indirect antagonist is becoming more and more common.  I’m not sure if this is good or bad.  An indirect antagonist is like a nation, a government, nature, a company, a religion, an idea, a concept, a force of nature, or an organization.  Authors can make these direct antagonist by turning them into a leader, a person in the government, a god, the CEO, a priest or religious leader, a guru (one who sells and leads the idea), a professor (one who sells and leads the concept), a spirit, or a leader.  Notice each of these are personifications of the broader organizations or concepts they represent.  What shall we do with Aine?

 

The problems in Aine relates to Stela and the Organization and their connections to the British government.  These are really the indirect antagonists in the novel.  To personify these antagonists, I should use the leaders and specifically Mrs. Marshall (Ms. O’Dwyer).  Now, Mrs. Marshall isn’t really opposed exactly to Aine or to Eoghan or to their desires and wants.  Eoghan’s mother and father are a bit.  Basically, the system and structure of the organizations in authority here are somewhat opposed to the interests of Eoghan and Aine only because of lack of knowledge and because of fear. 

 

Mrs. Marshall wants to protect Britain from the supernatural.  She will view Aine as a potential threat and Eoghan with Aine as a real threat.  Eoghan has much much more power than Aine in many ways.  This will become clear in the novel.

Eoghan’s mother and father want what’s best for Eoghan and his sister Eva.  Aine will be offering something new and different to them both.  The excitement and new worlds Aine offers are really not from Aine herself only her rogue and uncontrolled nature.  Aine offers freedom and excitement and new ideas.  These will be promoted by Rose and Seoirse and others. 

 

By the way, I also want to show Rose and Lady Wishart’s reconciliation in this novel.  I’d like to have Eoghan and Aine bring them together.  Lady Wishart is a wild child and a wild heart.  She is independent.  Rose is very similar.  In my previous novel, they had a huge falling out, caused by Rose to achieve her goals.  I want to show how Rose was thwarted and how she gained back some of Lady Wishart’s trust.  That same change will show trust to Eoghan and Aine.

 

There is another point about antagonists I’d like to make and express.  It’s the Christmas Carol conundrum.  I’ll get to that, next.

 

A Christmas Carol is an interesting novel.  I’m not sure if it is the first novel that has a positive antagonist, but it’s one of the first.  Just what is a positive antagonist?  In A Christmas Carol, Scrooge, the protagonist is not a nice person.  He requires redemption.  The antagonists (enemies) are the spirits of Christmas past present and future with the overall antagonist being good will, but really God Himself.  It’s a type of allegory.  Now, the point is that the antagonists in A Christmas Carol are all good and not bad at all.  They have no negatives and no ill will about Scrooge—they are all about helping Scrooge reach and resolve the telic flaw.  This is a new idea in literature.

 

In almost all literature prior to this novel, the antagonist, by definition, attempted to prevent the protagonist from achieving the resolution of the telic flaw.  In A Christmas Carol, this is turned on its head.  Yet, everyone knows this is a very effective and entertaining novel.  For this reason alone, I think it might be one of Dickens best novels.  He set the standard.

 

That means you can have an antagonist who is or is not actively opposing the resolution of the telic flaw, but who isn’t really an enemy or directly opposed to the protagonist.  It give the writer a sliding scale of the antagonist.  This also means you can have an antagonist who means well and hopes for the best for the protagonist, but at the same time opposes the resolution of the telic flaw.  This is what I’m likely going to put in Aine.

 

The antagonist(s) are likely the Organization and Stela along with others who believe they are helping Aine and Eoghan.  The end result will be something different than any of them can imagine, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t friends or working together.  The point, for the writer, is the telic flaw resolution.  The antagonist causes opposition or as we see can actually aid in the telic flaw resolution (A Christmas Carol) the point is to develop the storyline and the characters in an entertaining fashion.  That leads us to how we achieve this.  That’s through the tension and release in the scenes and directly through the plots.       

d.     Plots required for the protagonist to resolve the telic flaw – this is where it gets easy and complicated.  First, let me tell you about plots. 

 

We generally think of plots in novels as singular, as in, Harry Potty’s first novel has a plot, but that’s not true at all.  To be able to actually define the singular or overall plot of any novel is nearly impossible.  I write nearly impossible, because I’m sure many have tried and think they achieved some success, but if you look at any novel in all of history, you will find many plots at least as many plots as scenes in the novel. 

 

Now, the idea of scenes isn’t a new one, but it’s one most people and many writers don’t fully comprehend.  Novels are made up of scenes.  Basically, scenes are the final building block of the novel.  A scene incorporates a plot that leads to tension and release within the scene (or it should).  A novel is usually of this form (99% of them):

1.     Initial scene

2.     Rising action

3.     Climax scene

4.     Falling action

5.     Dénouement

 

The novel has many plots involved in the development and expression of the novel.  One means of novel development is to pick plots to put into the novel.  I wrote that a scene has at least one plot, but it can have many plots.  You can stack plots on plots.  In fact, that’s what most really great and classic novels do.  They are plots on top of plots.  There might be an overall plot, like the resolution of a mystery or a crime, but that’s just part of the many plots in the novel.

 

I mentioned mystery or crime specifically because this is one of the easiest telic flaws to understand and describe.  The telic flaw of a mystery or crime novel is the resolution of the mystery or the crime.  How the mystery or crime gets resolved incorporates the many different plots in scenes that all move toward the resolution.

 

For example, the detective (crime) or mystery plot is based on the resolution of the telic flaw or a mystery or a crime.  One of the other plots you will certainly see in such a novel is one or most discovery plots.  Each scene might have a discovery plot that drives it.  The protagonist discovers some clue or clues that help lead to the resolution of the overall plot. 

 

In detective and mystery novels, the reason plot is almost always a part of the scenes.  The protagonist discovers something and makes inductive or deductive conclusions or at least reasons about the discovery.  Reason is a type of plot.  A scene with reason incorporated includes a reason plot.  I think you can see a single scene could easily incorporate both these plots.  In fact, some writers call this scenes and sequels although I just call them all scenes.  A scene, in this view, incorporates a plot that leads to a clue (discovery is just one type), while a sequel is where the protagonist thinks and perhaps makes a new discovery through reason, a mental expression. 

 

I don’t see scenes this way at all.  I write scenes that include the discovery as well as the reasoning al the time.  They aren’t separate events or pieces in my novel.  I do think the scenes and sequels concept is a good way of thinking about writing novels.  It gets the writer into the idea of scenes.  Scenes are where it is.  Next, I’ll list the potential plots form the list of classics, and discuss them.

I evaluated the plots from the list of 112 classics and categorized them according to the following scale:

Overall (o) – These are the three overall plots we defined above: redemption, achievement, and revelation.

Achievement (a) – There are plots that fall under the idea of the achievement plot. 

Quality(q) – These are plots based on a personal or character quality.

Setting(s) – These are plots based on a setting.

Item(i) – These are plots based on an item.

Let’s write about the overall plots a little.  In the first place, a novel is never a single plot, and not even a single overall plot.  You can find some plots sticking out further and stronger than others, but except for the three great overall plots of redemption, revelation, and achievement, you can’t really get any more detailed.  Well, with simple novels, perhaps you can, but most novels are not simple, let’s hope, and few of the classics could be considered simple.  I’ll look at the overall and the other plots in detail, but the critical point for a writer to understand is the scene.

Plots take place in scenes and scenes define the novel.  With about two to three scenes per chapter and about twenty chapters in a full length novel, we can expect about forty to sixty scenes with, let’s say an average of fifty in a novel.  Each scene is defined by a plot with tension and release.  I should go back to the overall makeup of the novel to compare, and to make this relationship of plot to the novel very clear.  Here’s the outline for most classics and about 99% of all novels:

1.      The initial scene

2.     The rising action scenes

3.     The climax scene

4.     The falling action scene(s)

5.     The dénouement scene(s)

This is how we write novels, and it’s all about scenes.  No single plot covers the entire novel.  In other words, there might be an overall plot, for example redemption, revelation, and or achievement, but there is usually no singular plot that defines the entire novel, other than these overall plots.  What you find is that in each scene, there is some plot.  That plot leads to tension and release in the scene and that scene forwards the overall telic flaw resolution in the novel.  Let me take a step back and define the novel itself.

To write a novel, we require a protagonist with a telic flaw, an antagonist, and a setting (at least initial).  The telic flaw is the telic flaw of the novel, it is not necessarily a flaw in the protagonist, but rather the flaw in the world the protagonist must resolve, not solve, but resolve.  Let me give my favorite and the easiest telic flaw to understand—the mystery telic flaw.

We have a mystery that needs to be solved.  In a Romantic novel, the only person in the world who can solve this mystery is the Romantic protagonist.  In the classics or a non-Romantic novel, the protagonist is usually one of the few in the world who might have a chance at resolving the telic flaw.  Usually, the telic flaw is exclusive to the novel and to the protagonist.  There is some connection between the two, but that’s getting into the complexities of the novel itself. 

The reason we say to resolve and not solve is that, for example, the mystery might be a murder.  It is usually impossible to bring back the dead, so the resolution will usually be determining the mystery, catching the criminal (murderer), and resolving the issues around the crime.

Now, if you look through the type of plots, there is no murder plot.  Murder isn’t a plot as much as it’s a crime, immorality, or betrayal.  It can fit into all or any of these, plus others.  The reason for the murder can also be fit into many plots: money, miscommunication, love triangle, vengeance, escape, rejection, and all.  There are many many basic plots that can be the cause the and result of murder. 

So, we expect our protagonist to determine the criminal, bring them in to justice, and resolve the telic flaw.  The question then is how and why.  There must be a how, to the murder and the resolution as well as a why.  The murder could be justified or it could be accidental.  The resolution could be very positive or very negative.  When the protagonist resolves the telic flaw, that is a comedy and when the telic flaw overcomes the protagonist, that is a tragedy. 

In any case, we stack plots in scenes to resolve the ultimate telic flaw of the novel.  In most cases, we only want and allow a single telic flaw in a novel, but many of the short story type novels, like Game of Thrones and The Martian Chronicles have made multiple telic flaws with multiple protagonists popular.  Usually there should be only one telic flaw per protagonist per novel.  That’s not a hard a fast rule, but a good one.  Messing with one telic flaw effectively is enough for most writers, and to tell the truth, short story type novels with more than one protagonist and potentially more than one telic flaw is exhausting to the reader as well as to the writer.  I find Game of Thrones to be unreadable although it fits for a motion picture or television series.  Go figure.

Now, let’s start with the basics: a single protagonist with a telic flaw, an antagonist, and a setting.  The telic flaw is a mystery.  We start with an initial scene, and I guess, I’ll continue from there, next. 

The initial scene introduces the protagonist, the telic flaw, the initial scene, and the antagonist or the protagonist’s helper.  I like to use a protagonist’s helper in my novels because I write Romantic novels with a Romantic protagonist.  Usually, the initial scene is the meeting of the protagonist and the antagonist or the protagonist’s helper.  Notice that in Aine, this is the exact initial scene I’m developing.  There are other ways to develop the initial scene, but none quite as effective. 

If you notice, most initial scenes will have a plot entirely different than the overall plot of the novel.  For example, in a mystery novel, the characters can’t just start looking for the resolution of the mystery, well I guess they can, but usually, you need to introduce the mystery—the telic flaw.  Depending on the type and storyline of the novel, the introduction of the mystery might be through a discovery plot, a travel plot, a money plot, a legal plot, or a mix of any of the plots.  For example, the impoverished protagonist might inherit a house, travel to the house, and discover there is some mystery in the house.  That’s a money, legal, travel, and discovery plot all in the initial scene and we are only introducing and unveiling the mystery. 

Once the protagonist, the antagonist (or the protagonist’s helper), the telic flaw, and the initial setting are introduced, the novel can move apace into the next scene.  These scenes form the rising action.  In the rising action, the expectation is that every scene will support the movement toward the climax and the resolution of the telic flaw, but many of these scenes incorporate different plots in themselves.  I’d say that most of these scenes will incorporate multiple plots to move the novel to the resolution.  For example, the next scene might include travel to the city to research in the library and the protagonist might meet his or her girlfriend or boyfriend.  The plots for the scene are then travel, discovery, and romance.  There might be more.  Then the author might just pick some plots to increase the excitement in the novel.  The librarian might be secretly trying to solve the mystery too.  That gives a potential betrayal plot as will as a possible vengeance plot.  In one scene the protagonist might be injured or get sick—that gives an illness plot in a scene or more than one scene.  The librarian might break into the house to find more clues—that’s a crime plot.

Here's the point, every scene includes a plot, many times multiple plots, all of these plots combining to move the rising action to the climax and the telic flaw (mystery, in this case) resolution. 

Novels are not about a single plot or even a single overall plot—they are a bundle of plots held together by scenes—the scenes incorporating plot(s) that all lead to the climax and resolution of the telic flaw.  For this reason alone, we can look at the list of plots and choose them to incorporate, or not, into the novel we intend to write.  That’s just what I want to do with Aine.

I looked at each novel and pulled out the plot types, the telic flaw, plotline, and the theme of the novel.  I didn’t make a list of the themes, but we identified the telic flaw as internal and external and by plot type.  This generally gives the plotline. 

Overall (o) – as I wrote, when we converse about plots in a novel, we generally mean an overall plot, but in reality, novels usually don’t have an overall plot, not in the sense we usually mean.  We want to find some physical plot that defines the novel, but I really challenge you to do that.  In reviewing the classics, I found no such singular overall plot, but rather many plots in every novel.  I did find three general overall plots in every novel with subplots of these that then form the novel itself. 

These overall plots are very interesting.  They do define the novel, and they are historically defined and show an evolution with novel design.  That is, we find early novels with the overall achievement plot followed by the revelation plot and finally most modern novels with some degree of a redemption plot.  That’s not to say there are no early examples of a redemption plot, but the history of novels and of writing fiction, in general, follows an evolution of ideas and writing skills and styles.  It shouldn’t be surprising that Robinson Caruso is all about achievement (escape from an island) while Harry Potty is all about redemption (from the evil Voldermort and his evil wizards)--and Harry Potty is just one hack example.

Now, about overall plots.  These are definitely something we should evaluate and choose for our novel.  Many times the specifics of the telic flaw and it’s resolution will define the overall plot.  For example, stuck on an island or solve a crime or solve a mystery.  These types of novels almost always devolve into achievement plots, although they can rise to a more details and internal plot. 

When I write detailed and internal, I don’t mean that as a pejorative.  You find great novels that are all about achievement, but the really great and indeed the modern classics are all about redemption as well as achievement.  Whoops, I wrote it.  Almost all novels start with an achievement premise and telic flaw, but the overall telic flaw usually becomes one of redemption.  I’ll get into the idea of redemption when we address it next.  It may not be exactly what you are thinking.   

1.     Redemption (o) – 17i, 7e, 23ei, 8 – 49% - I should start with achievement as a plot, but I’ll go for the best, but latest first—redemption.  Redemption means to be redeemed from something—this might sound overly simple and repetitive, but the point is that many might imagine redemption is about the soul or spirit, in the sense of being religiously redeemed.  Religious redemption isn’t necessarily what redemption means—that is only one type of redemption.  A person can be redeemed from their abusive lifestyle or from sickness or from poverty.  The most important part of redemption, however, is that the person, the protagonist changes mentally.  That’s the point of redemption of any type.

You can have a redemption plot where the protagonist finds his or her place with God in a spiritual sense, but usually, and in most literature, that’s not what we are writing about.  We are writing about the change of heart and mind of the protagonist that propels them out of whatever bad place they happen to be.  This is why redemption is such a powerful and popular plot type, and especially an overall plot type.  The redemption plot is really the bread and butter of overall plots.  In fact, we pretty much expect these types of plots. 

It isn’t enough that Harry Potty overcome his enemies in whatever version of the seven novels about him, what really matters is how he has changed inside that allows him to overcome his doubts, fears, and problems so he can be redeemed by the end.  Now, Harry Potty is obviously an overall redemption plot, especially the first novel.  The others are all redemption to some degree or other.  They just aren’t as powerful as they should be, even as redemption plots.  What we really want in a novel is an full on redemption of the protagonist.  That’s what I plan in Aine.

Eoghan needs to find himself.  He really isn’t from an abusive background.  His parents are kind but controlling—that’s still not enough reason for redemption.  What Eoghan needs is to find what he really wants and to achieve it.  What I’m going to build is that Eoghan needs Aine and Aine needs Eoghan.  I want to put them together in a romance and helping relationship where they are both changed for the better.  Aine integrates into the modern world and Eoghan finds his place.  He will have to change mentally, emotionally, and intellectually to be achieve this—that’s a type of redemption.

2.     Revelation (o) –2e, 64, 1i – 60% - the revelation plot broadly precedes the redemption plot in history.  In this type of plot, the novel reveals usually a character but many times some other aspect in the world.  Because the protagonist is the focus of the novel, the revelation must be part of the protagonist and the telic flaw, but you can see the revelation can be a mystery or a crime the protagonist must solve. 

Revelation plots are still very popular and successful, but the revelation plot turns easily into a redemption plot.  Revelation very quickly turns to a need to be redeemed plot or the redemption premise becomes part of the redemption.  I’ll point out A Christmas Carol as an example  That’s a revelation plot with a redemption premise.  Another example is the Harry Potty books.  They are all redemption plots wrapped around revelation plots.

This is perhaps the best modern type of novel—it keeps the level of excitement high through revelations and the overall plot balanced with the redemption plot and the end or telic flaw.

That’s not to say you won’t find many purely revelation novels or redemption novels without a high degree of revelation, but revelation is a very powerful type of plot and overall plot.

What we can see already is that the overall plots are mixed up with each other in the same way the other plots are all mixed up with each other.

I intend the revelation plot to be a very large part of Aine.  Frim the first moment of the novel, the world of the supernatural and of the Scottish National Park system as well as certain aspects of British intelligence system.  That’s what my novels are all about.  Did I have to mention Eoghan’s and Eva’s family.  All these and more are revelation targets in the novel.     

3.     Achievement (o) – 16e, 19ei, 4i, 43 – 73% - notice all the classic with an achievement plot.  That’s because achievement was one of the first overall plots.  It fits very well into the scheme of the novel, but it was pretty quickly eclipsed by the revelation and the redemption plots because those are much more important once people get out of a starvation culture.  The achievement of certain overall goals still make a great overall plot, but once people have food in their bellies, a job, and purpose or at least entertainment, they become more interested in the whys rather than the whats.  When they have achieved, they are more interested in the reveling and the redeeming. 

This is also why young adult and children’s novels are usually about achievement rather than revelation and redemption.  Perhaps we should explain about achievement. 

Achievement, as a plot, is about achieving some goal.  Robinson Caruso is considered the first novel in the English language—it’s overall plot is all about rescue and survival.  Rescue and survival are obviously achievements.  There are some touches of revelation in the novel, but not many any there is no redemption.  Robinson Caruso didn’t need to change at all to achieve his goals—he needed to survive.

Then we get into the true Romantic Era with Sir Walter Scott.  One of his greatest works is Ivanhoe.  Ivanhoe is about achievement—the achievement of peace and success for the Saxons in Norman French England.  There are also touches of revelation, but achievement is the goal and the main point of the novel. 

That brings us into the Victorian Era and let’s pick one of those dead male writers academia shears to hate like Jane Austin, George Elliot, or maybe the Bronte sisters.  Oh, they are female authors in their own right and the crowns of the Victorian Era.  We should pick at least a male, like Dickens.  Look at Oliver Twist, for example, there is a novel about achievement with a huge touch of revelation.  The Moonstone is the first detective novel, and all about revelation.  Don’t forget Dracula, also all about revelation.  Then back to Jane and Pride and Prejudice, that is a novel almost entirely taken up with revelation with the final act the revelation of the affections of the antagonist for the protagonist.  The end is an achievement, matrimony, but everything else is all about revelation.  That then brings us up to the modern Romantic Era—the Modern Era for writing.  That’s the Era of redemption.  I won’t go over it again.

Back to achievement.  The achievement plot is the basis for all other plots.  Readers expect some achievement basis that then has a revelation and redemption component. So, what will be the achievement basis for Aine?

I think I’ll start with the idea of Eoghan becoming integrated into the Organization and the Stela part of the intelligence structure.  He has skills they could use as well as leadership skills from his mother.  Eva can also tag along with this basic achievement.  Aine herself wants to integrate and she wants the love of Eoghan.  That’s a great achievement.  

Achievement (a)

1.     Detective or mystery (a) – 56, 1e – 51% - did I forget to mention that Aine is setup for a mystery plot?  The detective or mystery plot is one of the best achievement plots out there.  It’s in over 50% of the classics and most of those are modern because the detective plot wasn’t invented until The Moonstone in the Victorian Era.  The big deal with a mystery plot is it sets up the novel for secrets and for revelation. 

Now, revelation is also an overall plot, but revelation is a part of a secret or a mystery.  Actually, you can write a novel filled with secrets and mysteries without any or much revelation.  Many can be unstated and many can just be unresolved or unrevealed.  I personally like both.  In my novel Blue Rose: Enchantment and the Detective, which is a detective and mystery novel, a couple of characters appear to be a vampire and a werecreature of some type.  I never reveal what or who they really are.  If you did a little internet digging you could find out about the vampire, but Alicia is just Alicia who make nightly jaunts without her dress or any other clothing and comes home with blood and mud all over.  She also sniffs out Azure in the end of the novel.  That’s a sideline secret and a little mystery that just isn’t revealed. 

Most novels the author reveals the secret or some of them and the mystery.  That’s the resolution of the climax, but I already told you, you can use these plots are part of the whole.  The overall plot might be redemptive, but the novel can be filled with mystery and secret plots.  That’s kind of where I’m going here.

My overall plot will be a redemption plot, but one of the big plots in the scenes will be “who is Aine?”  This is a plot I used in Dana-ana: Enchantment of the Maiden.  This is a full on mystery plot and requires a full on revelation in the resolution of the novel.  I’m not going to do that with Aine.

We will know who Aine is from the beginning.  She will be known to Eoghan as well.  I’ll use this information as a revelation of the secret to others in slow succession.  Part of the beauty of the secrets or mystery plot is the discovery.  So, perhaps a couple of scenes will be as Eva discovers who Aine is and confronts her with the information or perhaps Eoghan or both of them.  This self-discovery is not exactly the self-discovery plot we will look at later, but it is a discovery plot, a partly detective plot.  Readers love this, at least I love this and the number of novels like it shows many others do too.  I like to incorporate these different plots in the novel to further the entertainment.  Plus, just vomiting out all the secrets and information about any character or the protagonist is just not fun at all.  This is what we call character development.  It’s revealing the secrets and mysteries of the characters and especially the protagonist.

2.     Revenge or vengeance (a) –3ie, 3e, 45 – 46% - in the classics, this is a great and well used plot.  If you note, it holds the point of achievement, with revelation, and the seeds of redemption.  If you look at the Count of Monte Christo, he was determined to have his vengeance.  It lead to revelation about his life and experiences.  It also led to his and other’s redemption.  In addition, when he achieved the revenge, that was the achievement.  Plus all the readers cheered.

Revenge in the moder era has a very negative connotation, but it’s really one of the main emotions and desires that moves the world.  Unfortunately most revenge is petty.  Real revenge is like Monte Christo—powerful, consuming, and ultimately good for all, except the criminals. 

Humans long for revenge even in the modern era, but as authors we need to realize the squeamishness of the modern mind.  Readers love revenge, but they need to see that revenge is wholly justified and the revenged is totally bad.  You are however, more likely to see redemptive tales with the redemption of the antagonist than the protagonist, that is in modern writing. 

For Aine, I want to play some degree of revenge or vengeance in the plots, but all of Aine’s antagonists from the past are dead.  Eoghan’s foils are around, but they are his mother and father, and not really anyone we could take real revenge against.  At the same time, we do have some Fae creatures and Fae enticements that might make a good pitch for the use of a little vengeance or revenge.  I’d really like to put a little of this plot in the novel, but it might not lend itself to much.  In the worst case, we could produce a real antagonist who causes the couple problems, but I’m not sure I want to bring that into play.  We shall see.  This is a great plot with powerful legs, but it might not fit well in Aine.

3.     Zero to hero (a) – 29 – 26% - the zero to hero plot is one of the best and most basic in all of literature.  You can argue that zero to hero is the basis and overall plot for all comedies, and you’d be mostly right.  The real deciding point and the main point of zero to hero is what or that we drive or start the protagonist at zero, and then build them back up again to hero.  Usually, the resolution of the climax is when the protagonist attains the goal (achievement) and the hero status.  Kinda like Skywalker and the boys (and girl) getting cheered at the end of the only decent Star Bores movie.

Now, perhaps the best example of zero to hero and one of the best uses of this plot is found in A Little Princess. In this novel Sara Crew starts out as a little princess with money and status.  Less than halfway through the novel, she losses everything: her father, her money, her status, and almost the roof over her head.  Although the headmistress hates Sara, she is allowed to continue as a servant (slave basically) in the school and teach the littles as well as being mostly fed and housed.  She gets a cold garret room across from the scullery maid, Becky.  That’s a real zero.  Of course, by the end, Sara’s resolution is that she is back as the little princess.  She regains her wealth, he position, and she has an adopted father.  That is her hero state and the resolution.  That is also a total blood will out plot in addition to the zero to hero.  A Little Princess is the perfect example of driving a protagonist to zero and then back to hero—Victorian Era style.

Now about Aine.  If you notice, Aine is already at zero.  She is released but has nothing and no one except Eoghan.  She isn’t the protagonist, however, she is the protagonist’s helper.  We have Eoghan to contend with, and Eoghan has a much more interesting path to travel.  This is what I’m contemplating about Eoghan. 

Since he has a job, some money, a family, and a place to stay, but he is missing his calling and the desires of his heart, I’m contemplating having him rejected because of Aine.  Both the system and his own desires will force him to zero: out of his home, out of his wealth, out of his job, and out of his family, except for Eva.  Eva, his sister has been pining under her mother and father and wants more too.  She will fall in love with Aine, in a platonic and sisterly sense, and the three will work together to achieve their goals in the world. 

We’ll take Eoghan down to zero and then build him back up again.  The main point about Eoghan is that he has all kinds of wilderness skills. He might not be able to keep them in palaces, but he can feed, cloth, and keep them safe and warm.  Warmth in the British climate is a key factor.  Unfortunately, the British government isn’t keen on people living in the wilds, what little there is.  You need all kinds of permits and stuff.  Oh, well, the novel has yet to be written, but this seems like a fun piece and approach to it.

4.     Romance (a) –1ie, 41 – 37% - yes, let’s achieve some romance.  Now’s the time to explain again the difference between romance, romantic, and Romantic.  Romance is the feeling of excitement and mystery associated with human love.  The love part doesn’t mean many of the loves engendered by English in the word.  In any case, we have a man, Eoghan, and a woman, Aine, and Aine has been longing for a man just like Eoghan.  Eoghan is too new to life and the world at 19 to really have much experience of love or the opposite sex.  He’s about to be clobbered by romance.  Now, I did write that I would explain about the other uses of the terms most specifically romantic and Romantic.

Romantic has to do with a type and an era of art and literature.  I’ll get into that.  On the other hand, romantic (no cap) has to do with romance.  We have a romance plot which has everything to do with romantic, and only a little to do with Romantic.

I did mention before that a Romantic protagonist is usually characterized by a romantic interest.  Yeah, baby, a little romance in any adult novel is both appropriate and expected.  That’s the kind of love that literally makes the world go round.  Without romance, there will not be another generation of humans to read your books.

Usually, the Romantic protagonist has a love interest and not necessarily a love success.  Many times, the Romantic protagonist’s love interest is not returned or is simply a goad to his life and to success.  I like my Romantic protagonists a little more hands on and successful in love. In fact, a little bit of inexperienced and gentle love with some recognition is good.  I do like my Rose-like and Lachlann-like characters who are dedicated to their love and loves and will do anything to achieve romance.  With Aine, I expect I’ll not make my main prepublication reader happy.  They aren’t into aggressive women.  I don’t think I’ll make Aine an aggressive woman in love as much as a woman who realizes what she wants and is willing to work hard to get it.

Aine has been surrounded by bores all of her existence.  Eoghan is a man’s man, but he’s also a refined and honest gentleman.  He isn’t interested in Aine as a person or a woman at first.  I should write, he isn’t interested in Aine in terms of romance at first.  He is interested in her as a person and a being.  She is interesting, but she is herself crude and unrefined.  She doesn’t know anything and she isn’t the type to ask.  Eoghan is refined and each incident and help makes Aine’s heart flutter.  She can’t help it.  She’s the woman who it off the ear of a king who tried to rape her.  She certainly isn’t used to kindly and gentle treatment.  That’s the kind of romance I want to bring to Aine, the novel, gentle, growing, inexperienced, and sweet. 

5.     Coming of age (a) –1ei, 25 – 23% - I’ve set up this novel to be a self-discovery novel and not a coming of age novel, but it could be considered in some degree to be coming of age.  The reason is I write adult novels, but they can also appeal to younger readers. 

You might ask what is the difference between coming of age and self-discovery.  Coming of age has a protagonist who is not an adult and is learning about life.  Examples of coming of age are: Oliver Twist, David Copperfield, Jane Eyre, Great Expectations, Kidnapped, and in the modern age Harry Potty.  What are self-discovery novels.  In general, any novel can be self-discovery and in modern novels, most are self-discovery is some way or another.  In self-discovery, the protagonist becomes self-aware and changes his or her behavior to resolve the telic flaw.  Oh, that sure sounds like a Romantic protagonist, because it is.

In Aine, Eoghan is seeking himself.  He is looking for what he wants in life and how to achieve his goals.  Eoghan’s goals don’t include Aine at all, but she will be foisted on him, and she will be the means for him to change. 

Eoghan is stuck in a rut and his life is a kind of rut.  He likes what he is doing, but it has little future and can’t use his own specific powers and skills.  Aine is going to help Eoghan and that will lead to his self-discovery.  This will also appeal in the sense of coming of age. 

I intentionally choose and chose my characters to be at their real and apparent ages so a young adult or youth can read the novel and see coming of age in it.  This mix won’t work will wholly adult characters.  You can have self-discovery at any age of character, but coming of age is really limited to those who are young and not considered adults.  By having characters at the cusp of adulthood, or in Aine’s case that appear to be less than an adult, this allows the reader to imagine coming of age even if the work is written to appeal to adults as self-discovery.  As I noted, there is little difference than character age between coming of age and self-discovery.  Both are very worthwhile plots to use in any novel.  

6.     Progress of technology (a) – 6 – 5% - this is a great plot but mostly worthy of science fiction and not fantasy, historical, or current fiction.  It can be used in any of these and I might touch on it as a plot in Aine. 

Progress of technology means to either develop or explain technology in a novel plot.  Therefore, any plot that shows the development or design of a scientific idea or device is about the progress of technology.  You might include the development or design of an economic, social, political, or cultural idea, but that might be going a little too far. 

Progress of technology is its own plot and idea in a novel.  Where is might be used in Aine is when Aine must catch up with modern technology and Eoghan and Eva show her and explain to her how things work and how to use them.  I should probably say how to use them and not how they work.  The how they work part a mostly well beyond the average person in the modern era—they have no idea how things work at all, it’s just like magic. 

I suspect I’ll take this position with Aine: it’s just like magic, but then move on to her fuller understanding of the ideas and devices.  It might be fun to eventually have her gain a better understanding than those around her.  I’ll think on it.

Usually, the progress of technology is based on some historical, fictional, or fantastic development of a device.  For example, you could use progress of technology in a historical sense and show how some famous or not so famous person discovered or developed the idea or device.  You could also invent your own idea or device.  You could also design a magical spell or a fantastic use for magic.  The point is that progress of technology becomes very difficult in especially a current time novel.  If you can think of something, you can probably design it and make a mint.  Usually, if you can visualize it, you can make it.  In 1984, I invented the idea of the electronic book and shopped it around to technology companies.  Everyone thought it was a great idea, but the technology of the time couldn’t make or support the idea.  I did write it into one of my science fiction novels about the far future—by that time, electronic books were commonplace.  I even called it an e-book in the novel.

Like I wrote, I think using a variation of this plot with Aine coming to grips with and learning about technology will be really entertaining and fun.

7.     Discovery (a) – 3ie, 57 – 54% - the discovery plot is a great plot with lots of legs and lots of uses.  You might notice that a discovery plot tees up achievement, revelation, and redemption as overall plots, but it also supports mystery, crime, secrets, technology, romance, as well as a host of others.  At its simplest, discovery is finding or revealing things like ideas at its most complex, its about characters and especially the protagonist making discoveries about life and him or herself.

In Aine, we shall have all kinds of discovery plots—perhaps the most obvious and interesting is the discovery of Aine herself.  The basic discovery plots in moving just to the initial and focus scene are interesting in themselves.  All this information will be part of the discovery plot about Eoghan and his life.  Some will be revealed initially, and some will be set in discovery.  The difference is what is shown in action and dialog and what is shown through description. 

An author wants and needs to make as much of the discovery and revelation in action and dialog and not in description.  The action and dialog is showing and description is a type of telling.  If you remember, it’s okay to set the stage by showing what is seen, felt, smelt, heard, and tasted on the stage of the novel.  Anything else is out of bounds. 

There is much more discovery to be designed into Aine.  I want the revelation of the Organization and Stela to be a discovery plot.  I want the training system of these organizations to be part of a discovery plot.  I want everything around Aine herself to be a discovery plot.  The discovery will be extenuated with revelation and secret plots all through the novel.  In fact, the basic and overall plot will be redemption based on Eoghan’s discoveries about himself and the world.  That’s a keen discovery plot.  

8.     Money (a) – 2e, 26 – 25% - the money plot is a wonderful and well used plot although it’s falling out of favor a little in modern writing although not in the classics.  The reason is that almost all people are interested in making money no matter what the elites want or their ideological betters say, and I predict the money plot will be a favorite as long as we have money around. 

The money plot isn’t just about money, but also about goods and real estate.  It basically about making wealth.  It would be better to call this the wealth plot or the making wealth plot, but money stands in for all wealth, so money will do.

In the money plot, the characters and the protagonist seek and develop wealth, that’s about it.  In Rose I have a very strong money plot where Rose has lots of money, but isn’t really seeking money, she is using it and not acquiring it.  Usually, a money plot is about acquiring money or assets, but a money plot can work as it does in Rose.  In Aine, I would like to put in a money plot.  I suspect it will go about this way.  Aine has no idea at all about money.  She comes from a culture and society that has no money but most likely proto-money.  Perhaps not.  Money was invented by Lydia in 600 BC and didn’t become a norm until the Greeks began using it in about 300 to 200 BC.  Money was not ubiquitous until around 1800 and even then it was in short supply until about 1900.  Modern hyper-inflation and the goods in modern society made money ubiquitous even to the poor although the fiat currencies of the twentieth century made it’s value almost meaningless in relation to the actual money.

Aine is completely ignorant of money.  It didn’t exist in her time and place, but there could have been proto-money.  In any case, Aine must learn about money and making money.  She must figure out about scarcity and with all the goods and stuff she sees and wants, she has to figure out how she can acquire the things she wants.  This is where Eva, Eoghan, and eventually Rose come in.  They will all aid Aine’s understanding of money and how to acquire it.  This should be an interesting circumstance and situation.  We shall see.  

9.     Spoiled child (a) – 7 – 6% - the spoiled child plot is a later plot that kind of made its way into novels near the end of the Victorian Era.  It started with the wealthy—those rascally new rich who were invading British and American society, but with the modern Romantic Era became the real spoiled brats, the aristocracy.  In the Victorian Era, with blood will out and fate, the aristocracy and later the wealthy children could do no wrong—then as the common person began to compete with these aristocrats and wealth, the world saw that brains and skills don’t always come through breeding and money.  The end in literature was the spoiled child plot.

We see this plot in Gone with the Wind and the end is the death of the child and a turning point in the very long and very racist diatribe on how the South shall rise again, with slavery and everything else.  Oh, well.

I see some possibility to use a little of spoiled child in Aine.  Aine isn’t a spoiled child at all, and you need a spoiled child to enact this plot.  Aine is a person of immense stature and capabilities who is thrown into a world well outside her understanding.  Her response might play a little in spiled child just because she can’t understand and her response is to push back and fight instead of accept.  That’s just Aine.

What I might do also is add a spoiled child character into the mix.  I did that with Rose to a degree and Seoirse.  In Seoirse, I introduced a character who was selfish and unhelpful, and who challenged Rose.  This kind of character is wonderful in the setting of that kind of training based novel.  The overall plot in Seoirse also delt with Sveta who was a very spoiled and dangerous child.  Additionally, Robyn started as a spoiled child who was reformed by Rose. 

As you can see, in the proper place, with the proper writing, spoiled child can be an awesome plot.  It provides some real problems for the protagonist and the characters while brining in entertainment and excitement that can be resolved in very distinct and appropriate ways.  Just killing off your spoiled child, like Gone with the Wind is a bit much.     

10.  Legal (a) – 5 – 4% - this is a wonderful plot.  I’ve used it in many of my novels.  Usually, the setup is your characters and protagonist get involved somehow with the police in some criminal issue or alternately the civil system.  I’d only use the civil system if I really understood that part of the law—it’s really different and not well understood by people in general.  The criminal law is easier for people to understand and there are lots of examples in movies and television especially of these.  I wouldn’t rely on movies or TV for my data, but like I wrote many of your readers will have some understanding of the criminal justice system.  What they won’t know are the details.  The details are the best part of writing about such things.

My characters in my novels have been on both sides of the legal, criminal justice system—the offense and the victim sides.  As I wrote, this is a great plot, if you can use it.  I’m not sure it has a place in Aine, but I might bring it into play.

In some of my novels, I’ve used accidental involvement with crimes and criminals as plots, and the police have been either used against my characters, or have been very helpful to my characters.  The police can’t help it—their job is to protect the people and not necessarily judge the crimes or the criminals.  These chance encounters are great ways to bring the legal plot into play, but it depends on what you want and where your novel is going.

In Rose, I used a bit of criminal mischief to bring the police into play when Rose rescued her housemates from some very dangerous bootleggers.  The event was great, but the repercussions were even better.  It made Rose into an involuntary hero and brought her all kinds of attention she didn’t want.

For Aine, I’m not sure if I want to bring in a legal plot, but I’ll keep it in mind—it’s an easy add, if it fits your novel and needs.

11.  Adultery (qa) – 18 – 16% - I have written levels of the adultery plot into my novels.  I haven’t taken this plot to the full out Anna Karenina version.  That is with full on adultery.  Usually, I place the characters into a love competition and then let the jealousy play out.

As I noted, I don’t usually take the circumstances to full on adultery, not with my protagonist.  In Aksinya, I did have the protagonist’s helper basically sexually betray Aksinya.  That’s adultery.  I do write novels for adults, that probably a better way of expressing it than adult novels.  But, I don’t like to write novels that are too dark with characters who are completely irredeemable.  If you’ve read Anna Karenina, you know that is a completely dark novel with a protagonist who dies well before the end of the novel, and you get to see the destruction her lifestyle caused.  Great for teaching novels, but not great for entertainment.  What I like is a gradient below adultery—especially for the protagonist.

I’ll get into this a little. I’ve written more than once before that your readers don’t have to love your protagonist, but it sure helps.  In fact, they don’t need to like your protagonist, but it really helps if they love them.  This is indeed all about feelings, and there are a lot of feelings, but the most powerful aren’t liking, appreciating, honoring, impressed, excited, and all.  Perhaps if we put these in more impressive tones like fascinated and entertained.  These get to the crux of the matter.  Your readers don’t need to be anything but entertained by your protagonist, but part of entertainment is agreement with their actions and rational.  The author can get away with a lot in the suspension of disbelief as long as the reader finds the protagonist’s actions rational and can understand them in context.  The novel puts readers into worlds they have never experienced and may likely never experience, the ultimate is that for the suspension of disbelief, the reader agree with what the protagonist ultimately does.  No one agrees with Anna Karenina.  No one likes Anna, it’s impossible.  She is an antagonist in a protagonist wrapper, you get that by the fact she dies and leaves no protagonist to keep the novel going.  In this example, I’d argue that no writer can make a full-on adultery based protagonist acceptable to a reader.  With that, it is possible that Ayn Rand did make Kira in We the Living a full on adultery based protagonist, but also, adultery was a survival mechanism for the Soviet and not a sin in a world without God.  In any case, I advise against using the whole enchilada adultery plot unless you have a great idea and plan, however, variations and other love relationships and jealousies can be great plots to inject in your novel. 

In Aine, I plan to interject her jealousy into as many situations as possible.  Aine is a very possessive person, and she has accepted Eoghan as her possession.  Eoghan is clueless, and not able to completely process Aine’s emotions or feelings.  She sees him as her savior, teacher, and protector in a world completely foreign to her.  He just doesn’t understand this at all.  To him, she’s just another person he’s helped.  She’s a beautiful girl and in interesting person, but he’s not used to girls or to the attention.  He’s just the strong silent type, and exceedingly uncomfortable with Aine.  She, on the other hand sees almost any attention another woman gives to Eoghan as a come-on.  That’s where the jealousy and the limited adultery plot come in.  Eoghan won’t be doing anything wrong, but any attention he gives to a woman comes off to Aine as Celtic adultery.  Oh, well, they’ll get it together eventually.

12.  Self-discovery (a) – 3i, 12 – 13% - the self-discovery plot is to adults what the coming of age plot is to youth.  Since the beginning of the modern novel, and modern society, youth have been seeking themselves, and those who aren’t youth as well as youth are interested in reading about it.  What happened? 

Well, before the modern era, everyone was pretty well set up mentally and emotionally.  God was alive and well and Christianity was the answer.  In fact, Christianity as an idea, religion, theology, and philosophy answered every need and every question—then came the progressives.  They thought they had killed God and begun the reign of humanity.  What they did was bring on a huge social and cultural angst that was and could be easily solved by Christianity.  In fact, as the WSJ and many papers have reported, even if you don’t believe in God or Christianity, you should act as if you do and take your children to church—that is if you want to reduce the chance of suicide and childhood mental illness.  Oh, well, all that angst gave us people who are looking for themselves and novels reflect that need in society.  First with youth and next with the not youth.

The coming of age novel and plot is a great plot—even if people have found themselves, in the modern world to read about coming of age success is beautiful.  Likewise, adults love to read about their successful peers who find themselves in self-discovery.

Now, in Aine, I’ve set up the novel with a character, protagonist’s helper, Aine who looks like a youth, and an adult character, protagonist, Eoghan on the cusp of adulthood.  I did this on purpose.  I do like to write about youthful characters with adult responsibilities and outlooks which provides a coming of age type promotion.  In this case, I wanted to be a little more ambivalent with characters who would really be set in self-discovery, but who could still be attractive to youth. 

For Aine and Eoghan, they will both be on a self-discovery plot track to determine what they want and will do in life.  Eoghan has things figured out, but he’s not really happy with himself.  Aine has never been really happy with her life and being imprisoned for a couple of thousands of years hasn’t resolved her issues.  Both of them are looking for themselves, and Aine is looking for love, and she’s found it—or think she has.

I really like the self-discovery plot because it allows me to let my characters find themselves and resolve the telic flaw.  In fact, I like the telic flaw to be tied to their self-discovery.  That’s a wonderful interaction that I find pleasing and entertaining, and I think my readers find entertaining.  I want to see people develop successfully and understand themselves and others.  That’s what makes a great novel for me.

13.  Guilt or Crime (a) – 32 – 29% - the guilt or crime plot allows for both real and imagined crimes.  You can have the protagonist involved in actual criminal activity, like Jean Valjean who eventually repents, or you can have a protagonist accused of a crime that he or she never committed, like in The Count of Monte Christo.  In this plot, you can have a character or the protagonist consumed by guilt of their crimes or others, especially of their family’s crimes.  Now, about Aine.

The use of guilt and crime plots is great if you can make them fit.  I might have Eoghan or Aine run afoul of the law or the Crown somehow, and have to work out the problems.  I really don’t think Britain wants to go to war with Aine—she truly is powerful and dangerous.  However, a little peril from the good guys, the police and military, and perhaps the agents of the Crown might be entertaining and fun. 

Plus, a little guilt for Aine could be a fun way to play her issues in the novel.  Aine has issues based on her past and times.  Those are different than modern morals and life.  She won’t have to go too far to run afoul of the laws of modern Britain, but she will have Eoghan to help moderate her and the problems. 

Just a short bit to write that yes, this is a great plot and has great legs.  I’m not completely certain how I’ll use it, but I definitely shall.  It’s a really fun plot.

14.  Proselytizing (a) – 4 – 4% - some authors and those who write about writing claim that every novel just holds the opinions of the author and therefore all novels are about or include proselytizing.  I think this is an incorrect view of writing and fiction.  Most authors who are aware or at least successful have no desire (or little desire) to affect or change the world.  They simply want to write an entertaining novel.  Those that are actively trying to affect or change the world are indeed proselytizing. 

Proselytizing is all about trying to put some message: popular, supposedly erudite, or progressive/regressive, in the writing that will change the world and people for the better.  The little secret is this—most readers absolutely reject these kinds of novels.  Readers want to be entertained, and very few novels can be filled with proselytizing and still be entertaining.  Just look at the very small number of the classics that have obvious proselytizing in them—it’s only 4%.  That’s about four out of the approximately 100 that make up the normal great classics list.  Even the screwy novels like Ulysses are not really proselytizing—they are just screwy. 

Now, it is true that the subject of the novels will determine, in some degree, the positions or reality of the positions of the novel itself, but readers reject writing that is unreasonable, not understandable, or illogical.  That’s why the anti-war plot isn’t really found much in the classics—every erudite person and person who ever experienced war knows that war is indeed a terrible thing, but slavery, captivity, and lack of freedom results in a similar destruction of humanity, property, and livelihoods.  You might as well fight back if you are faced with war because Carthage forever proved that war can result in the complete annihilation of a people—better to go to war than to be decimated.

In any case, my point is this, although writers can have all kinds of positions and ideas about things in the world, the push for entertainment and the correct view for entertainment in writing fiction will always win out over any desire to proselytize.  I don’t think you can be a successful author and proselytize—you must head for the goal of entertaining and that’s it.  If you even touch on proselytizing without just conveying information and facts, you will likely upset and possible offend your readers, and that’s not entertaining in the least. 

In terms of Aine, I’ll not be proselytizing at all.  I’ll be presenting a reflected worldview that most people know and think about already, and I’ll provide them some historical facts that pertain to that worldview and the people behind it.  That’s not proselytizing—that’s just entertainment.     

15.  Reason (a) – 10, 1ie – 10% - the reason plot is a wonderful plot on its own—just think about Sherlock Holmes.  Now, Sherlock wasn’t the first use of this plot, but the Victorian Era did bring into focus the idea of reason as a plot especially as opposed to fate and blood will out.  Reason isn’t really the opposite of fate, blood will out, or proselytizing, but it might as well be.  We see the gradual movement from these fate based and preaching plots to plots that stand on their own through reason, and that’s what the reason plot is all about.

I try to use this type of plot extensively in my novels.  That is, I develop reason and make the results of every action of my protagonist based on reason and reasoning.  You might say, is there any other way?  Yes, there is and we see it in a lot of Victorian writing as well as some modern writing.  The unreasoned approach to problems or the false choice of accidental occurrence or chance—these are really fate plots with no reasoning at all behind them.  Unfortunately, this has become more and more normalized by those who think people can’t be self-determining or can’t change themselves or their situations.  No one really believes this, but some people wish it were true.

In Aine, I intend every plot that requires some logic or rational to be distinctly reason based.  There will be no fate or accidental resolutions.  I will note for you that all novels start with a singular unique event that is unfortunately a deus ex machina.  In the case of Aine, this is the accident of fate that brings him, the one who can release her to her crypt.  From that point on, I don’t expect any more fate—although I did write I will use some of Aine’s ancient expectation or fate and blood will out as tools in the novel, but not necessarily plots.

The reasoned plot begins when Eoghan begins to tease out how and why Aine was in captivity.  Part of this is her understanding end explanation and part is Eoghan’s reasoning.  Then we get into how they will plan to escape, and finally, what he will do about Aine.  These will all be reason plots, and they will tie the key initial components of the novel into the rest of the novel.  Each stage and each problem will be handled mainly by reasoning, even though Aine is ill equipped for this type of resolution.  There you have the real opposite of the reason plot—action.  There is no action plot, perse, but there are plenty of plots to counter or compliment reason in many ways.  Aine will want to use force and argument without reason to solve problems—she will have to learn reasoning.  That’s in some ways what makes the idea of an ancient person in the modern era so interesting.

16.  Escape (a)  – 1ie, 23 – 21% - the initial plot in Aine is basically an escape plot.  In fact, you start with a discovery plot that finds a prison plot that evolves into an escape plot which is based in a fantasy plot.  The seeking Eoghan discovers the imprisoned Aine and helps her escape.  That’s just the initial scene.  I put in fantasy there because the world is a reflected worldview.

I thought or really saw an example that really provides a perfect explanation of the reflected worldview.  In Irina the Cosmonaut, the Russians in the late 1950 space race decide to use a vampire instead of a human for the first launch of their human space capsule.  They did so because of the resilience of a vampire and to reduce the problems of a failed human launch.  This presupposes there are vampires in the world.  Indeed, the vampire developed in the story isn’t a full on Bram Stoker type vampire, but it’s close.  The story takes elements of history with the reflected worldview about the existence of vampires.  These vampires have no real supernatural basis, but they do sleep in coffins which is a little odd considering.  In any case, I thought that was a perfect example of the reflected worldview interjected into history.  My novels are similar, but on a little lower down basis—hidden basis.

In Aine, the reflected worldview revolves around the idea of gods and goddesses as well as the Fae (fairies).  This world is imagined to exist and lives on in myths and the ideas of the ancients.  The entire idea that a person can be imprisoned for a couple of thousand years is based on this fantasy (reflected worldview) idea.  You could also trace this back to a science fiction basis, but that is a created worldview and would require the classic use of the Andre Norton time travelers and other ancient beings in space kind of worldview.  I find the reflected worldview to be much cleaner and easier to use, plus very entertaining.  I think most readers imagine there might be such things in the world as gods and goddesses and other beings with some supernatural power—they are just not visible except to the sensitive or when they wish to be seen.

In the escape plot—Aine escapes her prison crypt.  I’m not sure I’ll use the escape plot again in the novel, but there is always the possibility—especially if I bring in a legal or a prison plot with interactions with the police or others.  This is an easy plot to use when necessary--that is the legal or the prison plot.  The interaction of authority in the society can result in temporary incarceration.  Escape becomes more difficult, but still is possible, and that provides some real reason plots.

17.  Knowledge or Skill (a) – 26 – 23% - notice this is a well used plot in the classics—it’s teed up in Aine, and it’s a basic with any Romantic protagonist.  If you haven’t noticed one of the major characteristic of the Romantic protagonist is his or her special skill.  The skill plot is one of the best plots in all of fiction.

To use it well, we take a character with some potential latent special skill, have them realize or discover it, then have them develop it to the point that they can use it to resolve the telic flaw of the novel.  This is the best and most powerful use of the skill plot, and the knowledge plot is like unto it. 

The greatest power of the skill plot is the discovery of the skill, the building or development of it, and the use of it to great effect.  Just think of Harry Potty, although that is a crippled Romantic protagonist and novel.  In the first novel, Harry discovers his magic (that’s his skill), he is invited to Hogwarts School where he can develop that skill, but he is a messiah anyway and really shows no great affection for, skill, or work toward magic.  He’s just fated to defeat old Vodermort.  In a well developed Romantic novel, Harry would have discovered his skill in some astonishing way.  He would have embraced that skill and worked diligently to make it his own and more powerful than anyone else in the word.  Finally, he would have used his great personal skills to defeat the antagonist.  That’s my plan for Aine.

We know that Eoghan has the skill of charm.  This is based on his past and his mother.  He has this skill, but he hasn’t used it much and not intentionally.  I’m not sure how I’ll use it with him.  The discovery of it might work with Aine—that is, she is immune, but she sees it in him.  That would make a great dialog and give some information about Eoghan and Aine at the beginning of the novel.  The point then is for him to develop this skill.  Really, it’s the leadership skill, but wrapped up in other language.  Eoghan just hasn’t had the opportunity to use this skill.  I’ll see what I can do with it.

Knowledge is a part of this type of plot.  Knowledge also takes the place of skill for some Romantic protagonists and for regular protagonists.  It plays the same.  Usually, the protagonist discovers some knowledge they love or are especially good at, math or biology or chemistry, for example.  They then develop this knowledge to the point of greatness and use it to resolve the telic flaw.  An example of this is Flavia de Luca who is a chemistry genius.  We don’t see her discovery or development of the knowledge, but flashbacks to it.  We generally just see her use of the knowledge of chemistry to resolve and solve murders. 

So, yes, the skill plot and the knowledge plot will be active in Aine.  I’ll see how I use it and the depth of it when I get to the writing part.

The knowledge part of the knowledge or skill plot fits Aine perfectly and I mean the character.  She is the focus and not the protagonist of the novel, but plots can still fit her and fit into the scheme of the scenes.  The problem with Aine, the girl, is that she has a knowledge base that is 2000 years out of place.  She has a need for knowledge and although she isn’t the protagonist, her thirst for knowledge will drive parts of the scenes and provide some tension and release in the scenes.  Now, about Eoghan.

Eoghan’s strengths as a protagonist are skills based, however, he is a knowledge based Romantic protagonist as well.  Much of this comes from his knowledge of the wilds, wilderness, survival, and the Fae.  In these, he is an expert.  That’s one of those Romantic protagonist basics—the skill or knowledge that is outside of the normal human which is based on hard work as well as ability.  This knowledge puts him above the norm and makes him a powerful, but quiet character.  This knowledge will make Aine even more interested in him.  She can’t ignore the man who is capable in both the wilds and the civilized world, and he is about to teach her to exist in both. 

This is pretty much the fun part of the ideas and eventually the writing of this novel.  We have Eoghan’s skills and his knowledge.  We have Aine’s thirst for knowledge of the modern world.  Eoghan’s skills and abilities are the full on Romantic power that drives the novel to some resolution.  As I noted before, the overall plot is a redemption one.  It will answer all of Eoghan’s desires and needs.  Aine will be the catalyst in this resolution, however, the resolution will be made possible through Eoghan’s skills and abilities.  I haven’t even come close to developing the climax or even trying to define it, but putting the different plots in context to the writing brings more and more ideas into the mix.

Based on some reading I was doing, I thought it might be interesting to have Aine get a regular job.  I’ll think about that—that could be a really great scene development.   

18.  Secrets (a) – 21 – 19% - the secrets plot is the best plot ever.  I use this as much as possible in all my writing.  I just landed in Florida from a flight where my stupid computer was declaring it was upgrading while I was flying, so I couldn’t take any time to reflect and write anything while I was flying.  Therefore, I will write more tomorrow.  This is an important subject that needs reflection and time.

About secrets.  Yes, secrets is a plot.  It is a very important plot.  I think the secrets plot is the most basic plot in all of ficiton.  The reason is that in the beginning, it’s all a secret.  Your readers have no idea concerning any part of your novel.  As an author, you reveal the novel.  The reality is that a novel is always a revelation of secrets because in the beginning, everything is a secret.  You might reply, that’s just basic writing.  True, but if you start with the idea that everything begins as a secret, you get the entire point about secrets.  In other words, your protagonist (and other characters) all have secrets.  Everything about them is a secret.  The point in your writing is this revelation, that is finding the right time and place to reveal the secrets.  That is entirely the point.

When we start with a protagonist, that portagonist is a mystery and every point about them is a secret.  The big deal is when and how we reveal this knowledge and these secrets about the protagonist (as well as any other character).  If you realize this, you are really going to write great novels.

The main point is to not vomit out everything you as the author know about your protagonist.  You give out (reveal) this information in ways to create tension and release in your scenes and to develop your plots and the entertainment in your novel.  I start with the idea that everything is a secret, but really some secrets are greater than others.  For example, in my novel Lilly: Enchantment and the Computer, Lilly lives in a cardboard box on the top of a roof in Spanaway,  Washington.  No one knows this at the beginning except Lilly herself.  She lives on the street because she doesn’t want her mother to be able to steal any of her scholarship money and her scholarship from the state doesn’t pay for Pacific Lutheran University’s costs.  The secret comes out slowly and gradually.  This piece of information comes out in revelations, first with hints to the reader, then to Dane, then to Dane’s sister, then to Dane’s parents.  The secret isn’t shared to everyone.  One of the great powers of secrets is especially when the reader and only a few others knows it.  There are many opportunities then or many possible times when the secret might be accidentally discovered by others.  These are times the secret plot becomes active.  I’ll write more next and then look at how I might use this in Aine.

Secrets are powerful and wonderful things in novels.  As I noted, all revelation in a novel is like a secrets plot, we just don’t usually look at them that way.  And, indeed there are real secrets plots.  In these, like my example, we take a or some great secrets and we parcel them out to our readers and characters.  Sometimes, we parcel them out to our protagonist.  These can be some of the most powerful secrets—those that the protagonist doesn’t know, but that are then at some point revealed in the dialog or narrative.  We see a few of these in Harry Potty, but they are typical staples of many Victorian Era novels and assorted modern novels.  The revelation of secrets about the protagonist that the protagonist doesn’t know are very entertaining. 

You might ask, what makes it a secret plot and not just a normal revelation.  What makes a secrets a secret is when the protagonist or another character attempts to hide it.  That’s the different between a secret and a revelation.  You can also have latent secrets—those the protagonist isn’t actively hiding, but that might, in the future, become issues, or turn into latent secrets.

For example, in the Lilly example, Lilly has made great changes to software that might be very valuable to the original developer.  Until Dane’s parents point out the value to Lilly, she has no idea. This is a latent secret that becomes an active secrets plot in the novel.  There are many other latent secrets.  One is that Lilly’s mother beat her, and she is scared because of it.  This is mostly unknown to the readers and to the characters—then it is observed.  Once observed, the secret is revealed and becomes active.

I love the entire idea of secrets and I actively look for them in the development of my novels.  Whenever and wherever you can add in any secrets plot, do so.  These are the bread and butter of great novels.  You don’t require secrets plots, but readers love them and they have great entertainment value.  I’ll move on to the potential secrets plots in Aine, next.      

Quality (q)

1.     Messiah (q) – 10 – 9%

2.     Adultery (qa) – 18 – 16%

3.     Rejected love (rejection) (q) – 1ei, 21 – 20%

4.                     Miscommunication (q) – 8 – 7%

5.                     Love triangle (q) – 14 – 12%

6.                     Betrayal (q) – 1i, 1ie, 46 – 43%

7.     Blood will out or fate (q) –1i, 1e, 26 – 25%

8.     Psychological (q) –1i, 45 – 41%

9.     Magic (q) – 8 – 7%

10.  Mistaken identity (q) – 18 – 16%

11.  Illness (q) – 1e, 19 – 18%

12.  Anti-hero (q) – 6 – 5%       

13.  Immorality (q) – 3i, 8 – 10%

14.  Satire (q) – 10 – 9%

15.  Camaraderie (q) – 19 – 17%

16.  Curse (q) – 4 – 4%

17.  Insanity (q) – 8 – 7%

18.  Mentor (q) – 12 – 11%

Setting (s)

1.     End of the World (s) – 3 – 3%

2.     War (s) – 20 – 18%

3.     Anti-war (s) –2 – 2%

4.     Travel (s) –1e, 62 – 56%

5.     Totalitarian (s) – 1e, 8 – 8%

6.     Horror (s) – 15 – 13%

7.     Children (s) – 24 – 21%

8.     Historical (s) – 19 – 17%

9.     School (s) – 11 – 10%

10.  Parallel (s) – 4 – 4%

11.  Allegory (s) – 10 – 9%

12.  Fantasy world (s) – 5 – 4%

13.  Prison (s) – 2 – 2%

Item (i)

1.     Article (i) – 1e, 46 – 42%

Tomorrow, I’ll start with these plots and evaluate how and which I’ll use in this new novel Aine.

e.      Obstacles that must be overcome 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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