Writing - part xxxx093 Bookgirl, Chapter Three, Problems and Resolution

 28 June 2025, Writing - part xxxx093 Bookgirl, Chapter Three, Problems and Resolution

Announcement: I still need a new publisher.  However, I’ve taken the step to republish my previously published novels.  I’m starting with Centurion, and we’ll see from there.  Since previously published novels have little chance of publication in the market (unless they are huge best sellers), I might as well get those older novels back out.  I’m going through Amazon Publishing, and I’ll pass the information on to you.

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 two 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.

6. The initial scene is the most important scene.

 

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 the third edition of Centurion:

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)

Right now, I want to write bookgirl.  That’s the working title of my novel with the following theme statement:

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.

I’ve already developed the protagonist and the protagonist’s helper for this novel.  I’ll remind you with their descriptions:

Siobhàn Shaw was a very tall and slender girl.  She didn’t sit or stand, she folded and unfolded.  Normal chairs and furniture didn’t seem to fit her properly, but no onlooker could really tell why—she wasn’t basketball tall, and she never sat in an unladylike or informal way.  Perhaps it was her approach to sitting and standing.  It made her standout in ways she never wanted to stand out.  Her dark brown hair was long and always looked a little stringy.  She pulled it up into a highly unpopular and old-fashioned bun, that frizzed at every side.  She didn’t know any other way to put up her hair.  Her face was a classic oval, but that did her no good.  It wasn’t long, just slightly short and she had a high, broad forehead with a widow’s peak that was a little lopsided to the left.  Her eyes were large but slopped a little down at the outside corners so she always looked a little sad even when she smiled.  Her smile was made her cheeks go up without any nice dimples, and her chin was round.  Well that’s what oval means.  She was lucky her brows weren’t like her father’s.  They were   evident but not connected and well shaped except they followed the sad droop of her eyes.  That only made her look a little sadder all the time.  The only problem was that she was never really very sad at all.  Her lips and her nose were nicely formed.  The nose small and a little blunt, and her lips wide and pink.  Her complexion was light like a peach and the real redeeming feature was the constant blush on her cheeks.  That also made her stand out in ways she didn’t wish.  Her clothing was always a little frumpy.  It was hard to fit a girl as tall as she was--too tall, but not tall enough, and there never was enough money to have anything that was new.  The used clothing and charity shops were all she could afford.  Even her school uniform was used, and didn’t fit her well.  The ones for tall girls were too big to fit her slender frame and the ones that fit her size were all too short.  Her skirt looked strange and too large, and her blouse a little too short.  At least her skirt, a kilt, was the Shaw tartan, mostly blue and green with a think red line, it matched the coat and her sweater.  Still, the sleeves on her dark blue coat were always too short and the coat too large.  She disappeared in it, and it bulged in all the wrong places.  Only her emerald green sweater fit her properly.  That’s because she has an extra large one that had been through the wash one too many times—the wool had shrunk.  She didn’t have many sewing skills, so she couldn’t do much to fix her clothing.  Her shoes always looked a little off because she had to repair them with book glue and polish them with ink.  Then there was the thing that made her always stand out.  Siobhàn Shaw always carried a book in her hand.  A book in one hand and her official bookbag in the other.  The book is what set her apart.  That’s why they never called her Siobhàn, just book girl.  Always book girl.

Morven McLean was elegant looking.  Everything about her was elegant looking.  She was perfectly formed—not too tall, not too short, not too thin, and not too curvy.  She was the perfect physical balance that girl’s desired and boys followed greedily with their eyes.  Her face was oval, but with that little well-formed chin that made her look, yes, elegant.  Her cheeks rose sweet and gently high, not too plump, and not too thin with a natural shadow of pink.  Her lips were nicely molded around perfectly white and straight teeth.  They were exactly the correct balance to her nose and her large upward inclined eyes and delicate brow.  Her Scottish hair was the exact shade of red with brown that made her standout in the way she usually wanted to stand out.  Her brow was not too large and not too broad.  Her hair was controlled exactly where she placed it and how she placed it.  She kept it long and free and brushed into perfection.  Not a lock was out of place and not a single strand of her hair dared disobey where she put it.  Her clothing was what you expected from a model.  Always the haute couture and always fit to her form so it revealed her to perfection and not to distraction.  Even her uniform looked good on her from the top of her head to the tip of her toes.  She was always happy that her McLean tartan was mostly red, and made her standout like almost none of the other girls.

These two young ladies are already connected.  They will soon be embroiled in even more connections.  I’ll get to that, next.

Setting:

Kilgraston School in Scotland.  This is a Scottish boarding school near Perth and Bridge of Earn.  The school is one of the best in Scotland.  It has closed down since I researched it—so sad, but I think I’ll still use it.

I chose and researched this school for a couple of reasons.  First, I wanted a woman’s boarding school.  My protagonist is a girl of limited means who is very bright and hard working.  She lives and came from Bridge of Earn where her father owns a bookstore.  She has a problem with books, she can’t stop reading them.  This is the source of her knowledge, skills, and intelligence. 

Second, I wanted to set my novel in Scotland because of cultural and social reasons.  I was looking for a little exotic yet familiar for my English readers and my American readers.

Third, a girl’s boarding school provides many positives and many negatives.  The negatives are those cultural and social issues that affect all schools and especially boarding schools.  These are exacerbated in a girl’s school, plus the pathos creation is very powerful.  You can have a bullied boy in the boy’s school or boarding school, but that doesn’t generate the same pathos in your readers.  I’m sure boys can be as cruel as girls in any environment, but we expect boys to defend themselves and we culturally consider them wimps if they don’t. 

Girls on the other hand are culturally different.  They are not necessarily expected to fight physically to defend themselves and we tend to see them as victims.  This builds pathos.  When a girl responds and gets back at her bullies, we also see that as a powerful statement of action.  We expect this from boys, we don’t necessarily expect it from girls.  In fact, a girl responding physically to bullying, can be expelled.  We do that with boys today too, but that’s another problem. 

Suffice to say, I an researching Kilgraston as the setting for my novel.  This is the initial setting and will be unless I discover something that would greatly affect its usefulness as a setting—even then I might just fake the rest.  It’s fiction, after all.  We want to use real settings, but they can be fictionalized for entertainment and use.

Telic Flaw:

The telic flaw comes with the protagonist, but what if it doesn’t.  I’d argue that the telic flaw must always reside with the protagonist, but I am proposing a novel where the protagonist and the protagonist’s helper strongly interact.  The telic flaw is theirs together.  Just what is this telic flaw?

I’m proposing a telic flaw concerning the family and library of the protagonist’s helper.  Morven McLean has a problem. She isn’t the protagonist, but she has lost everything.  That is her family has lost everything.  She never really had anything except what her family did, but now she has nothing.  Ultimately, one of the books from her library includes a cryptic message.  The message will lead the protagonist and her to the resolution of the novel, but we have to get there.

This will be a mystery novel, and the mystery will be about Morven McLean and her family.  Siobhàn Shaw, the protagonist will eventually resolve and solve the mystery using her skill as the book girl, but the telic flaw comes from the protagonist’s helper and not the protagonist. 

This is an interestingly set up novel.  So, the telic flaw is the mystery regarding Morven McLean and her family.

I also am contemplating another telic flaw and piece to this novel.  I’m debating how I will make these work together or which I will make the main telic flaw.  I’m contemplating that Siobhàn has every possibility of being a model.  Morven realizes this and also realizes that she has been jealous of Siobhàn from the beginning because she is really so elegant.  Siobhàn still has real issues that she must personally contend with because of her personality and her life.  I’d like to have Morven realize her own negative affect on Siobhàn and desire to make up for it.  Basically, Siobhàn and her father will take Morven into their circle and family because Morven’s family has abandoned her.  The changes in Morvan will cascade to Siobhàn and the actions of Siobhàn will cascade to Morvan.  We’ll see how this works when I finally get around to writing the novel.

Initial Scene:

I didn’t write much about the initial scene for bookgirl working title Books.  I’m certain you’d like to know more about the initial scene for Books.  I’d like to know too.

Back to basics.  I wrote and write that the meeting of the protagonist with the antagonist or the protagonist’s helper makes the best novel initial scene.  There are other ways to do this, but this is the way to make it work.  This brings conflict directly into the novel as well as the telic flaw.  Since the telic flaw is what the novel is all about, that’s the way to begin.

I already developed the protagonist and the protagonist’s helper—that’s Siobhàn Shaw and Morven McLean.  We know enough about these girls to begin to write.  Their meeting as protagonist and protagonist’s helper are what we want to focus on.  The question is how to write it, and how to set it properly.

This is a little difficult initial scene.  The question for me, as the writer, is how to compose it.  I want this to be the reveal about Morven’s loss of wealth.  The elegant Morven is shown to be a pauper.  The where and when are important.  The realization for Morven is important.  The point is to bring out the greatest pathos possible.  The perfect situation would be a television announcement or a public announcement that tells the world that Morven is broke.  That might be what I begin with. 

Perhaps Morven and her current friends learn about it from the tele and Siobhàn finds out through reading the news.  Something like that.  Morven receives a call from her father telling her to walk home.  Perhaps the day should begin with Morven coming to school in her family’s Mercedes touring car or better yet, their Rolls Royce with a chauffeur.  She bullies Siobhàn personally.  Maybe they run into each other.  Siobhàn’s lunch gets stepped on or something. Then she is harassed at lunch.  This would allow us to see Siobhàn and Morven in action. 

The moment of truth is the televised announcement that the McLean family factory or industry or bank or whatever (I need to research) is bankrupt.  We see Mr. McLean being escorted off the premises.  Morven calls her father, and he tells her to walk home, but her phone is suddenly cut off. 

We have a situation, where Morven is completely devastated.  Siobhàn walks with her to her house, estate actually.  When they get there the police will not allow Morven inside.  She has a breakdown.  Siobhàn invites her to her house.  We see a domestic supper scene.  Siobhàn helps Morven.  They get up in the morning, have breakfast.  She gives Morven a lunch like hers.

When they arrive at school, when the girls try to bully Siobhàn, Morven steps in, and that is the consummation of their friendship.  We have a great lunch and communication scene. 

Okay, that’s more than just the initial scene.  Perhaps we should try to expand on the initial part of the initial scene.  That’s just where we are at the moment. 

We have reached the point of writing the initial scene.

I started the initial scene.  I’m not sure how I will put the entire scene together.  I just started with Siobhàn and her movement from class to outside.  I think I need to build more description in the scene, and I’ll bring in Morven.  I’d like to show some of the bullying that Siobhàn does through, and then zap Morven.  I need to actually write the scene to really get it together.  I might show you the details just for grins but it may take a little while to get it all together.  As I wrote before, the best initial scene is either the meeting of the protagonist and the antagonist or the protagonist and the protagonist’s helper.  I might need to find the antagonist for this novel, but I’m not sure they could fit into the initial scene. 

The true power in the initial scene is the interaction of the characters and especially the interaction of the protagonist I their world.  Part of the development of the initial scene is the initial setting and the telic flaw—specifically, the circumstances of the overall novel.  The events of the initial scene develop and design the entire novel.  It sets in place the action, secrets, and mystery of the novel.  It asks and develops questions that only can be answered in the context of the novel.  That’s what gives power to the initial scene.

I started it.  I’d like to finish it today.  We shall see.

I didn’t even work on it—ouch.  I did start the setting development.  My plan was to create a circumstance that would lead to Morven’s revelation as well as Siobhàn’s initial bullying.  I will plan to lead both of them outside.  However, in retrospect, the revelation of Morven’s great loss might be best revealed with a broadcast. 

Perhaps, I’ll have Siobhàn wandering around while revealing the character and her background.  This might be a good way to show off the school and the character.  When Morven comes to school.  Morven might be pulled off by her girlfriends to witness the broadcast.  Before that, I’ll need to have Morven and her friends bully Siobhàn a little before all this happens.  Perhaps there is some means to bring them all together.  When I write it, I plan to share it with you.  It will be the first run of the initial scene. 

It's very important that the initial scene really touch the reader and bring the novel to life.  The characters and the place should come to life just like the characters, and all the problems, or a large portion of the problems of the protagonist should be made obvious.  All these are not necessarily resolved by the climax or the resolution of the telic flaw, but they are part of the life and revelation of the protagonist through the novel.  This also doesn’t mean the writer makes an information dump about the protagonist—there are many secrets to keep about the protagonist and to reveal in the proper time and sequence.  One of the great secrets I want to reveal about Siobhàn is brought out by Morven.

Morven realizes that Siobhàn is a very elegant and beautiful girl, but who has never had a teacher or the opportunity to learn about beauty and herself.  Morven becomes the power building the new life of Siobhàn.  How this will happen with no money and other issues is still up in the air.  We shall see.

I find that once you start writing, things change.  In the first place, I’m rather happy with the development of Siobhàn and Morven in the initial scene and first chapter.  What is interesting is what changed, and what I discovered about these two.

 

In the first place, the real advancement is the idea about modeling.  I fancied this idea from the beginning when I developed the Siobhàn character.  She is a girl who is totally unaware of her effect on people.  She has no idea how special and beautiful she is.  One of the main points of the novel is to show the development of Siobhàn from a quiet wallflower to a powerful young woman.  The way I expected to accomplish this was through Morven. 

 

Morven changed a little.  I envisioned her as similar to Siobhàn in some ways, but I decided to make her significantly different to explain her bullying and attitude.  Morven is much like her father. She cares little about others and mostly about herself, but she is self-aware enough to realize many of her own faults.  Thus, when she loses everything, she understands how she can regain some of her own stature and value.  She sees that through Siobhàn, she might regain something—at the moment, this is the only thing she can hold onto.  I haven’t shown this much yet, but this is one of the great character ideas for this novel and for Morven.  She is a person desperate for a certain type of attention as well as a certain type of success.  She also has a cruelty streak, a degree of badness that gives her a feeling of superiority, but she realizes where her emotions come from—in a certain way.  This is part of the discovery in the novel.

 

Also, I needed a reason for Morven’s knowledge as well as the perverseness of her emotions.  Her father is a basis, but her mother and her second mother are the reasons.  The occupations and success of her mothers provided her knowledge, but also her mother gave her a stature and a build that makes modeling impossible for her, but the knowledge that will (might) allow her to make something of Siobhàn.

 

That’s one of the main plots of the novel.  I intend to build on this idea of modeling.  The second main plot of the novel hasn’t happened yet.  This is supposed move forward when the books from Morven’s estate come into Siobhàn’s bookstore and they find the book.  I’m not sure how this will work out, but I’m planning to move into this in the third chapter.  Should I begin giving you the second chapter?  Perhaps that’s next.

 

As I wrote, the main plot of this novel has moved a little.  In my primary development of the novel, I planned for a book related premise and a mystery based on a specific book and mystery concerning Morven and her family.  Siobhàn would be the main force resolving this mystery and saving Morven. 

 

In the writing of the initial scene and chapter, some of this changed because of the natural features I discovered in my own character development as well as the ideas behind the characters and their background.  In addition, there is a third part or plot I would like to integrate into these two major plots: the modeling success plot and the book mystery plot.  This third plot is the connection of Morven and Siobhàn to the supernatural. 

 

Why the supernatural?  Most if not all of my Enchantment novels incorporate the redemption of some supernatural being.  I write my novels in the reflected worldview, so the supernatural can exist.  I don’t usually write about the supernatural as the supernatural, although Rose is half-Fae, but Rose lives in the real world with flashes and interactions with the reflected (supernatural) world from time to time.  That’s the point of the reflected worldview.  The world is the normal world we all experience while the reflected part of the world is the world we see in the shadows.  It’s the world we think could exist, but we aren’t certain exists.  It is the world we really wish could and might exist, but that is usually hidden completely from us. 

 

In my novels, I like to show this reflected world just more evident than we are used to.  Sometimes the characteristics of this world are in the shadows and sometimes they are evident and explained.  I’d like to create a question in the mind of my readers—the question: does this supernatural world really exist?  And, am I just missing some of the evidence?

 

This reflected worldview is something I’d like to bring into Bookgirl.  I’d also like to connect Bookgirl to my broader universe in the Enchanted novels.  How I will do this might have to wait for more writing and opportunities in the work.  We shall see.  The question at hand is should I show you the draft second chapter.  Perhaps I will, and I did.  Here is chapter three, well the first scene:

 

 

September 2016, Friarton Bookstore, Kintillo, Scotland, Great Britain   

 

            Again, they arrived at the Friarton Bookstore in Kintillo later than Siobhàn usually did.  Her father didn’t look much less worried than the day before.  He bit his lip and didn’t say anything, but he did appear a little concerned.

            Morven stepped directly into the fray, “Mr. Shaw, there is no reason to be alarmed.  Bookgirl was simply helping me again today.”

            Callum moved his lips to the side and let out a tentative smile, “Then I shouldn’t be troubled?”

            Morven put her hands on her hips, “You should certainly be troubled if I’m included, but not if Bookgirl is involved.”

            His brow rose at that. 

            The girls pulled the suitcases to the kitchen where Siobhàn placed the frozen food in the small freezer.  “It will take too long to defrost for tonight.”

            Morven nodded.  She wanted to get into the bedroom right away.

            They entered Siobhàn’s bedroom, and like the day before, Morven unpacked her clothing and hung it where she could.  She took the very fine clothing for Siobhàn and put that as carefully as she could on the rack and over whatever hanging place she could find.  Finally, she remarked, “Really, Bookgirl, we need some more hanging spots.  My things can be as wrinkled as a pug, but your new clothing must be perfect.”

            Siobhàn didn’t know what to say to that.  She stepped out of the small room and went to the bookstore storage area.  She returned with some large wall hangers, “We use these in the shop.  They should work for clothing, but I’m still not clear about the things you brought for me.”

            Morven ignored her and hung up the clothing so it covered the walls and the back of the door.  Finally she licked her lips, “It’s not like you are using the walls for anything else like art.”

            Siobhàn shrugged.

            When all the large clothing was put away, Morven pulled out the lingerie she had gathered from her second mother’s closet, “Take all your knickers and bras out of your drawers?”

            Siobhàn glanced up, startled, “Everything?”

            “Yes, everything.  I’m not asking you to throw it out, yet, but you need to understand what we are aiming for, and what you will wear.”

            “What will I wear?”

            “Glad you asked, Bookgirl.  Take off everything.”

            “Everything?”

            “Do I need to repeat myself?”

            Siobhàn compliantly began to remove her uniform.  Morven was changing too.  Morven hung up her uniform and Siobhàn’s then put on a frock and jumper, but Siobhàn stopped short of removing her old knickers and sport bra.  Morven stood with her fists on her hips, “Take off the rest, and put this on.”  She tossed Siobhàn a pair of very sexy blue silk and lace knickers with a matching fancy bra.

            Without thinking, Siobhàn quickly removed her bottoms and top and replaced it with the new ones.

            Morven stood back in admiration, “Do you see now why I told you to tighten up your lady bits.”

            Siobhàn was mortified, “The knickers barely cover anything, and you can see my nips through the lace.”

            Morven rolled her eyes, “You aren’t supposed to flash them to the world.  Their purpose is to cover your naughty bits as necessary and to give you a little support, although you are pretty firm in the booby business.”

            “That’s why I wear sport bras.”

            “Plus, they’re cheap, right.”

            “I get them second hand, so they aren’t very expensive at all.”

            Morven shivered, “Ewe, your knickers too?”

            “Of course.  Aren’t these second hand as well?” Siobhàn pointed at the blue slips of silk and lace.

            Morven made a face, “Second mum was getting a little wide in the hips.  She wore only spanx and other very confining control wear.  She loved these stupendously wonderful bits of silk that are tickling your fancy, so to speak, but she couldn’t wear them—so they’re all brand new, and your second hand, yuck, intimates can officially go in the trash.”

            Siobhàn glanced down, “It’s all I could afford before.”

            “Well, no more.  We will definitely throw out your hand-me-downs.  Get used to wearing this kind of underclothing all the time.”

            “Even with a thin bit of cloth going up my buttocks?”

            Morven rolled her eyes again, “Especially then.  I need to be confident in this kind of clothing.”

            “You don’t intend for me to model it?”

            “Not any time soon, but you will be in a room with a group of other ladies competing for these kinds of jobs, plus the director or the producer is many times a woman—they or some woman representative of theirs will be watching you.”

            “In my knickers?”

            “Yes, love, many times in your knickers.  Your very sexy and wonderful knickers and sometimes in the nude.  The first thing they will look for is the untidy bits.  If they see any, I can assure you, you’ll be out.  Next, they will look for how you wear the clothing.  They’ll ask themselves: does this woman know how to wear her intimates?  Lastly, they’ll look for your elegance and deportment.  If you appear like a country gowk, they’ll think you can’t display their clothing well.”

            Siobhàn glanced down at her body, “All that from your knickers and bra?”

            “All of that, love.  Now put on these heels and walk around the room.”

            “There is nowhere to walk around.”

            Morven frowned, “Just walk up and down the center of the room—you can surely do that.”

            Siobhàn pulled on the heels and began walking up and down the room.  Morven stopped her and corrected her leg and hip placement a couple of times.  She instructed Siobhàn on how to walk and after about a hundred transitions.  She began instructing her on shots—that is, poses for photos.

            Siobhàn asked, “Do I just start making these poses?”

            “Not exactly.  When they bring out the camera and begin taking pictures, just keep moving.  If they ask you to stop, fall into a natural pose.  You’ve got to give them a good look, something photo worthy and that shows off your best.”

            “How do I do that?”

            “Look at your face in the mirror.  Unless they ask you for a smile, don’t smile.  Give me a neutral look.  Raise your chin and tilt your head a little…yeah, just like that.  You’re a natural.  Your face and spontaneous expressions are perfect.”

            “I need to start dinner, and pa will wonder what I’ve been up to.”

            Morven tossed her a pair of jeans and a top, “Wear these, and the heels.  Try to keep them nice.  I picked the cheapest of the lot, but they’re easily worth a thousand pounds.”

            Siobhàn was pulling on the jeans—she stopped, “Will the police be looking for these?”

            “They haven’t begun to sell off the stuff, plus, until the courts make some decision or actually prosecute my father, it’s all up for grabs.”

            “Then why not take the really expensive clothing and sell it off yourself?”

            “A little pilfering won’t be missed.  If they ask me, I’ll say second mum gave it away.  A ten thousand pound gown will really get their attention, and I won’t be able to explain that one.  I don’t think they’ll come after my clothing either.  Second mum never bought me anything designer.  She saw me as a little girl and competition.  Plus, I can tell the police I took my things with me when I left the house.  Personal property at the clothing level won’t draw much attention.”

            Siobhàn finished pulling on the jeans and the top, “They fit me perfectly.  I’ve never had anything as nice as this.”  She put back on the heels.

            Morven stood at the door.  She pushed it open, “Come on then, and walk in the shop and kitchen like we practiced in your room.”

            Siobhàn went to the shop storage and put on an apron.  She went to the kitchen and pulled out the pressure cooker, noodles, peas, and a large cup of chicken parts.  Morven followed her and put on an apron too.  She looked over Siobhàn’s shoulder, “What’s up for supper tonight?”

            Siobhàn moved her mouth from side to side, “Sorry to say, it’s gizzard and heart night.  It’s one of my favorites, but not to everyone’s taste.”

            Morven’s eyes widened, “Gizzard and hearts?  What’s that exactly.”

            Siobhàn stood at the kitchen sink and cleaned the chicken parts from the large cup on the counter.  She cleaned them and plopped them in the pressure cooker, “Well, to be precise, these are chicken gizzards and hearts.  They’re really cheap by the pound, and most people don’t want them.”

            “But you do?”

            “They really taste good if you cook them right, but not everyone is happy with their texture or the idea of eating them.”

            “How are you going to cook them?”

            “I’ll clean them really well cause gizzard can have grit in them and the hearts can have clotted blood.”  She glanced at Morven, “Sorry, maybe I shouldn’t have been so descriptive.”

            “I can handle anything, Bookgirl, go on…”

            “I’ll cook it with some broth and spices, mostly salt and pepper, then I’ll pressure cook it all until it’s tender and make a good gravy with the drippings in the pot.  Finally, I’ll put it over big noodles with peas on the side.  Pop likes to mix his peas in.”

            “What’s it taste like?”

            “Rich chicken over noodles.  The texture is a little firmer than regular chicken, but it tastes really good to me.”

            “I’ll look forward to it.”

            Siobhàn started the pressure cooker and checked on it from time to time from the bookstore.  She spent her time in the shop the same as before.  If anyone noticed she wore high heels and jeans no one said anything, not even pa—though he did push his cap back a little.

            When supper rolled around, the food did smell very inviting.  Morven just pretended she was eating a fine French dinner—the things she’d eaten with her parents on vaca were much more exotic than the very delicious chicken gizzards and hearts over noodles with peas.  She was actually surprised at how good it tasted, once she got over the idea and the texture.

            After supper, they showered, and the hot water remained hot.  Morven made Siobhàn show her that her parts were at an approved level of trim.  Siobhàn just shaved it all off.  She didn’t care.  No one else was looking.  Morven allowed Siobhàn to wear her trackies to bed again—she just didn’t say anything about it.  In the morning, they dressed for school and Morven handed Siobhàn a little less risqué knickers.  They were still blue silk and more high cut than Siobhàn felt comfortable wearing especially under a skirt.

            When they arrived at school, Morven’s usual toadies stood near the front drive obviously watching for her.  Morven didn’t say a word to them, she pulled out her ruler and hit the flat of her hand a couple of times, then whispered to Siobhàn, “Make a pushing motion.”

            “Like pushing a person?”

            “Yeah.”

            Siobhàn did, and alarmed, the girls quickly disappeared. 

            Morven continued whispering, “Stay close today.  We don’t need any accidents, and we don’t need to let them get the jump on us.”

            “What’s that mean?”

            “Don’t let them corner you.  If I keep you close, I can keep you safe.”

            Siobhàn gave the much smaller Morven an odd look.

 

            No one bothered them at school that day or the rest of the week.  Siobhàn attended Adoration which was Mass on Thursday after regular classes, and Morven tagged along.  Morven made Siobhàn practice walking in the heels and poses every evening.  Morven didn’t feel the need to express just how well Siobhàn accomplished all she asked.  It was as if the girl was perfectly suited to walking and moving like a professional.  Morven couldn’t wrap her head around the very idea—this usually took most women years to learn and perfect.  Siobhàn just did it and did it well without much thought. 

            Friday and then Saturday rolled around and Morven prepped Siobhàn on Friday night for what to expect.  Friday night before bed and after supper, they both sat on Siobhàn’s bed in their night clothes.  Morven lay back against the wall.  She had to move some of the hanging clothing to the side.  Every bit of wall space now held hanging clothing, mostly for Siobhàn. 

            Morven pursed her lips together, “Tomorrow, you will dress in nude underclothing with the Altar'd State Emma blue floral mini dress over it.”

            Siobhàn held her knees, “It’s a pretty short dress.”

            “Your legs are wonderfully long, and the top is not revealing.  Boobs are not your assets, that’s not to say they aren’t a total positive with your body type.  The dress isn’t very expensive, but on you, it will look stupendous.  I don’t want you too appear too sexy, just a little sultry.  We’ve been practicing that, and I’ve been taking pictures.”

            “Really?”

            “You haven’t noticed.  I put together your book and some comp cards.  I haven’t had an opportunity to print the comp cards yet, but we can do that tomorrow.”

            Siobhàn scratched her nose, “What is a book and comp cards?”

            “A book is a photo book, basically a portfolio of your looks in different clothing and poses…”

            “Can I see it?”

            “Sure you can.  You need to be familiar with what’s in it anyway.”  Morven took out her phone and pulled up a folder filled with pictures.  She flipped slowly through them while Siobhàn looked.

            Siobhàn moved her lips to the side, “How did you get the backgrounds?  I remember the clothing, but it isn’t my room at all.”

            Morven let out a small smile, “I keep my eyes open.  I remember my mother’s photoshoots very well.  First mom had them for all her clothing—she wasn’t the model.  Second mum was modeling.  The backgrounds are just photoshopped into the picture.  It’s pretty easy to do, even on a phone, but I used the school computers.  That’s one of the first things we need to get is a computer for the business.”

            Siobhàn gave a sigh, “Seems like a worthy goal, but expensive.”

            “It will be cheap based on our work.”

            Siobhàn suddenly sat up and pointed, “You took pictures of me in lingerie?”

            Morven rolled her eyes, “I did, and put them in your book.  They don’t show anything untoward at all—it just looks like you in a swimsuit.”

            “Let me look closer.  I’m not really comfortable being photographed in a swimsuit or lingerie.”  Siobhàn took a slow and careful perusal of the more risqué pictures, “You’re right.  They don’t show anything, you made the lighting cover it over or the poses hide anything untoward.”

            “I told you I learned a lot about this business.  We want to entice the casting director and producer, not seduce them.”

            “I certainly hope not seduce them.”

            Morven nodded, “Pack your bag with a pair of jeans, a top, your trainers, and the heels.  You can wear the flats with the dress and over it the long coat I gave you.  When we get to the casting call, we register you, give them your book and comp cards, get you a number, and find a place to wait.  By the way, pack us both a lunch, like school.”

            Siobhàn raised and lowered her shoulders, “Then what happens?”

            “They will call you, perhaps twice.  The first time will likely be an interview.  They will ask you about yourself.  You need to be outgoing.  You can talk about how much you love reading, and how that makes you want to be a model.  Just think about what you will say and answer their questions candidly and with some enthusiasm.  Remember, your experience in modeling is: yes, local, and not documented.”

            Siobhàn sighed and leaned forward, “I’ll probably fail at the very beginning.”

            “Look, Bookgirl, I didn’t choose you just because of your looks, and they won’t either.  There is a reason you are the smartest girl in school.”

            Siobhàn wagged her head.

            “After the interview, they will bring you in for the shots.  It will be a catwalk and photoshoot just like I’ve been doing for the last few days.”

            Siobhàn gave a deep sigh, “I hadn’t even noticed what you were doing.”

            “That’s the point, dummy.  Just move, walk, pose, and look like you did for me.  I’ll try to stay in the background and give you some directions, but if you ignore me and the photographer, that will be perfect.  You are what they will want.”

            Siobhàn smiled a little, “I suspect they’ll send me packing, and then where will you be?”

            Morven gave a sly smile, “I expect you will be surprised with their response.”

            Siobhàn raised her eyebrows, “I do hope, but I won’t lose any sleep over it.  Pa will be upset if I can’t help around the shop all day tomorrow.”

            “Do your early work and then we’ll scamper off to the casting call.  We’ll be back in the early afternoon.  We can help in the shop the rest of the day.”

            “If you say so.”  Siobhàn yawned, “I guess it’s time for bed.  By the way, the steak was wonderful.”

            Morven thought Siobhàn’s mouth was going to water, “You only cooked one of them.”

            “To make them last.  Did you really expect to eat a whole steak by yourself.”

            “I hadn’t thought about it before, but one between three was about right.  My family just usually ate a steak apiece.”

            “That seems overly extravagant to me.”

            Morven rolled her eyes again.  They got into bed with Morven on the inside and were both quickly fast asleep.

            The morning wasn’t as hectic as usual in the kitchen or the bookstore.  Few people came really early Saturdays for their papers and that gave Siobhàn plenty of time to stock everything and organize the periodical shelves.  She made a good breakfast and packed two lunches.  Afterward, with Siobhàn pulling Morven’s smallest suitcase behind, she and Morven headed to the A912 to catch the early bus into Perth. 

            They got off near the city center near the river and Morven popped into the Perth Photo Lab to have Siobhàn’s comp cards printed.  They came back out to the pavement and headed up the street to the Straightup Modeling Agency.

            The façade of the building appeared intimidating to Siobhàn.  It looked too modern with too much heavy glass, metal, and concrete for her tastes, but Morven didn’t blink an eye.  She pulled open the door and shoed Siobhàn inside.  Siobhàn stepped with confidence only because she feared Moven’s displeasure.  She wondered about that.

            The lobby was empty but printed signs with large arrows and casting call on them pointed to the left and down a long corridor.  Morven took the lead.  They quickly came to a large room filled with young women and some that looked a little aged.  A middle-aged woman sat at a desk and looked bored.  When Morven and Siobhàn stepped to the desk, she brightened up a little, but Siobhàn couldn’t tell if it was them or just her job.  Morven had all the information already filled out and handed the paperwork to the woman.  She passed Siobhàn’s book electronically and handed a set of comp cards to her. 

            The woman looked Morven up and down.

            Morven stated very clearly, “I represent Miss Siobhàn Shaw.  She’s my client.”

            That brought a strange look to the woman’s face.  She handed Morven a number.  It was 27 and gave Morven another long gaze. 

            Siobhàn noticed, when they left the desk, the woman began looking through Siobhàn’s book and her application very carefully.

            Siobhàn wanted to move to a quiet corner, but Morven took her hand and led her to the center of the small crowd.  Morven brought her a chair and found another for herself.  They sat near the middle in the least inconspicuous place in the entire room.  Siobhàn rummaged around in the suitcase and brought out a fashion magazine.  That surprised Morven a little, but they didn’t engage in any conversation.

            Finally, the producer and his representative for the casting call entered the room.  A middle-aged man in a tight suit was followed by a young woman who looked like a model.  She was dressed to the nines and wore flattering although overdone makeup. 

            Morven elbowed Siobhàn, “That’s the director’s spy.”

            Siobhàn hid her mouth in her magazine, “Really?”

            “Keep cool around her.”

            The producer didn’t smile.  He looked around at the group as if he were measuring each one already.  When his glance touched someone that interested him, his features changed a little.  When they noted Siobhàn, a small smiled escaped his control.  Finally, he addressed the group without introducing himself, “We’ll do a normal call today.  Those who have been here before know it well.  Interviews first and for those who receive a second call today, we’ll have some modeling shots and an individual catwalk exhibition.”  Almost as a afterthought he added, “Best of luck to you all.”  He gave a second glance at Siobhàn.  He frowned at Morven then turned to the woman, “Ms. Abby will show you to the dressing room where you may prepare when you are called.”

            The casting producer disappeared back through the door at the side and Ms. Abby stepped forward, “First ten may follow me.”

            The women with the first ten numbers went through a door at the back following Ms. Abby.

            Morven touched Siobhàn’s arm, “That’s the dressing room.  First rule of casting calls is that we will not leave anything anywhere.  Too many hands and fingers will try to pinch our stuff.”

            Siobhàn looked a little shocked, but she kept reading her magazine.  That’s when Morven noticed it was a French fashion magazine and Siobhàn seemed to be reading it effortlessly.  She almost made an untoward sound, but stifled it.

            The second group was called into the dressing room. 

            Siobhàn asked, “Where did the first group go?”

            Morven pointed to the hall through the windows in the waiting room.  Some dejected women were milling around, but then headed out of the building, “The cull has started already.”

            Siobhàn noticed that many of them were very upset and some seemed to be crying, “Is it always like this.”

            Morven stood and took Siobhàn’s cheeks in her hand.  She stared into her eyes, “It’s always like this.  There are many girls who want to be models, but if you look around the room, you can immediately spot those who never had or have a chance.  You need more than good or unusual looks, but the very fine and the very intriguing are those who might have some chance.  Most of your competition here are too common looking and just too plain to have a chance.  The others don’t have the stature or the figure to fit the needs of the director or producer.  The interview will willow those out immediately.  Unfortunately, many of those girls are representing an agency or paying a modeling school for the opportunity.  When money is flowing, no one will tell them they never stood a chance.”

            “And you think I do?”

     Morven laughed, “The producer smiled at you.  I bet Ms. Abby interviews you personally.”

            “Why would that be?”

            “I told you.  She’s their spy.  She’s a model, perhaps a bit old for the business.  That’s why her heavy makeup, but she runs the casting call, and she will make many of the decisions.”

            Finally, the next group of ten along with Siobhàn got a call for the dressing room.  Ms. Abby led them into the room.  Siobhàn noticed, this room was smaller than the last.  Morven followed Siobhàn and Ms. Abby into the room.  When Morven entered, Ms. Abby asked for her number.  Morven didn’t stop, “I represent Miss Siobhàn Shaw.”

            Ms. Abby frowned, but let her enter.

            The dressing room was really just another waiting area.  It was a bare rectangular fully enclosed room with ten chairs around the wall.  Each of the ladies took a seat in order of their numbers.  Moven sat on the floor in front of Siobhàn. 

            All the other women were primping and some were applying a last bit of makeup.

            Morven whispered, “That won’t help them.  Here…” she stood and helped Siobhàn take off her long coat.  Siobhàn was the tallest and perhaps the thinnest girl in the room.  When her Altar'd State Emma blue floral mini dress was fully revealed, she could hear the intake of breath from the others.  She sat down and crossed her legs.  Morven laughed, “Told you.”

            Siobhàn just gave her a neutral glace, and Morven returned a thumbs up.

            As Ms. Abby called the lady’s numbers, they exited by the side door that led to the interview area.  Ms. Abby called three at a time.

            Finally, when she called number 27, Siobhàn stood and Morven followed her through the door.  Morven pulled their suitcase behind her.

            On the other side lay a large room.  On one side stood a photographer with a host of equipment and backdrops.  A rack of clothing stood next to him.  Three tables, with a man seated behind two of them, each stood well separated in the room.  Ms. Abby sent the other two ladies to the men at the tables.  Ms. Abby pointed at Morven, “You may remain here, but you may not interact with your client and you must stay seated.”  She pointed with her chin at a chair near the photographer.

            Morven nodded.  She gave a surreptitious glance at Siobhàn, and continued to the chair.

            Ms. Abby nodded to Siobhàn, “You come with me.”  Ms. Abby walked next to Siobhàn and a little away as if she was studying her every movement.  She went around the table and indicated Siobhàn should sit.

            Ms. Abby started immediately, “Miss Shaw, why do you want this modeling job?”

            Morven had pounded this type of question and answer into Siobhàn from the beginning, “I love to wear beautiful clothing, and I’m very excited to represent your client on the runway.”

            Ms. Abby gave her a penetrating look, “You’re dressed in a wonderful Altar'd State Emma blue floral mini dress.  Why did you choose this dress and what do you like about it?”

            Morven had prepared her for this question too, “Although it isn’t your client’s line, I thought it would show off my best assets.”

            “A safe answer, and I think you’re right, but what are your best assets?”

            “I’m tall and my legs are long.  I don’t have much on top, but the dress shows off my figure and color well.”

            Ms. Abbey looked Siobhàn  up and down, “You do understand your body type and coloring.  What other clothing do you like?”

            That suddenly started a conversation about all kinds of clothing.  Morven could clearly hear Siobhàn’s soft voice and Ms. Abby’s responses.  They began discussing clothing and exactly what Siobhàn thought she could wear well.  Their conversation went on and on.  Even after the other two ladies were dismissed, Siobhàn and Ms. Abby continued their very lively conversation. 

            Finally, one of the gentlemen made a sound.  Ms. Abby glanced up at him, “George, I think you can release the others.”

            “Already?  We have ten already selected for the second portion.”

            Ms. Abby rolled her eyes, “You may interview the rest if you like, but I’ve made my choice.  This girl is what you asked for, and she’s an expert in the types of clothing you want displayed.”

            George made a slightly disparaging sound, “Mark her as you will, but we need to see all of them who passed the interview.”

            Ms. Abby turned back to Siobhàn, “You don’t seem to have much experience, but you’re just what we are looking for.”  She patted Siobhàn’s hand, “I like you very much Ms. Shaw.”

            Siobhàn stood, “Thank you, Ms. Abby.”

            “Just call me Abby.”  She turned to Morven, “Hey, Morven.  I don’t like to see you anywhere around, but you found a real keeper.”

            Morven stood and smiled, “Thanks, Abby.”

            “Ms. Abby to you.”

            Morven took Siobhàn by the hand and led her out of the side door.  They went back to the first waiting room.  There nine other women waited.  As time went by a couple more came back.

            Siobhàn immediately asked, “So you know Abby?”

            “I know the gentlemen too.  They are friends of my mothers’.”

            “How does that work and why doesn’t she want to see you around?”

            “Well, my mothers took me to their shoots, and I wasn’t always the most gracious child.  They don’t like me much.  I was always in their hair.  I know the photographer too.  I showed him your book and told him the best way to get your shots.  He seemed very interested.  That’s what a manger does.”

            Morven and Siobhàn ate their lunch.  The other ladies didn’t seem nearly as comfortable as they did.  Few of them were eating.  Morven asked, “What where you talking about so enthusiastically with Abby, and how do you know so much about clothing.”

            “You were listening, weren’t you?”
            “To every word, but I didn’t teach you all those details.”

            “The bookstore is filled with fashion magazines.  I’ve been reading them every day.  You didn’t notice?”

            Morven just laid back in her chair with a strange look on her face, “I knew you were a genius, but I didn’t fully realize your potential as a fashionista.”

            Siobhàn shrugged.

            After a while, Abby returned she led all the remaining ladies to the dressing room.  She didn’t look too happy.  The women were called back into the large interview room one by one.  Finally, when Abby called Siobhàn’s number, Morven followed her back into the room.  Abby stood in the doorway, “I really shouldn’t let you come back in Morven.”

            “I won’t speak to her or bother anyone.  I’m just here for my client, Ms. Abby.”

            Abby frowned, but let Morven enter.

            Morven immediately walked back to the chair by the photographer. 

            The tables had been moved to the sides of the room and that left a long open space.  The producer and director as well as Abby sat in chairs on the other side of the room.  Abby instructed, “Miss Shaw, put on your heels and start at the far side of the room.  Walk as if you are on a runway.  Continue to walk up and down the room until we give you additional instructions. 

            Morven took the heels from the suitcase and ran to were Siobhàn stood.  She helped her put on the shoes, and Siobhàn began to walk the room.

            The photographer asked, “Should I start?”

            George called to him, “Go ahead.”

            The three began a whispered conversation almost immediately.  After the first walk down and back, Abby called, “Morven, did you teach this girl?”

            Morven replied, “I helped her, but she’s a natural.”

            That stared a new buzz among the three.  Siobhàn heard George state, “She has a wonderful grace and elegance.  I want to see her in our gowns.”

            The other man stated, “Already?”

            George sighed, “I don’t see any reason to continue the casting call.  They others are good, but this one is the best I’ve seen today.”

            The other man stated, “Should we be discussing this so candidly with this young lady and her manager present?”

            Abby declared, “If we intend to continue with Miss Shaw as our choice.  I don’t see why not.  I told you, I put her at the top of my list, and I think she is heads above all the others.”

            “I’d like to put a hold on a couple.”

            “You do that, but I want this girl.”

            George put his hand over his face, “I do too, but this is pretty extraordinary for an open call.”

            Morven couldn’t hold back, “I could have told you Siobhàn Shaw was the one you wanted.  That’s why I brought her.”

            Abby gave a deep frown, “Morven, you’re not helping your client.  You should learn when to shut up.”

            Morven looked a little distraught, “Sorry.  I shouldn’t have said anything.  I’ll be quiet.”

            The other man grimaced, “She’s right you know.”

            George stated, “At least make her take some poses.  We need to do our due diligence whatever our opinions are.”

            Abby called, “Hey Bruce take some pictures.  You, girl, Siobhàn.  Take some poses.  Try to look regal.”

            Siobhàn wasn’t sure what that meant at all.  She began walking down the room and stopped just as Morven had instructed her.  The photographer, Bruce started snapping shots.  He made very appreciative sounds.  The other three leaned forward almost mesmerized.

            Goerge gave a hoot of pleasure, “Where did you find this girl, Morven.  She really is amazing.”

            Morven covered her mouth, but it still came out, “Like I’d tell you.”

            The three laughed.

            The other man said, “Have her try on one of our gowns.  I want to see her wearing something more elegant.”

            Abby looked at her watch, “It’s already the afternoon.  We need to put holds on the additional ones you’re interested in, and send the rest home.  That is if you intend to make a shoot of this.”

            “I want to see her in our clothing.  She’s just too good to let go today.”

            Abby stood and went to the rack.  She chose a Giorgio Armani strapless embellished Tulle gown.  It looked like nearly all black lace.

            Morven stood, “That’s not fair.”

            Abby sneered at her, “What’s not fair?  This is from our client and one of the gowns she’ll have to model.”

            “It’s all black, and it has to fit her on top.  There are no straps.”

            “It’s dark blue, not black.  I’ll help her into it and I have plenty of fashion tape, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

            Morven shut up, but she followed Abby back into the dressing room.  There, Siobhàn had to take off her blue floral mini dress.  Abby stared at her nearly naked body and gave her a once over. 

            Morven instructed Siobhàn, “Take off your bra.”

            She was a little slow, so Morven stepped behind her and undid the clasps. 

            Abby looked even more intently, “She is very well put together.  Let’s try the gown on her.”

            They both helped pull it over Siobhàn’s head.  When Abby started in with the fashion tape, Siobhàn blushed to the roots of her hair.  At first, Siobhàn wasn’t sure what to do.  She stood a little miserably as the tape was applied to her breasts and Morven and Abby squeezed them properly into the top of the gown.

            Morven and Abby stood back to admire the effect.

            Morven whispered, “Stand tall, Siobhàn, or so help me.”

            Abby laughed, “She’s new to this, isn’t she.”

            Marven growled, “You wouldn’t have noticed except you were groping her boobs.”

            Abby grimed, “She’ll have to get used to it.  It’s the business.”

            Siobhàn stood tall, took a pose, and gave a look.

            Abby smacked her lips, “She really is good.  I applaud you Morven, although I’d rather not.”

            They led Siobhàn back into the interview room.  Although the gown was strapless, the tape held Siobhàn nicely in the gown.  It covered her top completely and the gown looked stupendous on her.

            The gentlemen were standing next to the chairs, when Siobhàn entered with her heels they stared entirely captivated.

            Goerge asked, “Does she always walk like this?  I could put her on the catwalk right now, and she doesn’t look like she’s even trying.”

            Morven stuck out her chest, “She is always like this, all the time.  I told you, she’s a natural.”

            The photographer was talking pictures from the moment Siobhàn entered.  She walked up and down the room stopping at intervals when he instructed her.  After a while, the other gentleman called, “Have her make some improv poses.”

            Siobhàn did, and the three, now seated again began to make more appreciative sounds.  The photographer stopped directing her at all.  He just asked her to give him certain looks.  Siobhàn tried to follow what he wanted, but she was just doing what Morven had told her over and over.  It was just her look, her natural and perfect look.

            Goerge rubbed his chin, “I’d like to see some makeup, but I’m not sure it would improve the effect.  She has a very natural beauty.  It’s unusual and matches this gown as well as the dress she was wearing.  Send the others home.  Give the top two holds, but I want this girl to display our gowns.”

            Morven came over to him, “Are you willing to sign a contract.”

            “Yes, you brat of a child.  I’ll put her on contract and pay her an initial commission because she’ll start today.”

            Morven mumbled, “Enough for a computer, I hope.”

            “You said?”

            “Nothing, Goerge.  We just started our business, and we need some cash.”

            Abby laughed, “Don’t tell me you took her out of the gutter.”

            “That’s not very nice, Ms. Abby.”

            Abby chuckled, “Wherever you found her.  She’s just what we’re looking for.”  

This third chapter is the real moving point of the novel.  This is the basis for the primary plot in the novel.  Morven seeking a way to bring back her own success and existence in life uses the qualities and unusual skills of Siobhàn.  This concept of modeling as Siobhàn’s unexpected skill exactly fits with the idea of a Romantic protagonist.  This is a skill and trait that Siobhàn had no idea she possessed or was capable of.  Morven knew from the beginning.  The next question is how do we move forward from this.  Here’s what I’m thinking.

 

In the first place, I wrote that I want to introduce a new plot based on books from Morven’s library.  Siobhàn is Bookgirl.  Her love of books is the original characteristic that makes her to be what she is.  This modeling skill is a new one.  They don’t appear to be connected, but they are in some interesting ways.  She already showed that with her absorption of fashion.  That’s what she used to impress Abby.  The next chapter will move to the next revelation and stage—or at least it will set it up.

 

In the next chapter, and I’m likely moving the plots too quickly, I’ll have Siobhàn make her first public modeling presentation for her clients.  This will be to some previous characters from my writing most specifically Lady Azure Wishart.  Azure is a titled noble who is also the Keeper of the Book of the Fae for the British government.  She is also a fashionista who loves white and other light shades, but mostly white.  She is the guest of Siobhàn’s clients and the main focus for their winter/spring show.  There are others in Lady Wishart’s entourage as well.  These are all characters from my other novels.  What makes them important and interesting is their connections to the Fae. 

 

If you noticed, I spent a lot of time on Morven’s two mothers.  She adored one and hated the other.  I haven’t mentioned anything about Siobhàn’s mother.  I’m pressing my own buttons to have another one, but I intend for Siobhàn’s special skills to not just come from her father, but also her absent and very special mother.  Siobhàn’s mother hasn’t died, she is Fae.  She left the child Siobhàn with her father, but I haven’t worked out those details yet.  What does that have to do with the modeling—I’ll tell you, next.

 

The big question in the development of the Romantic protagonist is how did they get their skills and abilities.  The answer is varied and wonderful based on their background, worldview, and buildup.  For example, the most common means of Romantic protagonist development, that is their special skill development, is some born basis followed by an experience or training that creates determination to be the best.  An example, the protagonist born with great intelligence (Flavia de Luca) who is driven by her father’s increasing poverty and her ancestor’s chemistry lab to become an extraordinary chemist.

 

So, one of the main aspects of the Romantic protagonist is this basis for a skill.  It can be any innate skill like intelligence, ability to learn, natural agility, strength, sport, music, magic, and all.  The usual basis isn’t just the overall skill, like music, for example, but all the undergirding principles or abilities—rhythm, tone, ear, voice, and all.  The second part of this basis is the willingness or desire to become the best.

 

The desire to become the best is driven by the trained, guided, or coerced ambition of the protagonist.  An extreme example is my character Deirdre who was driven by her adopted sister’s abuse to develop her musical skills to a level inaccessible to most people.  Deirdre is a diva and a paid musician before she entered high school.  Her tone perfect blind adopted sister would physically abuse her with a ruler to get the very determined Deirdre to perfect her tone, pitch, and loudness.  I wouldn’t recommend this, but Deirdre came from an unusual household. 

 

This level of coercion is typical of the Romantic protagonist.  Some is self-induced and some is induced by others, Deirdre is the example of the latter.  My sweet Siobhàn has two specific characteristic that drive her being.  The first is Bookgirl.  This is the drive to read and the love of books.  She got this from her father—obviously.  This love of books was driven by her father’s love of books.  The love of books is ultimately what makes her the top girl for education in her school as well as what enables her to succeed in fashionista expertise when she enters modeling.  Abby is amazed by Siobhàn’s knowledge, but this came directly from her skills in reading and learning mixed with the availability of the reading fashion material.  Talk about a perfect Romantic protagonist skill development. 

 

This explains Siobhàn’s reading, books, and knowledge, but not her modeling skill.  That’s what I will address, next.

 

Why is Siobhàn such a great model?  Okay, this comes from my worldview.  I write in a reflected worldview.  The reflected worldview is all about what people think exists in the world versus what we can prove exists in the world.  The difference between the real and the reflected worldview.  This is a little of a difficult thing to explain, but think about what we know exists versus what we what or believe exists.  The big deal is the supernatural.  Many if not most of us presume the God or gods exist.  This is an assumption by about 80 to 90 percent of the world.  If God or gods exist then angels and other supernatural beings like demons might also exist.  The question becomes then, do vampires, werewolves, dragons, ghosts, and other supernatural creatures exist?  Great question.  The reflected worldview includes the world that people want or believe exists.  I write in the reflected worldview.

 

Siobhàn’s modeling that is her beauty, poise, and elegance comes from the supernatural.  What, you might ask?  The answer fits directly in my worldview, the reflected worldview.  Her special capability and skills comes from Fae glamour.  I plan to make Siobhàn a child of the Fae.  Her mother left her with her father and disappeared.  This is a characteristic of the Fae.  I’m not sure yet who will be her actual father or mother.  The point is that Siobhàn exudes Fae glamour without knowing it at all.  She is incredibly beautiful and only held that in check by her pretty slovenly ways.  I don’t mean she was lazy or intentionally slovenly.  She was intentionally unkempt and that hid her natural and unnaturally beauty.  I’m not sure how I’ll play this.  Perhaps her father or someone else realized about her real beauty and helped direct her to not be so wonderful, it didn’t work.   The fourth chapter moves into this part of the novel and plot.  I’ll explain that next.

 

I’ve already started this setup in the fourth chapter.  Siobhàn will be representing her client in Perth for some of the characters I developed in and for other novels.  These characters are both familiar with the Fae and with Fae glamour.  They will almost immediately note Siobhàn’s use of glamour and her potential Fae ancestry.  As I wrote, we don’t know anything about Siobhàn’s mother.  Her mother was Fae, and that makes Siobhàn half Fae.  Her unusual and natural skills in modeling come from her Fae background as well as her father’s elegance. 

 

I haven’t put it in as strong of terms as I need to in the writing.  I really should go back and carefully document, through description, Callum Shaw’s very deliberate and intrinsic articulacy.  He is magnificent for his height and size.  He is the proverbial graceful very tall person.  A man who exudes confidence as well as personal refinement.  This is where Siobhàn learned her grace while she took her unusual and exciting beauty from her mother. 

 

I’m trying to produce a vision of human perfection that is unusual and different.  This is actually hard to get from reality, and that’s why I determined to go toward the reflected and supernatural. 

 

I don’t know about you, but in developing this novel, I’ve been looking carefully at models to determine what separated them from the herd of humanity.  I’ve determined that it isn’t much.  Most models today don’t really have ethereal beauty or really unusual characteristics that we would call striking.  I see mostly sunken eye sockets and features I’d expect from a person who didn’t get enough sleep or who was abusing drugs.  I really couldn’t use such a description or idea.  On the other hand, there are mountains of models who have some degree of beauty, but nothing that really set them apart from the rest of humanity.  With Siobhàn, I’m trying to make this contrast and build this description—that if you saw her in beautiful clothing with her hair brushed and pulled back from her face, you would see a vision of the most lovely human woman in your time.  That’s what I’m aiming for.

 

The writer of Emma M. Lion achieved something like this in her fictional journal about Emma Lion.  A female character whose stunning beauty overshadowed everyone.  I liked her descriptions although they were fleeting and relatively simple—it’s a journal after all.  Still that’s the intellectual feeling I’m looking for, but I’d also like to gain a descriptive and narrative focus that makes the reader see the same exceptional and unusual beauty I’m trying to convey.  That will make Siobhàn a highly unusual character and great Romantic protagonist.  I’ll get to how the fourth chapter and following will shape up, next.

 

In the fourth chapter, and I may be moving the plot too fast, but Siobhàn and Morven are working a single model show for a group of ladies from my previous novels.  These are kind of fabricated royalty—really just nobles.  Yeah, I use these in my novels for a couple of reasons.  People, especially American readers are intrigued with nobility while the British find them captivating.  The rest of the Commonwealth nations are equally interested, so I feel there is little loss in have them as major characters.  They can be good villains as well as good positive characters, and a little goes a long way.

 

In my other novels, I’ve created some long tooth nobles based on a little research and development.  The Hastings are one.  I created them for my novel, Sister of Light.  Matilda moved along as the only child and a female, but a cousin took the title and a Bolang, Marie married into the family.  Thus, Lady Hastings is related to the Bolangs and Matilda (Tilly). 

 

I also have Lady Wishart.  Azure Wishart is my wonderfully crafted character from Azure: Enchantment and the Detective.  She’s the detective, but after she marries Lachlann Calloway and reconciles with his mother, Azure is able to take back her estate and her place.  Azure is enamored of white clothing and also very old or traditional styles. 

 

I have two others who are later developments: Sorcha and Shiggy.  They are both Lady Tash.  Lady Tash or Nottingham and Lady Tash of Edwinstow.  They are both too young and have not acquired their titles in 2016.  I’m thinking about bringing Sorcha into this novel just to give her more buildup and character development.  She’s a real problem and hoot for the characters to deal with.

 

The point is that Siobhàn will be modeling for this very special group Lady Wishart who is 26 and always looking for new clothing.  She can afford it now.  Lady Hastings who is 61 and up for most tomfoolery.  Emma Hastings who is likely to become the next Lady Hastings she is 39.  I might add in Sorcha, and I might add in another of Emma Hastings’ daughters.  The reason is that Lucy Forster Hastings appears in a later novel, but she’s only 2 at the moment.  Scratch that—the ages just don’t work.  I might add another character or two just for continuity and it’s fun to provide foreshadowing in other novels for future characters. 

 

In any case, we have a modeling show set up for Lady Wishart and she brought some of her close lady friends.  The big deal in this is that Lady Wishart and Sorcha are sensitive to the Fae and Fae glamour.  There is no way they could miss Siobhàn exuding Fae power all over the place.  The Hastings and their ilk are not sensitive at all.  There are no others who might be sensitive in the crowd and this is why I’d like to pull some of my other characters into the mix.  Unlike Lady Wishart and the Hastings, most of my other characters are busy with their work for the Crown.  They have normal 9 to 5 type jobs. 

 

The big point in this is that Lady Wishart and Sorcha note this very compelling and beautiful lady, Siobhàn who is obviously wonderful, but also beguiling the crowd with her glamour.  It’s not so much that they want to stop her, as much as they see this as a wonderful opportunity to enlist her.  That’s going to be one of the conundrums of this novel.  Siobhàn is invited in, but Morven can’t know anything about it.  Meanwhile Siobhàn and Morven continue to work together.  I need some kind of problem relating to this issue.  I guess I’ll look at that plus the issue of communications, next.

 

The issue of communication is this.  Morven has injected herself in Siobhàn’s life, and she isn’t about to let go.  She has taken the inexperienced and in some ways naïve Siobhàn under her wing.  These ladies have no intention of leaving Siobhàn alone.  What I have to communicate in the novel to my readers as well as build into the novel is the tension of the supernatural in the state of affairs in Britain (as well as the world). 

 

This is a subject and a topic I’ve presented in more than one novel.  The unexpected supernatural like a part Fae being such as Siobhàn.  In Rose and Seiorse this has been delt with to some degree by the Stela branch of the Organization.  Their solution at least provides a place to train and a means to train these beings, but this novel takes place 13 years before Rose begins her little training revolution.

 

The Organization and Stela really don’t know how to handle these beings well.  This novel is just a step along these lines.  The problem is that Lady Wishart is indirectly connected to Stela and the Organization.  There is no way she can keep her mouth shut about such a powerful half-Fae.  I need to develop this entire circumstance and situation from the modeling show to the communication and interaction with Mrs. Calloway as well as Stela.  What is Stela and the Organization, you might ask?

 

In my novels, I developed MI19 into the Organization.  MI19 was the language and interrogation branch of the MI structure.  At the end of WWII, they disappeared.  Now, we know such an organization is necessary to any intelligence agency.  What happened to MI19?  No one is telling, so I made up the Organization.  The Organization in my world of British intelligence provides language shares and experts to the other MIs for overt and covert operations.  I write all about these uses and operations in my novels.  However, there is a smaller branch office in the Organization, and that is Stela.

 

In my novels the Stela office was opened after WWII because of the actions of my protagonists Leora and Paul Bolang as well as their family and specific family members.  I guess I should explain about the Goddess of Darkness and Light next.       

 

I designed a world based on my novel Aegypt.  Aegypt was published by Capstone and Oaktara back at the beginning of this century.  In Aegypt, Lieutenant Paul Bolang of the Franch Foreign Legion discovers an Egyptian tomb in Tunesia.  Inside the tomb are interned the Goddess of Light and the Goddess of Darkness.  A spell/trap was sent when they were interned to bring them back to life along with some of the Goddess of Darkness’s followers.  The Goddess of Light is revived first and escapes.  When Paul finds a woman in the desert of Tunesia, he is convinced she was the one who escaped the tomb.  He uses his knowledge of ancient Egyptian and hieroglyphics to communicate with her and together, they defeat the physical manifestation of the Goddess of Darkness and prevent her from being revived into the world.  Unfortunately, the ka or soul of the Goddess of Darkness escapes. 

 

The result from Aegypt is that there is now an ancient Egyptian goddess in the flesh, so to speak in the world, and the ka of the Goddess of Darkness is free in the world.  My following novels follow these woman and the family of Paul and Leora Bolang.  Leora is the Goddess of Light in this time. 

 

From this background, I created a reflected worldview to account for gods and goddesses in the past and in the present.  In this worldview there are bound and unbound gods and goddesses.  Bound gods and goddesses are generally immortal and bound to a place or people.  Unbound gods and goddesses are mortal but with supernatural powers and artifacts.  Their powers are passed to their children.  There are other details about these gods and goddesses I won’t write about now.  The point is that, in my novels, the Stela branch of the Organization deals with the supernatural and is run by unbound goddesses.  These are mostly the children of Paul and Leora, but I bring in another unbound Galic/Celtic goddess, Ceridwen who is a goddess in the Galic/Celtic mythology who is born, lives, and dies in each generation.  This goddess is well established in Galic/Celtic myth and fit perfectly in the worldview I developed (or rather, I should write, I reflected).  The idea of gods and goddesses is simply a reflected worldview and not simply a created one. 

 

What’s the point?  As I noted, Siobhàn is partly a supernatural being, a half-Fae.  The Stela branch is deeply involved and concerned about these types of beings.  They have great power in the real world, and they tend to be destructive.  Stela contains unbound goddesses to be able to counteract the powers of the other supernatural.  In addition, in my novels, the Crown keeps an eye and control over the Fae and other supernatural beings through the Keeper of the Book of the Fae.  The Keeper of the Book is Lady Wishart, who attends and sponsored the modeling show Siobhàn works in chapter four.  More about the Keeper of the Book, next.

 

I created the idea for the Keeper of the Book of the Fae in my novel Azure: Enchantment and the Detective.  I made a character and an office in the British government that keeps the book and adjudicates problems between the Fae.  How did this come about—it’s a reflected worldview.

 

The Doomsday Book was complied in 1086 at the behest of Willaim the Conqueror (William the Bastard to the Anglo-Saxons, like me).  The Doomsday Book’s “main purpose was to record the annual value of every piece of landed property to its lord, and the resources in land, labor force, and livestock from which the value derived.” 

 

In my novels, the Book of the Fae was compiled about the Fae in the same manner.  It lists the Fae, their land claims, and the laws governing them.  The Keeper of the Book of the Fae adjudicates between the Fae when there are conflicts as well as hears petitions based on the laws governing the Fae.  This person works for the Queen and reports to the Queen, but also has great power over the Fae in the lands. 

 

So, what does this have to do with Siobhàn.  Since she is half-Fae, she should be recorded in the book and be in some way responsible and responsive to the Keeper of the Book.  Siobhàn is woefully ignorant of her background and parentage.  In this case the Book doesn’t record her either.  She was secretly conceived and not recorded in the Book.  Although the Book is powerful and can record some details without input from the Keeper, the Fae are both rare and they only reproduce occasionally. 

 

The fun part of this is that Lady Wishart is the Keeper of the Book and she sees Siobhàn in her full-on glory, so to speak.  That is Lady Wishart notes Siobhàn’s very powerful glamour and her potential Fae origin, but can’t find her in the Book.  Liela Mardling was also at the modeling show, but incognito—she didn’t hide her name or such, she just didn’t announce herself.  She is a member of Stela and happened to be invited.  Here you have a member of Stela, who is a goddess, the Goddess of Darkness and the Keeper of the Book of the Fae.  They see a problem that must be addressed.  I’ll discuss the potentials of this problem next—it has to do with publicity and popularity of a Fae being.

 

In my worldview and the world I’ve developed for my novels, the British government unofficially knows about the supernatural.  Only a few are privy to this information.  Mostly it’s the Queen/King and a few trusted advisors.  There is also a very secretive part of the Organization, a British intelligence agency involved with language and cultural issues that provides connections and language shares for covert and overt operations of the British government.  The Stele office is the part of the organization that deals with the supernatural. 

 

In my writing, I project a reflected worldview.  This is the kind of worldview that “reflects” the views of the average person.  For example, are there vampires.  The reflected worldview says, of course there are vampires.  In my novels you might even meet one, but few have met them and fewer really believe in them—they are a fact of existence, but not necessarily of common knowledge or expression. 

 

In my novels, with a reflected worldview, there are secretive parts of the government and all kinds of secrets right under the noses of the people.  Most people don’t really believe in the Fae or vampires or dragons.  That makes it very easy to keep such things hidden. 

 

The main tension I’m writing into Bookgirl is this problem of identification of Siobhàn as partly Fae.  In fact, there is an even greater problem with Siobhàn.  Siobhàn is not identified in the Book of the Fae.  This brings up the question, just who or what is this amazing girl?  Those who are in the know don’t know what to make of this.  Is Siobhàn simply a part Fae born without the knowledge or interjection of the Book of the Fae, which is supposed to record all such events.  Or, is she the child of a god or goddess, thus some type of demi-god.  This is a real question and problem for those who are responsible for protecting the British people from such beings.  If Siobhàn is Fae, they have ways of controlling and keeping her under wraps—the Fae courts are in charge of such things and will generally take care of their own.  On the other hand, if she is a demi-god, there are ways of controlling and keeping her, but these are all either coercive or absolute uses of power and few can control or stop a demi-god.  There is a further problem of communication and involvement.

 

Just being able to get Siobhàn into a position and place of conversation about such things might be difficult.  Most people of Siobhàn’s type are connected in a larger sphere of people—the Fae, the Fae courts, the community of bound or unbound gods and goddesses, or the government intelligence structure.  Right now Siobhàn seems slightly ambivalent and unknowledgeable about anything in the supernatural sphere.  She is surrounded by regular people who are protective and bought into her life and existence.  Just getting Siobhàn away to converse and discuss these issues or to make her believe such things might be difficult.  All this I’m addressing in chapter five.  I’m not sure how I’ll resolve these problems, but they are great problems, and great problems are what novels are about.  How to resolve these difficulties…  Plus, I’m not sure I’ve fully conveyed the entire set of problems Siobhàn, her observers, her friends, and those she might accidentally attract currently and will face in the future.

 

I’ve written before, writing is all about imagining the problems and creating plots to express and resolve them.  Perhaps I haven’t written that clearly about this part of writing.  Maybe that’s a great topic to address, next.

 

I handle this kind of idea about creativity and writing in a little different fashion, so looking at it in a dissimilar way could be helpful.  Let me state this premise again:

 

Writing is all about imagining the problems and creating plots to express and resolve them.

 

A very simplistic idea, but let me put it into the context of a novel and into the context of the scene.  I’ll go back to the scene first—that’s the simplest framework.  I’ll return to the beginning.  All fiction authors write in scenes.  The only ones who don’t are the unable and the avant-garde.  I mean by that James Joyce, the worst author in history, and any other fake writer.  These are all unable although they think they are avant-garde—they aren’t.  On to the rest of us, who write to communicate something like a great story.  The scene development checklist or outline looks like this:

 

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

What we are doing in the scene development is setting the scene in the framework of the novel, and then we are creating the tension and release.  Literally, the tension in the scene is problems to be resolved in the body of the scene or the novel.  The release is the means of the resolution—these means of resolution are always plots.  The construction of the tension elements are always plots.  Plots plots and more plots.  Everywhere we look in writing the scene and the novel are plots.  I’ve listed types of plots before, and I’ve mentioned that we can use that list to pick plots within the context of the novel to build tension and release.  The tension and release is everything the scene.  That tension and release is imagining problems and creating plots to express and resolve them.  I think an example would fit, I’ll get to that, next.

 

I’ve written extensively about tension and release as a means of scene development and writing exciting and interesting works.  I’m going to expand that idea with a little different approach.  This is how I described this approach:

 

Writing is all about imagining the problems and creating plots to express and resolve them.

 

This is exactly the same as tension and release.  The tension is the plots expressing problems you imagine and the release is the plots to resolve the problems.  I said an example might help—let’s get to that.

 

I’ll use an example from Bookgirl.  Siobhàn’s problem at the beginning of the novel is Morven.  Siobhàn is a quiet very private girl with no friends.  Morven is a bully who is wealthy and who is surrounded by toadies.  This is a major projected problem as the book begins.  This problem is communicated in the writing with a bullying plot.  Morven and her friends attack Siobhàn and try to ruin her lunch.  The entire point of this plot and scene is to show who Siobhàn is and who Morven is.  Then we get another problem.

 

The next problem is Morven’s but that problem becomes Siobhàn.  The plot to reveal the problem is Siobhàn’s observation of Morven’s home and family being raided by the Scottish police.  Morven is on the phone with her father.  When Morven seeks solitude, Siobhàn shares her lunch.  These are all plots to show Siobhàn’s concern and Morven’s fall in the world.  Ultimately, my point is to get Siobhàn into Morven’s second mother’s clothing.  There is some artistic conniving here.  We might even refer to it as a little initial deus ex machina to get the story and the novel going.

 

The fact the principals, that is the protagonist and the protagonist’s helper are who they are is always a factor of fate.  You could call this a deus ex machina to get any novel going, but the characters and their associations are almost always some fated existence.  This is true for the protagonist, the protagonist’s helper (if you have one), and the antagonist.  In this novel, the fact that Siobhàn just happens to fit Moven’s mother’s clothing to a tee is a fabrication of fate as well as a simplification of a solution to a problem.  This is what I refer to as tension and release the excitement in the novel and the scene is the fact that Siobhàn looks so amazingly like a model.  That her stance, movement, looks, and all set her apart and of all the people in the world who might notice this and force this, it would be Morven. 

 

The development of the reasons for this follow in line with the plots and the resolutions.  We discover the background of Morven and her family, and indeed, she is a person who can and will recognize a person who could be a model.  The question really isn’t whether Morven can turn Siobhàn into a model, but rather the realization that Siobhàn is already a model—a model who just needed discovery. 

 

I know I couched the development as one of problems that then seek resolution.  In this case, the ultimate problem was Morven and Siobhàn’s poverty.  Morven happens to fall into a newfound poverty, and Siobhàn has been wallowing in it for years.  Morven intends to escape her sudden fall, and she will bring Siobhàn along with her. 

 

I’m not sure we need anymore examples, but I should explain how tension and release fit in the idea of problems and resolution.  This might be obvious to most, but it’s important in developing the scenes.  I could also explain means of developing this tension—that’s hard to do.

 

I have a professional writing friend who writes that everything in fiction writing is pretty much about goals and achieving goals.  He means by this, the idea of the protagonist setting a goal and then moving in the plot(s) to achieve it.  This isn’t so bad a perspective.  In fact, I think it’s just another way of explaining tension and release or problems and resolution.  You can easily add goals and achievement to the list. 

 

I use tension and release as a concept in scene development.  In novel development, it is almost exclusively telic flaw resolution.  Ouch, another term or set of terms.  Let’s go back to problem with resolution. 

 

In all these examples or analogies of plot development, the main concept is the design of problems, goals, troubles, the telic flaw, tension that is then resolved, released, achieved and so on.  The means is always the plot(s).  I put in plot(s) because I have proven and discovered that novels are all about plots and not just a singular plot. 

 

Yes, you were taught as I was taught that there is a singular plot in a novel, but a simple reading and evaluation of any novel will show you that is not true at all.  A novel is a compendium of plots showing the revelation of the protagonist, but all leading to the telic flaw resolution.  Perhaps I need to explain this idea again and then blend back in problem/resolution, goal/achievement, and tension/release.

Novels are about telic flaw resolution.  Every novel has a telic flaw.  The telic flaw is the problem in the world of the novel that the protagonist must resolve.  Every novel and every protagonist owns a telic flaw.  The telic flaw is not a flaw in the character or the protagonist—it is a problem in the fabric of the world of the novel.  I can hear you ask, example please.

 

The easiest example of a telic flaw comes from the classic detective or mystery protagonist and plot.  The telic flaw is the mystery.  In a detective novel it is the crime.  The mystery or crime isn’t a flaw in the protagonist—it is a problem in the fabric of the world of the novel.  This is true of all telic flaws.  The resolution of the telic flaw is when the protagonist/detective resolves the mystery or solves the crime.  This is a simple example, but it’s understandable.  That doesn’t mean a detective or mystery novel can’t be very complex, but that complexity is really the plot and not the telic flaw or the resolution of the telic flaw.  For example, in a crime telic flaw, the criminal might be standing on the street and the detective just pick them up and cuff them right there.  That would make a pretty lame novel.  The plots and plot development is what creates all the great revelation of the protagonist, protagonist’s helper, and antagonist in the novel.

 

I can and will state assuredly a novel is the revelation of the protagonist, and don’t you ever forget that.  Likewise, although the novel is the revelation of the protagonist, part of that revelation is the resolution of the telic flaw.  Don’t forget that part either.  I guess that is enough for an introduction to the telic flaw and the novel.  I’ll move on from here to explain the rest, next.

 

What is the rest?  In the main, what we need to fully understand is that a novel is not a singular plot—a novel is a collection of plots.  Each scene generally reflects one or more plots in the context of the novel.  I’m not certain it is adequate to pronounce that a novel has a major or main plot.  We do try to categorize novels like this, and sometimes we can do so.  Most of the time, this is exceedingly difficult.  For example, in Treasure Island, the protagonist must find the treasure, but is that all there is to the plot?  If so, the book might have only one chapter and a couple of scenes.  In the act of finding the treasure, the protagonist discovers pirates, finds friends, discovers a mutiny, fights pirates, goes on a treasure hunt with the pirates, fights some more pirates, takes over the ship, loses a fort, is captured by the pirates, finds an abandoned pirate, and so on.  These are all plots, scenes, and events—problems that require resolution as well as tension and release developments in the scenes.  Every novel is like this, and it helps to remember that every novel is built on scenes.  The scenes are where we find these individual plots, problems that need to be resolved, and tension and release.  That’s my main point to you.  What I’m trying to do is aid you in writing an entertaining and exciting novel.

Entertaining and exciting novels are filled with entertainment and excitement.  The entertainment and excitement comes from problem and their resolution as well as the tension and release in the scenes.  I see tension and release in the scenes as the major factor in entertainment and excitement.  The idea of problems, as well as goals, are just one means of tension and release.  So the entire point of the writing is developing and inventing problems that the protagonist resolve to eventually resolve the telic flaw of the novel.  This is where things get a little difficult—it becomes a question of inventing problems for your characters to resolve.  Perhaps I can answer this with some examples, next.

 

Here’s what we need to do to develop a great scene.  In the first place, we need to connect it into the overall telic flaw resolution.  If you don’t have a telic flaw, you need one.  I’ve written extensively about the telic flaw.  I’ll repeat myself just because of how important this is. 

 

The protagonist usually comes with a telic flaw.  This is not a flaw in the character, but rather a flaw in the world of the character.  The protagonist doesn’t necessarily own the telic flaw, but in some way, they eventually acquire it.  For example, the telic flaw for all the Harry Potty novels is the conflict with the Voldermort guy.  This is a telic flaw that comes with the protagonist.  Harry Potty is the boy who did not die.  He is a messiah figure and a superhero—in other words a godlike protagonist.  This is typical of many of the superhero-themed movies and books.  

 

Harry Potty’s telic flaw comes with him and attaches Voldermort to him.  Now, to another more common example.  I’ll use Bookgirl.  In Bookgirl, the protagonist, Siobhàn, comes with a problem.  Her problem is being bullied for who she is, and her tormentor, like an antagonist, is Morven.  Morven is Siobhàn’s problem, to begin with.  In a more common telic flaw and novel-based problem, Siobhàn’s ultimate issue is that she is not integrated into the life of the school and life in general.  This is a typical redemption type telic flaw.  This telic flaw does indeed represent a problem in the protagonist.  Siobhàn epitomizes a typical telic flaw for many protagonists, people in general, and the consistent theme of many novels—the person out of place.  This, as I noted is a type of redemptive theme.  I love these types of themes because we take a character with issues and turn them into a hero.  This is a typical zero to hero theme.  We can see this in operation in Bookgirl from the beginning.

 

Morven turns almost immediately from antagonist to protagonist’s helper.  She is the aid to redeem Siobhàn, and Morven makes no bones about this.  She has literally found the pearl of great price and will turn this treasure into a work of art.  This is also a plot or a basic concept in this type of redemption novel.  In the classical redemption theme, the author is turning the protagonist into something special—zero to hero.  The athlete achieves greatness—a medal.  The scholar achieves the scholarship or wins the prize or graduates.  The downtrodden achieves wealth or fame.  The bar musician becomes a famed performer.  These are all zero to hero and redemption themes.  They are also redemption plots.  These are classical plot and themes that most readers love.

 

The telic flaw of the protagonist in a redemption theme just means they start at zero.  The lowest zero is the best zero.  This is where Siobhàn lives.  She is a scholarship student who works every day in her father’s bookshop.  She cooks very cheap and plain meals.  She has nothing that is nice.  Her great skills are her kindness, her reading, and some mystical characteristic we are just learning about in chapter five.

 

Now, once we have a telic flaw, we can write the scenes in terms of the resolution of the telic flaw, and that’s where we pack the tension and release (problems and resolution/goals and achievement).  That’s where we are going, next.

 

I’m leaving too many breadcrumbs, but I figured I might as well leave good examples and a basis for my explanations.  I’ll eventually clean it up.  I like leaving the third chapter from Bookgirl although it’s only an initial cut.

 

Back to the point—if we have a telic flaw, which is what we need for a novel, we can work the tension and release, the problems and resolution, and the goals and achievement parts of the scenes. 

 

Look at the scene 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

 

Let me point out, we don’t need to have a totally clear resolution to the telic flaw, but look at the telic flaw, for example, a telic flaw of a personality issue, like Siobhàn.  We know how this needs to be resolved, but it isn’t a simple resolution.  If it were simple, the author could just resolve the telic flaw and that would be it.  Instead, just like most complex novels, we need to gradually resolve the telic flaw, and the way we do that is through the scenes.  You can design a buildup from the original telic flaw all the way to the resolution of the telic flaw.  The Bookgirl general resolution, that I haven’t and don’t really intend to outline, looks something like this:

 

1.     Revelation of the telic flaw, Siobhàn’s revelation

2.     Meeting the protagonist’s helper, Morven, bullying

3.     Morven’s fall, and Siobhàn’s salvation

4.     Realization of Siobhàn’s special skills by Morven

5.     Revelation of Siobhàn’s special skills

6.     Perfection of Siobhàn’s special skills

7.     Realization of Siobhàn’s special skills by others

8.     The books and revelation to Morven of Siobhàn’s other skills

9.     Within this context, the exposure of Siobhàn’s to society

10. Siobhàn’s mission(s)

11. Siobhàn’s success

12. Siobhàn’s realization(s)

 

These represent just a general purpose outline for the telic flaw resolution of Siobhàn’s problems in the world.  This doesn’t mean she won’t pick up others or have other issues as she works through the current ones.  The question is, how do we then write scenes to meet the needs of the resolution of the telic flaw?  The answer isn’t simple, but it is encapsulated in the ideas of tension and release, problems and resolutions, and goals and achievements.  In nature, these are all the same, just with different descriptors.  I’ll try to explain that, next.

 

What we need to do is invent tension to release, goals, and problems to resolve and achieve.  Easy peasy.  Each scene needs at least one problem, tension, or achievement.  Remember, I see these as all the same.  With the potential for repetition, let me look back at chapter one for Bookgirl to see some examples.

 

The starting issue or problem for Siobhàn begins with her description: she is too tall, too skinny, too frumpy, her clothes are frumpy.  These are not goals, but they are problems and they potentially develop tension.  We have more.

 

The second problem we find for Siobhàn is that she loves books to the exclusion of everything else.  This ostracizes her from others—there is a problem and a tension developer.  In addition, Siobhàn must move because certain girls will be looking for her, and she doesn’t want to be caught alone with them.  She must move out of the classroom.  This is another type of tension or problem.  This is more akin to a goal, but it is a problem that requires some action or reaction. 

 

Notice, I’ve produced or invented a bunch of problems that will create tension in the scene.  I intentionally created these problem for just this purpose—it will get worse.

 

The main problem for Siobhàn is that certain girls and a certain girl bully her.  This is an invented problem.  That doesn’t mean it isn’t a real problem—I’m just showing you the list of problems to create tension that I’m building in this first scene and chapter. 

 

We discover that Siobhàn and her father are poor.  Her father owns a bookshop and Siobhàn repairs the books to sell.  She is on scholarship for her school, and isn’t really connected well to her class.  In this way, I am revealing the telic flaw of the novel. 

 

Then we have the revelation of Siobhàn’s bully, Morven.  This is a problem and then we get a confrontation with Siobhàn, Morven, and the toady girls.  Morven also has a problem, actually more than one, but the one problem that is not quite stated, but is described and revealed is that Morven hates to be invisible, but her very description makes her invisible.  She does not stand out for any reason and when people like her crowd or get too close to her, she becomes invisible.  The contrast is Siobhàn.  Beside Siobhàn, Morven makes Siobhàn stand out and Morven can’t help but stand out a little.  This is a powerful problem in Morven’s mind. 

 

There is another small issue that is Morven’s problem—she is a little of a sadist.  She takes pleasure in bullying Siobhàn.  This isn’t fully resolved in the beginning of the novel, and I want to bring it out occasionally in the rest of the novel.

 

The bookbag is the next problem—Morven grasps it, and Siobhàn holds on.  Morven ruins Siobhàn’s lunch and throws her maths book and reading book.  She strikes Siobhàn with the book and threatens to bully her again at lunch.  Those are other problems and tension developers.  The next problem will become Morven’s, but it is another developed issue for the scene.  Siobhàn notices the girls on their phones more than usual.  That’s an indicator and the tension development.  The issue is that Morven’s mother and father have been arrested and taken away.

 

Morven must return to her house after school.  Siobhàn goes with her.  The problem of Morven’s life, food, place, clothing, and family becomes a major issue in the scene and the novel. 

 

I’ll stop there for now.  Do you see how I gathered problems.  There are some goals too.  I’ll look at these in detail and address their release or resolution, next.

 

I think scene writing is all about putting together problems to resolve.  The tension and release comes from developing then resolving the problems.  This is what a novel is all about too—it’s just that the resolution of the telic flaw takes a novel, and that defines a novel.  What defines a novel?  A novel-length idea is an idea that takes at least a novel to resolve.  I’d call it a 100,000 word problem.   Yes, you can have novels from about 60,000 to a little over 100,000 words, but generally, I aim for about 100,000 words.  Your telic flaw needs to entertain for about 100,000 or so words.  The scenes all support the telic flaw, but you need problems to populate every scene, that’s what I was trying to show you with the list of problems from the first chapter of Bookgirl.

 

The main problem I address in the first chapter of Bookgirl is the bullying of Siobhàn.  This problem continues into chapter two and further.  It is a general and constant problem for Siobhàn and then for Morven.  Part of the main problem is that Morven is bullying Siobhàn.  This problem does get resolved to some degree by Morven’s crises.  Here is an example of a perfect type of problem for a scene and a novel.  The problem of bullying is connected directly to Siobhàn’s telic flaw.  That doesn’t mean that Siobhàn’s bullying problem will be resolved with the telic flaw—in other words, beyond the novel and into the future, the problem of bullying could follow Siobhàn.  It has some potential through the entire novel as Siobhàn’s progresses as a person and her revelation progresses.  The author can use this type of problem as a continual tension issue in the scenes.  That doesn’t mean it rears it’s head in every scene, only that it possibly could strike.  This is why it is such a good tension developer and development.

 

The bullying problem has great legs.  It propels the initial scene and moves through the rest of the scenes.  If you notice in the list of problems, many of them touch on the bullying problem.  The bullying problem is a tension developer.  We use all kinds of issues, problems, and goals around the bullying issue to drive the excitement and entertainment in the scenes. 

 

So, in developing a scene, we can just choose a problem related to the telic flaw of the protagonist and use that as the basis for the scene.  If you notice, three main points drive the initial scene of Bookgirl.  The bullying of Siobhàn, the fall of Morven, and visiting Morven’s home.  These three events move the story in the direction of the telic flaw resolution, they give entertainment to the scene, and they reveal the protagonist. 

 

I’ll see what else we can observe, next.      

 

I’ve couched the idea of tension and release in a scene as problems and resolutions (goals and achievements).  I’m not so much into goals and achievements, but that is another means of developing this tension and release.

 

The reason the term tension and release is so powerful is that it produces the necessary entertainment in the scene—that entertainment is exactly what we are looking for.  Just take the idea of bullying.  This is an incredible tension builder.  The very idea creates tension.  Once it starts, the tension doesn’t stop, and there is actually some degree of release.  As it ends, there is a definite release, but the tension continues.  There is always a continual threat of the bullying being repeated.  It never really stops.  As a kid, we all knew that.  As an adult most of us have forgotten.  However, bullying can occur with adults too. 

 

I’m not into building or easing your own psychological issues or problems.  What I want to do is to provide means of developing tension and release in a scene.  I’m calling that tension and release problems and resolution just to help forward the entire idea.  Thinking of problems to throw at a protagonist is much easier for some than writing about the development of tension, but we get to the same place.

 

In the first chapter of Bookgirl, I couched three major problems as starters for the scenes.  The first was the bullying of Siobhàn, the second was the fall of Morven, and the third was visiting Morven’s house.

 

The reason these develop tension should be obvious.  Bullying develops tension and Siobhàn is the kind of person who both draws bullying and won’t generally stop the bullying.  We know people like that—many of us are people like that.  It’s a classical trope, and bullying is a wonderful problem for a scene.  If fits like hand in glove in a boarding school—that’s the setting. 

 

The fall of Morven is a little different.  I designed this problem to forward the novel quickly to the place I wanted it.  In addition, as I’ve written over and over, the best initial scene for any novel is the initial meeting of the protagonist with the antagonist or the protagonist’s helper.  In this case, Morven is the protagonist’s helper.  This isn’t the first meeting between Siobhàn and Morven, but it is meaningful.  My goal, in the writing of these first scenes was to introduce the protagonist, introduce the protagonist’s helper, create the great tension between them, then force a resolution on Morven that would drive the rest of the novel.  This little (or big incident) in the life of Morven drives everything that follows. 

 

The movement of the action to the visit to Morven’s house does a multitude of things.  We build some great tension in this scene because Morven has no place to go.  Her mother and father have been hauled off to jail.  There is another problem I haven’t addressed in the novel yet—that is the position of Morven in the world.  In the first chapter, everyone, except Siobhàn has forgotten about Morven.  She is alone and without any succor.   The visit to her house does two very powerful things for Morven and Siobhàn.  In the first place, Morven forces Siobhàn to dress in her mother’s clothing.  This proves to Morven something she guessed about Siobhàn the entire time—it’s the reason for everything.  Siobhàn is the perfect beauty and in Morven’s mind, modeling material.  Second, in the visit to the house, Siobhàn realizes the position and problem for Morven—she has not place to go.  This gives the impetus to Siobhàn to invite Morven to stay with her. 

 

These two issues as they are presented and resolved through the visit to Morven’s house: Siobhàn’s beauty and body, and where Morven will stay drive the next chapter and the novel.  These come out of the singular problem of Morven must visit her house to get her things.  There is more to this, but I should relate some more problems that drive chapter two.  That’s next.

 

Chapter two, first problem out of the gate is Morven.  Siobhàn and Morven have come home late—they were at Morven’s house.  Siobhàn’s father Callum welcomes Morven, but he is taken aback by the girl—she isn’t anything like Siobhàn, and Siobhàn never said she had any friends before.  A father knows those things. 

 

The second problem is Morven’s clothing and the space.  This is a simple resolution, but a typical problem to resolve in a scene.  Next, isn’t so much a problem, but we make it one for Morven—that’s work in the bookshop.  No one expects her to do anything.  She spends her time figuring out what everyone is doing.  We do learn of Siobhàn and her father’s poverty.  They eat what they can and the lowest cost they can.  The hot water is iffy in the shower.  They have almost zero room in their house.

 

We also begin to learn something about Siobhàn—she is really strong.  This is a small quality that we will use through the novel.  She is tall and skinny, but very strong.  This will play in the rest of the novel. 

 

We see that Siobhàn can cook very well—there is more to this and this will play through the entire novel.  We also see that Siobhàn can repair books like a pro.  She is a pro.  Morven wonders about Siobhàn’s sewing skills.  Siobhàn, for some reason, hasn’t been able to connect her book skills to her life skills.  That seems odd to.  We’ll use that.

 

There is the sleeping problem.  Siobhàn has just one bed, and it’s not uncommon for people to share a bed.  Morven has never shared a bed before.  Siobhàn likely hasn’t either.  This is a very small problem, but begins an extended sequence where they will learn to live and work together.  I like to play these kinds of sisterly games, so to speak.  What I want to develop is this relationship between Siobhàn and Morven.  I do this in many of my novels.  I’ve developed familial relationships and nonfamilial relationships.  This idea of girls (or boys, but I have done mostly girls, boys would be a great basis, but not as simple or common as girl close friendships) as sisters or sisterlike in a very close relationship is a great plot driver.  I’ve used it more than once, and I think the longing of people, especially children, for this type of closeness is very important.  In some ways it can replace a romantic relationship in a novel.

 

I don’t mean that this is any type of romantic relationship at all, but all humans desire closeness and friendship.  I’ve projected women who want to be mothers, like Tilly (Mrs. Lyons), who gathers children like a mother hen to nurture and love.  Tilly takes on Essie (the Aos Si) who is not exactly a human being, but still looks like a girl.  Tilly nurtures Essie like a mother, and they both grow.

 

In my Rose novels, I take Rose, who has never had any kind of relationship with another near her age and I make her a big sister to Robyn.  In Deirdre: Enchantment and the School, Deirdre becomes the sister to Sorcha, an unwanted and unloved child.  They form a bond of friendship like sisters, and that builds through their entire lives.

 

Siobhàn and Morven are just another pair of girls who have longed for sisterly love.  Morven has had two mothers, the first a very busy, but appears to have been loving, she died.  The second a conniving spendthrift that didn’t care at all for Morven.  Siobhàn has a very loving and doting father, but she has never had a mother.  We will learn later that Siobhàn was abandoned in the gutter (literally).  Siobhàn wants a friend and a person close whom she can love.  Morven and Siobhàn are just young people who want close friendship.  I should mention, we know Morven really has never had a friend—she’s been too busy bullying Siobhàn.

 

By the way, did I present this sisterly closeness as a problem in the novel?  Not at all.  This is an unspoken and unwritten point in the writing.  I present the situations and some of the explanations from the lips of my characters, but this is such a common theme and plot, I shouldn’t have to make much direct explanation.  This is a large part of the telic flaw resolution.  It is also a basis for conflict between the characters. 

 

We can see that Morven is pushy and forthright.  Siobhàn is reticent and quiet.  As Siobhàn changes and becomes more willing to state her own opinions, and as the relationship matures, but will see sparks fly over things.  These will be problems that Siobhàn and Morven must work out together.  These will be entertaining and create the tension and release in the scenes.  I’ll continue with the problems of the second chapter, next.

 

Here is a break in the second chapter with the night and waking.  Let me give you the paragraph of the waking:

 

Morven never remembered sleeping so well in her entire life.  She literally felt no worries—at the moment, and the very warm and beautiful Siobhàn lay face to face with her in the very small bed.  Morven couldn’t help herself.  She put her arm around the bigger girl and tried to go back to sleep.  The sunlight reflected too brightly through Siobhàn’s small window, but Morven still didn’t move.  She snuggled deeper, if that was possible against Siobhàn.  Finally, Siobhàn’s eyes fluttered open.

You might ask, what is this all about.  This really isn’t a problem, it is a tension release.  This is also one of those moments I mentioned yesterday that require little explanation, but that build the characters and the plot and theme.  This is an indication and a follow-through of the sisters theme in the novel.     

 

Here is the unspoken part.  As I wrote already, Morven has a crappy home and family.  Perhaps I didn’t write that in the text directly, I don’t have to.  Few people come out and say, my family is crap, but Morven’s family is crap.  She is on her second mother, and second mother is not very positive.  Father is a banker who is embezzling the funds and both father and mother don’t even send a message or give a call to Morven.  Perhaps there will be some point in the future to bring Morven together with them in some scene, but I’ve not thought much about it. 

 

What we have is a really dysfunctional family and Morven has never had someone to look after her or care much about her—except first mother, and she’s dead.  Morven longs for someone like that and Siobhàn has interjected herself into Morven’s life like a savior.  This is the main point.  Although Morven is making great changes in Siobhàn’s life, Siobhàn’s actions in accepting Morven and allowing her to live at her house has done more than Morven has for Siobhàn.  Morven realizes this, and this waking scene is supposed to show Morven’s vulnerability as well as her desire for a sister—at least someone who will care for her and look after her.  This is something she could never tell another—perhaps I’ll bring that in as a later scene.  Confessions like this are wonderful tension and release in any novel.  Now, on to more problems.

 

The first problem is cleanup.  I bring this up because I think it is funny and sexy at the same time.  It’s an obvious issue in modern women and for modern society.  It is a real issue for the fashion business—if you didn’t already know.  I think most women are very aware—most men may not be.  The point is that this becomes a running joke because it is very important to Morven, but not to the unaware Siobhàn.  Just a small problem, but a funny one.  The sandwich and lunch issue is another small problem and a release to a running joke—the squished sandwich in chapter one.

 

Everyone is ignoring Morven at school.  This isn’t som much a problem as an unspoken indicator about Morven.  This will change.  At lunch, the problems come up and the perceptive Siobhàn asks, but Morven pushes that aside and the real issue of modeling comes up.

 

Morven starts it with the problem of pay—Siobhàn isn’t getting a farthing for all the work she does.  Morven moves in quickly—the problem (and solution), Morven intends to use Siobhàn to promote her own position in the business, and she doesn’t hide it.  The concept of fashion and modeling are the problem that Siobhàn and Morven will face.

 

The final point of the lunch meeting is the warning to Siobhàn—this is all about the bullying, and a foreshadowing.

 

The next problem is the fight—actually bullying.  The resolution of this immediate problem is Morven is a dangerous and crafty girl, and Siobhàn is strong.  That was a foreshadowed by the points of her strength that Morven observed.  All Siobhàn has to do and had to do before was push her assailants away.  Is it really that easy?  Actually, most people have never been taught to fight.  Fighting isn’t for the fait of heart and those who really don’t have their hearts in it will not succeed.  You have to want to hurt someone and be willing to be hurt yourself.  Morven has no compunction about fighting.  She hasn’t been trained and is self-taught.  She knows how to wield a weapon and is willing to do it.  For Siobhàn, all she needs to do is physically oppose her attackers.  I might expand and build another similar scene that has slightly different results in the future, but that would have to be against different assailants.  Or a similar scene with these same, not too bright girls, could be fun.  In any case, the resolution is quick and a teacher gets involved.  If you notice, Morven is right—small and innocent acting and looking girls can get away with murder.  The tall and intimidating ones like Siobhàn, cannot.  This is true of boys as well.

 

I’ll get to the next black of problems in chapter two, next.

 

The teacher’s involvement caused another problem that I have not continued, yet.  I intend to use it eventually.  At the moment, the administration and the teachers are not moving very quickly.  They will need to in the end.  Morven and Siobhàn will ultimately lead them into a crisis for the school.  I’ll give you a foreshadowing just because it is so luscious—Siobhàn’s modeling and both Morven and Siobhàn’s actions in the school will cause the administration to act.  Eventually, Siobhàn’s modeling will come out in a much larger knowledge connections to the entire student body.  The revelation of this little secret will cause great difficulties for the administration and lessor but still impressive problems for Siobhàn and Morven.  That’s why I love secrets in novels.

 

One the way to her house, Morven explains about taking care of bullies.  This isn’t the last of the bullying, but we learn a lot about how Morven and how Siobhàn think.  This is a resolution and a release of sorts.  Many call this an introspective scene. 

 

In the house, we have a different kind of scene—there is an unstated problem that isn’t revealed until later—that problem has been alluded to in the writing, and I’ll tell it to you.  The problem is Siobhàn’s wardrobe.  Now, this wasn’t any kind of problem for Siobhàn in school.  She doesn’t need fancy clothing at all.  In fact, although I haven’t addressed it yet.  I intend to, Morven does not want Siobhàn to wear nice clothing to school or where any of the students or teachers will see her.  The best power at the moment, is that everyone thinks Siobhàn is just Bookgirl: untidy, not well kept, perhaps nice looking, but you can’t tell with her bun and her terribly ill-fitting clothing.  As long as no one else see the miracle that is Siobhàn, she is a hidden pearl.  If someone recognizes her real power and beauty, the gig’s up.

 

They are collecting beautiful clothing and stuff for Siobhàn, but Siobhàn doesn’t fully recognize this.  Part of the beautiful clothing is lingerie which will play later.  Women understand this, men don’t as much, although they enjoy it.  This is part of the unspoken that will become the spoken later in the chapter and the novel.

 

Another unspoken problem is the food.  It isn’t really an issue, Siobhàn, Morven, and Siobhàn’s father eat well, but they could eat better.  The problem was not directly stated, but Siobhàn and Morven raid the kitchen to get food before it spoils.

 

That’s the end of chapter two’s problems.  I guess I should move on to chapter three, next.

 

The third chapter starts with a continuing problem, and that is Callum Shaw’s worry about his daughter.  He really is a doting father, and he worries about his daughter.  He’s going to start worrying more, but this is a continual problem that has little resolution.  He will be forced, to some degree, to accept his daughter’s new work and his anxiety, but he will never fully get over it.  This will also play in future chapters and in future scenes.  His opinion is important to Siobhàn, and I’d like that opinion to become important to Morven.

 

More than a sister, Morven has been missing a real father too.  Her father had little time for her, and she realizes that fact.  What Morven doesn’t realize is that she needs a father, and Mr. Shaw is the perfect kind of father.  That’s going to be part of Morven’s movement and acceptance.  Remember, Morven isn’t the protagonist, but that doesn’t mean the protagonist’s helper can’t have some degree of redemption that affects the protagonist and the plot.  That’s the plan.

 

We have a small problem of clothing storage.  The purpose of this is to provide a real life issue in the scene, but also to bring attention to Morven’s point that her clothing is immaterial, but Siobhàn’s new clothing, borrowed for second mother, is critical.  This also gives Siobhàn a new thought to ponder.  She doesn’t fully comprehend what is going on. 

 

The next little problem is to make a point to Siobhàn and about what they are going about.  This is the question of lingerie.  To Siobhàn, underclothing is just a thing to keep the unruly bits in place, to Morven and the world they are about to invade, underclothing is part of the whole story and the whole display.  This is the message of the lingerie.  There is more to this because it is part of the humor I’m trying to cultivate in the novel.  There is humor in this kind of problem.  Then there is the problem of walking and heels.

 

Siobhàn has no experience with heels and as most women will tell you, they are a trial and a classical problem of experience and mechanics.  Experience to walk properly and safely, mechanics to look amazing in them.  This isn’t for the faint of heart although I don’t go into the details of the training or the events.  It is enough for Siobhàn to practice, and that’s what Morven has her do.  She practices every spare moment in heels under Morven’s supervision.  I could have gone into much more detail with this.

 

I’m sure you have seen many woman who wear heels and look incredibly awkward in them.  They can’t really negotiate the heels or walking as well as other movements.  Many times you see this with models.  In modeling, walking in heels is a part of the skills.  Many times the means of walking and the heels don’t appear to properly match.  The skill of the model is in making the movements and the walking look both natural and elegant.  This is sometimes difficult.  This is the skill that Siobhàn has nearly naturally and that Morven helps Siobhàn to learn with heels.  Morven knows that Siobhàn’s natural grace will get her to the proper movement and skills, it just takes time and practice.  That’s part of the secrets of the dance of modeling. 

 

The other problem is shots.  If you notice, models make poses during their walking and moving.  When they stop, the take certain poses.  Many poses are directed, but photographers, although they can direct the poses as they need or desire for the best look, really appreciate a model who knows how to move and pose in a way that brings out the clothing and the model’s natural looks.  These wise models learn and practice.  This is part of Morven’s training to Siobhàn and their practice. 

 

The next problem becomes the value of the clothing.  Morven has pilfered some of the lowest value, but still pretty pricey stuff from her mother and the house.  This becomes an issue, but one that Morven waves away.  I’m not sure I’ll use this in the future, it could have some legs, but we shall see.

 

I bring up the food problem in detail again.  This is to show a couple of things.  The first is the types of food the working poor eat.  This is new to Morven and perhaps to many of my readers.  The second is to show how well Siobhàn cooks as well as the unusual quality of her cooking.  This will play later—at the moment it seems normal. 

 

In the morning, they go back to school.  More, next.

 

We see an extension of the bullying problem that is mostly resolved.  This is not a resolved problem, but it seems resolved, for the moment.  Morven tells Siobhàn how they warded off the bullies, but that isn’t the end of the problem. 

 

The next problem is the first casting call.  We get some explanation from Morven about what Siobhàn should expect.  This is how the program will move forward.  This is a foreshadowing and a setup for the next scene.  We knew this was coming.  We want to move the story forward, but we are in the process of revealing for the reader.  The revelation is the plot and the protagonist. 

 

The real question is how do we accomplish this.  I tell you, build it up.  We accomplish a buildup to the actual scene.  The buildup should have been obvious.  Morven mentions the idea.  Morven explains that she has signed Siobhàn for a casting call.  We see the preparations for the event.  We have Morven explain the details to Siobhàn.  Finally, we have the casting call.  That’s the next scene. 

 

I can’t emphasize more the buildup and writing to bring us to the casting call.  This is true of most events in a novel.  For example, a battle might be foreshadowed in a similar fashion.  Any important event can and should be developed this way.  This is a critical element of writing in scenes.  This makes it easy to design and develop scenes.  Just make certain you design the scenes and the buildup to the critical scene.  This is part of the problem resolution means of developing the scenes.  The scenes should be filled with these types of development.  I’ll move into this with the casting scene, next.

 

The early problems in this scene derive from just normal life, and that’s how it’s supposed to be.  They have to get up.  Siobhàn has to do her early work in the bookshop.  Siobhàn has to make breakfast, and the lunches.  I could have used any of these as necessary to build more in the scene, but I didn’t.  For example, I could have had a breakfast discussion, but there was no need.  I could always add in this little event if I needed to.  The other problems can be expanded as well, but I didn’t need to, and I didn’t do it.  The next problem is transportation.

 

This problem is handled similar to the others.  They hop on the bus.  I just got them on the bus and on to Perth, where there is another immediate problem—the cards.  This was foreshadowed and Morven means to take care of it. 

 

If you notice, life provides the writer with all kinds of natural and normal problems that need to be address, or just can be addressed in the writing.  I suggest not ignoring these, although you can.  What I mean is this.  The most important problem for Siobhàn and Morven in this section is getting to Perth.  I could even ignore this little problem and just have them in Perth, however, the problem with that is connections to the other text.  I believe in making strong connections especially in the setting for the scene.  In fact, if you have read or follow this blog, you know scene setting is one of the most important points of writing the scene, that is to me.  I think most writers today don’t set their scenes very well.  I think most modern writers don’t do enough description, and that’s scene setting.

 

All these little problems and their resolution allow me to set the scene for the readers.  In fact, I think these details a important aspects of the setting.  I’ve written before, we want to give the time, place, details, characters, and stuff on the stage of the novel, what better way to do this than the details of preparing to go and going to the proper location in Perth.  Just the traveling allows us to set the place.  You can see it in the writing of the scene:

 

            They got off near the city center near the river and Morven popped into the Perth Photo Lab to have Siobhàn’s comp cards printed.  They came back out to the pavement and headed up the street to the Straightup Modeling Agency.

            The façade of the building appeared intimidating to Siobhàn.  It looked too modern with too much heavy glass, metal, and concrete for her tastes, but Morven didn’t blink an eye.  She pulled open the door and shoed Siobhàn inside.  Siobhàn stepped with confidence only because she feared Moven’s displeasure.  She wondered about that.

            The lobby was empty but printed signs with large arrows and casting call on them pointed to the left and down a long corridor.  Morven took the lead.  They quickly came to a large room filled with young women and some that looked a little aged.  A middle-aged woman sat at a desk and looked bored.  When Morven and Siobhàn stepped to the desk, she brightened up a little, but Siobhàn couldn’t tell if it was them or just her job.  Morven had all the information already filled out and handed the paperwork to the woman.  She passed Siobhàn’s book electronically and handed a set of comp cards to her. 

The lead up to this description tells us a lot about the time, plus we know about the day and that it is near the end of September.  Notice, with these simple descriptions and information, we solve the problems of the comp cards, the check-in, and the arrival.  We also get Siobhàn’s initial impressions.  We’ll move into the rest of the scene, next.

 

Yes, I’ve left too many breadcrumbs.  I do intend to clean it all up after I finish with problems and resolutions.  Maybe before. 

 

At this point, I’m finishing with the third chapter of Bookgirl and identifying the problems and resolutions that make up this chapter.  I’ve arrived at the very important casting call event that Morven signed up Siobhàn to do. 

 

The first unstated problem occurs when Morven checks in for Siobhàn.  In the first place, Morven looks very young—younger than her years.  That’s due to her size and petiteness.  Both are what drives her to be what she is—the protagonist’s helper instead of the protagonist.  That’s why the receptionist gives Morven a one over.  She can’t imagine a youthful girl like Morven representing anyone. 

 

The second unstated problem (issue) is the receptionist’s response to Siobhàn.  When they step away from the desk, the woman begins looking through Siobhàn’s comp cards and book.  This is unusual (perhaps I should make more of it) because she is astounded by seeing Siobhàn.  My point in the exchange and the description was to have Morven pique the interest of the receptionist, and Siobhàn close the deal just by her looks and presence.  This is what Morven meant by Siobhàn’s effect on others.

 

Next problem—Siobhàn wants to hide, Morven wants to stand out.  At least, Morven wants Siobhàn to stand out.  That’s the point.  We see Morven resolve this small problem by forcing her opinion on Siobhàn.  That’s all for the good.  Then we have a setup and a foreshadowing—Siobhàn pulls out a fashion magazine.  Since when does the reticent and quiet Siobhàn read about fashion.  This will play into the rest of the scene, but the small problem of the positioning in terms of sitting in the room draws this out. 

 

Finally, we get the producer and another person, a man and a woman who enter the room to start the casting call.  The identification of the woman as the spy of the producer is a completion of a set of foreshadowing about how the producers and directors have women potentially observing the prospective models in the dressing rooms and other private spaces.  We shall see that this woman has a lot of say in the casting call—this is common too.

 

We also get a little foreshadowing and development with the producer’s interest in Siobhàn.  This isn’t that uncommon, but it is a bit manipulated here for reasons we will find out about later.  The fact the producer takes an initial look around the room for the casting call and notes anyone with a particular or interesting look, is completely normal in this business.  The initial impression might be ruined by the actress or model in the casting call, but an initial glance that says, “this person might be exactly the model we are looking for,” many time is exactly what the producer is indeed looking for.  The people at a modeling event may have that same initial impression.

 

The producer announces how the casting call will go—this is one of the typical ways they run, an initial interview and those chosen from that interview move on to the catwalk (runway) and shots.  In most casting calls, the callback for shots is a good indicator.  Usually, after the runway walk and shots the potentials get a hold that means they are under consideration.  This isn’t what is going to happen with Siobhàn.  The reason is that I’m trying to display her very different effect on the producer, director, and advisor.  We shall see how this plays out.  It’s supposed to be a fun setup for the novel.  That’s next.

 

I really want to build up the Romantic concept behind Siobhàn.  As I’ve noted, Siobhàn has skills that make her perfectly suited for what Morven wants to do with her, but it isn’t just those supernatural (perhaps) skills.  We see that Siobhàn is reading a French fashion magazine, in French and effortlessly.  Before I mention more about this, I need to point out the little bit of the fun before.  The problem of pinching stuff during casting calls.  If you ask the experts, this happens more than most would like.  You don’t see this in some types of casting calls, like for Ballet of dance, but it’s pretty common in acting and modeling.  I’m not casting aspersions on the whole, but a few bad apples spoil it for the rest.  You have to keep an eye on your stuff, that’s a basic in the business, and I’m not an expert.  I’m trying to throw out little pieces of information that I discovered from life and from researching this topic.  Morven has seen the underside of the business through her mothers and experience—these little tidbits are meant for Siobhàn, but also for the reader.

 

Now, about the supernatural aspects.  I write in a reflected worldview.  That means everything is suspect.  As I’ve written, there is an assumption in the reflected worldview that certain creatures, beings, and groups exist, but do they really?  Is there really glamour or magic (it’s opposite) are there miracles and such?  Yes, no, maybe so.  In my novel Aksinya: Enchantment and the Demon, is the demon Asmodeus real or just part of Aksinya’s imagination?  I leave that to the reader, but the impression I want to leave is that, yes, the demon is real.  The problem is that this being can’t be seen by others.  It seems to cause all kinds of bad effect in the city and to Aksinya, but did he really.  As I wrote, no one else sees him until the end of the novel, and then the Priest/Lawyer who marries Aksinya does see and help her fight him.  However, there is even a question about the accuracy of this man’s recollection and perception. 

 

This goes back to Siobhàn’s skills.  I want to make very clear that Siobhàn is super smart, because she reads every free second of the day, that she is super perceptive about certain things, because she reads, that she is super fit and elegant, because of her father and physical skills, then what about her very special skills?  No one else, except the special crowd who know about such things and can perceive these special skills like glamour and the Fae (fairies), can see in being used (unknowingly) by Siobhàn.  So does it exist?

 

This really does get back to reality and the real world.  Have you met someone with extraordinary humor or presence?  I’m me them.  I’ve interacted with them.  Do they have some extraordinary gift beyond the normal human ken?  Some in the past thought so.  We call this glamour, being touched, miracles, mystical qualities, and such.  The evil eye for bad, blessed for good.  My point is that, yes, I will present Siobhàn as a partly Fae being, and one who uses glamour indiscriminately.  This is from a reflected worldview, but as a Romantic character, Siobhàn is a skilled human who can make things happen without much need of anything else.  The point of the supernatural is to explain why she makes such a hit in the modeling world and then with those beings who are not part of modeling at all, but interested in fashion and who just happen to catch Siobhàn’s very special skills.  So, it isn’t just the special skills that make Siobhàn’s world move—it is her basic human skills.  That’s the point.  More on the problems generated in the third chapter, next.

 

The cull of the casting call begins after the first interview.  This is what I wrote:

 

Siobhàn asked, “Where did the first group go?”

            Morven pointed to the hall through the windows in the waiting room.  Some dejected women were milling around, but then headed out of the building, “The cull has started already.”

            Siobhàn noticed that many of them were very upset and some seemed to be crying, “Is it always like this.”

            Morven stood and took Siobhàn’s cheeks in her hand.  She stared into her eyes, “It’s always like this.  There are many girls who want to be models, but if you look around the room, you can immediately spot those who never had or have a chance.  You need more than good or unusual looks, but the very fine and the very intriguing are those who might have some chance.  Most of your competition here are too common looking and just too plain to have a chance.  The others don’t have the stature or the figure to fit the needs of the director or producer.  The interview will willow those out immediately.  Unfortunately, many of those girls are representing an agency or paying a modeling school for the opportunity.  When money is flowing, no one will tell them they never stood a chance.”

            “And you think I do?”

     Morven laughed, “The producer smiled at you.  I bet Ms. Abby interviews you personally.”           

 

This is the problem with all casting calls—some people, actually most people go home broken-hearted.  They aren’t hired.  I’ve been here myself in non-professional productions, and in professional productions, I’ve usually been cast from the beginning without a call. 

 

This is a problem presented in the third chapter.  It won’t be a problem for Siobhàn.  She isn’t fated to win, but she has the ultimate skills to be hired.  I perhaps should have made this the classic third try situation for Siobhàn, but the novel isn’t really about modeling perse.  That is, this is not a novel about modeling—modeling is used as a means to bring Siobhàn into the limelight, and when I write limelight, I don’t mean into normal popularity.

 

There are a set of movements (you could call them plots) all dealing with the telic flaw of the novel.  The first is the redemption of Morven.  In this, Siobhàn saves Morven.  It looks like Morven is empowering Siobhàn, and she is, but the real point is that Morven has been abandoned, homeless, and hopeless.  Siobhàn saves her by just being Siobhàn.

 

The second great development is the telic flaw of the novel, and that is the redemption of Siobhàn.  This is a little different.  Bookgirl doesn’t really need a full on redemption, she needs attention and development as a human being and that moves on to part three.  Part three is the revelation of Siobhàn to the world and to herself.  I’m not certain if I want this to be full on or the endpoint of the novel.  There is a forth part, which also deals with the redemption of Morven.  This is a book related mystery.

 

So, we have a couple of mysteries: what or who is Siobhàn and the book related mystery based on Morven’s estate.  We also have a couple of redemption based plots: Morven and her life and Siobhàn and her connections in the world.

 

As I wrote, the modeling is simply a means to bring Siobhàn to the attention of a certain group of people and to provide the movement to the telic flaw resolution.  In general, Morven has been redeemed, although there is a counter to come with this.  Siobhàn is not redeemed, we don’t even really know who or what she is.  The book issue hasn’t come up yet.  It shall.  So back to chapter three problems. 

 

I’ll remind you, I’m looking at problems that then are resolved in a scene.  This is also tension and release, and goal and achievement.  Very simply, in the development of a scene, as authors, we simply get together a set of problems, tension developers, and goals, and then use the scene to resolve these problems, tension, and goals. 

 

It’s these problems for the third chapter that I’m addressing.  More, next.

 

This isn’t a problem but rather a revelation.  When Morven has Siobhàn remove her coat and fully reveal her figure and her dress, I wanted this to be a revelation moment.  It’s the moment when the group of ladies realize they may not have a chance against Siobhàn.  It is also an affirmation of Siobhàn’s stature and beauty.  This is what Morven sees in her.  We move on to the interview scene.

 

As Morven predicted, Ms. Abby interviews Siobhàn.  We expected this.  Who better to judge a model than another model—especially in an interview.  Ms. Abby wants to take this on for a host of reasons.  We shall find out many of them later.

 

The beginning is some simple questions that get asked at casting calls the purpose is to first of all see if the model understands her body, modeling type, and coloring.  This is a critical aspect of the business.  A person who understands these details might be able to take a difficult piece of clothing and turn it into a wonderfully worn piece.  On the other hand, a model who doesn’t understand this could turn the most beautiful clothing in the world into a disaster.  For example, improper color matches in clothing can be corrected with makeup and wigs.  Stature issues can usually be resolved with a thin model no matter what the clothing.  In addition, a smaller décolleté always brings out the best in anything while the large ones might be popular, they just get in the way of most clothing.  Just ask any woman about that. 

 

The fun thing about the interview is that Siobhàn knows all about clothing.  She read about it in her magazines and now she uses her prodigious memory to bring it out for display.  This is what intrigues Ms. Abby.  She is amazed by Siobhàn’s answers and knowledge about her product and client.

 

When Ms. Abby makes her pronouncement that she chooses Siobhàn for the model, she gets pushback from the producer and the director.  This is a problem to be resolved.  We then get another revelation: Ms. Abby knows Morven.  I wanted to wait to let this out because I wanted to give the readers an ah ha surprise, and a place to imagine they might have guessed it already.  This is a technique.  I think it worked well. 

 

The reason Morven keep it under wraps was to prevent prejudicing Siobhàn’s chances, and the reason Ms. Abby kept it quiet was to not give either positive or a negative to the director and producer’s opinions.  Morven knows them, too.

 

There is a problem about Morven that will be addressed at some point, and we get more in a revelation about Morven and her interaction with the principles and her mothers.  Then the girls eat lunch.  This just marks the time and provides a common event.  This also allows a conversation.  I’ll get to that and the further problems, next. 

One of the most effective types of scenes is the eating scene.  You can have this at breakfast, lunch, tea, supper, or just snacks.  Any opportunity to get people together to eat and snack is a perfect opportunity for conversation.  Perhaps I let the cat out of the bag too early.  Eating is always a precursor in human interaction to communicate.  It’s even better than golf or other sporting events.  The main problem with sporting events is that the event gets in the way of the communication—this is true from the participants and the observers.  However, eating isn’t this way at all.

 

Eating and food related events (especially eating) always provide the natural impetus for conversation, and this is the main reason you should go for this.  There is really no other means and method except an official meeting, and even official meetings can be motivated and moved with eating and drinking.  I added drinking in there because drinking both with and without eating is a powerful catalyst for communication. 

 

So, when I had Morven suggest (order) Siobhàn to make them lunches for the casting call, I was projecting two things.  The first is that experts recommend you bring something to a casting call to eat.  This falls on deaf ears for many because many models (and actresses or actors) are constantly dieting and don’t see nutrition as an important characteristic of life.  They get hungry during the casting call, and all they can think of is eating, plus their stomachs are grumbling through the later parts of the casting call.  Morven is a smart cookie—she knows all about these issues. 

 

Secondly, I wanted to give Morven and Siobhàn an opportunity to talk about the casting call and other subjects related to the casting call.  This was a great opportunity.  They could have just spoken together without lunch, but lunch just seems to be an obvious and a great break to have this little communication.

 

The problems are reviewed in this little conversation—this is what some writers call a sequel.  To me it’s just another scene or part of a scene.  One of the main points I wanted to reveal (it’s really not a problem) is Siobhàn’s knowledge of fashion.  Where did that come from?  Morven wants to know, and Siobhàn is happy to explain.  Siobhàn is a super genius—she just read about fashion in the many fashion magazines they keep in the bookstore.  Easy as that.  This didn’t occur to Morven because, although she is smart, she isn’t book smart.  For the book person (the book smart) the obvious source is books (magazines and newspapers and such).  This goes back to the entire point of reading. 

 

Then we get to the next problem.  That is the display portion of the casting call.  You should realize, and I hope I made things clear, the producer, director, and their advisor (Ms. Abby) are watching the movements, dress, and deportment of each of the candidates through the entire interview.  The display portion simply makes clear to them what they already observed.  This goes back to what Morven told Siobhàn about the spies in the casting calls.  Abby has been watching the ladies.  She knows their strengths and weaknesses.  The interview confirms the knowledge and some of the skills of the candidate, but what they are really looking at is how they walk, talk, move, and sit.  Abby really is a spy—she takes a good gander at the ladies as she gathers them for each part—that’s one of the main reasons for separating them into the dressing room away from the others.  That way, she can observe them individually especially when they are least expecting it.  As Morven said to Siobhàn before, even your underwear choices and wear are fair game, and grooming really matters.  I likely need to make some of this clearer by the actions and dialog of the judges in the casting call—I’ll think about it.

 

In any case, we are moving to the display or action part of the casting call.  Ms. Abby looks unhappy because she knows who will be chosen and she doesn’t want to waste her or the other’s time with unimportant events.  We’ll see what happens, next.

 

The real break comes when Siobhàn begins the second part of the casting call.  This is the display portion.  Usually, depending on the type of modeling, the casting director asks the candidate to walk in a runway style while the photographer takes some shots.  The performance of the model then becomes the basis for the selection. 

 

In Siobhàn’s case, her presence on the runway and with the shots just makes the producer and the director want to see her in the gowns of their client.  This is unusual because that’s the first action after a model is picked in the casting call.  They like what they see and don’t want to wait.

 

This is a problem for Siobhàn more than anyone else because she is suddenly cast in into the world of the professional model.  Before Morven was making her wear some amazing clothing outside anything she had done before.  Now, the very experienced Ms. Abby is putting her physically in the gowns.  This is more typical in the big part of the business.  Many times the way clothing is worn and the way the clothing should look on the model is determined by the maker and not necessarily by the wearer.  The professional, like Ms. Abby knows exactly how the gowns should be worn, and she has the fashion tape to make that happen.  They are very careful of the model—no bruises allowed, but the parts must go where the parts must go and the look of the gown must be perfect.  As an aside, this is why so many nonprofessional models or wannabes don’t look exactly right or their clothing has major fitting issues.  The clothing must be fit to the model by an expert.  Just giving the clothing to a clotheshorse and telling them to put it on won’t usually work out well.

 

I wanted to throw in some fun problems and that is Morven.  Morven is right, but she can’t keep her mouth shut.  That’s what makes Morven Morven.  The little problem isn’t large, but I’m looking for laughs.  Let’s talk about laughs and playfulness in your writing.

 

Writing always has a feel about it.  You can have a tense feel, a horror feel, a sexy feel, a loving feel, a sad feel, a playful feel, and any other emotion or mix of emotions.  Do you know the feel of your writing?  It shouldn’t all be the same.  It must not be a boring or unentertaining feel.

 

The entire and only purpose for fictional writing is to entertain.  Whatever your writing feel or style, the writing must entertain.  You can entertain your readers in a couple of ways, but these methods are additive and complementary.  In other words, although you might be able to write a scene or two using word and allusion power to power through eventually, you will need some basis for a plot to entertain your readers.  What am I writing about.

 

We started and are continuing this entire sequence about problems, tension, and achievements as drivers for your scene plots.  My contention is that as an author to write an entertaining scene, you need to make up problems, tension, and achievements (goals) that fit your characters and their overall plots to populate the entertainment in the scenes.  I’ve been pulling out the problems, tension, and achievements of the scenes and chapters in Bookgirl to show you the problems and how I use them to create entertainment.  I’m of the opinion, that you can just make a list of problems to throw at your characters, ones that fit their personalities and the overall plots in the novel, and just write those into the fabric of the scenes.  That’s one method.  It’s not exactly the method I use, but it’s close.

 

What I do directly is first develop the characters.  By this, I mean the protagonist, protagonist’s helper, antagonist (when necessarily), and the ancillary characters for a scene.  If you know your characters, you know generally how they will act.  The characters of Siobhàn and Morven are pretty strong and the basis for the story.  You know that Siobhàn is inexperienced with the world.  She’s very book smart, but gets flustered easily by new things and ideas, and those are flying fast around her. 

 

You know Morven is well graced and experienced in the world of modeling.  We can’t imagine much that would surprise her.  I may find something in future scenes, but for now, she is in her environment.

 

Ms. Abby is completely trustworthy as a modeling assistant and advisor.  She’s been in the business as a model for years and knows exactly how things should go.  She is very perceptive as well.  She understands women and the client’s needs.  This is the basis for her actions and responses.  Likely nothing in the business could phase her.  Not the norm in the business.

 

Goerge is a good director, but like many men, he’s out of his league in working with, motivating, and advising the women.  He knows what the client wants and what the producer wants.  He expects Ms. Abby to make the women fit those needs.  Its not that he doesn’t care about them—he’s just happy he has an assistant like her who can get everything together just like the client and the producer want.

 

The producer is important, I just haven’t given him a name.  I haven’t felt it was necessary yet.  I’ll likely give him one in the near future as Siobhàn becomes more wrapped into the modeling process.  He does care a lot about how his client’s clothing is displayed and the methods and artistry by which they are presented.  He leaves many of these details to the director, advisor, and the photographer.  He’s footing the bill and making the major decisions.  He will become more important for Morven and Siobhàn as the next client comes along.  Siobhàn will help propel his work and selection for the next production, and that will be very important. 

 

With this kind of information, we can write a scene and develop problems, tension, and achievements to drive the entertainment in the scenes, and entertainment is everything.  There is no point in writing if you aren’t entertaining.  I should write more about the feel and the playful nature of most scenes.  I’ll see what I can do, next.

 

I think the feel of the scenes is a critical aspect of every scene.  In most scenes, I drive for a playful and fun type of entertainment.  Some scenes can’t be driven with this feel—some scenes need a heavy and serious feel.  This is an important point in writing. 

 

A scene must be entertaining.  Part of that entertainment is this feel.  As I wrote, playful and fun make a scene entertaining.  A scene that is plodding and heavy usually will not do for any but the most serious scenes.  This is important to note and to develop in a scene.

 

I think you can see the entertainment in my scenes.  As I wrote, I drive for fun and playful.  This means I work for every piece and part that would be fun and playful.  I’m looking for problems, goals, and tension with this idea in mind. 

 

Look at the types of jokes and wordplay I try to incorporate in the scenes.  In the third chapter, we have the director, producer, and advisor arguing about Siobhàn.  What are they arguing about?  Not if they want Siobhàn, but if and who they will put on hold.  They are fighting over when they should start with Siobhàn, and nothing else really.  Their casting call didn’t run exactly as they usually do and they are ecstatic about it, but they don’t know what to do about it exactly.  A the same time, Morven happens to speak up at just the wrong time.  These are all jokes—the jokes and the scene move on. 

 

The scene moves to the point where the producer demands that Siobhàn wear the client’s gowns.  This is a departure from the plan and the usual casting call.  They don’t expect to begin with their client’s work until after the casting call and decisions can be made by the producer, director, and the advisor.  They have made their decision, and they are excited about getting started with their client’s work.  This is true of all artists.  The deal is the feel.  The feel is fun and playful, and I try to add in jokes and fun parts with Siobhàn, Morven, and the others.  Siobhàn and Morven are easier to build up jokes about, and not the others.  This is true of most fictional writing.

 

In building this playful and joking nature, we focus on the protagonist and the main characters—that’s Siobhàn and Morven.  If you notice, when the casting call characters—those who made the call, get all excited and calling for Siobhàn to put on their client’s gowns, Morven isn’t happy.  That’s because Moren hasn’t had time to digest and prepare Siobhàn for the next steps.  Especially important for Morven that may not be obvious to the casual observer is that Siobhàn isn’t really ready for modeling.  She is comfortable in the clothes she is wearing and the work she is doing, but putting on something new and unusual is not in her plans or experience, yet.  Morven knows this.

 

This entire section is supposed to be filled with jokes and play.  The jokes on Siobhàn.  Ms. Abby and Morven know what they are about, but everything is new to Siobhàn.  We move forward with dressing and writing jokes at Siobhàn’s expense.  There is more to this, next.

 

I’m a real fan of irony and satire.  I don’t think any work of fiction can have enough—at least in adult and young adult literature.  Anything below young adult is totally lost on the audience, although they need to be exposed.  This is why the classics are so good and important and modern literature is generally crap.  I’m not impressed by many modern writers.  Most seem to miss the point of allusion, irony, and satire.  I love books with a strong playful feel.  I can handle works that are intense, but I want the intensity to be below the surface.  The top level, like normal life, looks firm, but below is a seething pit of potential despair.  The resolution of the telic flaw looks impossible until it is inevitable.  That’s the way all modern Romantic plotted novels should be. 

In any case, the way you produce a work like this, and on a simpler level, the way you write a novel that will entertain is the development of the problems, goals, and tension in the scenes.  That’s what I’m looking at in the third and very important chapter of Bookgirl.  I left up the chapter and too many breadcrumbs.  I do intend to clear them out when I finish about this chapter and problems.

 

The next part, not really a problem, is the catwalk (runway).  The producer and the director are entranced.  The picture I wanted to portray is that Siobhàn just walks the way she naturally walks and her movements and actions simply captivate them.  There is a reason for this that I will eventually reveal in the novel, but for now, the actors (characters) simply accept her as a natural, just as Morven expresses.

 

Siobhàn walks and makes natural poses, and these are perfect in the eyes of the observers.  This is what I want to build and intend to build as her power in the modeling world.  The kid who never had anything nice to wear is now the queen of the ball, so to speak. 

 

This entire section and part of the scenes in this chapter are the problem resolution, tension release, and goal achieved part of the scenes and the chapter.  We see almost all the short term and general problems resolved, the tension is released, and the goal is achieved.  This is the entire point of entertaining scene development.

 

I’ll go over this again in detail next, but at this point, I want to point out, we took problems, tension, and goals as elements to incorporate into the scenes.  We expanded on these elements, and produced plots to accentuate and express them.  Then we resolved, released, and achieved them.  That is the way to build entertainment.  The problems, tension, and goals are what drive this entertainment.  Compared to what, you might ask?

 

Compared to a highly plotted and descriptive scene that, for example, might show Siobhàn’s experience in the casting call.  We can simplify this by getting rid of all the ancillary problems, tension, and goals.  We could simply write with a focus on the casting call and Siobhàn’s modeling as she was trained by Morven.  That, in my mind, would ruin and significantly decrease the entertainment in the scenes.  The fun in the scenes is exactly the problems Morven and Siobhàn are facing to achieve the goal(s) Morven has set for them.  The end paragraphs and part perfectly expands on this—the question of the computer.  This is a problem, a tension, and a goal.  Notice, it is a simple part of the business experience Morven is setting up.  You might ask, is it even worth mentioning?  I say, perfectly.  The very small detail of owning a computer is very important to their business.  Morven is using the school’s computers, but they need many other features and capabilities.  This will expand in the novel.  Is this important?  Perhaps not for the storyline or the overall plot, but for building entertainment and creating intermediate goals, the computer based plot produces a fun basis.  Important, perhaps not, fun, yes.  That’s what I think fiction writing is all about.  I’ll see what else is important about this subject and the chapter, next.         

    

There’s more.

 

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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