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Thursday, July 1, 2021

Writing - part xx636 Writing a Novel, Plots and Classics, Richard Adams

 1 July 2021, Writing - part xx636 Writing a Novel, Plots and Classics, Richard Adams

Announcement: Delay, my new novels can be seen on the internet, but my primary publisher has gone out of business—they couldn’t succeed in the past business and publishing environment.  I’ll keep you informed, but I need a new publisher.  More information can be found at www.ancientlight.com.  Check out my novels—I think you’ll really enjoy them.

Introduction: I wrote the novel Aksinya: Enchantment and the Daemon. This was my 21st novel and through this blog, I gave you the entire novel in installments that included commentary on the writing. In the commentary, in addition to other general information on writing, I explained, how the novel was constructed, the metaphors and symbols in it, the writing techniques and tricks I used, and the way I built the scenes. You can look back through this blog and read the entire novel beginning with http://www.pilotlion.blogspot.com/2010/10/new-novel-part-3-girl-and-demon.html.

I’m using this novel as an example of how I produce, market, and eventually (we hope) get a novel published. I’ll keep you informed along the way.

Today’s Blog: To see the steps in the publication process, visit my writing websites http://www.sisteroflight.com/.

The four plus one basic rules I employ when writing:

1. Don’t confuse your readers.

2. Entertain your readers.

3. Ground your readers in the writing.

4. Don’t show (or tell) everything.

     4a. Show what can be seen, heard, felt, smelled, and tasted on the stage of the novel.

5. Immerse yourself in the world of your writing.

These are the steps I use to write a novel including the five discrete parts of a novel:

 

1.     Design the initial scene

2.     Develop a theme statement (initial setting, protagonist, protagonist’s helper or antagonist, action statement)

a.      Research as required

b.     Develop the initial setting

c.      Develop the characters

d.     Identify the telic flaw (internal and external)

3.     Write the initial scene (identify the output: implied setting, implied characters, implied action movement)

4.     Write the next scene(s) to the climax (rising action)

5.     Write the climax scene

6.     Write the falling action scene(s)

7.     Write the dénouement scene

I finished writing my 29th novel, working title, Detective, potential title Blue Rose: Enchantment and the Detective.  The theme statement is: Lady Azure Rose Wishart, the Chancellor of the Fae, supernatural detective, and all around dangerous girl, finds love, solves cases, breaks heads, and plays golf.  

Here is the cover proposal for Blue Rose: Enchantment and the Detective



Cover Proposal

The most important scene in any novel is the initial scene, but eventually, you have to move to the rising action. I am continuing to write on my 30th novel, working title Red Sonja.  I finished my 29th novel, working title Detective.  I’m planning to start on number 31, working title Shifter

How to begin a novel.  Number one thought, we need an entertaining idea.  I usually encapsulate such an idea with a theme statement.  Since I’m writing a new novel, we need a new theme statement.  Here is an initial cut.

 

For novel 30:  Red Sonja, a Soviet spy, infiltrates the X-plane programs at Edwards AFB as a test pilot’s administrative clerk, learns about freedom, and is redeemed.

 

For novel 31:  Deirdre and Sorcha are redirected to French finishing school where they discover difficult mysteries, people, and events. 

 

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.

 

Here is the scene development outline:

 

1. Scene input (comes from the previous scene output or is an initial scene)

2. Write the scene setting (place, time, stuff, and characters)

3. Imagine the output, creative elements, plot, telic flaw resolution (climax) and develop the tension and release.

4. Write the scene using the output and creative elements to build the tension.

5. Write the release

6. Write the kicker

          

Today:  Why don’t we go back to the basics and just writing a novel?  I can tell you what I do, and show you how I go about putting a novel together.  We can start with developing an idea then move into the details of the writing. 

 

To start a novel, I picture an initial scene.  I may start from a protagonist or just launch into mental development of an initial scene.  I get the idea for an initial scene from all kinds of sources.  To help get the creative juices flowing, let’s look at the initial scene. 

 

1.     Meeting between the protagonist and the antagonist or the protagonist’s helper

2.     Action point in the plot

3.     Buildup to an exciting scene

4.     Indirect introduction of the protagonist

 

Ideas.  We need ideas.  Ideas allow us to figure out the protagonist and the telic flaw.  Ideas don’t come fully armed from the mind of Zeus.  We need to cultivate ideas. 

 

1.     Read novels. 

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

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

4.     Study.

5.     Teach. 

6.     Make the catharsis. 

7.     Write.

 

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

 

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

 

I’ve worked through creativity and the protagonist.  The ultimate point is that if you properly develop your protagonist, you have created your novel.  This moves us on to plots and initial scenes.  As I noted, if you have a protagonist, you have a novel.  The reason is that a protagonist comes with a telic flaw, and a telic flaw provides a plot and theme.  If you have a protagonist, that gives you a telic flaw, a plot, and a theme.  I will also argue this gives you an initial scene as well. 

 

So, we worked extensively on the protagonist.  I gave you many examples great, bad, and average.  Most of these were from classics, but I also used my own novels and protagonists as examples.  Here’s my plan.

 

1.     The protagonist comes with a telic flaw – the telic flaw isn’t necessarily a flaw in the protagonist, but rather a flaw in the world of the protagonist that only the Romantic protagonist can resolve.

2.     The telic flaw determines the plot.

3.     The telic flaw determines the theme.

4.     The telic flaw and the protagonist determines the initial scene.

5.     The protagonist and the telic flaw determines the initial setting.

6.     Plot examples from great classic plots.

7.     Plot examples from mediocre classic plots.

8.     Plot examples from my novels.

9.     Creativity and the telic flaw and plots.

10.  Writer’s block as a problem of continuing the plot.

 

Every great or good protagonist comes with their own telic flaw.  I showed how this worked with my own writing and novels.  Let’s go over it in terms of the plot.

 

This is all about the telic flaw.  Every protagonist and every novel must come with a telic flaw.  They are the same telic flaw.  That telic flaw can be external, internal or both.

 

We found that a self-discovery telic flaw or a personal success telic flaw can potentially take a generic plot.  We should be able to get an idea for the plot purely from the protagonist, telic flaw and setting.  All of these are interlaced and bring us our plot.

 

For a great plot, the resolution of the telic flaw has to be a surprise to the protagonist and to the reader.  This is both the measure and the goal.  As I noted before, for a great plot, the author needs to make the telic flaw resolution appear to be impossible, but then it happens.  There is much more to this. 

 

Here is our list of 112 classics.  I told you this is a compilation of lists from various sources.  These are all true classics in most every genre of literature.  What I’m going to do now is look at the list and evaluate if they include a Romantic protagonist or a Romantic plot.  Second, I’m going to mark those that are true classic novels with an asterisk.

94 Watership Down - Richard Adams – Romantic protagonist and Romantic plot.

*95 Gulliver’s Travels - Jonathan Swift – No Romantic protagonist or Romantic plot.

*96 Matilda – Roald Dahl – Romantic protagonist and Romantic plot.

99 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl –  Romantic protagonist and Romantic plot.

*100 Les Miserables - Victor Hugo –  Romantic protagonist and Romantic plot.

*101 The Once and Future King – T.H. White – Somewhat Romantic protagonist and Romantic plot.

*102 The Deerslayer – James Fenimore Cooper – Romantic protagonist and Romantic plot.

104 Ben Hur – Lew Wallace –  Romantic protagonist and Romantic plot.

105 The Robe – Lloyd C. Douglas –  Romantic protagonist and Romantic plot.

106 The Pilgrim’s Progress – John Bunyan – No Romantic protagonist or Romantic plot.

*109 The Call of the Wild – Jack London –  Romantic protagonist and Romantic plot.

*110 Stand on Zanzibar – John Brunner – No Romantic protagonist or Romantic plot.

*111 The Shockwave Rider – John Brunner –  Romantic protagonist and Romantic plot.

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

 

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

 

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

 

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

 

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

 

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

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

 Overall (o)

1.     Redemption (o) – 17i, 7e, 23ei, 8 – 49%

2.     Revelation (o) –2e, 64, 1i – 60%

3.     Achievement (o) – 16e, 19ei, 4i, 43 – 73%

Achievement (a)

1.     Detective or mystery (a) – 56, 1e – 51%

2.     Revenge or vengeance (a) –3ie, 3e, 45 – 46%

3.     Zero to hero (a) – 29 – 26%

4.     Romance (a) –1ie, 41 – 37%

5.     Coming of age (a) –1ei, 25 – 23%

6.     Progress of technology (a) – 6 – 5%

7.     Discovery (a) – 3ie, 57 – 54%

8.     Money (a) – 2e, 26 – 25%

9.     Spoiled child (a) – 7 – 6%

10.  Legal (a) – 5 – 4%

11.  Adultery (qa) – 18 – 16%

12.  Self-discovery (a) – 3i, 12 – 13%

13.  Guilt or Crime (a) – 32 – 29%

14.  Proselytizing (a) – 4 – 4%

15.  Reason (a) – 10, 1ie – 10%

16.  Escape (a)  – 1ie, 23 – 21%

17.  Knowledge or Skill (a) – 26 – 23%

18.  Secrets (a) – 21 – 19%

Quality (q)

1.     Messiah (q) – 10 – 9%

2.     Adultery (qa) – 18 – 16%

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

4.     Miscommunication (q) – 8 – 7%

5.     Love triangle (q) – 14 – 12%

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

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

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

9.     Magic (q) – 8 – 7%

10.  Mistaken identity (q) – 18 – 16%

11.  Illness (q) – 1e, 19 – 18%

12.  Anti-hero (q) – 6 – 5%

13.  Immorality (q) – 3i, 8 – 10%

14.  Satire (q) – 10 – 9%

15.  Camaraderie (q) – 19 – 17%

16.  Curse (q) – 4 – 4%

17.  Insanity (q) – 8 – 7%

18.  Mentor (q) – 12 – 11%

Setting (s)

1.     End of the World (s) – 3 – 3%

2.     War (s) – 20 – 18%

3.     Anti-war (s) –2 – 2%

4.     Travel (s) –1e, 62 – 56%

5.     Totalitarian (s) – 1e, 8 – 8%

6.     Horror (s) – 15 – 13%

7.     Children (s) – 24 – 21%

8.     Historical (s) – 19 – 17%

9.     School (s) – 11 – 10%

10.  Parallel (s) – 4 – 4%

11.  Allegory (s) – 10 – 9%

12.  Fantasy world (s) – 5 – 4%

13.  Prison (s) – 2 – 2%

Item (i)

1.     Article (i) – 1e, 46 – 42%

I’d like to willow down the list of classics to some true entertaining classics.  We’ll then look at these in more details.

 

Let’s do a little comparison between these classic works and evaluate them.  Here is how we will evaluate them:

 

1.     Are they entertaining? 

2.     Would you read it again?

3.     How’s the protagonist?

4.     How’s the plot?

5.     How does it relate to actual human values and life?

6.     Did the author write in a way that makes this work truly unique?

7.     Is this work important to humanity and to the future?

 

As I’ve noted before, The British Broadcasting Corporation is not a good judge of the classics—they tend to miss the great for the terrible and uninteresting.  Most people just accept the opinions of the BBC and their foolish supporters in the academy.  It reminds me of the impressionists and how their beautiful art was ignored and even condemned by the academy and the salon.  The painters who were really great starved and struggled, but in the end, although they starved in life, their paintings were worth millions.

 

The BBC and academia seems to completely miss the point of the novel—to entertain.  With Richard Adams, we have a very entertaining novelist in the modern world.  I put him on the list, and I pulled him off the list.  I think as we look at one of his best novels, we can see why I think he should be on the list, and again why I pulled him off the list.

94 Watership Down - Richard Adams – Romantic protagonist and Romantic plot.

Watership Down is an adult novel about rabbits.  The rabbits are obviously an intentional allegory or at least a parallel plot concerning human society.

 

The rabbits of Watership Down are led by Hazel and motivated by Fiver.  Hazel is the messiah and Fiver the prophet.  Fiver predicts the destruction of their current warren and Hazel leads the true believes through numerous adventures to Watership Down.  There they have more adventures. 

 

As I noted, this is an allegory or parallel novel.  It concerns the god of the rabbits as well as his prophet and messiah.  It is an interesting tale.

 

Let’s evaluate this novel according to the criteria.

 

1.     Are they entertaining? 

2.     Would you read it again?

3.     How many movies/plays are there of the novel?

4.     How’s the protagonist?

5.     How’s the plot?

6.     How does it relate to actual human values and life?

7.     Did the author write in a way that makes this work truly unique?

8.     Is this work important to humanity and to the future?

 

Watership Down is very entertaining.  It is a well written and fun novel, but there are issues.  I’m not telling you it isn’t worth reading from an entertainment standpoint, but it isn’t a classic.  It’s just another of those really great novels especially from the modern era. 

 

I’ve read it one and a half times.  It was pretty entertaining when I was younger, but not as entertaining as I got older.  I find many of Adams’ novels to be the same.  I really liked the ones I read, but with further reflection and with second readings they just weren’t as entertaining as other novels.  Here’s an example.  I liked Mara as well as Watership Down.  The protagonist of Mara is Mara, a sexually abused child who becomes the incarnate sex goddess of an entire people.  Watership Down isn’t much different.  It promotes, not necessarily sexual abuse, but rather the use of religion to promote rabbit abuse.  I use this example from Mara to show just how Watership Down has some issues.  Both of these novels, and Adams’ other novels gives us a titillating view of humanity—that is completely false.  That’s the problem from a classics standpoint.  Although his novels are entertaining, they have no real meaning or connection to the real world.

 

There are quite a few adaptations of Watership Down.  The main reason is that this is an adult novel with adult themes that can be made to appeal to children.  You can see why this is a problem.  This is like selling pornography to children under the appeal of art.  There is intellectual pornography in Watership Down.  It is not a children’s novel.  It is an adult novel, and this is the ultimate problem as a novel.  You make adult novels to appeal to children because you want to affect the minds of the children.  It isn’t as bad when you write adult novels with children as the protagonist, like Oliver Twist especially when the novel and the ideas behind it have some moral construction.  Watership Down is like Dune in some ways.  You wouldn’t take children to see Dune it has adult themes in an adult plot.  Most children wouldn’t understand it or enjoy it.  On the other hand, you can sell the idea of rabbits to children and adults as children’s fare.  It is not for children or children’s consumption. 

 

Hazel is the protagonist, but Watership Down is slightly ambiguous and has multiple points of view.  Hazel is a great Romantic protagonist.  In fact, the power of the entertainment in the novel speaks very powerfully to the modern reader because of Hazel.  Hazel is not the strongest rabbit, but uses his intellect to save the rabbits under his leadership over and over.  At the same time, the rabbit culture is based in might makes right, which is an impediment to the Romantic ideal.  This makes for great writing and entertainment, but Adams’ didn’t have to make up a rabbit society to provide this message—and it is a message.

 

The plot of Watership Down is a story based one with multiple Romantic plots developed through the scenes.  In other words, Adams is a novelist who uses the short story patched together to give us a novel length work.  This isn’t a negative at all.  In fact, it produces a very powerful Romantic plot over and over through the scenes.  Ray Bradbury is just such an author.   

 

I could just throw out that there are no human values in Watership Down, just rabbit values, but because this novel is an allegory or a parallel, the rabbits do represent human values.  However, Watership Down is very similar to The Lord of the Flies just at a lower level of intensity.  The Lord of the Flies purports to depict human values and human interaction, but it doesn’t at all.  Not to become too repetitious, but, as I wrote before, when human children or adults are placed in the circumstances of The Lord of the Flies they don’t go to savagery, but to civilization.  This is the ultimate lie of the novel.  In the tale of the rabbits, they are held together, even though they are a might-based society by an intellectual rabbit.  You should be able to see the ultimate problem with this entire idea.  Civilizations become civilizations because they become intellectually led instead of strength led.  The strength of a society and culture is not in its leaders, but in its organization and followers, but this doesn’t make great or entertaining literature—at least in the minds of the academy.  Real human values is about using everyone to build civilization and protecting the weak and ill.  That is not necessarily the view of the rabbit society.  Watership Down is not completely devoid of human values, but in more powerful literature, the problems are those who oppose civilization and not those who don’t.     

 

Watership Down is not as unique as it looks.  Jack London gave us anamorphic animals as protagonists and characters as did George Orwell.  Jack London provided a new and unique idea, at the time, for adult literature.  George Orwell turned animals into allegory.  Adams remade these ideas into something similar.  It is newish, but not all that unique.  What is unique is putting an adult story into a format that would appeal to children.  Jack London reflects grat human values.  Orwell shows us humanity reflected as animals—you can’t miss his point.  Adams gives us a meh—his rabbit world doesn’t really reflect the world of humanity.  It isn’t really an allegory and not one of a negative bent, but it isn’t a positive example either.  It’s ambiguous, and potentially misleading.  This may be my greatest problem with it. 

 

Watership Down has floated no other boats that I know of.  Adams’ writing is entertaining, but really hasn’t started anything new.  It has promoted perhaps more extremes in literature especially for children, and it isn’t for children.  If anything, Watership Down has promoted more adult and inappropriate themes in children’s literature, but that really isn’t his fault—children’s literature has been moving that direction for a long time.  Plus, it’s a very bad idea.

 

We’ll look at Jonathan Swift next.

 

In the end, we can figure out what makes a work have a great plot and theme, and apply this to our writing.     

      

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

    

More tomorrow.

For more information, you can visit my author site http://www.ldalford.com/, and my individual novel websites:

http://www.ancientlight.com/
http://www.aegyptnovel.com/
http://www.centurionnovel.com
http://www.thesecondmission.com/
http://www.theendofhonor.com/
http://www.thefoxshonor.com
http://www.aseasonofhonor.com  

fiction, theme, plot, story, storyline, character development, scene, setting, conversation, novel, book, writing, information, study, marketing, tension, release, creative, idea, logic

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