13 January 2023, Writing - part xxx197 Writing a Novel, A New Romantic Protagonist, Paragraphs Topics in Scenes, Editing Dialog, Complex, another Example
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 30th novel, working title, Rose,
potential title Rose: Enchantment and the
Flower. The theme statement is: 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 cover proposal for Rose:
Enchantment and the Flower.
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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. Writing number 31, working title Shifter. I just finished 32nd novel, Rose.
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: Let me tell
you a little about writing. Writing
isn’t so much a hobby, a career, or a pastime.
Writing is a habit and an obsession.
We who love to write love to write.
If you love
to write, the problem is gaining the skills to write well. We want to write well enough to have others
enjoy our writing. This is
important. No one writes just for
themselves the idea is absolutely irrational and silly. I can prove why.
In the first
place, the purpose of writing is communication—that’s the only purpose. Writing is the abstract communication of the
mind through symbols. As time goes by,
we as writers gain more and better tools and our readers gain more and better
appreciation for those tools and skills—even if they have no idea what they
are.
We are in
the modern era. In this time, the action
and dialog style along with the push of technology forced novels into the form
of third person, past tense, action and dialog style, implying the future. This is the modern style of the novel. I also showed how the end of literature
created the reflected worldview. We have
three possible worldviews for a novel: the real, the reflected, and the
created. I choose to work in the
reflected worldview.
Why don’t we
go back to the basics and just writing a novel?
I can tell you what I do, and show you how I go about putting a novel
together. We can start with developing
an idea then move into the details of the writing.
Ideas. We need
ideas. Ideas allow us to figure out the
protagonist and the telic flaw. Ideas
don’t come fully armed from the mind of Zeus.
We need to cultivate ideas.
1.
Read novels.
2. Fill your mind with good stuff—basically the stuff you want
to write about.
3. Figure out what will build ideas in your mind and what will
kill ideas in your mind.
4. Study.
5. Teach.
6. Make the catharsis.
7.
Write.
The development of ideas is based on study and research, but
it is also based on creativity. Creativity
is the extrapolation of older ideas to form new ones or to present old ideas in
a new form. It is a reflection of
something new created with ties to the history, science, and logic (the
intellect). Creativity requires
consuming, thinking, and producing.
If we have filled our mind with all kinds of information and
ideas, we are ready to become creative.
Creativity means the extrapolation of older ideas to form new ones or to
present old ideas in a new form.
Literally, we are seeing the world in a new way, or actually, we are
seeing some part of the world in a new way.
The beginning of creativity is study and effort. We can use this to extrapolate to
creativity. In addition, we need to look
at recording ideas and working with ideas.
With that said, where should we go? Should I delve into ideas and creativity
again, or should we just move into the novel again? Should I develop a new protagonist, which, we
know, will result in a new novel. I’ve
got an idea, but it went stale. Let’s
look at the outline for a novel again:
1.
The initial scene
2.
The rising action scenes
3.
The climax scene
4.
The falling action scene(s)
5.
The dénouement
scene(s)
The initial scene is the most important scene and part of
any novel. To get to the initial scene,
you don’t need a plot, you need a protagonist.
Let’s be very clear.
You can start with a plot, a protagonist, an idea, or an idea for an
initial scene. The easiest and most
controlled method is to start with a protagonist. As I’ve written over and over, a protagonist
must come with a telic flaw. I think it
is impossible to have a protagonist without a telic flaw, but I suppose you
could develop a completely lackluster protagonist without any telic flaw
connected to them.
Here is my list for the characteristics of a Romantic
protagonist. I am not very happy with
most of the lists I have found. So, I
will start with a classic list from the literature and then translate them to
what they really mean. This is the
refined list. Take a look.
1. Some power or ability outside the norm of society that
the character develops to resolve the telic flaw.
2. Set of beliefs (morals and ideals) that are different
than normal culture or society’s.
3. Courageous
4. Power (skills and abilities) and leadership that are
outside of the normal society.
5. Introspective
6. Travel plot
7. Melancholy
8. Overwhelming desire to change and grow—to develop four
and one.
9. Pathos developed because the character does not fit the
cultural mold. From the common.
10. Regret when they can’t follow their own moral compass.
11. Self-criticism when they can’t follow their own moral
compass.
12. Pathos bearing because he or she is estranged from
family or normal society by death, exclusion for some reason, or self-isolation
due to three above.
13. From the common and potentially the rural.
14. Love interest
Here is the protagonist development list. We are going to use this list to develop a
Romantic protagonist. With the following
outline in mind, we will build a Romantic protagonist. However, I’m going to ignore the first
step. Instead of starting with an
initial scene, I’m just going to design a Romantic protagonist. Then we may apply the outline to them.
1.
Define the initial scene
2. At the same time as the above—fit a protagonist into the
initial scene. That means the minimum
of:
a.
Telic flaw
b.
Approximate age
c.
Approximate social degree
d.
Sex
3. Refine the protagonist
a.
Physical description
b.
Background – history of the
protagonist
i. Birth
ii. Setting
iii. Life
iv. Education
v. Work
vi. Profession
vii. Family
c.
Setting – current
i. Life
ii. Setting
iii. Work
d.
Name
4. Refine the details of the protagonist
a.
Emotional description (never to be
shared directly)
b.
Mental description (never to be
shared directly)
c.
Likes and dislikes (never to be shared
directly)
5. Telic flaw resolution
a.
Changes required for the protagonist
to resolve the telic flaw
i. Physical changes
ii. Emotional changes
iii. Mental changes
b.
Alliances required for the
protagonist to resolve the telic flaw
c.
Enemies required for the protagonist
to resolve the telic flaw
d.
Plots required for the protagonist
to resolve the telic flaw
e.
Obstacles that must be overcome for
the protagonist to resolve the telic flaw
Here’s what I want to do or how I want to place these on a
protagonist. Let’s clean them up a
little and begin to evaluate a protagonist.
I’m not ready to write a new novel yet, and I’m too busy to
put the extra time to write an initial scene.
I’ll repeat. I just
finished up Rose, and I want to finish up Cassandra. I’m moving in that direction. For now, I’ll focus on the finishing steps of
Rose, and then the marketing development steps. This might get tedious, but I’ll try to keep
it meaningful and helpful.
I am into heavy editing for Rose, and I’d like to
finish with Cassandra. I’m using Cassandra
as an example for my other blog, so I really do need to catch it up before I
run out of material. In any case, I was
going over the basics of real editing.
I’ll repeat myself.
If you have a problem with basic grammar, spelling, and punctuation, you
might not have the required level of education to write effectively. If this is true, you need to get more
education and of the correct types.
True editing is about language, ideas, and reason. It’s not just about grammar, spelling, and
punctuation. We’ve moved well away from
spelling, punctuation, and grammar. I’m
looking at sentences.
Yes, sentences are much more difficult than words. Look at words. I just need to ensure they are spelled
correctly, are the correct word, are not repeated, and sound right. Sound right is something we haven’t looked at
yet—we shall. That is an advance editing
technique.
Sentences are something else entirely. When we look at sentences, we need to look at
word order, word use, grammar, which includes, punctuation, correct verbs,
correct number, correct tense, and all.
We have touched on these with the word list.
Word editing is simple compared to sentence editing, but
sentence editing may be the most important for cohesiveness, clarity, and
understanding. We really haven’t gotten
into logic and reasoning much. I’ve
centered our original editing on the words, and showed you how editing words
can be used to help edit sentences. I’m standing by the, but you must get to
the more important parts of sentence editing.
Let’s turn sentence editing into logical or reasoned
editing, as well as touching on paragraph or multi-sentence editing.
We’ve looked at word editing and then sentence editing. The next stage is multi-sentence
editing. This specifically means
paragraphs. I’ll bet you didn’t see that
coming. Yes, paragraphs are the next
stage of editing, and this is a very important part of editing.
Unfortunately, many writers have no idea first how to craft
a paragraph, second where to break paragraphs, and third how to use paragraphs.
We all know we are supposed to use paragraphs, but many have
never been taught how to write a paragraph, break, or use them. This is a problem of education. Let me remind you about how to write a
paragraph. Every paragraph has the
following form:
Topic sentence
Sentences supporting, arguing, and/or developing the topic
Conclusion or implied completion
Tie to the next paragraph
This is how every paragraph should be written except one
type—dialog. In English, we break each
statement of dialog by a new speaker into a paragraph break. That doesn’t mean the dialog statement is a
complete paragraph—it’s just the way we break dialog. Extended dialog can be broken into
paragraphs, and each of those should follow the paragraph development form.
Pretty simple, yes?
Paragraphs are relatively simple, but they are perhaps the biggest
problem for new writers. The best hope
for you is to write a lot. Look at your
paragraph structure. Make certain your
paragraphs connect in some fashion. Know
when to stop and when to start a paragraph.
Next, let’s look at these:
Connecting paragraphs
Breaking paragraphs
Paragraph order
Topics in paragraphs related to scene development
I’m leaving this in the paragraph and scene section because
that’s exactly where it should be.
Although in English writing, dialog is treated like individual
paragraphs, we rarely really look at it that way in scene development. Yes, we punctuate it that way, and we put it
together that way, but we don’t tend to treat it that way. I’m as guilty as everyone else at that, but
I’d like to have us look at dialog and especially the editing of dialog in
terms of scenes and paragraphs.
We’ll kind of modify our idea of paragraphs in dialog a
little—let’s call them ideas or complete thoughts.
When we write and edit dialog, we are seeking to make
completed or complete thoughts in the context of the novel and scene. In other words, the writer wants to make some
point, to communicate some idea, or get some information first to the
characters and second to the readers.
This is very important.
1.
Clarity –
a.
Tags
b.
Action
c.
Character setting
2. Realism
a.
Less direct attribution or
identification
b.
More contractions
c.
More real interaction (correct
introductions, etc.)
d.
More showing and not telling
e.
Dump the accents as much as possible
f.
No cutesy stuff
g.
Vulgarity
h.
Complex
Dialog may be the most important part of writing, and may
also be the most difficult to master. If
you practice, get experience, and study it, you might have some hope. Then there are the details of the dialog
itself. This is what we will look at
next.
What does it mean to be complex. In the very first place, complex does not
mean confusing. Just like a real
conversation, the point is to communicate.
If you aren’t communicating to your readers, you aren’t really writing. I’m not certain what you are doing, but you
aren’t writing if you aren’t communicating.
Strive to not ever be confusing. That means that complex does not mean erudite
or intellectual. Some conversations in
real life are really erudite. Usually,
these conversations are between those who understand their subject matter and
can reflect and dialog at a certain level.
In writing fiction, we can never fully understand the level and
comprehension of our readers—thus we must assume near zero knowledge, and build
from there. This means that the writer
must be also an explainer and educator.
This does not mean we are writing to teach nor are we writing to
necessarily convince. If a subject comes
up in the writing and we understand the basics of the fact, the author might as
well provide the information—that is specifically for the purpose of building
the conversation and the information in the novel. This is only appropriate if the information
is part of the plot and the novel. We do
not add in information willy-nilly for any reason. The purpose of passing information is to
bring the reader up to date and present the required information for the subject
of the plot and the telic flaw resolution.
There is no other purpose.
When I write complex, I don’t mean deep or difficult. If it is deep or difficult, you will lose
your readers. I don’t mean it is
convoluted or overwhelming. What
complexity means is that it moves to the big talk and provides the reader and
the characters information that allows the telic flaw resolution and the
continuation of the plot. This may be
difficult to grasp.
In dialog, we want to convey information and ideas that are
either impossible to show or that provides beautiful expression of the ideas
and information we need to present.
Generally, we say we are showing the mind of the protagonist. What does the protagonist think? This is a very important question. Because we should not tell this, we must show
it. The way to show this is with dialog.
The thoughts and mind of your protagonist and characters
must be complex. It must be complex
enough to interest and excite your readers, but much that is spoken should be
implied and not necessary spoken outright.
Don’t get me wrong, there are times when a character and the
protagonist should state something straight out and directly, but look at most
real world conversations. In many cases,
the speakers talk around subjects—especially the really important and critical
subjects. This is reflected in complex
dialog. The subject matter of the dialog
isn’t that complex, the inferences and ideas in the minds of the characters is
complex. I’ll try to give an
example. This is a simple example:
The protagonist is in love, but she isn’t ready to state her
love because she isn’t sure of the response of the man. Therefore, she talks around the subject even
with her friends and others. If she is
asked directly, she gives an ambiguous answer.
When the man hears her ambiguity, he is convinced that she
is not really interested in him.
Therefore, he is a bit standoffish.
The friends realize her love even if she doesn’t say
anything outright. The man is oblivious
but her really is interested too. The
conversations generated around these ideas should be very complex and
nuanced. This is the art of great
conversation. As I noted, this is a
simple example. Every subject in the novel should be handled in conversation
this way. Nuanced and complex are
adequate descriptions.
Here is an example from my next to newest novel, Azure Rose:
Enchantment and the Detective:
Bruce
directed Azure to a group of young military officers. They were drinking tea and juggling their
plates. Each was dressed in white
afternoon formals, and each seemed very uncomfortable at the party.
They
all stood when Azure and Bruce stepped up to them. Bruce bowed, “Gentlemen, may I introduce the
Lady Rose. Lady Rose, these are Lady
Royall’s military guests. From the Army,
Navy, Marines, Coastguard, and Air Force.
Major Campbell, Lieutenant Commander Lee, Major Bell, Commander Garner,
and Wing Commander Calloway.” He paused,
“I don’t see Wing Commander Calloway.”
The
gentlemen pointed to a young man in Air Force blue mess dress uniform. He conversed with a couple of elderly
ladies. He was tall, very light haired
and light-complected. His face appeared
youthful although Azure knew, by his rank, he must be in his late
twenties. He appeared the perfect
officer by his bearing and manners—not that the others did not.
Azure
chatted with the officers for a few moments.
They accompanied her to choose some dainties, and sat with her while she
drank her tea. After a while, she
glanced at her watch and stood, “Gentlemen, it is time for me to be about my
business.”
The
gentlemen all stood. They bowed to her,
and Azure headed straight back to Lady Royall.
As
she stepped out, the Air Force officer, Wing Commander Calloway ran over to
her. He came right up beside her, “Good
afternoon. I couldn’t help but note you
had the attention of my companions, but we haven’t been introduced.
Azure
looked him up and down, “I have business with Lady Royall, and have already
been inconveniently delayed.”
The
Wing Commander bowed, “I’m Lachlann Calloway, and I find you the most pleasant
lady I’ve met today.”
“You
better not let the other ladies hear you say that. We require a proper introduction--where is
Bruce when I need him? I guess it
couldn’t hurt for me to introduce myself.
I am the Lady Rose.”
”Lady
Rose, I’d be happy to escort you for the rest of the party.”
“Wing
Commander Calloway, I came only on business.
I was happy to make your acquaintance, but I’ve meet Lady Royall’s
obligations, and I must be about my work.”
The
Wing Commander grabbed her hand, “Your work.
Surely, you don’t have work today.”
Azure
stared at the Wing Commander and then her hand, “Wing Commander, I work every
day. Please release my hand.”
He
let go, and she continued to where she had last seen Lady Royall. The Wing Commander continued at her side.
Azure
glanced at him, “Why are you continuing to follow me? Really, where is Bruce when I need him?”
“Lady
Rose could you stop for just one moment?”
Azure
stopped in her tracks. She turned to face the officer and stuck her hands on
her hips, “There, I stopped. What do you
want from me Wing Commander?”
“I
would very much like to escort you for the remainder of Lady Royall’s garden
party.”
“Well,
that isn’t going to happen. I have
business with Lady Royall that she put off so I could entertain you
gentlemen. I’ve done my part, and I need
her to do hers.”
“In
that case, I’d very much like to take you to lunch, dinner, supper, or all
three.”
“Why
ever would you do that Wing Commander?”
“To
be blunt and slightly repetitive, you are the most interesting and ravishing
woman I’ve ever met.”
“And
you’d like to ravish me, yada, yada, yada.
I get all that from the school boy crowd. You need to work on your pickup lines.”
“I
didn’t intend that to be a pickup line, but I guess it was. Then tell me where I may meet you again—at
Lady Royall’s next party? I’d like to
get together sooner.”
“That
isn’t going to happen—now scamper off.”
“That
isn’t going to happen.”
Azure
abruptly turned and stalked off. The
Wing Commander continued at her side.
She
called out, “Bruce. Bruce, where are
you?”
The
Wing Commander stuck his hands in his pockets, “It really isn’t polite to call
out for the steward like that.”
“It
isn’t polite to stick your hands in your pockets when escorting a lady either.”
He
didn’t pull them out, “At least I get to stay beside you a little longer while you
look.”
“What
good is that?”
“I’m
besotted, and you ask that.”
“I’d
say you are just peculiar. I’m trying to
put you off.”
“Do
you already have a gentleman?”
“That
is a bit of a personal question.”
“Well,
I don’t have a girlfriend, a lover, or a wife.”
“That
is getting personal in the extreme.”
Azure spotted Lady Royall, “There she is.” Azure headed directly for the
lady. The Wing Commander followed.
Azure
took up a much statelier pace by the time she approached Lady Royall. The Wing Commander kept right next to
her. As she arrived, Azure called, “Lady
Royall.”
Lady
Royall turned around, “Lady Rose, and a hanger on. Have you met my requirements?”
“In
every respect.”
She
flipped her fingers, “And who is your entourage?”
“He
is your guest, Lady Royall.”
“Bruce
isn’t here. I’m not sure we have been
introduced.”
Azure
lifted her nose, “Well, don’t look at me.
I just met the man.”
“You
can still introduce him.”
“Oh,
very well. It’s silly for me to be
introducing one of your own guests to you.
Lady Royall, may I introduce Wing Commander Calloway.”
Wing
Commander Calloway bowed and took Lady Royall’s extended hand, “Lachlann
Calloway to be precise.”
Azure
pushed him to the side, “Now, if you will scamper off, I need to have some
papers signed.”
The
Wing Commander blinked, “You did say work didn’t you. I didn’t believe
you. You don’t look like a courier.”
Lady
Royall scoffed, “That’s because she isn’t a courier.”
“Then
what other business would she have with the Leader of the House of Lords?”
Lady
Royall rolled her eyes, “She’s part of the ministry. She’s Lady Rose, Keeper of the Book.”
The
Wing Commander stood straight, “Keeper of the Book, what is that exactly.”
Lady
Royall raised her brow, “Wouldn’t I like to know. It’s one of those shadowy things.”
“Shadowy
things?”
“Yes,
anyway. Step back a bit. This is always touchy business. I have no idea why the Queen insists I sign
and report on these transactions, but I do and I must. It must help the Monarchy in some way. Let me see the papers, Lady Rose.”
Azure
put herself between the Wing Commander and Lady Royall and attempted to hide
them from the man. He did step back a
bit.
Lady
Royall groused, “I need a pen.”
Before
the Wing Commander could retrieve his, Azure pulled one from her clutch and
pressed it into the lady’s hands.
Lady
Royall glanced through the papers. She
remarked, “They all look like so much gibberish to me.” She signed them all.
Azure
took the papers from the lady and handed her another piece of paper, “Here is
your synopsis and record for the queen.”
“Yes,
good.” Lady Royall glanced at the Wing Commander, “Now, what are you going to
do with your puppy dog?”
“I
intended to leave him where I found him—with you.” Azure curtsied, “Good day, Lady Royall.”
“Good
day, Lady Rose. Please, clean up your
puppy’s messes before you leave.”
Azure
cringed. She headed toward the garden
gate. She’d find a taxi there. The Wing Commander continued to follow her. As she walked she stated, “Wing Commander,
I’ve never encountered this much persistence in an unwanted acquaintance.”
He
frowned, “Really, I’ve never met anyone like you, and I would like to make your
further acquaintance. What can I do to
assure you of my good intentions, and to ensure we meet again?”
“Does
any man have truly good intentions where young ladies are involved?”
“A
gentleman does, and I can assure you—I am a gentleman.”
“That
is to be seen. Very well, to disengage
you from my entourage at the moment, what must I do?”
“That’s
the spirit. All I desire is another
opportunity to make your further acquaintance—I thought I made myself
clear. If you won’t accept my
invitation, then what is your next event?”
“That’s
problematic. I suppose, you could meet
me at Lady Atwell’s party next week.
That is, if you can swing an invitation.”
The
Wing Commander’s face fell, “That might be difficult.”
“Then
your attentions are superfluous. If you
can’t wrangle a simple invitation, then how can you expect to make my
acquaintance?”
“I
was hoping you would accept my invitation to dine.”
“If
you can meet me at Lady Atwell’s then we shall see. I might take any further invitation into
consideration.”
“You
are a very difficult woman, Lady Rose.”
“Yes. Yes, I am, and you should not forget
that. I am also very dangerous. You should also not forget that either.”
They
had arrived at the garden gate. The
Steward, Bruce stood there.
Azure
rushed up, “Bruce, I need a taxi.”
“I
expected as much, and one awaits your immediate departure.”
“Thanks
much Bruce. Now, take Wing Commander
Calloway under your attention and introduce him to Lady Atwell for me.”
Bruce
smiled, “I shall endeavor to do so, Lady Rose.”
Azure
left the Wing Commander with his mouth hanging wide open.
This is a relatively simple dialog in a very complex wrapper. The dialog and the conversations themselves are
simple. Lachlann Calloway wishes to make
Azure (Lady Rose’s) acquaintance and the Lady Rose does not wish his attention. We basically have Lachlann chasing Azure all
over the garden party while Azure is trying to get rid of him. This, to me, is entertaining. We have a kind of Keystone Cops chase and
events.
In the middle, the Lady Royall gets involved. She doesn’t know her own guests, but that’s
not unusual. Lady Rose tries to make her
escape, but then gives Lachlann an almost impossible task—get an invitation to Lady
Atwell’s party.
Lady Atwell is an actress and a famous celebrity. To ask a simple Air Force officer to make the
acquaintance of a celebrity and gain an invitation might be a very difficult task. Still, Lady Rose gets him an
introduction. We might ask about Lady
Rose’s intentions.
This dialog leaves many things unresolved and unsaid.
Examples of this are these questions:
Who is Lady Rose?
Who and what is the Keeper of the Book?
Why make reports to the Queen?
What exactly is Lady Rose doing?
Who is Lachlann Calloway?
Will he get an invitation?
What will happen to Lachlann and Lady Rose?
All these questions get answered in the novel. They are brought up in the conversation. They are key complex elements in the
conversation. This is exactly what I
mean by complex and nuanced. I, for one,
think this kind of conversation and revelation is entertaining. That’s why I write it. I think one of the fortes of my writing is
that it is entertaining, complex, and nuanced.
I think I can bring out the minds of the characters within the
dialog. Incidentally, I think this is
the power of all great fiction.
Description is important.
Action is important. Dialog is
what makes fiction really fun and entertaining.
Getting into the minds of the characters and especially the protagonist
is what makes great fiction worth reading.
This is also why the Romantic protagonist is king or queen.
I want to move on to putting the document together next.
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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