17 March 2017, Writing Ideas
- New Novel, part x70, Creative Elements in Scenes, Plot Devices, Plot Twist
type 2
Announcement: Delay, my new novels can be seen on the internet, but the publisher
has delayed all their fiction output due to the economy. I'll keep you
informed. 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 website http://www.ldalford.com/ and select "production
schedule," you will be sent to 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.
All novels have five discrete parts:
1. The initial scene (the
beginning)
2. The rising action
3. The climax
4. The falling action
5. The dénouement
I
finished writing my 27th novel, working title, Claire, potential
title Sorcha: Enchantment and the Curse. This might need some tweaking. The theme statement is: Claire (Sorcha) Davis
accepts Shiggy, a dangerous screw-up, into her Stela branch of the organization
and rehabilitates her.
Here is the cover proposal for Sorcha:
Enchantment and the Curse.
 |
|
Cover
Proposal
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The most important scene in any
novel is the initial scene, but eventually, you have to move to the rising
action. I started writing my 28th novel, working title Red Sonja. I’m also working on my 29th novel,
working title School.
I'm an advocate of using the/a scene
input/output method to drive the rising action--in fact, to write any
novel.
Scene development:
1. Scene input (easy)
2. Scene output (a little
harder)
3. Scene setting (basic stuff)
4. Creativity (creative
elements of the scene: transition from input to output focused on the telic
flaw resolution)
5. Tension (development of
creative elements to build excitement)
6. Release (climax of creative
elements)
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 28: 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 29: Sorcha, the abandoned child of an Unseelie
and a human, secretly attends Wycombe Abbey girls’ school where she meets the
problem child Deirdre and is redeemed.
These are the steps I use to write 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
Here is the beginning of the scene
development method from the 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
Below is a list of plot
devices. I’m less interested in a plot
device than I am in a creative element that drives a plot device. In fact, some of these plot devices are not
good for anyone’s writing. If we
remember, the purpose of fiction writing is entertainment, we will perhaps
begin to see how we can use these plot devices to entertain. If we focus on creative elements that drive
plot devices, we can begin to see how to make our writing truly
entertaining. I’ll leave up the list and
we’ll contemplate creative elements to produce these plot devices.
Deus ex machina (a machination, or act of
god; lit. “god out of the machine”)
Flashback (or analeptic reference)
Plot twist – Current discussion.
Story within a story (Hypodiegesis)
Third attempt
Secrets
Plot
twist:
Here is a definition of a plot twist from the link-- A plot twist is a radical change in the expected direction or
outcome of the plot of a novel, film, television
series, comic,
video
game, or other work of narrative.[1] It is a common practice in narration used
to keep the interest of an audience, usually surprising them with a revelation.
Some "twists" are foreshadowed.
I’ve
written extensively about this concept from another viewpoint entirely. I can identify three types of plots
twists. The first is what I’ve called
the unexpected, expected climax. The
second I haven’t mentioned much--this is a plot change that still results in
the expected climax, but with a different approach than expected at first. The third is a major revelation that casts a
character, item, event, or place in a completely different way than
expected. I’ve called the third, secrets
in the past.
Now
as to the second type of plot twist: a plot change that still results in the
expected climax, but with a different approach than expected at first. Many novels can’t reach the artistic level of
unexpected but expected climax. Remember
in the perfect use of this writing technique, the expected climax is shown to
be impossible, but somehow the protagonist achieves the result in a satisfying,
reasonable way. These are considered plot
twists because the typical reader, publisher, editor, and reviewer will call
this an unexpected or a surprise ending.
One
step below the expected but unexpected is the expected climax with a different approach. This is also a type of plot twist. You must realize the climax of every novel is
expected—this is the resolution of the telic flaw of the protagonist. My go to example is the mystery. The mystery is the telic flaw (external and
perhaps internal) the protagonist must solve to resolve the climax of the
novel. In a comedy, the protagonist solves
the mystery. In a tragedy, the mystery
overcomes the protagonist.
The
expected climax with a different approach can be seen in the first Star Wars
movie—the 1975 one not the current episode listing. In the original Star Wars (before it got
really silly), the climax was the destruction of the Death Star. This was the expected climax. The writers tried to make this seem
impossible, but they worked out a solution to destroy the Death Star. A small ship must fire a photon torpedo
through the toilet drain. A completely untrained
space pilot (Luke), the protagonist, is the only person who can potentially
make the shot. He flubs it—ah, but we
have a new approach—if Luke uses the foreshadowed “Force” he can make the shot
and destroy the Death Star. The Death
Star is destroyed—that is the expected climax and the end of the movie. The expected climax occurred. It was not unexpected but it was a different
approach—kind of. This is a classic,
though simple plot twist.
What
would Star Wars have looked like with an expected but unexpected climax? In a Star Wars with an expected by unexpected
climax, the Death Star would still be destroyed in a satisfying manner, but the
agency would be different. It would
definitely not be by shooting a light ball down the toilet hatch. It would more likely be an approach that
affected the antagonist, Darth Vader as well as the Death Star. By the way, a direct approach to the climax
would have had Luke fire the snot ball into the toilet drain without the use of
the force, but he would likely have achieved that on the third try. I don’t know if it is an identified plot
device here. If not, I should add it—the
three attempts plot device.
I’ll
look at the third type of plot twist next:
a major revelation that casts a character, item, event, or place in a
completely different way than expected.
In other words, plot twists don’t just have to be about the climax.
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
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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