Chapter Blocks that Keep Readers Reading by Ronda Hinrichsen

Most writers know the protagonists of their novels must have an overall goal that propels the length of the novel. Without it, their story falls flat and readers stop reading. But what we authors sometimes forget is that the protagonist in each chapter/scene also needs to have a specific goal he wants to accomplish in that scene or chapter. Furthermore, that goal needs to be related to the character's main story goal, and the scene/chapter must have an obstacle to that goal. 

CHARACTER GOAL + OBSTACLE = CONFLICT and CONFLICT ENCOURAGES ACTION. Action is the cornerstone of great stories. 

Keep this formula in mind as you begin your chapter, Better yet, figure out each element before you write your chapter. A quick outline of the main points of the struggle between your protagonist and his opposition (it's often another person) can not only help you organize your story and keep your characters moving toward their goals, but it can also help you hasten your writing process. I've always found it much easier to write quickly when I know beforehand what I want to accomplish and/or write. Figuring it out as I go always leads to more rewrites.

Finally, according to Evan Marshall's The Marshall Plan for Novel Writing (and I've found it to be true), when you reach the end of your scene or chapter, make sure your character does one of these three things as it relates to his current goal:

1. He fails to accomplish his goal,

2. He fails to accomplish his goal and learns of a new, even larger obstacle.

3. He succeeds in accomplishing his goal, but he also learns of a new, even larger obstacle. 

Each of these endings will keep your reader wanting to know what will happen next. On the other hand, if your character only succeeds, your story ends, and your reader closes your book.

(This article was originally posted on September 10, 2015 on the Author's Think Tank blog.)

FIVE INGREDIENTS FOR SUCCESS--BY David Farland

So, I’ve been asked to talk about five things that my novels must have in order for me to feel that they’re successful.  That’s a brilliant question.

1)      Every tale needs an interesting setting, one with unexpected depth and richness, that transports a reader.  Ever look at the fifty bestselling movies ever?  They all take you to another time or another place.  Some of them, like Star Wars, even do both!  The same is true of bestselling novels.

2)      My story needs characters that people care deeply about.  As an audience member, I don’t necessarily need to “fall in love” with a character, but I must be able to empathize, put myself in his or her place.

3)      Each story I write needs characters who act on their impulses.  By that I mean, my characters can’t sit around and just think about saying and doing the right things, they have to confront any problem thrown at them.  They have to go out and change their worlds.

4)      My story must have fascinating twists.  As an author you have to constantly be thinking, “I know what other authors have done with stories like this, but where else could this go?” Then you have to take the reader there.  You want your novel to be novel, unique, unlike any other.

5)      Ultimately, each story needs to make the audience see the world in new ways.  When my reader closes a book, I want them to realize that no matter what harrowing things I’ve put them through in fiction, they feel wiser, energized, and more capable of handling whatever it is that life throws at them.

See David Farland's new Writing Tips blog at www.davidfarland.com

Find out about his new book at www.nightingalebook.com

What They Did Right--RD Henham (Rebecca Shelley)

Let me start out by saying my fifteen year old, fantasy loving daughter LOVED the Brass Dragon Codex. Read it in two days. Said it was better than other dragon books she'd read recently. To me, that means Rebecca Shelley definitely did something right. And one of the things I believe she did right was she filled her book with action.

In You Can Write Children's Books, Tracey E. Dils advises middle grade books should "rely heavily on visual action . . . One way to ensure you have enough visual action in your plot is to ask yourself if you can think of at least one illustration that can be created for each chapter."

This is advice R. Shelley obviously took to heart. From the get-go. Her first chapter opens with a young dragon discovering his parents have been killed. The next introduces us to two gnomes working with lightning and acid as they try to invent a moving giant. Third, the gnome is burned. The action goes on and on. And so, too, does the reader's interest. I'd definitely recommend this book to young, fantasy loving readers.

What J. Scott Savage Did Right: "Farworld"

Among all the writing rules and guidelines a writer, especially a children’s book writer, must keep in mind while she’s crafting her story is “Don’t Be Boring!” J. Scott Savage, author of the soon to be released, children’s fantasy, Farworld, has mastered this skill to a tee. Or a wand. Or in Farworld’s case, a wheelchair.

As I mentioned in my last blog, Young Writer’s Contest, one of Farworld’s main characters is uniquely disabled, a characteristic I’ve rarely seen in such a demanding role. I believe this is due, in part, because readers not only need to relate to the lead, but more often than not, they also want to be like him. Yet WHO would want to be like a disabled boy? No one, I’d guess, unless that boy was also a magically talented, hero-in-the-making boy from another world.

Unique characters are only some of the tools Savage uses to keep young readers turning his pages. Others are distinctive plots and twisted surprises. Which is why I’ve “twisted” my blog today by inviting all of you to climb aboard one of my talking, white horses

and follow me into Oz

There we will meet the Great Wizard of Farworld

and learn a little bit about how he keeps his readers reading.

Why Oz, you ask? Let’s just say, as you’ll soon find out, it has something to do with . . . . . . .

So, let's get started.

Thank you for visiting with us today, Mr. Savage. It's not often that we "Ozzies" get the chance to meet someone who's so magical with his pen.

Glad to be here.

In a past blog, I discussed your talent for “twisting” plots, and when I asked my teenaged daughter what one thing she really liked about Farworld, she indicated it was your unique plot and the interconnection between two worlds. With those ideas in mind, can you tell us how you come up with your plots, and how, specifically, you “twist” them?

I’m currently rereading a series I first read back in high school, (You know when covered wagons used to pick us up.) In it, there is a girl who collects rocks and makes art out of them. The protagonist assumes she thinks of a form then looks for rocks to make that form. But she tells him that the rocks dictate what the form will be. A lot of times we decide as writers what the form will be instead of looking to see what the story wants. For me, the best way to see what the story wants is to take the basic plot I started with and ask what if questions. What if this isn’t what it seems? What if his motive was not the obvious? The more what if questions you ask, especially of what you consider to be the supporting beams of your story, the easier it becomes to take different paths than the reader might expect. Often the first plot you come up with is the one the reader will come up with as well, so give yourself some time to discover the true nature of your story.
I attended one of your classes at an LDStorymakers conference a couple of years ago. There, you said when you ask people to read your manuscripts, you also ask them to mark the page in red whenever they get bored. When you get that manuscript back, what, specifically, do you do to make the scene/page more exciting?
Cry a lot and stamp my feet.

Then, when I’m ready to look at the problem objectively, I ask myself a couple of questions.

1) Is this scene really necessary? Often I find that boring sections shouldn’t even be there in the first place. We put them in as filler, connections, set-ups, whatever. The easiest fix is to just take it out if you can.
2) If the information is important enough that you can’t remove it, consider adding a conflict that may not be key to the story, but which will add excitement to the scene. Let’s take an example right from Farworld. I need to have Marcus and Kyja get money for the bus. I know the trill stones will turn to gem stones, but I have to sell them. I could skip the scene entirely and just tell the reader they sold the stones at a pawn shop. But that’s a copout. The reader will ask how a couple of young kids manage to sell a gem without raising suspicion. But by adding the conflict of the corrupt pawn shop owner, I make the scene not only accurate, but even exciting. I also give Kyja another chance to show what she is made of.
3) If I can’t do 1 or 2, can I integrate it into another more interesting scene? Maybe move it up or back a chapter. Or throw in something funny. Exciting doesn’t have to be tense, it can be a spot of relief. Or change things up. Instead of a wise old, male, tree, make Olden a crabby little old woman that is not much more than a bush—but still very wise.
4) If you get to this point, go back to 1. Suck up you pride of ownership and cut, cut, cut. You’ll feel better afterward.
As I’ve said, creative plots are definitely your forte, and after reading this book, I see you also have a talent with unique characters. For instance, I’ve seen very few books which include a disabled, main character. Why, then, did you choose to include some well-known characters—especially to those of us here in Oz—like a wizard and feisty, talking apple trees?
First let me just say that Master Therapass is not all what he seems on first glance. At the same time, there are a lot of well known characters in the story: the wise wizard, the funny sidekick, the dark wizards. I think you can go one of three directions in fantasy. You can go straight classical fantasy (elves, dwarves, dragons) and just rely on a great twist in the plot. Hard core fantasy buffs will love you, but you’ll get a lot of the “Tolkien rip-off” comments too. Brooks is a great example of a writer who has succeeded at this. You can completely turn everything topsy turvy and create a world where nothing is familiar. This is a lot of fun too. I love discovering everything from scratch. Or you can combine the two. Give enough classical elements (quest, outcast, obstacles, magic) that the reader is able to find place in your story fairly quickly. But then throw in creatures, places, and magical aspects that don’t fit the norm. The reader still may think, “Hmmm this is starting of very much like other stories.” But by the time they get past that, the path diverges enough that they get lost in the story.

It’s not going to work for everyone. You’ll have people that don’t like your spin on magic for example. Or are put off by a hero with disabilities. Or you’ll have people that say, “Boy with a strange mark, magical world, wizard. Must be a Harry Potter remake.” But if the story is good enough, most people will forget about comparisons and get lost in the magic or your world.

Wow. It's been so great to have you here today. Thank you for your insight.

Okay, kids, it's the last day for the Young Writer's Contest. If you haven't yet submitted your entry, now's your chance. Now that you've heard from the author, I can't wait to see what you can do with his oh-so-twisted world!

Love Plot

Since romance is a strong part of the books I am currently writing, I thought I'd make a list about the crucial elements of the Love plot, as described in "20 Master Plots." So here goes.

1. Love plots are character plots, and the writer must help the reader strongly identify with the main character and project herself into them.

2. You've heard of boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl back? In essence, this plot structure is correct because romance is largely a story of frustration. In other words, something or someone always gets in the way of the character's budding romance.

3. "Happily ever after" is a must if you want to cater to mainstream readers. Literary writers can get away with tragedies, but if you want to make money, stick with happily ever after.

4. "We never feel so alive as when we are emotionally aroused." In other words, powerful, romantic prose requires the depiction of sincere emotions, not fake, over-the-top sentimentality. "Don't just talk about love," show your reader all its various emotions--fear, attraction, disappointment, etc.--as required by your plot.

5. Make sure that when your lovers finally find love, that they have earned it. Love is not a gift, it's the greatest reward to the severest test.

And finally (this is my own advice), make sure you, the author, truly respect this genre. A reader will recognize a phony in a heart beat.

Maturation Plot

I was just checking out your really informative blog and I noticed your "how to write" offer of help so I thought I'd ask. I'm about to write my first screenplay. its a maturation, coming of age, rites of passage plot about two teenage brothers trying to survive after the apocalypse. their father returns to take them on a journey that they don't wish to travel. what advice can you give me on tackling such a plot?

your help is most appreciated

When I am constructing my plots, I do two things first, but not necessarily in this order: 1) study and outline the plot points in a few movies, books, and plays that have similar structures, and 2) study relative reference books. When I've completed that process, I review my notes and pick out the plot points which are common to all references.

Next, using the above information, I create a rough outline of those common elements, as well as the ones I want to be in my book, and then I begin to "flesh out" the outline and fill in the gaps with my own characters and situations.

Two books that might be helpful to you with your story are "Blueprint for Writing" by Rachel Friedman Ballon (she covers screenwriting) and "20 Master Plots (And How to Build Them)." I've referred to these two books in past blogs because they have been tremendously helpful to me.

As I read your plot description, it appears to be a combination of two plot lines: Maturation and Adventure? Quest? Discovery? I don't know your story well enough to tell, but if I were you, I would study the requirements for the two you believe they are and weave them together as you construct your plot. That's what I had to do on the romantic suspense book I recently finished (it includes elements of both maturation and quest/rescue) and on the romantic suspense novel I'm currently working on.

As I stated in my previous blogs on "Wretched Excess," I can not entirely cover all that Tobias has to say about each plot, but as a bit of information to get you started, here are a few key elements of the Maturation plot:

1. The maturation plot focuses on children progressing toward adulthood.
2. "Start your story where the protagonist has reached the point in her life at which she can be tested as an adult" and then hit her with a"belief shaking" test like death, parent divorce, abandonment, or something else "apocalyptic."
3. Show your character resisting then undergoing gradual, psychological and moral "change."
4. Decide what price your character pays for this lesson and show how he copes with it.

Hope this helps. Good luck with your screenplay.

Another Wretched Excess

In response to Tristi Pinkston's comment in my last entry, I thought it would be helpful to give a more detailed description of what the "Wretched Excess" plot is. Basically, it describes a protagonist's mental decline or shows how he is pushed by outside forces to act in a manner outside "civilized" behavior. "Another way to put it," says Tobias, is "normal people under abnormal circumstances, and abnormal people under normal circumstances."

The literary example Tobias used to delineate this structure was Shakespeare's play, "Othello." In it, Othello, a rational king, is "worked upon" by his enemy, Iago--Iago exploits Othello's jealous nature through lies and innuendos--until Othello finally smothers to death his beloved and devoted wife . In other words, this rational man's character/mentality declined because it was shoved and warped into abnormal circumstances until he committed what he would have never even considered in the beginning of the play. Thus, Othello's actions were "wretched" and it's "excessive."

Did this help?

Plot Structure: Wretched Excess

In honor of Thanksgiving and in recognition of the many blessings, sometimes to excess, which we have, I thought I'd share a few comments from the book, "20 Master Plots (And How to Build Them) by Ronald Tobias, on "Plot number 18: Wretched Excess."

Please keep in mind that this is only an introduction to what your story may need if you choose this plot structure, because I can not fully (or legally) include everything in this blog, but a few key points are:

1. Wretched Excess is a character driven story about the protagonist's psychological decline.

2. The decline should be shown in three phases: how the character is before the decline, how he successively deteriorates, and what happens after the crises--does he give in to his flaw or recover?

3. Avoid "excessive" emotion. This isn't melodrama.

4. Don't lose hold of your character to lunacy. Make certain you personally understand the excess or you'll lose credibility with your reader. Personal experience is almost imperative to this plot.

Hope this helps.

What They Did Right #2

SAVAGE TWISTS

Plot twists are unexpected elements or events that not only take the audience by surprise but also increase a novel's suspense. Jeffrey S. Savage's novel, "Dead on Arrival," illustrates this technique very well.

First off--and that's just it--first off, right on page 6, Savage begins with a twist: an odd character, Pinky, tells the protagonist, Shandra Covington, his dead wife is trying to kill him. Then, on page 8, Pinky tells her he's dead. Quite a twist! Savage continues to use this "dead on," ploy throughout the rest of the book (leaving a string of bodies along the way, I might add), thereby leaving the reader in a constant state of questioning and guessing. A good thing.

Second, Savage adds twists to his minor story lines, too, as delineated by the fact that Covington's long time, "best" friend, a handsome cop, suddenly becomes engaged to a slinky, and in my opinion, quite suspicious female. Not a good thing, as far as Covington's concerned, but a very good thing for increasing tension and conflict within the protagonist. It also, again, leaves the reader questioning. Will he really go through with the marriage?

Third, Savage takes us on a "who's really who" journey; i.e., one day, Pinky's dead, and the next day he's not. Back and forth, back and forth, until we don't know who Pinky is at all. In fact, he might even be Covington's father. Now that's twisted! And worse, who really is the bad guy? Or is "it" a girl? Only Savages mind can unwind that mess.

The Plot Block

Our “original” house, at its most basic level, is a copy of other men’s work. For example, it is a ranch style house with a large front porch. Because you have seen many such houses (built by innumerable men and women), you have a good idea of what my house looks like; and yet, at the same time, you have no idea. You don’t yet know what pitch of roof we’ve chosen, how many windows we built into it, or even what color the siding is. Or, is there siding at all? What if we chose brick? These, and so many other details are still a mystery to you, yet they are what makes our house “ours.”

So it is with plots. Every story is a copy of another man’s work. The trick is to mix and match the details to meet your character’s specific interests, needs, and desires.

Don’t believe me? Consider these examples:
1. The Harry Potter series oozes with mythic characters and mythic journeys.
2. Several episodes of the television series, “Home Improvement,” were based off plots introduced in the earlier sitcom, “The Cosby Show.”
3. The classic novel, “Jane Eyre” is a twist on the fairytale, “Beauty and the Beast.”
4. “Rebecca,” another, more recent classic novel, has elements of both “Jane Eyre” and “Beauty and the Beast.”
5. Mary Higgins Clark’s novel, “A Cry in the Night” is based on the original tale of “The Little Mermaid.”

Still don’t believe me? Then you must be one of those writers who has to watch and see and sweat out the truth on your own. But that’s okay. There’s much of that “do-it-yourself” characteristic in every writer. That’s how we improve. How we create that story that is explicitly our own.

Happy copying.