What Really Matters

Whatever your beginning idea is, whether it be an specific event, a concept, or a scene, you can begin expanding your story why looking for its significance in the eventual scheme of things. And when we talk about significance here, we're looking at it from the point of view of a character.

This character may end up as your main character (if you haven't thought of that already), or as a major supporting character. All the fiction writing books will tell you that character lies at the heart of a potentially good story, because characters will be the middlemen between the reader and the fictional world you've created.

Finding the significance of your idea is crucial, because it will help you define its importance in the psyche of one or more characters. If the importance of your idea is significant to your character, you will then have the basis for conflict, the stuff that drives your story forward.

Here's how. If your beginning idea is a:

1) An action scene: identify the reason for this conflict, and why this reason is important to the parties involved.

2) A concept: identify a character's view of this concept, whether the character accepts this concept or rejects it, and why this acceptance or rejection is important to the character.

3) A setting: same as concept

4) A character: identify what is most important to the character.

5) An ending: identify who wins and who loses, and determine why one character considers the ending a triumph, and why the other character considers the ending a defeat. In short, what is the importance of the ending to the characters.

Finding out the importance of your idea in the eyes of a character enables you to set-up challenges to your character. If you know what's important to a character, you'll know what will be considered a threat. If the threat is sizeable, you know that your character has enough motivation to act on it.

And then you have potential grounds for conflict.

When you begin threshing out your story, do start with a Values Profile of your characters. You don't have to do the whole biography, at least not yet. A Values Profile is a simple list of things that are important to your character, and rank them as tightly as possible. For instance, your character may have the love of a spouse, kids, praise from the boss, and peer respect as part of his Values Profile. When you rank these, you're giving the character priorities, as well as points for potential conflict. You can decide that peer respect is actually more important than kids, or that praise from the boss is more important than peer respect, allowing you to color your character in different ways.

If fact, you can create more than one character from this Values Profile, which each character having different priorities. From this alone, you can tell that they'll react differently when something happens.

After you've done your rankings, add notes to explain them. Why does this character see this aspect as more important than the other? This is the chance for you to create rough character histories which you can add to or expand later on.

Again, write down your idea. Determine its importance. Create a character who will uphold it. Explain.

In the next blog post, I'll share the core unit of every story, allowing you to plot anything from short stories to epics. (Heheheheh... I know... please indulge me. I hold the right to be inaccurate.)

Structure Solved!!

These past months, I’ve been studying writing on and off. That includes reading, an activity that I’m not too used to except when the material in question is non-fiction. In an issue of Psychologies magazine, the author of Everything Is Illuminated said that he, too, didn’t read much fiction. He likened it to that joke about a gynecologist whose wife wanted to “do stuff” one night, to which the gynecologist replied, “If I ever have to see one of those things again…” or something to that effect.

I’ve invested in a few writing books, and have scoured the Web for articles about writing. Some were great, others were good—only one proved useless to me. Thankfully, the issue about story structure and constructing a solid plot has cleared up, and now I’m putting what I’ve learned about it into practice. It’s not as difficult as I had thought, though it can get tedious for the ambitious. And I like being ambitious to the point of self-sacrifice.

In expanding a story idea, the structure is the best place to start!

For those who still find story structure a mystery, here’s what I learned. I may not be entirely correct on this one but, then again, my resources have been inconsistent as to what plot and theme really are. So I guess I have pseudo-license to make my own interpretation as to what story structure is. It works for me, so maybe it’ll work for you, too.

Story structure, to me, is the skeleton of the story. Literally, a structure. It’s not what finally appears on the page, nor is it the draft. Story structure is the device authors use to make sure there are no loose ends, no plot holes, no inconsistencies in the details of the story. The story structure is the plan, where every detail, connection, and conflict is laid-out, offering authors the opportunity to create rich, multi-leveled stories. It also gives an author an opportunity to track what’s going on during a certain point in the story’s timeline.

To create a structure for your story, it’s as simple as filling in the blanks, and as complex as breathing life to Frankenstein’s monster. The structures of fairy tales are pretty much linear and simplistic, while those of epics like Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings demand more intense mental acrobatics.

When you have a germ of a story idea, you’ll have any of the following in mind depending on what has inspired you.

1. A premise or concept
2. One or more characters
3. An ending
4. Notable scenes
5. A setting

In my case, I usually get hit first by a few scenes playing out in my head, like a movie trailer. I can imagine others having a few interesting concepts for characters to start with, while some might have been inspired by a place and thought it would be a great setting for a story. Whatever you have in mind, the objective is to create a web surrounding your ideas, a web that will contain all the answers, bordered by your story’s beginning and ending.

In my next blog entry, I’ll run through the steps to make the web. Have to get some writing done.

2007 Man Asian Literary Prize

If any of you folks are in Asia and happen to have a novel in the works, you may want to join the Man Asian Literary Prize, which will award excellence to unpublished English (original or translated) novels from Asian authors:

This major new literary prize aims to recognise the best of new Asian literature and to bring it to the attention of the world literary community. A distinguished panel of judges selects a single work of fiction to be awarded the prize each year. Works submitted for consideration must not yet be published in English, although they may have been published in other languages.

The prize was initiated through Man Group plc, a leading global financial services firm based in London, and the Hong Kong Literary Festival, the premier event of its kind in Asia.

For details, visit their website.

Structure Struggle

So...

I've now been reading up on story structure, and I realize that it's both a simple and complex subject, and pretty elementary. Strangely, the few writers I've consulted on the subject couldn't give me a clear answer.

It may be hypocritical to say that I haven't been doing a lot of writing. Apart from the fact that I'm swamped with too many activities, I'm of that mindset that I need to be comfortable with the concepts before pursuing the craft. I've written a few pieces, and I know I have a way of putting words together that sometimes surprise me. So before I continue, I'm undergoing that process of discovering the basics. What is what, how does this go, when do I use what, etc.

Anyway, this is all part of a grander plan. Whether or not I'll reach my goal is anybody's guess. But I'm working on it, and if I subscribe to more esoteric concepts, I open myself up to claim my goal. I am a writer, a damn good one at that, but right now I'm warming up.

Heheheheh.

Questions to All the Writers

1. Where do you get your story ideas? What's the most common set of circumstances that lead you to that big light bulb?

2. Do you have a "writing notebook" where you jot down notes, sample dialogue or vignettes?

3. If you have multiple story ideas, do you work on them at the same time, or a fgew at a time? Or do you focus on one and one alone?

4. How many people do you give first dibs at a reading? Or do you trust your instincts and forward it immediately to your editor?

Thanks!

Deciphering Skeletons: On Story Structure

I have no formal creative writing training. So far, my creative writing efforts are borne more from instinct than any technical foundation. In any art form, there is supposed to be some kind of technical foundation from which one can build a font of artistic expression.

One of the things that has left me dumbfounded is "structure." What is structure in writing stories?

Some resources call structure the skeleton of the story. Think of it as a net or woven tapestry, wherein each of its parts is a facet of the story. A good story structure has all the parts of the net tightly connected. Sounds simple enough, right?

My challenge has always been looking at stories from a structural point of view. I read a story or view a film or watch a play, and I just use my gut feel to judge whether the story is good or bad. When it "doesn't feel right," I wouldn't know how to explain. It's a real conversation killer, believe me. In my circles, it's usually not enough to say I like or I don't like what I saw.

I am aware that writing a story comes in stages. Think plot. Think characters. Think theme. Think treatment. Think execution. Then piece these together to make sure that there are no loose ends, that everything gels cleanly.

I wish there was some online guide that can take me through the process, particularly in analyzing structure. I've discovered that the software Dramatica Pro has the companion book, The Dramatica Theory, which offers a new way of looking at story structure. I'm thinking that to be a good start.

Writing Practice: "I have to tell you something"

Joshua turned the radio off as the deejay announced the next song. He didn't feel like listening to Mariah sing about making it through the rain. Manilow already did that two decades ago, he thought, and in a much better way.

The storm raged all day. It had snuck in through the backdoor, suddenly making a southwest detour just when everyone up north had umbrellas and raincoats prepared, and everything was suddenly wet and windy. Joshua got caught in a freak downpour on his way home from work. And being one of hundreds drenched mercilessly that afternoon was of no comfort to him. He didn't want to be any more ill than he already was.

It was only last night when Stacy said again, "I have to tell you something." Whenever she'd do that, Joshua would feel that emotional click deep in his chest, a safety net for some kind of bad news. If it isn't her going out of town to visit her parents--her ex-boyfriend lived just across the street--it would be about one of her many dreams of having a baby, with Joshua not being the father. He had wanted to propose to her many times before, but her strange subconscious fixations on other men disturbed him.

* * *

Again, last night. "I have to tell you something, Joshua."

Stacy was on the other end of the phone, and Joshua caught the familiar monotone she'd use over and over.

"Remember that dream I had about having a baby with this man I've never met?"

"Maybe," Joshua answered. "You've dreamt about having four babies with four men you've never met."

"Well, I did meet him... one of them. Yesterday afternoon."

Joshua didn't know whether to hang up, hang himself, or laugh. "So you met a guy, presumably in the rain, and you swear you've dreamt about having a baby with him."

"Yes, his name's Bob."

Thunder rumbled.

Bob? Joshua thought. The man of my girlfriend's dreams is named Bob? "So what are you trying to tell me?"

"I just want to tell you not to worry. I didn't tell him that I had a dream of having sex with him--he'd think I was nuts, right? He had an umbrella, I didn't. He offered to take me across the street, and I agreed. He introduced himself before we parted, and that was that."

"You're not breaking up with me?"

Stacy let out a silly chuckle. "Hell, no! I'm just sharing what happened to me! I used to think that it was all hogwash. You know, meeting someone from a dream. While he was walking away, I just smiled. It was silly and wonderful and odd and exciting and all that..."

Joshua just let her talk for the next few minutes, allowing her to unload the pent-up exuberance. Joshua would find it charming on a normal day.

* * *

Almost noon, and the storm showed no sign of letting up. The weatherman--bless his soul for his confidence--said the storm should make its way out of the city by the next morning.

Joshua's mailbox bled bills. More for the collection, he thought, though some of the neatly-enveloped brochures and notices had wet spots from the rain, while others had creasemarks from careless stuffing. The mailman must have been in a hurry.

Out of habit, he separated the mail by logo--credit card, credit card, coupons, phone, magazine subscription, credit card. Those he couldn't outrightly identify he tossed into a large box beside his computer table. Above the box was a wide cork board on which he created a collage of other unidentifiable mail, a blanket of tacked-on glossy documents that had no clear creative sense of logic save whim.

The phone bleeped, disturbing his ritual. Joshua plopped the rest of his mail on his computer table, grumbling to himself over the disturbance of his peace, when he had the sudden urge to look at his collage. He stepped back about ten feet from the right by four-foot board, and surveyed his handiwork like a critic to a painting.

And then he thought of Stacy. It reminded him of Stacy, the collage. Or was it more about the three-year relationship that seemed to have no direction and yet, strangely, seemed to compound in chaotic beauty? In there were the vibrant colors, the myriad textures, the prickle pegs of tacks and clips, the cascading sheets that seemed endlessly falling yet frozen.

By the time he turned away to get to the phone, the ringing stopped. But Joshua wanted to answer it, hoping to hear her voice again, rattling about something he had wanted to tell him. He could always call back, he thought. He always could.

The clock signalled 7:30 am, accompanied by the soft rumble of thunder. It was then that Joshua realized that he wanted to tell her something, too.

Writing Software: Storyweaver and Dramatica Pro

Has anybody tried Storyweaver or Dramatica Pro?

Based on my Web research, entailing hours of fluid-draining browsing, Storyweaver (US$29.95) is one of the bestselling writing software in the market. It claims in its website that it can "cure writer's block or your money back," a very strong and confident statement.

Then there's the more expensive Dramatica Pro (US$99.95), presumably the more complex predecessor of Storyweaver.

I downloaded the trial versions and I must say that I'm more inpressed with the detail Dramatica Pro takes you through in piecing a complete story. Storyweaver isn't as complex, but has enough to get your creative juices flowing within a logical framework.

These two packages take you through the process of putting a story together. They ask you loads of questions about your story and help you make important connections as far as plot, character, conflict and theme go. Dramatica Pro is more comprehensive, however, with its numerous (and initally confusing) options and backup information. Once you're done, you can print out your work as an invaluable reference to the different turning points you'll encounter as you write the actual story. Storyweaver and Dramatica Pro compiles your input into a nicely formatted document.

These software packages do not teach you how to write, nor do they write for you. They do the most important job of any storywriting endeavor--preparation.

To get Storyweaver or Dramatica Pro, as well as other writing software, click here.

The Complex Britney Spears...

...Or should the title be The Britney Spears Complex?

When she first burst into the scene with the 1998 chart-topping Baby One More Time, Britney was a tween dream. She epitomized the popular girl who was just like any other girl. She was pretty and looked real sweet, but she can sing songs like Sometimes and Oops, I Did It Again, thus serving as a mirror and template for millions of young prepubes who believed that they can look as good as the pop princess and yet have their emotional whirlwinds on occasion. This, complete with nice dance moves and hot boys doing backup.

Spears' studio albums, while dutifully reaching platinum as needed, don't hold that kind of lasting pop classic quality that Madonna's Like A Virgin or Michael Jackson's Bad possessed. Like majority of pop stars, Britney Spears could have well been a manufactured act that filled a demographic's unaddressed needs.

Still, Britney Spears as a brand succeeded. Apart from selling over 150 million copies of her albums worldwide, there's the doll, the perfumes, the fashion fads, and so on. I confess that my pop ditty guilty pleasures include Toxic, I'm a Slave 4 U, Me Against the Music, Everytime, and Anticipating. In short, she's filthy rich in her early 20s and, by the way things are going, she's paying a huge amount of taxes. And I don't mean the IRS.

No one can really know what it's like filling her shoes, to be thrust into the limelight so young and earning a gazillion dollars before hitting 20. When people around the world know your name and, worse, who you're fighting with, who you're suing, who you're sleeping with. Her teen queen rival Christina Aguilera may not have been as ridiculously successful, but I think "Baby Jane" Xtina is living the better life. Both may be married now, but it's Britney Spears-Federline who's marred big time.

I remember Mariah Carey's career-turning breakdown. And we all know how odd Michael Jackson seems at times. My friend and I would joke that Britney Spears may well be the next victim of this classic cuckoo formula. Because when you're young, when your sense of reason is barely honed, when you don't know what true trust is all about, when you've barely enjoyed a normal and private life and when receiving multi-million dollar paychecks aren't 100% your coherent choice to begin with, where are the escape clauses? Where is your privacy tent, your papparazzi shield?

Pretty soon, Britney's kids will be wondering why people criticize their mom so much. They'll notice the unfriendly cameras flashing. And they'll start to read the magazine articles and ask questions. It should have been fairly easier for Madonna's kids--their mom grew from rags to riches, became classy-artsy and eventually made bestselling children's books. Overall, the Material Girl coughed up blood to get to where she is. But Britney has yet to do something significant to pass on the pride.

At this point, however, how can she? She's the pop princess--a little girl, still--who suddenly declared to the world that she's all grown up and had proven so with a two-day marriage, who has yet to display her maturity through her music, and who had stumbled and almost dropped her baby. It's complex, Mrs. Federline. We're afraid you don't yet realize how complex it is.