Writing Better Part 4

STORY ELEMENTS

CRAFTING SCENES

The most interesting fictional characters are those that get themselves into real jams by doing things. The most interesting scenes are those that show the character discovering how to fix the mess, and allow the reader to participate in the process of discovery. The scene is the essential structural element of stories and novels, and is defined as, "A dramatic unit of action that features a character or characters speaking/acting/interacting, and that is delineated by a shift in time or place, or the entrance or exit of a character." A good scene will do at least one of three things:

01) Enrich character;

After a strong start from first person point of view, pull back and give descriptive details regarding the setting, as well as some background. Naming specifics is more attention getting than being vague. If a character walks into a room full of knick-knacks, don’t write, "She walked into a room full of knick-knacks." Instead, write, "The profusion of pewter and ceramic figurines set on shelves covering every square inch of wall space overwhelmed her."

As you set your scenes with specifics, don’t neglect the senses beyond sight. Smell is the most often overlooked sensory detail, but it speaks most directly to our emotions and recollections.

And don’t let your scenes be static. In describing smells, write, "The breeze carries…," rather than, "It smells like…." Let verbs do some of the work of scene setting for you, using action rather than exposition to paint scenes.

HOW TO DRAMATIZE A SCENE

01) Use lots of dialog;

02) Create dialog which characterizes people and relationships;

03) Interrupt dialog with gestures and small actions;

04) Set the scene for visualization.

The more important the scene to the plot, the more readers will want to witness it directly, and the more it should be dramatized.

DETAILS

Explanations stand still; stories need to move. Give each scene a single focus, and create a context for each emotion.

CREATING CONFLICT

To have a story, you have to have conflict, and really great conflicts begin with powerful antagonists. If you want to beef up the conflict, beef up the opposing force.

Three guidelines:

01) In act one, get your protagonist up a tree;

02) In act two, throw rocks at him;

03) In act three, get him down.

But if you want it to really work, make it a tall tree, get him out there on skinny, cracking branches, and throw bigger and sharper rocks harder and faster.

COMPELLING STORY ELEMENTS

What makes a story compelling depends on the intended audience. When writing for "Penthouse Letters", sex sells; for "Seventeen", think boy bands and preparing for college. Having some ideas on the audience before starting your story will go a long way toward guiding it in the right direction.