I understand that there are many people who want to know what an artist’s ‘process’ looks like. Personally, I can’t think of anything more snore-inducing, possibly because my own process seems so ordinary to me. At least, until recently. Let me cover the latest wrinkle.
I read a lot – including, but not limited to – books about the craft of writing. Some are fun, some are weird, some are just boring – this tends to mirror my opinion of their authors. If you read these kinds of things as well, pick your own favorites. But one book I’ve been reading lately has been stinging me – if it continues to do so, I may have to buy a copy. The name of the book is Save the Cat! Writes a Novel, by Jessica Brody. Ms. Brody claims not to be a ‘plotter’ or a ’pantser’, but she is definitely a believer in formalized strategy. It seems to work for her. So far, so good. But some of the particular points of her strategy make me want to slap myself.
She breaks up all scripts into three acts (uh-oh) and starts off by explaining how to build a hero character. The reader needs to see the hero prior to the Catalyst point, living normally but in need of a change. The hero should have something they want (extrinsic goal) and something they need (intrinsic goal – what my acting coaches called the subtext). Oy. I am kicking myself having to learn this stuff all over again, 40 plus years later. She goes on, basically explaining how to build a standard screenplay, with all the bells and whistles. This should be no surprise, as that’s where she got the Save the Cat! format. She was a screenwriter first. Two points to Ms. Brody.
Looking at my own work, I can see where I dropped the ball. I didn’t have a clear picture of my protagonists built up, partially because I failed to go through my acting exercises and make sure they were solid. Having all the information and subtext in place would have given me clear direction for writing. When goals and subtext are strong and clear, you have to work pretty hard to write a wimpy character. I didn’t have too many problems in ‘Soul Surgery’ because most of that stuff was included in my original synopsis of the story. I just had to iron out a few details. But with ‘Journey’ (working title) and especially with ‘Icarus Falling’, I lost my hero somewhere in the sawdust. In the case of ‘Icarus’, I even lost the story – which is why I’m going to start it from scratch a fourth time. ‘Journey’ just needs fleshing out. Major. Fleshing out.
Ms. Brody goes on to talk about the ‘beats’ in the script (another nod to screenwriting) and talks about ‘rising’ and ‘falling’ action, ‘false victories’ and all the other milestones on the way to the climax. The beat just prior to the climax is even called ‘All Is Lost’ – where the ‘bad guys’ achieve what looks to be a crushing victory. Then the hero goes through a ‘Dark Night of the Soul’ and finally learns his main lesson (fulfilling the subtext) and turns the tables on the bad guys. She goes on to say that the bad guys don’t necessarily have to be physical enemies – it can be the hero’s own dark side.
The dumbest thing about this whole business is that I already knew all this stuff – I just forgot it. I feel ashamed. I very nearly ruined two – and possibly more – stories because I forgot the simplest rules for writing them. I will do better, now.
I went back over the first few pages of ‘Journey’ yesterday. They feel really thin now – in fact, I see no reason why anyone would be interested in this guy, initially. That’s not fair – not fair to the character. I’m planning on adding a minimum of four or five pages to the opening, and Lord knows how much more to the rest of the book. Partly, I’m doing this to make the characters more believable, but I also need to add in a lot more description. My characters very often feel like they’re sitting or walking in a fog – there are no defining marks or sounds or smells to put my readers into the scene. I’m still likely to keep things pretty sparse, however. I dislike long scene descriptions – I consider it ‘purple prose’ and I avoid it.
The upshot is, I continue to screw up, but I also continue to learn how to do my job. I suppose that’s the best path – to continue to learn despite my ridiculous hubris and mistaken assumptions. One ‘a these here days, I’m gonna learn how ta’ write good. I just need to stay open to correction and apply what I’m learning. Thank you, Ms. Brody. My journey continues.
Be well,
bcd
P.S. – I apologize for the over-long time between posts. I’m taking steps to correct this. Thank you for your patience.