What are you writing?

Last week we looked at how to start writing your novel. This week we will discuss some of the ways you can tell your story.

Remember that it is your story – how you choose to tell it and what you decide to include in it are choices that only you can make. Some of these choices will be conscious decisions, others may be subconscious. For obvious reasons, I will focus on the conscious decisions.

·       What is your story about?

·       Who is your story about and who is telling it?

·       How many main characters do you have?

·       Is your story character-based or plot-based?

·       What do you want people to think about while they read and after they finish the story?

·       How can you ensure that readers understand the meaning of your story?

Plot

It is frequently said that character + conflict = plot.

Conflict includes all the challenges and dilemmas your character will face in the story. Imagine your character under pressure.

·       How do they react?

·       What choices do they make?

·       Will they stand up for themselves or for someone else?

The answers to these questions are the bones of your story or scene. They are your plot.

It might be easiest to see your plot as a triangle.

First we have the beginning, where the characters and world are introduced and we learn what the character wants. Traditionally a story has three acts and in each of these tension will be built until it reaches a climax at or near the end of the act. By the end of the first act, the hero faces a challenge or decision that could set them off in a different direction and give them a new goal.

We often begin by depicting our character’s old life (status quo). The character is called to adventure (of some kind) in the first act. Conflict occurs. Perhaps the character is afraid to face whatever that conflict may be – the “reluctant hero”. They might meet someone who helps them overcome those fears – a “mentor”. Eventually the hero must decide to act, or action must be forced upon them. Without action there is no plot.

The second act can be visualised as the second line of our triangle. Here your character will then face tests and enemies, and find allies along the way. These trials will lead them to their most difficult task or most dangerous enemy, at the end of the second act. They may hit rock bottom only to discover previously unknown inner strength. Like Jonah they are in the belly of the beast. When this life-or-death challenge is overcome the hero will receive their reward, but we still have the final act to go.

At the start of act three, the hero may encounter another problem, a “road block” which temporarily prevents them from completing the journey and returning home. There may be vengeful forces at work, angry that the hero succeeded and claimed their reward. There may be a jealous ex, a toxic parent, a past trauma that resurfaces. This is the time where, if we are to have a happy ending, the hero must be reborn somehow, or cleansed of their sins, in order to return home with their prize.

If you study stories you have enjoyed and successful films you have watched, you will see how similar the plot structures are. The pattern seems to resonate within most of us. That is why it works.

Characters

Three is the magic number for central characters. If your story sags under the weight of too many individuals, try bringing the strongest three into the foreground and concentrate your story around them.

There are some guidelines about ensuring characters are not muddled in the readers’ minds. It is advisable to give them distinct names. Avoid naming them John, Jane and Janet. Using the same first letter for multiple names can create confusion.

You should know your characters inside out. Their decisions and actions create the story, so you should understand their motivations and habits. But that doesn’t mean you need to burden the reader with all this knowledge. Keep character cards and refer back to them to ensure consistency.

Readers expect the characters to grow during a story. Everyone loves a good character arc. If you’re putting your character through hell for the entertainment of others, you can also allow them to learn and grow during the course of the novel.

Narration

Whose story are you writing and who is telling that story? If the narrator is the main character, only include the outwardly observable behaviour of other characters.

If you find that too limiting, you can have multiple narrators and switch between them with new chapters or scene breaks. Or your narrator could be an omniscient observer who knows everyone’s inner secrets and is willing to share them with the reader.

Decide, early in the writing process, who is telling the story. It will save you months of rewriting later.

Settings

(and reinforcing your themes and/or plot through setting)

There’s a joke about Literature students that I’ll paraphrase. A teacher asked their students what the writer meant when they said the curtains were blue. The diligent students suggested numerous reasons: a reflection of the character’s melancholy or reinforcement of their masculinity. The keenest, but least imaginative, wrote to the author and asked. The author replied that the curtains could have been any colour, but they chose blue.

When you describe your settings, readers will assign meanings to the decisions you make. Maybe you subconsciously chose blue because of an association – some culturally shared reason – that you weren’t consciously aware of, or maybe the curtains are just blue.

But if settings hold power, playing with them consciously can add layers of meaning to your story. A well-described setting will draw the reader into your tale and make it feel more real for them. Rather than simply telling us the curtains are blue, you could allow the reader to feel and smell them, creating a more immersive experience.

 “The heat in the street was terrible: and the airlessness, the bustle and the plaster, scaffolding, bricks, and dust all about him, and that special Petersburg stench, so familiar to all who are unable to get out of town in summer—all worked painfully upon the young man's already overwrought nerves. The insufferable stench from the pothouses, which are particularly numerous in that part of the town, and the drunken men whom he met continually, although it was a working day, completed the revolting misery of the picture.”  

From Crime and Punishment, by Fyodor Dostoevsky.

Character-based vs plot-based

A character-based story can have little plot.  Some writers simply show how their characters behave and respond to one another. Some focus on how the characters feel about their lives. If there is a plot, it is driven by the foibles or flaws of the central character. Rather than allowing circumstances to determine how the character behaves, the character’s belief system or morals direct the action. Character-based stories are found commonly in literary fiction. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger is one example.

A plot-driven narrative emphasises the plot or story. Character development often takes second place to an exciting tale in these books. Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens would be a fine example.

Alternatively, you can focus equally on plot and character. Many bestsellers balance the two ends of the spectrum.

Conclusion

Characters, plot and setting are the tools we use to ensure our readers understand what the story is about. Neglecting any of these parts, if done consciously, can allow you to produce something unique and avant garde. However, best sellers and well-loved novels are rarely avant garde. If you ensure each aspect of your story is as strong as possible, you are likely to create something lasting and beautiful that readers will love.

Next week

We will be covering style, including perspective (briefly mentioned this week under narration), language, tenses and chapter lengths.

If you have any questions feel free to ask in the comments below.

Resources used this week - Crime and Punishment Fyodor Dostoevsky, Creative Writing Linda Anderson, and The Writers Journey Christopher Vogler.

Previous lesson | Take your next step

Carmilla Voiez is a horror and fantasy author. Her novels have been published by indie publishing companies including Vamptasy Publishing, CHBB and Stone Circle Publishing and her short stories have been included in anthologies by Crystal Lake Publishing, Clash Books, Weird Punk Books, Stitched Smile, Siren Magazine, and Dragones Mecanicos. She has a first-class degree in creative writing and English language, a diploma in proofreading and editing, and is a member of the Chartered Institute of Editors and Proofreaders.