What happens through the bulk of a scene is not really something which can be easily taught, because, as I mentioned earlier, the bulk of a scene relies heavily on other aspects of writing. However, there is one aspect of a scene which belongs in its own category, which is how the scene ends. You might think that how a scene ends is just as difficult to generalize as what happens in the scene, but in fact there are only four possible ways for a scene to end, all in relation to a character’s goals in the scene. The four results are: “Yes”, “Yes, but…”, “No”, and “No, and furthermore…”.
Essentially, there four possibilities depend on two aspects of the scene. The first is whether or not the characters achieve their goals. Obviously, if they do, then the scene ends in a “Yes” or “Yes, but…”, and if the don’t, then the scene ends with a “No”, or “No, and furthermore…”. However, there is another difference between these endings, depending on whether or not the characters actions have resulted in some other consequence which they must now react to. If the characters are not forced to react, then the answer is a straight “Yes” or “No”, and if something occurs which the characters must respond to, the scene ending is a “Yes, but…” or “No, and furthermore…”. Read more…
This is another excellent tip that I am stealing from Jim Butcher. The essential premise, is that every story can be broken down and summarized into two sentence, even the longest, most complicated works. The basic format looks like this, with the words in brackets being replaced by parts of the story.
[When something happens],[the protagonist(s)][pursues the overarching goal of the plot]. But will he/she/they succeed when [the antagonist(s)][pursues a goal contrary to the protagonist’s goal]?
The most notable feature of this structure is that the final sentence is completed with a question mark. Why a question mark? Because it simulates the basic suspense of the timeline and plot which will keep your readers turning the pages until the very end of the story. There should always be doubt that your protagonists will overcome the antagonists in the end. In some stories the protagonists are actually defeated (Alan Moore’s Watchmen is a fine example). Read more…
Having already discussed sequels, I want to talk a little about their counterparts, scenes. The simple definition of a scene is the part of the story where the “action” of the story takes place. That said, this doesn’t really tell us much. In particular, we need to know what kind of action actually makes a scene a scene. Sequels can contain action, just like scenes can, but they have other defining qualities that set them apart. The question is whether there is a similar way to distinguish scenes from the rest of a story. If anything, I would argue that scenes, considered broadly, contain a particular kind of action, where characters pursue the goals they established in the previous sequel.
Scenes themselves are not really subject to many problems, but they are often greatly affected by other aspects of a story, such as pacing and motivation. The only severe problem has to do with the essence of a scene, the goals of characters. One of two things can go wrong with a goal. First, the writer can fail to actually give their characters goals to pursue. This sounds really basic, I know, but every writer falls victim to this occasionally, including myself. I also think that this is often the cause of writer’s block. When a writer feels blocked by a story, it is usually because they don’t know what their characters should do next. The only way to solve this problem is to get to know your characters better so you understand what is at stake for them in the story. Read more…
I first want to distinguish between a character’s goals and a character’s motivation, because, while they are related, they are not the same thing. All characters have goals, in the same way that all people have desires. In fact, with some hesitance, I would equate the two. I hesitate really only because of a reluctance to carry the baggage the concept desires drags along with it, but that is beside the point. A character with a goal has some idea of how some aspect of the world should be, and they want to modify the world so that it reflects that ideal.
A character’s motivation is different, and requires two things. First, in order to be motivated, the character must have some sort of “pressure” being exerted upon them to act with a certain end in mind. However, this pressure alone is not enough. The character must also have a means by which they can accomplish that end, for the character to actually be motivated towards that end. Read more…
