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The Meaty 5 PLANNING YOUR NEXT STORY: PART 4
So far, we’ve discussed your PREMISE, the PLOT POINTS and
COMPLICATIONS, and SCENES.
Today let’s talk about determining the meat of the story which
will help define what the story is about, who the protagonist is, what he/she
wants/needs, who your audience is. Without answers to these questions, your
story might be a great idea, but will it develop into a readable story?
These 5 points were the hardest for me to define. I had the most
trouble with the THEME. It changed about fifteen times before I realized what
it was.
First, let’s look at MOTIVE. This is not your protag’s
motive, but that of the story. Here’s mine:
Tell a story set in the
far future about how a strong female deals with an oppressive, male-dominated
society.
Pretty straightforward.
Next is DESIRE. This does apply
to the protag. What is his/her biggest desire in the story? What must they
accomplish or die trying?
Mine: to be left alone to live her own life her way, to meet her
birth mother, her twin sister and be with the boy she loves without government
interference.
GOAL. Every character in the story must have a goal. Even the antag
has a goal. But here we are concerned with the protag’s goal. What drives your
character?
Mine: to get through this horrific experience, required by
the government of all girls her age but escape if she sees a chance.
CONFLICT. I know you’ve heard
this before, but it bears repeating: You don’t have a story without conflict.
There should be LOTS and LOTS of conflict in a good story. We’re talking here
about the MAIN conflict of the story and maybe one or two SUB conflicts.
Mine: Shawna’s bullying (jealous); government’s Generational
Program which is inflicted on every girl age 12-20; internal conflict about who
she is.
THEME. Like I said, this was the hardest for me. I read through
list after list of possible themes looking for the one which fit my story. I
found several, but they never seemed just right. For example, knowing
who you truly are can make you strong enough to deal with adversity. While
this is true of my character, it is not the theme of the entire story. Information
can lead to knowledge. Oppression leads to rebellion. By losing everything, sometimes
you gain a true sense of self. While all of these held a glimmer of
what the story is about, none were complete.
Then I thought of this one: Sometimes, it’s only by
staring into the abyss one finds the courage to jump across.
This fit my story in many ways, which I listed in my notes and was
pleased to see how well it fit. So don’t try on just one or two, keep looking
for the right idea until you find the one that fits.
Another interesting way of getting the theme across is the use of Symbolism.
What are some symbols you can use to establish the theme in the reader’s mind?
Mine: Rayna’s view out the window beside her top bunk is of a
narrow street and the front of another tall building. The street is so narrow
she imagines getting a running start down the central dorm aisle between the
beds and launching herself to freedom across the chasm of the street, landing
on the roof of the next building.
In the Exercise Yard, where they all go for one hour every day,
Rayna presses so hard against the chainlink fence while staring down her street
to freedom, that she become imprinted by the links on her cheeks, forehead,
shoulders and hands.
Next month, getting to know your Protagonist.
For an in-depth
discussion of these points be sure to read K.M. Weiland's Outlining Your Novel
Rebecca
Ryals Russell, a fourth-generation Floridian, was born in Gainesville, grew up
in Ft Lauderdale then lived in Orlando and Jacksonville with her Irish husband
and four children. Due to the sudden death of Rebecca's mother, they moved to
Wellborn, near Lake City, to care for her father, moving into his Victorian
home built in 1909. After teaching Middle Graders for fourteen years she
retired and began writing the story idea which had been brewing for thirty
years. Within six months she wrote the
first three books of each series, YA Seraphym Wars and MG Stardust Warriors.
The world she created has generated numerous other story ideas including two
current works in progress, SageBorn Chronicles based on various mythologies of
the world and aimed at the lower Middle Grade reader and Saving Innocence,
another MG series set on Dracwald and involving dragons and Majikals. She is
finishing a YA Dystopian Romance which has been a NaNoWriMo project for three
years. She loves reading YA Fantasy, Horror and Sci Fi as well as watching
movies. Read more about Rebecca and her
WIPs as well as how to buy books in her various series at http://rryalsrussell.com You may email her at
vigorios7@gmail.com
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