This was going to be a very sensible post about constructing a plot. I realised today, however, that the plot I was working with for my current book had ... well, I would say crashed and burned, but it was more of a splat and a wet fizzle (splizzle?). I was still in love with the first half of the book, and the final chapters, but the middle had taken a very, very wrong turn.
I tried to fix it. I really did. I battled with it all this week, trying to make it work, but sometimes when you have to try that hard it just isn't meant to be.
Why it was dreadful
1) It felt contrived. Characters were behaving in a way convenient for me, but not in the way they would naturally behave. And they started to protest, and wriggle out of the situations in which I wanted to put them.
2) A cliched character appeared on the scene. She was about as convincing as the frighteningly large cardboard figure of Arnold Schwarzenegger in our local video store. Yes, our video store has probably owned that cut-out since 1992.
3) The characters started Talking About the Plot. The kiss of death.
So the whole section has gone! I have not worked out exactly how many words have bitten the dust (am saving it for the morning, when I feel stronger), but I think it must be about 10,000.
My natural talents do not lie in the area of planning out a good plot. I'm more of a seat-of-the pants writer. I tend to start writing with a character in mind; the character speaks in my head, and I take dictation. After a while I might get a vague idea of the direction in which the story is going, and I might even find an end point for which I can aim. As I make my way further through the book, the plot emerges. This quote describes it perfectly:
“It's like driving a car at night. You never see further than your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.” - E. L. Doctorow
My first drafts are pretty messy. I throw everything onto the page as quickly as I can, trusting that it will all make sense later on. If an idea or an unexpected character pops up, I throw them in. "A murder? Sure! I'll figure out why later on." I try to finish the book before making major changes, but that is because I usually feel as if I am heading in the right direction. This time, I felt like I had made a bad decision early on that needed to be corrected before I could continue.
Why it is no longer dreadful (I hope)
I went right back to my plotting basics: starting inside a character and moving outwards. I took my protagonist, brushed him off and sat him down in front of me. I asked him these questions, just to be clear (I had asked these at the beginning of the book as well, but had lost sight of them since).
1) What do you want more than anything in the world?
2) Who and what stands in your way? Do you feel you should achieve your goal, or are you conflicted?
3) How are you going to overcome your obstacles?
4) What scares you the most?
This may sound a bit flaky, but the new plot grew out of the answers to these questions. That horrible stale, empty feeling has gone, I feel excited about this new development, and I can't wait to get started tomorrow!
19 comments:
Yay for you! I'm finding your insights into the writing process so inspiring. xx
Not being much of a writer myself (at least not in the fiction department), I am always amazed and awed at how writers work through weak points in a story! My sister writes the same way (without much of a plot outline), and I think it's one of the most interesting ways to write fiction, imho. Sometimes frustrating, but fun. ;)
Glad you were able to work the problems out!!! :)
: Ponders : I find the idea of creating realistic behaviour for the characters you create to be very interesting .
Just how much lee way can you give yourself when you consider that you are writing fiction(SP?) ?
Whew! So glad you were able to find the inspiration you needed.
Hi Andrea, Thanks for sharing! I also write to see what my characters will do next, with the same joy of discovery as reading a quality book. However, plotting is also my weakness; and the reason I have yet to finish one of my several novels-in-progress. I have many great scenes, and multiple chapters written, but I need to master overall story structure and plot. Thanks for the advice. I write from character, too, so your ideas may work for me.
It's really interessting to read all your experiences about writing and publishing a book :).
Very glad to hear you got over your block. Personally, I do need to plan a lot - I've never been good at just starting an idea and seeing where it leads - I'd get far too scared without an outline to fall back on! Bella x
I used to write, but I haven't for a while... maybe I'll get back to it one day. I do remember that the best way is to just get the first draft done and then just fix it later.
Keep going!
YES. Yes. THANK you! This sums it up. This is exactly the epiphany I had yesterday. The trudge back to square one is a burdensome task, but it has to be done. I like to think that the realisation that there is something wrong with the plot is the first big hill, and the "fixing-of-the-problem" is just the little hills in the distance, but that big hill gives you enough momentum, as long as you don't slow down. Okay, I'm done now!
hehe - splizzle!
I have to admit when I first started reading you blog I skipped past the writing stuff and concentrated on the cute outfits - gosh how shallow am I?
But once you read it the process is actually really interesting!
So thanks :)
i write the exact same way - without the headlights on - and it's so interesting to read about how you worked through it. i just get easily discouraged and set it aside.
This post was a really interesting insight, one day I would like to try and write a book myself. But I get writers block so quickly!
Hope it goes well :)
This very same thing happened to me actually with a novella I wrote in 2007. I spent months and months trying to make it work. I think it was a case of over planning because I never allowed the characters to go where they wanted, tell the story they wanted to tell, so the plot was contrived, awkward, the characters were flat, and I found myself dreading just opening the document.
It hurt so much (given how much time and energy I'd invested trying to make it work) accepting it didn't and putting it away. I still, to this day, won't allow myself to call it a failure, because I still want to rework it one day. But I've accepted that 'day' is not anytime soon. It's so hard. So hard.
And yes, to question 4) I am terrified of having this happen again, with another project. I think it's why I've held off starting another novel and have focused on short stories lately. At least if it happens in short fiction, I haven't lost so much, just a short period of time. It's easier. But yes, that scares me sooooooo much!
Rant over. Haha. XD
Very interesting post :-D I love hearing about the writing process.
Hey, know just where you're coming from...I wrote a spur of the pen novel back in 2005...just finished it! Literally had to chop it up into a thousand tiny pieces, throw it up in the air and glue it where it fell, and then it occurred to me I had no idea how the story ended. I'd thought I was being really clever and alluring, giving myself the 'you'll just have to wait and see' treatment for how it would turn out. Bad idea. Now I plan, plan, plan...just started my fifth. Admittedly, random way is more fun initially though!
this is really interesting! I love how you treat your characters.. it reminds me of the intro to my copy of Atlas Shrugged. Ayn Rand had the same process - characters live and breathe of their own accord, and your purpose is to record what happens. she writes bits about every character in her beginning notes. reading that and this post is fascinating to me.
glad you're back on the right track!
your writing process is so inspiring. im sure you write beautifully and i can't wait until your work is published so I can read it!
xoxo,
Micaela
The Doctorow quote is interesting, but he neglects to mention that driving a car in the dark is easier if you know where you're going... ;)
Plot is a bugger, huh?
Hey! Linked here by Casey, and as someone who has just finished her first (admittedly rather short) novel, I'm fascinated by the journey you're on!
Heheh, the plot woes you describe are all too familiar... though I've never tried asking my characters such blunt questions. That's an interesting idea! Usually we just yell at each other a lot until they finally tell me what I'm doing wrong.
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