Writing Basics – Plotting II – Getting Down and Dirty with My Antag

This weekend I put aside some time to start into Book 2 of THE MESSENGERS. Autumn (one of my characters) has been pestering me about continuing with the series, especially since she has a little more page-time in this book. After a few words – oh maybe 20 of them – I recognized that I was going nowhere fast. Generally on good writing days I can knock out 1000-3000 words.  And sometimes I’ll run out of time for the day, but will put in another set the next day, and the next until 15,000 words are in the computer smiling back at me.

But I was looking at 20, and they weren’t smiling. They were laughing. They did that low rumble in the stomach to a full shrill burst-over-the-top pointing at you gut buster. So I did what I always do – Take a walk.

 

Walking frees my mind and helps me to unwind. Unfortunately it was 50 degrees outside, fortunately it wasn’t the 40 degrees that the weather people said it would be a few days prior. As I was going along, it dawned on me. My Antag was staring at me with one eye brow raised in the air and a palm turned up. “What’s my motivation?” My Antag asked. That’s why I was stuck. ( Read about the importance of Antag’s here.)

Now came the hard part, the reasoning of the bad behavior. Was the Antag mistreated? Unloved? Too loved? Did they run into problems early in life? Will their feelings be a surprise maybe even to them? Why do they hate? And hate so much to hurt another human being or system? (Remember you can hate and go into a shell – like many Red Herrings do.)

After three miles, I understood the motivation. Basically what I came up with was that … Hold on, I’m not telling. You have to wait for the book. :-)  I made it home and turned on my computer. It was time to do more homework – yes  more homework. I spent the rest of the day looking up everything from pictures of actors to fashion styles to weapons. I need to know what my Antag looks like, and how they plan to do their deed. Once I was satisfied, I went to watch the Indianapolis Colts lose to New England Patriots. Yes I watch football, and yes I wanted the Colts to win.

I took a break to let my brain breathe and let my subconscious create the character. I need for my Antag to talk to me in a voice just as strong as the Protag. In fact, I prefer that it’s stronger. Once that process is complete, I can rework any problems in the master plan to destroy/takeover. While I’m doing this, I try not to consider my Protag much at all. It doesn’t matter what they can and cannot do. What matters is what makes since for the Antag.  Once that’s done, we call in a mediator for the Antag and Protag to work through any issues and finalize the plotting of the Antag’s scheme.
So let’s use Felicia’s Antag from the last blog post – Mr. Furrytails.

Mr. Furrytails is a simple guy. He wants power and money. He’s currently working on a deal to remove two groups of werewolves from the city. He believes that if he can get rid of them, it’ll open up more commerce for his team to control. But to make this power move is risky and could cost him his life. But if it works, He’ll control all of the assets from Atlanta to Savannah to Williamsburg to Jacksonville. Basically all of the major trade in Georgia and the Carolinas.

When he finds out about Felicia, he doesn’t want much. He just wants her to come and pledge her allegiance to him. She’ll now be one of the many “controllable” powers in his territory. But Felicia’s mom gets in the way and that is a problem. The last thing he needs is anyone throwing off the balance of power or worse tipping off the heads of the Were-Families he’s working against.
So how does this show up in your book?

We know Furrytails attitude.
We know where he’s going to be and what he’s trying to do.
We know how many henchmen he’ll need to do the work.
We know his contacts.
We know his strengths – in resources and otherwise.
We know enough about him for his to affect our Protag.

Now that I know where my Antag will be and what they will be doing. I know how they affect the Protag(s). This movement of the Antag forces the hand of the Protag which creates story.  Hope this helps someone. Thanks a bunch for reading.

Writing Basics - Plotting

Now that character is out of the way, or at least a broad scope of ways to create realistic characters, we can move on to plotting. Plotting is simply the series of events that create your story. When I’ve helped other writers, I’ve noticed that plotting comes in a very close second to the problems that they face. I’ve already wrote about why your Antag is the most important character. In case you missed it, you can check it out here. (But I’d bet if nothing’s happening in your story – you haven’t sat down in the deep dark dungeon with your Antag.)

Plotting is simple. For most books and movies we use a Three or Six Act series of short stories that create the larger arc. Because I come from a movie background, I generally write a Six Act Storyline.  Below are the main items to be covered in each section.

1.       CATALYST – something in the daily life of character changes

2.       BIG EVENT – Changes the direction of story

3.       PINCH – Point of no return (Character fully committed)

4.       CRISIS – Major problem that needs to be fixed / low point

5.       SHOWDOWN/CLIMAX – When events must be put in proper order/things are fixed

6.       REALIZATION/RESOLUTION – Character has changed, achieved goals, etc

So that’s it. All done. Wow that was an easy blog post. I guess I’ll get ready for the next one. LOL

Okay, I’ll go into depth. First let’s create a character. We’ll call her Felicia and because of the name, she’ll be a cat. Everyone used to love ware animals so let’s make her a werecat. Or at least somewhere in the plot she’ll become one. Now let’s write a simple story based on that information. And we’ll see how easy it is to plot.

First I’ll turn her into a real character with Depth and Levels. This is generally a brainstorm based on what I spoke about here.

FELICIA the WERECAT

Felicia just started the 8^th grade. She’s typical height/weight. I want her to wear glasses because I think it’ll be cute and something she can grow out of. She’s not shy, but not overly outgoing. She has dark hair and a periwinkle stripe. (Why? Why not? It’s cute and cool. And I want it. [Periwinkle stripe will need backstory though. Anything out of the ordinary needs backstory]) She speaks normally. She’s not the most popular girl, doesn’t have any “real bullies” and is more of a teacher’s pet. But she’s attractive and boys do like her. Her favorite colors are periwinkle and pink (because of her hair) and she has periwinkle eyes to match her stripe. She’s white[, but (backstory) she knows her dad was not 100% white. He was of a mixed race and her mother doesn’t know everything about him]. That’s why she may have the stripe. (Something to get to in a later book, maybe?) She has a hint of detective in her. (Maybe I’m thinking too much about the girl from the books of ELSEWARE – who cares I like it.) Her smart side conflicts with her attractive side.  She has no siblings (because I don’t want to think about other kids in the house. I want the story to be about her and her mom).  And there you have it, Felicia is born. (5 minutes)

Now back to plotting… Here we go.

CATALYST – something in the daily life of character changes

PROTAG does something normal for her world. They spots something/trips over something/meets someone that makes her think differently. They goes back to their normal life, but has doubts/imagination heightened/etc.

Felicia leaves fifth period. Abby, her best friend, reminds her about the 8^th Grade Dance on Friday. They both spot Jason, Felicia’s crush. Felicia shies away from seeing him, but just then he texts her saying he hopes to see her at the party. Overjoyed she heads home, but on the way a cat follows her as she turns down a street. At the next crossways another joins. By the time she gets home 10 cats are parading behind her. Frightened she runs up stairs. Her mother tries to talk to her, but the weirdness of the day is too much and Felicia just wants to get to her studies to make sure she can go to the dance.

BIG EVENT – Changes the direction of story

PROTAG goes to event/place/new world. They see new things and are momentarily happy. Something Bad happens and they are thrown away from the old world into the new one or away from the new one back into the old one.

 

Felicia wants to go to the 8^th grade dance. It’s the “Big Event” of the fall. She picks out her dress and talks to her best friend Abby about going. Abby is a little worried that none of the boys will notice them, but Felicia is not worried about it. She’s already received two texts from Jason. Felicia starts to have stomach pains and a headache, she hopes it’s not her whatever medical problem. Her mother thinks it’s something else, but Felicia plays it off and tells her mother she’s “understands.” After all, didn’t she ace Health Class? At the Dance, Jason notices her lip appears slightly hairy like she has peach fuzz. Panicked she rushes to the hallway only to watch in horror as her body transforms. Abby and Jason arrive and can’t believe their eyes. The BULLY\FAV TEACHER arrives and makes the moment worse. Felicia runs off into the night.

 

PINCH – Point of no return (Character fully committed)

PROTAG feels bad/confused. Someone/thing appears which gives them some guidance. PROTAG learns about this new ability, and reconciles that they must take on this issue.

Felicia doesn’t know what to think. She glares into her reflection at the edge of a lake. Her mother walks up from behind her. Her mother assures her it’ll be okay. It’s her first change, but there will be others. She states that werecats are natural enemies of werewolves and if she doesn’t learn to control her new powers the werewolves may find her and kill her. Her mother starts her training to change on command and to suppress the change when needed. Abby calls her and supports her OR Maybe Abby starts dating Jason. (It’s your story figure it out LOL)

 

CRISIS – Major problem that needs to be fixed / low point

ANTAG shows up just. PROTAG is gaining mastery, but is likely to fail at some major event causing a downfall.  

Mr. Furrytails, a super-powered werewolf, learns of Felicia. He wants all werecats to report to him so that he can control them. But her mom never reported in and therefore he is angry. Mr. Furrytails attacks and kidnaps her mom. Felicia is left because they think she’s dead, or that she got away or some other “convenient” way that she’s not captured. (Or maybe she is). Felicia starts to doubt. How can she save her mom? Was it her fault?

SHOWDOWN/CLIMAX – When events must be put in proper order/things are fixed

PROTAG comes to senses. A plan is formed. PROTAG goes to the rescue and new found powers save the day. (Generally in last breath, last second, last bit of rope, etc)

Mr. Furrytails takes Felicia’s mom to his stronghold. Felicia sneaks in with the help of the 10 cats that followed her home in part one and Abby making a few phone calls. (Or use whatever secret trait you’ve given the SC). Felicia sees her mom and rescues her. But it’s not that easy. Mr. Furrytails enters. He’s amused/angry. He attacks and almost kills Felicia. At the last moment she remembers something from a previous act that seemed unimportant to the reader/viewer. She uses that to stop Furrytails. He dies, scurries off, etc.

REALIZATION/RESOLUTION – Character has changed, achieved goals, etc

Cleanup all loose ends. Prepare for next book/movie/video game storyline.

Felicia tells her mom about how she feels. She knows everything will be okay. Her mom warns Felicia that Mr. Furrytails works for a Ms. Puffinpaws and that she is extremely dangerous. Her mom says that they’ll continue training and next time, they’ll be ready.

So there it is, a quick overview of plotting. Remember an Antag can be anything including aliens or a disease. (1 hour to plot) So in 90 minutes a story and character was born. An idea with more time should be more in-depth and fun, but the core of the plotting will remain similar.

Writing Basics - Character Depth and Levels

Recently, I did a beta read for an author I met on the SCWBI board. The book wasn’t bad, but I noticed a few reoccurring issues that I felt needed to be addressed.  I sent her my analysis, and she was overjoyed in my review. (At least she put up a good front through email. :-)) I’m pretty technical, and I like to give examples so that people understand what I’m talking about. I decided it may be good to put some of the information I told her out here on the blog just in case anyone else needs it. I’m not sure how many items I’ll discuss, and I will not be using her book as reference.

The first problem I noticed was the depth of her characters.

 

Depending on who you talk to, Characters will rank either number one or number two in importance for any story. Middle Grade fiction tends to lean toward it being number one, while speculative fiction for adults leans in in at number two. (Generally from what I’ve read/seen.) But either way it, super-duper important.

 

When I read her novel, the first thing that I noticed was that I could not tell her characters apart. Even doing her write-up, I still was confused. I kept having backtrack to figure out who was who, and why they were doing xyz. The problem was she only had four of them, and one was a girl – who didn’t act or sound any different than the boys.

 

Every character in a story should be different. I’m convinced that each one, even “extras” should have their own personality. I’ve heard many stories about how authors have accomplished this in their books – so I’ve listed a few.
 

 

1. Backstory. Characters gain depth with experiences, just like people. What has happened to them shapes them. Write a couple of short stories for your characters. The stories don’t need to be long maybe a few pages. What this will do is give your characters experiences “outside” the book. It makes them seem more rounded because they will sometimes do things that aren’t expected. As the reader gets to know the character, readers will pick up on the patterns. This is also great if a book deal comes around because you can put a lot of these short stories online to gain more interest.
2. Human References. This is the one I hear the most often. Authors base characters off of someone else. Many authors in their interviews may say “I thought about this actor when I was writing” or “a lot was based on my sister.” This method works well for most projects – even screenplays. Because the writer is “casting” as they write. The problem with this method is that to get a slightly different personality, which is sometimes needed for the story, a writer may have to blend people together to create characters. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it just doesn’t.
3. Questions. I’ve heard several aspiring authors say they’ve used this method. And I’ve encouraged a few to use it as well. There are several places where you can find a list of 100 questions to ask your character. By filling in the information, it gives the author a better understanding of who the character is. The problem with this method is that it’s not organic. What if you run into a situation that the 100 questions can’t answer? Sure you know the birthday – but how will that really help you? If nothing important happened on a birthday it will not give you any answers.
4. Combination. The best IMO. Mix and match the information to give your characters multiple levels of who they are, and why they act a certain way.

 

If I’m creating a MC or Supporting my thought process is the following:

• What does this character represent to the book?
• What would I personally like to see? (Fr’ex: Do I want to add diversity / Go against stereotypes / Have some fun)
• What is the overall mood that this character will bring with them and how does that compare and contrast to what I already have? (Will this be a best friend to the MC? An informative person to the MC? An antagonist?)
• What would I like to see later from this character?
• Will I need to remove them from the storyline at some point?

 

As these ideas are forming I begin to get a mental picture of who, and what I want to see. An example in DAWN OF SHADOWS is Evan.

(Point 1) Backstory – He rescued his younger brother going, against the code of his unit. He became a Messenger by happenstance and doesn’t remember any “bad times” in his life.

(Point 2) Human References –Kid from Daddy Day Care.

(Point 3) Questions –

What does this character represent to the book? He’s supporting to the MC. He’s the first “teacher” to the MC in the ways of this world. He shows the MC a different kind of love.

 

What would I personally like to see? Evan is Black. He’s not a thug, doesn’t play sports, and doesn’t use slang. His favorite things are traveling and his brother.

 

What is the overall mood that this character will bring with them and how does that compare and contrast to what I already have? He is close to a best friend to the MC. His mood is light and fun. He is full of information and life lessons.

 

What would I like to see later from this character? I’d like to see him have his own adventure. I want to put him at odds with other characters and create separation.

 

Will I need to remove them from the storyline at some point? Debatable. He’s the type of character that you want to see win, but it could be dramatic to remove him as well.

 

So there you have it. Hope this helps someone.

A Different Type of Middle Grade Angst

Yesterday, I read about an eleven-year-old that killed an albino deer. It’s causing an Internet uproar. No matter what side anyone is on, it made me think about my Middle Grade stance that I wrote about here.

As a child/teen, the first book that I truly liked was LORD OF THE FLIES. I was a huge fan of Anime, and of American cartoons such as G.I. Joe and the original Transformers. As I watched G.I. Joe, I would laugh when the soldier inside the tank always got out before it exploded. And no one could imagine my thrill when watching Transformers the Movie (1986) when Megatron killed Autobots without mercy. But the best was when Galvatron turned Starscream into dust.

The movie had a PG rating and many parents in the US complained that it was too violent, and in the original Home Video version of the film, 2 minutes was cut. However, in Canada and other counties the movie stayed intact. When the Internet arrived, I was one of the first people to purchase the movie from Canada via ebay refusing to watch the dumbed down American version.

I think there may have been something wrong with my childhood because I didn’t see it with the same rose colored glasses as American moms. I don’t think I turned out bad, I’ve never committed a crime. Two years ago, I mistakenly ran over a rabbit with my car, and my day was ruined thinking about the death of some random wild animal. So it’s not that I don’t have any sensitivity in me. I just think when it comes to action, no matter what the age, I want it gritty and real.

Last year a friend of mine showed me an automatic weapon he had just bought for his nine-year-old son to go hunting. So, it didn’t surprise me when I read about the eleven-year-old who killed the deer. Maybe it’s a boy thing, but I don’t think so. Because girls ate up HUNGER GAMES like there was no tomorrow. And that was the most brutal book I had ever read.

So why the Angst? I don’t know – You know us boys don’t always know how to explain our feelings. It’s just something on my mind. Something that makes me want to keep writing. Something that makes me feel like so many authors are writing middle grade thinking about six and seven year olds instead of ten, eleven, and twelve year olds.

 

Why My Antagonist Is the Most Important Character in My Stories

I run into writers all the time who have this great – awesome – spectacular idea and have already created the perfect set of characters. The protagonists are witty, smart, funny, strong, brave, etc. They are everything that someone could aspire to. 

Yet, when I ask them how far they are in writing the novel/screenplay what I generally get is…

“I’m at the beginning.”

I ask, “How long have you been working on this idea?”

“Oh, one maybe two years.”

We talk about the story for a while, and after a few minutes I generally notice the problem – the same one over and over again. The writer has spent all this time creating their main characters, but the antagonist has received no love at all. Generally in follow up questions, I find out the antag is not formed yet, they are still deciding between this or that. They don’t know if it’ll be a man or woman, old or young, strong or weak. In fact, the antag has been an afterthought.

The reason why their story has sputtered and died, is simple. You don’t have an enemy, so you don’t have conflict, so you can’t have resolution. That’s why their project starts great. However the point after the MC is introduced; the writer must introduce a problem and that problem, generally created by the enemy, drives the plot.

 

I truly believe Villains are more important than heroes. A hero is simply someone waiting for a villain to do something.

Antags come in various shapes and sizes from Aliens to bacteria to animals to self-doubt. Anything that causes the protag to move is an antag. A good rule of thumb is – the more powerful that antag is, the more compelling the story. (Or at least the larger the conflict) Think about your favorite tale. It doesn’t matter what type of story it is, but I’d bet it had a great antag.

Antags come in two main varieties. What I like to define as big and little bads. A Little Bad is an antagonist that exists in part of the story but is not that important to the overall arc. Maybe it’s a wolf pack that startles the MC and forces them into a tree or the misunderstanding between two friends which makes one miss their bus.

The Big Bad is the main enemy; the one the protag has to defeat to have their happy ending. This is guy or gal that we love to hate and must spend time plotting with. This is the being that a writer sits down with and helps them figure out their diabolical plan. This is the person that your readers hate or love or whatever. And, yes this person is the inner part of your being that’s just – well – evil.
 

Remember without your antag, your main character continues with their life never deviating.