SCBWI's Roving Reporter, Lynda Calder attended Sherryl Clark's brilliant session on plotting. Here are some of the highlights from her double-session masterclass:
Sherryl Clark is a successful Australian author. She's also been teaching professional writing
at TAFE for 16 years.
Her writing coaching
agency has a new e-guide, "The Tough Guide to Why You Are Not
Published Yet". And another will come on goal-setting soon.
STRUCTURE
Why is it important? Plotting is just what
goes on top of the structure. The structure is a house's frame. The plot is the
cladding. You cannot plot effectively without
understanding good structure. And a simple structure could have a myriad of
plots put over the top. A lot of books are about structure for screen plays.
BUT the screen writers are right. Structure helps with pacing, sagging middles
and failed endings.
Structure can come into play in revisions
if you are the sort of writer who just writes and see what comes out.
Narrative
drive: What pushes the story through to
the conclusion - from the main character and what they most want or need? It
drives the story. Otherwise, the story goes nowhere. It may be something that
changes. e.g. "The Firm" - Tom Cruises’ character aim was to be a
fantastic lawyer, have a brilliant life and make lots of money. At the first
turning point, the firm is a front for the mafia. Now the drive becomes staying
alive.
Having a break and still talking about plot! |
Turning
Point: The story goes in a different
direction and is a surprise for the reader. It sends the story in a more
exciting direction.
Epiphany:
The moment where the characters realises something that leads to the end of the
story. Can also be the climax.
Journey:
What the character goes on - externally and internally. External affects the
internal to change the main character and make them grow.
Raising
the Stakes: Continually raise
the stakes and increase the tension. If ever stuck, think the worst that could
happen and make it happen to your character.
Otherwise, there is no story.
Structure is a tool, not a formula. You
don't necessarily need it for the first draft. If you use it enough, it becomes
second nature.
Rule of
3: A strong fairy-tale element (3 little
pigs, 3 little bears). Three is enough. Four is too many. Two is not enough.
Each of the three things is an obstacle to
raise the tension UP - always up. (Anything up to 5000 words works).
Invisible but holding up the story.
If you pick 10 things, then you can choose
three from those that help make the story stronger. The first thing that comes into your head
is not usually the best. Step back, brainstorm.
"Screenwriting" by Syd Field pp
26-27, 128-129
1.
Inciting incident
(no explaining, no character sketches) - starts the story in motion
Propels the main
character out of their normal world, into action. In a picture book - by the
third double page spread. The art of writing is getting all the who, where,
when etc. into the beginning. You have to be REALLY tight.
2.
Then three
complications - brainstorm EVERY possibility. You can throw away the horrible
things. But don't go for the things that everyone has used. If too predictable
and ordinary, the ending becomes predictable.
3.
Climax - the moment
just before the climax is the point where things could not possibly get any
worse. If you can't work out how to solve it, that is a good thing. It may take
some time to solve. If the answer is a surprise to you, it will be to the
reader, as well.
(Three Acts - goes back to Aristotle.) Screen
plays of 120 minutes are divided into 3 Acts - 30 minutes, 60 minutes, and 30
minutes. With turning points in-between. The climax sits about 1/3 into the
last Act. Mid-Act climax in the middle of Act 2. Inciting incident happens in
Act 1 and the character can never go back.
First turning point is the first BIG surprise for the
audience. And this launches us into Act 2.
The second turning point makes it all
happen again.
E.g. "Million Dollar baby" - 1st
turning point is Clint Eastwood becoming trainer.
Act 2 is about her drive to be the best
(filled with complications).
2nd turning point is her fatal injury and
being on life support.
Act 3 is the pay-off with their
relationship.
Turning points shoot the story into new
playgrounds.
Christopher Vogler's Hero's Journey (slightly modified)
Every major character in your story needs
to go on this journey. George Lucas studied with George Campbell and used this
structure. Vogler took this structure from "Star Wars". "The
Writer's Journey" by Christopher Vogler is highly recommended. Diagram
pages
ACT 1 ("Star
Wars" example)
1.
Ordinary world -
the main character starts in their own world
2.
Call to adventure -
the inciting incident, obligation, duty, having to rescue someone
3.
Refusal of the call
- because they like being in their world
4.
Second call
5.
Meeting with the
mentor - doesn't have to be a human
6.
Crossing the
threshold - into the other world (first turning point) and they cannot go back
because of the thing they need or want to do
ACT 2
7.
Test, allies,
enemies, obstacles - gain skills, knowledge (esp. about themselves), gain
courage etc.
Things
are getting worse
ACT 3
8.
Approach to the
inmost cave - the moment at which things can't possibly get any worse (just
before the climax) - this is where the character gets closest to giving up
9.
Supreme ordeal -
the climax and final battle
10. Reward
- villain defeated
11. The
road back - recrossing the threshold back to the ordinary world.
12. Resurrection
or Final Test - The hero has to prove they have learned what they set out to
learn - esp. internally. (The climax is past BUT something extra happens.)
13. Return
with elixir - home is never the same because the hero has changed.
Using this structure and tacking the plot
onto it can help identify sagging parts and gaps in the plot.
The picture book grid can be matched to the Hero's Circular Journey.
The Structure of Scene
From "Story" by Robert McKee:
Positive
and Negative: Every scene must
change - either from positive to negative or vice versa. If it doesn't the
scene doesn't move the story forward and it should go.
Scenes in a sequence should also do the
same: positive --> minus --> positive --> minus -->
positive --> minus
"Seven" dealing with the seven
deadly sins has examples of this.
A character must be put in a vice, be
squeezed until they are forced to do something (maybe with a few small
victories along the way) but on the whole their choices and actions make things
increasingly worse.
Ask yourself - what is the purpose of this
scene? To advance the scene, raising the stakes, keep the tension up? If it is only
character building, then it is not worth it. If you have walk-on characters
they MUST also have a purpose and a reason for it.
But they can be an opportunity to bring
in new, long-term character with their
own journey.
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ReplyDeleteThanks for adding in the extra references I suggested above (now deleted). The whole conference was so useful and it was great to meet up with everyone again, including the Kiwi contingent!
ReplyDelete