That feel when . . .

. . . you’re trying to see how all of your plot threads build to the finale and . . . yikes.

Write-it Wednesday #9 –Atmosphere

We as writers today share a strange problem that might have seemed foreign even a hundred years ago — we live in a visual world. Of course there have always been plays and dramatic performances, illustrations etc translating between the visual world and the world on the page, but today this is more prevalent than ever. Literature is the only non-visual medium in today’s pantheon. Movies, TV, comics, video games, and theater all rely on visuals for tone, setting, and description. They inherently contain a single visual landscape shared among their entire audience.

Books have this too, but looser. Until the setting is crystalized into a single unit by a movie or other visual adaptation, there are as many variations on your world as you have readers. (This, by the way, is why I’m somewhat puzzled by book character cosplay. Unless the book has or is an adaptation . . . how could anyone recognize anyone’s costume? Everyone pictures things differently.)

You have a hard job. Not only are you from a culture where visual media is king, so is your audience. You need to use words to get everyone on the same visual page. Its your job to help your readers render the visual world of your story in their minds as they experience it.

So, for this week’s exercise, let’s work our descriptive skills.

First, a translation. Choose an existing work in a visual medium. Pick one specific setting and describe it as if it were part of a book. What’s important? When it comes to settings and backgrounds, there will always be more information in a visual medium. (Not so with emotions, backstory, etc, but that’s another prompt). How can you simplify the visual landscape in a way that keeps the reader engaged while imparting the necessary tonal an geographical information.

For an added challenge try describing the same setting again and seeing how different you can make it while staying true to the original visual.

And keep in mind, the farther from a shared reference point the work you’re describing is, the more challenging it will be. Most sitcoms and crime dramas take place in a few real-world locations like apartments and police stations. The commonality of these places, along with their prevalence in visual media, makes them easy to picture since they have  strong shared cultural reference point. Oddly enough, I would argue that places like space ships or Old West frontier towns are also have shared cultural reference points. Most people in this culture can imagine a “standard” space ship. The more original or obscure the visual language of your chosen sample, the harder it will be to capture.

Have at it.

Write-it Wednesday #8 — Your Outer Critic

We all have an inner critic, that little voice that whispers advice both of the observant and helpful and soul-crushingly negative varieties.

That . . . isn’t really relevant here.

Instead we’re going to focus on our outer critic. Who is this outer critic? That’s totally up to you.

I don’t know about you, but I am very fond of internet movie critics and movie shows. CinemaSins, Honest Trailers, HISHE, Nostalgia Critic, and so on. You probably have some favorites too.

For this exercise, write a review of the current project you’re working on in the voice of your favorite internet critic. Alternatively, review a favorite (or least favorite) piece of media, but preferably one that critic hasn’t already addressed. Which critic you choose will determine how detailed your analysis is, and what elements it looks at.

The goal here is to think about some of the common flaws and praises that critic points out and see how they apply to your story. This is meant to be an interesting and potentially helpful thought exercise, not to tear you down or quantify your project as “good” or “bad.” It’s also a character voice exercise as you try to adopt the style and speech pattern of your choses critic.

My favorite critic at the moment is MovieBob, especially from his Escape to the Movies series from a few years ago. His reviews are short, and point out flaws in good movies, and good parts of otherwise bad movies, with I think is a helpful perspective. I actually feel like I’ve learned a lot about storytelling from watching his review, especially about theme and how theme plays out in genre movies as well as in *snobby fake British voice*  film.

Anyway, I know this is a little unconventional as prompts go, and some of you might not be at a stage in your work that needs or wants criticism like this, but maybe this will help you identify your own preferences as far as genre, tone, theme, tropes etc, go. Hopefully it will also be fun.

 

Write-it Wednesday #7 — Bottle Short

I don’t know how many of your have heard the term “bottle show” as it refers to television, but you’ve all probably seen one. It’s a cost-conscious episode design where every once in a while, the top two or three leads will get stuck somewhere–in a submarine, a helicopter, a remote laboratory, or even their own home base. They then must work out their usual weekly mystery–whodunit, what alien, etc, without their usual tools or resources, and often against a ticking clock.

I’m thinking of a few episodes of The X-Files, and many episodes from the mid-2000s sci-fi (and SyFy) monster hunting Sanctuary. Sanctuary had a bunch, because it was relatively low budget.

This works in comedies too of course, although comedies are more “bottled” by nature, often taking place mainly in a few familiar sets, usually the characters’ living rooms or apartments. But still, the power goes out, everyone’s snowed in, etc.

But I promised a smaller-scope prompt (and I almost backed out, I’m just not good with those), so let’s add a dimension. A lot of us work mainly in fantasy world, and even when we set our stories in the real world, we lean toward the genres and settings that are popular right now — crime dramas in dim alleys and bustling police stations; superheroes with secret swanky headquarters flying over NYC. That’s not exactly “small-scope.”

So, as a limiting factor, this week you are to write a short, it can be a scene, a short story, or a short film, but you must be able to concievably film the entire thing wherever you are right now. You don’t have to, obviously, but any effects or props you plan for should be plausible to ask of a generically capable film student.  For example, our fictional film student could almost certainly handle a coffee shop conversation, or a board game played by flashlight on a dark and stormy night. They could maybe even swing something like the first time-travel test from Back to the Future, if you simply must have your sic-fi.  It uses two actors, takes place in a mall parking lot, and uses a car with a bunch of stuff tacked on the outsides.

For those us who usually deal in stories more equivalent in scope to blockbuster movies than to student shorts, this exercise is meant to real us in. For those of you who are more comfortable with small stories . . . er, enjoy this prompt while you can? OR push yourself a little bigger by considering basic stunts or effects.

Obviously this is somewhat relative to where your life. I live in a small costal town where my theoretical choices are my house, the local movie theater, the beach, or one of like 16 mom-and-pop cafes, etc. If you live in a big city, your choices will be a bit different, but use you best judgement, and keep it close to home.

Finally, let the setting you pick be the prompt for your story. The place(s) your select will define the tone of the story, and determine what characters would be there.

Write-it Wednesday #6 — Ready, Set, Swap

First of all, I want to apologize.

Many of the prompts I post here  are “large” and/or conceptual. Things like “Create a world in which . . .” or “Analyze this very specific element of your existing project to find . . .”

That’s how my brain happens to work. It’s easier for me to brainstorm, say, alternative paths that Ilvermorny could have taken rather than sit down and write a self-contained 1-5k story.

How fun? Sure, until it comes time to actually write something. All that practice gained from smaller pieces is sorely missed.

And if you hung around CWC for this long, your brain might work like this too. That or you were just biding your time waiting for new management. (I respect that. How do you think I got handed the club in the first place?)

Anyway, whatever type of creative writing/thinking you gravitate toward, it would behoove us all to work on “small” scenes once in a while.

Next week.

I’m sorry, but I’ve got a fun little conceptual prompt that I just feel like posting.

I had this neat little idea the other day about a National Treasure -style treasure hunt/heist but set exclusively in a tiny costal town. (Dibs, by the way, I think I might run with it).

Anyway, your prompt for the week is a setting swap. Start with a story — this can be a specific movie/book or maybe even better, a genre. Then swap the setting. For example, the much-lamented Firefly is a western set in space. So what would a Space Opera set in the Old West look like? Don’t be afraid to get specific on the source material. This Space-opera-in-the-Old-West would look very different based on Star Wars that it would on Star Trek. (And I’m not just saying that to see who sides with which.) One is a war/rebellion story, one is a story of exploration. So muse on it. Switch things up. If you’re really feeling brave, do this on your own story too.

And for the record, this would make a decent “small” prompt as well. A conversation that would normally happen at a coffee shop takes place . . . anywhere else. And so on.

This would be a great one to post in the comments!

Write-it Wednesday #5 — Good Bad/Best Bad

Our heroes tend to get so much love that our bad guys can get overlooked. I’m trusting you all know that, and have done some character work on your antagonist(s). Let’s take it one step further.

One flaw that seems to plague villains these days is their “evil plans.” Many villain’s actions are dictated entirely or primarily by whatever will make them a hindrance to the hero. And on the one hand, yes, that’s critical. That’s what they’re there for: to create tension, present challenges, and raise the stakes.

At least, that’s what they’re their for structurally. This whole antagonist bit, that’s what the villain does for you, the writer.

But why are they doing what they do within the story?

Don’t get me wrong, you can have a great, beloved, interesting, dynamic villain with a shit plan:

 

Loki is something like 90% character, 10% effectiveness of plan. And he’s also the best MCU villain by a long shot.

But a good plan can go a long way in making your villain more interesting, and more of a threat.

(I had originally pulled this gif as a gag, but it’s actually a solid example). My personal favorite villains are ones like this:

He is connected to Mr. Incredible via backstory, and does harbor significant hatred toward him, but Syndrome’s plan isn’t only a vendetta against Bob Parr. It’s way bigger than that. He’s on a deeply personal quest in which he feels justified, and it’s only by happenstance (to the characters, carefully crafted narrative to the writers) that it’s Mr. Incredible and not one of the other surviving Supers who steps up to oppose him. On a craft level, these characters were carefully designed to mirror each other and all the things a hero/villain pair are supposed to do, but their antagonism feels more organic than someone waking up and deciding to be a super villain.

Full disclosure, I often dislike Vendetta/Revenge plots, because on the whole, I feel like they facilitate cheap villains who are only there to serve the story. Malekith in Thor: The Dark World comes to mind. To me it feels like, whatever the in-story explanations, he only woke up and the realms were only converging because they heard it was time for the sequel. While Alexander Pierce might not be your favorite villain, Hydra as a whole at least feels like they were always there, this was always their plan, and thank goodness Cap woke up in time to stop them.

We all have different preferences when it comes to antagonists, and different types of antagonists have different uses. Baron Zemo was a pretty by-the-books Vendetta Villain, but he sort of didn’t matter because he was more a linch pin than an antagonist. The tension, stakes, and opposition are provided by Tony and Steve. (For a more in-depth analysis, check out MovieBob’s review of Civil War).

Anyway, every story has its own structural, narrative, and emotional needs, and every writer has their own taste in villains. What we all need, though, it to understand how this is playing out in our work.

So, your assignment for this week is to catch your villain monologuing. This can be a voice test where they explain their evil plan, an actual scene where they confront the hero, bullet points listing all of the villain’s actions, when, and why, or really anything else. Determine if and how your hero and villain foil/oppose/balance each other. Figure out, and this is my favorite, how your villain’s plan/actions/motives would play out if your hero never showed up.

(Hey, this’ll work if you want to skip right to the prompt, right? If you’re not a fan of my monologuing, jump to the quotey part for the weekly prompt.)

As always, if you’d like to apply this thinking to an existing piece of media, go for it.

And post your results in the comments, or in a new post!!!!!

 

 

Write-it Wednesday #4 — Outnine

And no, that’s not a typo.

What exactly is an “outnine”? It’s an outline . . . in nine sentences.

The exercise comes from my new favorite writing book Story Physics by Larry Brooks (see the Bookshelf), specifically page 140. (The punny title however, is mine).

You’re going to tell me your story in nine sentences, and between them it should cover the entire arc of your story.

It looks something like this:

1. HOOK — Why, of all the books on the shelf, is the reader going to pick yours? What premise, place, time, character, narrative decision, etc will grab the reader and keep them invested as the ball gets rolling?
2.  SET UP — Introduce the world, characters, stakes, plot elements etc that will be the fuel on your literary bonfire
3. FIRST PLOT POINT/ACT BREAK — Light said bonfire — your set-up has reached a tipping point, and things can’t stay the same anymore. Your hero decided to take the journey that will fix it.
4. RESPONSE — The hero reacts to the new world their quest has brought them too; both hero and reader take some time reacting to and understanding the new surroundings, enjoying the magic school, dystopian death match, or conspiracy theory that was promised on the back cover.
5. MIDPOINT— Before the new world can get old, something big happens, something new that raises the stakes and inspires the hero to take action and face the problem head on.
6. ATTACK — The hero deals with internal and external conflicts as they fight their way to their goals. They understand how they need to change, and how to use the information they’ve been collecting along the way, but they won’t be able to complete their quest because one key piece of information is missing.
7. SECOND PLOT POINT/ACT BREAK — Huzzah! The final piece to the puzzle! The hero now has all the information necessary  to complete their quest and save the day! (NO NEW INFO BEYOND THIS POINT)
8. FINALE — The hero must summon the growth and courage they’ve gained on their journey, using skills practiced, information collected, allies made, and lessons learned during the Response and Attack phases of the journey
9. ENDING/RESOLUTION — The hero returns to their original world a better person, with the problems they maybe maybe didn’t even realized they had solved.

Now, I  don’t know how much sense that makes if you a) haven’t read the book, or b) aren’t very familiar with plot structure. And even if you are familiar with one story structure model or another, this one might be new. Except it isn’t.

Outnine in Save the Cat! terms:

1. Opening Image
2. Set-up
3. Break into Act II
4. Promise of the Premise
5. Midpoint
6. Bad Guys Close In
7. Break into Act III
8. Finale
9. Final Image

It works out perfectly, because these structures are essentially the same. Because story structures are all the same, because structurally, most good and relatively modern stories are the same on a structural level. And that’s great for you! Because now you have a roadmap to follow, a canvas to paint on, a Lord Business LEGO world to Master Build the hell out of, etc.

As always, if  you aren’t working on a big project, or even if you are, consider breaking a popular book or movie down this way. That would be a great think to add as a post or comment!

 

I’m Board

Sorry! Back again, this time with a more personal post (which is totally acceptable and encouraged, by the way).

This . . .

. . .as I’m sure you can tell, is a board. I love storyboards. I first learned about the concept when I read Save the Cat! for the first time (in the sixth grade: Yikes! what a nerd). I wouldn’t start the project I’m working on now for another few years, but I’ve been enjoying the possibilities of storyboarding for–let me count– holy shit that’s like 11 years now! That’s a lot of boards.

But the reason I’m posting this board is because I think I just understood how a Board is supposed to work. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve understood the concept of index cards on a cord board since I was twelve. But I’m pretty sure this board I slapped up this afternoon is the first one that worked. As in, is a complete, solid foundation. Displays the barest of bones of my proposed story. I really do think to took me this long to “get it.”

And you know what that means? This is just became Board 1/??

 

(Oh, by the way, I think a decent part of the reason I finally understand The Board is thanks to Story Physics by Larry Brooks. Check out the previous post/the Recommended Reading section of the Bookshelf for more info on Story Physics and Save the Cat!)

 

Now on the Bookshelf . . .

Some of you might remember me going on a few little rants about the book Story Physics by Larry Brooks.

I picked it up at B&N on a spite-filled whim and ended up loving it. After a grad app/finals/graduation/laziness/summer delay, I finally finished it. And it was fantastic cover to cover. It seemed like every chapter had something new and nuanced to recommend as far as my novel goes. I’d consider it a must-read for everyone planning, writing, or planning on writing a novel (or screenplay, etc, but this book is (refreshingly I think) aimed mainly at novel writers). Whatever stage of the process you’re at, this book will probably help you improve and make you life a little easier.

Which is why, as promised, I’ve added a new category to the bookshelf!

It’s called “Recommended Resources,” and it’s for all your media about making media. Submit your favorite books, blogs, websites, videos, etc about writing!

 

On a (suspicious cough) other note . . . school has been out for two months and not one of you have read a book, watched a TV show, or seen a movie you think your fellow writers might like?

(Yes I still find this funny, and yes, I will continue to use it)

The Eternal Quest for Skin Tone Words

. . . is still ongoing (but this might help you out).

I just came a cross this super cool Tumblr blog called Humanae.

It belongs to an artist who matches people’s skin tones to Pantone colors (the standard system for printed colors), like so:

It’s supposed to highlight the subtle difference between similar skin tones, and give an idea of just how many skin tones are out there.

Give the blog a scroll; there are hundreds of portraits.

While the colors are only named by their Pantone numbers, seeing all of these shades in their most simplified forms might get the old simile engine going and help you describe your characters accurately.

And it’s just generally cool.