This semester, I took a class called Intro to Film. It was basically just a filler credit to get my Fine Arts requirement, but I'm happy to say that it has become more than that. It seems that I fell into a wildly beneficial learning experience without even realizing it. How's that for good luck? I'm only three weeks in, but so far we've discussed a variety of subjects, each one either directly, or at least feasibly, relating to novel writing. The format of the class runs like this: we have an hour lecture, a two hour movie, and an hour discussion. I've already gone into this in a previous post, so I'll be brief. In the hour lecture, the professor teaches us something about narrative structure, themes and motifs, character development, set dressing, lighting, or music, etc. Some of it is amazingly helpful in my own writing, and even the other stuff, such as set dressing and lighting can still be taken for what its worth.
Let me explain. There is a term in the film business, mise en scene, which basically means the style of what you see. The Director and Production Designer of a movie try their best to keep this consistent, and it's what gives the film its "feel". It can include furniture, set design, color palette, lighting, makeup, costuming etc. Think of films like Moulin Rouge, 300, or any Tim Burton production. These have a very strong mise en scene. The same goes for an author writing a book. While reading a book isn't a strictly visual medium, the visuals are still important, if you know what I mean. The author acts as the Production Designer, creating a world through description, not images. A good, or shall we say, successful writer, can plant a literary mise en scene right in the reader's mind. By keeping descriptions of objects, clothing, and buildings consistent, a writer can maintain a distinct style that persists in the reader's mind throughout the story. Not only that, but the way in which a writer forms their sentences or uses pronouns and adverbs can give the actual words a recognizable style. Harry Potter, The Wheel of Time, and the Codex Alera books all accomplished this in my opinion.
So I guess what I'm saying is that I've come to appreciate movies as a learning experience for my own writing. This leads me to the subject of this post. In class last week, we discussed narrative structure. I've done a lot of my own self-learning about this, listening to podcasts, attending panels, etc., but I've always been a little hazy on how to properly structure my stories. My professor told us about an old Hollywood staple, taken from a book called Save the Cat! The Last Book on Screenwriting You'll Ever Need by Blake Snyder. It's intended to be a help for screenwriters, but it applies just as well to novelists. In it, the author outlines a series of "beats" that every successful story should touch on. It's not a formula per se, simply an outline of what will keep an audience/reader interested in the story. Since you can find it on the web in a million places or in any film class, I'll outline it really quick here:
Opening Image (where we see the character, and get a basic idea of who they are):
Theme Stated (the viewer/reader gets to see what the movie/story will eventually tell them):
Setup (Characters living life):
Catalyst (the big "thing" that happens):
Debate (where we see the characters trying to sort out their options, figure out what to do):
Break Into Act Two (this is where they take their first step toward and attempt to resolve the problem):
"B" Story (a different, but associated character's story, many times this is a romance):
Fun and Games (think training montages, newly dating couple having shenanigans, etc.):
Midpoint (disaster that commits character to their path, halfway through the story):
Bad Guys Close In (this is where stuff begins to escalate, become more serious):
All Is Lost (low point, everything bottoms out and the worst has happened):
Dark Night of the Soul (kinda self-explanatory, characters question everything, superhero hangs up his cape in despair, oh crap):
Break Into Act Three (Where things begin to turn around, characters begin to fight back in earnest):
Finale (the big finish, sword fight, dog fight, Luke cuts off Vader's hand, and the Emperor is thrown down the ventilation shaft):
Final Image (new life, we see the aftermath, people are reunited, usually a happy ending, but not always):
I may have misconstrued some of those points, and if I did, let me know. But the general idea is there. A successful screenplay hits all of these beats at some point, and so does a novel (in my opinion). Today I went through, and applied my own book to these beats. I was surprised to find that most everything was represented, though the order was a little out of whack. I'm not saying this will work for every novelist, or even every genre. As for me, it's been a big help. Take a look at it, try to assign your favorite movie or book to these beats. I guarantee you'll be able to. Then maybe try your own book. Story and character are the most important thing in any novel, so take some time and give them some love.
Showing posts with label College. Show all posts
Showing posts with label College. Show all posts
More updates on TSS 2.0, LTUE, and a quick bit on Voice (and I use too many parenthesis).
School has started. Alas, but it is true. Spring Semester 2012 is in full swing, and I wasn't really prepared for it. I'm not too worried though. I'm taking fewer classes (and easier) than last semester, so I can handle it. In part, this more laid-back schedule is because I want to devote more time to writing. College is my backup plan (not plan A), so I feel like every once in a while I should stop trying to do the "smart thing" and really go for my dreams. This is easier said than done. I'm well aware that many writers finish books and get published despite school, a full time job, and a family. Well I'm not that guy. I'm the guy who gets addicted to World of Warcraft over Christmas break, and falls so far into depression he can't even be pulled out with an ice-cream cone. I'm the guy who spends more time bemoaning his failings (quietly of course) than trying to correct them. Come to think of it, it's a miracle I was ever able to finish my first novel.
I am working hard at it though. Every week I have set days and time where I normally had classes that are now dedicated to writing. I've kept to it so far, even though the first day was excruciating (I'm telling you, writing is not like riding a bike, you can forget/get out of practice). Today's holiday is an opportunity for me to get in another huge chunk of writing time, and I'm hoping I can persevere. (Yes, depression and addiction to WoW can sometimes feel totally out of your control, even though they're not.)
Anyway, a quick update on The Sometimes Sword 2.0. I'm now at 30k words, roughly 90 pages at it's current font and margin settings. I'm not quite a third of the way through, so its going to be running 20-30k words longer than version 1.0 (this kind of scares me). Other than the slow progress, I feel like it's going well. I've been hitting dialogue a little closer to the mark this time around, and I've been working hard at making plot points cooperate better. My characters have started with a bit more mass and volume, and I've worked out some of the kinks in my story telling. Aside from the motivation to actually sit down and write, I'm feeling pretty positive about it on the whole.
For those of you in Utah (and perhaps without), you may know of a writing convention called Life the Universe and Everything (LTUE), held in Orem (I think?). It's an annual event in February, and from what I hear, it's the bee's knees. I'll be attending all three days (if I can swing it with work), backpack and tape recorder in hand. Yeah, I'm one of those over eager amateurs, so what? If you're going, hit me up so we can chat and attend a few panels together. Just a side note, membership is FREE for current students with college ID. So yeah, no excuses.
One last thing. As some of you may know, I'm a bit obsessed with the idea of a writer's "voice". It's something that has always eluded me, and I can't even define to myself, let alone other people. I can see it in the writers I read, but not myself. It's more than a bit frustrating. Today I happened upon a post on Terribleminds.com, a writing website run by Chuck Wendig (I highly recommend you check him out). I wanted to highlight part of that post and link the rest:
"Writers are at the outset a scared species. It’s not our fault: we’re told that it’s a bad idea and unless we want to prepare for a life lived inside a palatial piano crate we should just buckle down and become accountants. And so I think there’s a lot of bad psychic voodoo that clogs the works, and until we start to clear that out, it’s really hard to find out who we are on the page and what our voice looks and sounds like. Finding your voice is then synonymous with losing the fear of not just writing but of being a writer."
You can read the entire post here, and I very much recommend that you do. I love this dude's stuff, and it has helped me a ton. A word of caution though: he does use a hilarious amount of vulgarity and straight up insanity. It enriches the experience. He is very serious about writing though, and writing well.
So that's it folks. That's what's going on with me. What about you? What have you been up to, and what's your "Plan A"?
I am working hard at it though. Every week I have set days and time where I normally had classes that are now dedicated to writing. I've kept to it so far, even though the first day was excruciating (I'm telling you, writing is not like riding a bike, you can forget/get out of practice). Today's holiday is an opportunity for me to get in another huge chunk of writing time, and I'm hoping I can persevere. (Yes, depression and addiction to WoW can sometimes feel totally out of your control, even though they're not.)
Anyway, a quick update on The Sometimes Sword 2.0. I'm now at 30k words, roughly 90 pages at it's current font and margin settings. I'm not quite a third of the way through, so its going to be running 20-30k words longer than version 1.0 (this kind of scares me). Other than the slow progress, I feel like it's going well. I've been hitting dialogue a little closer to the mark this time around, and I've been working hard at making plot points cooperate better. My characters have started with a bit more mass and volume, and I've worked out some of the kinks in my story telling. Aside from the motivation to actually sit down and write, I'm feeling pretty positive about it on the whole.
For those of you in Utah (and perhaps without), you may know of a writing convention called Life the Universe and Everything (LTUE), held in Orem (I think?). It's an annual event in February, and from what I hear, it's the bee's knees. I'll be attending all three days (if I can swing it with work), backpack and tape recorder in hand. Yeah, I'm one of those over eager amateurs, so what? If you're going, hit me up so we can chat and attend a few panels together. Just a side note, membership is FREE for current students with college ID. So yeah, no excuses.
One last thing. As some of you may know, I'm a bit obsessed with the idea of a writer's "voice". It's something that has always eluded me, and I can't even define to myself, let alone other people. I can see it in the writers I read, but not myself. It's more than a bit frustrating. Today I happened upon a post on Terribleminds.com, a writing website run by Chuck Wendig (I highly recommend you check him out). I wanted to highlight part of that post and link the rest:
"Writers are at the outset a scared species. It’s not our fault: we’re told that it’s a bad idea and unless we want to prepare for a life lived inside a palatial piano crate we should just buckle down and become accountants. And so I think there’s a lot of bad psychic voodoo that clogs the works, and until we start to clear that out, it’s really hard to find out who we are on the page and what our voice looks and sounds like. Finding your voice is then synonymous with losing the fear of not just writing but of being a writer."
You can read the entire post here, and I very much recommend that you do. I love this dude's stuff, and it has helped me a ton. A word of caution though: he does use a hilarious amount of vulgarity and straight up insanity. It enriches the experience. He is very serious about writing though, and writing well.
So that's it folks. That's what's going on with me. What about you? What have you been up to, and what's your "Plan A"?
New Year's resolution? No thanks. But don't go away yet!
I'm one of those anti-resolution snobs. I don't believe in them. Now don't get me wrong, that doesn't mean I can't or don't support those that do. I think it's great to try to better yourself somehow, to make a fresh start. The problem is that I know myself well enough to realize that any sudden decision to change won't last long. Instead, I favor resolutions based around things already in my life. For instance: school starts once more on this coming Monday and I've decided to base a resolution around that, and not just the new year. To explain, I haven't been writing very much lately during the holiday break. Sure I've blogged a bit, even tapped out 1600 words in my book, but those are so small they almost don't count. So with the start of school I face a dilemma. All the free time I've become accustomed to in the last weeks will disappear in a puff smoke, and my reluctance/aversion to forcing myself to write will become even worse. In order to combat that, I'm taking this last week of freedom back from World of Warcraft. My goal is to write everyday this week, as much as I can manage. That way, when I finally start school again, I will already be in the habit of writing. I can't risk losing my drive to write. I have a dream dang it! I can't let it fall by the wayside.
It's my opinion that goals are better realized when tied to something solid, like the beginning of a school semester, rather than a year-spanning blanket promise to yourself. So wish me luck on this next semester, when I plan to finish my rewrite of The Sometimes Sword (60k words of 80k to go).
I had one more thing to say in this post. It's not directly related to writing, but it's been on my mind a lot. Some of you might not know, but music used to be my "thing", not writing. I was the vocalist in a local deathcore band for about three years. We were called A Horrible Night to Have a Curse (yeah, thats a Castlevania reference), and played shows weekly, sometimes even two or three in a week. We had the opportunity to play some really awesome shows with bands we always dreamed of playing with, and got to know a lot of people. It was a great time in my life, despite the incredible stress that goes along with running a band with four other young dudes. It's now been over two years since we called it quits, and I still miss it. At first it was really difficult to have nothing in my life that I was passionate about, and I even got bitter. All I was left with was my full time job, one that I hated. It was a rough two years at that job, but I eventually got over the painful cravings to perform and write music. Writing has since become my life, and I'm glad for it. If I had stayed involved in the hardcore scene as deeply as I was, I most likely would never have started writing seriously. But every once in a while, those cravings to get on stage and feel the music invade my heart and brain comes back. I know I never will again. Today is one of those hard days. I guess my point is that no matter what change happens in your life, you never know what the outcome will be. Let life happen, and take charge of yourself, despite what may happen to you. Also, don't be afraid to look back fondly, maybe even sadly. Just make sure you stay looking forward the majority of the time.
It's my opinion that goals are better realized when tied to something solid, like the beginning of a school semester, rather than a year-spanning blanket promise to yourself. So wish me luck on this next semester, when I plan to finish my rewrite of The Sometimes Sword (60k words of 80k to go).
 |
| Me at The Outer Rim (now closed) with A Horrible Night to Have a Curse. |
Now at 22k words (not counting 10k that went into the trash) into TSS 2.0!
It's been a while since I posted, but I see that some people at least have continued to visit everyday. Thanks for that. I've been involved in school and am currently in a post-procrastination rush toward finals. With only a week left, I find myself horribly unprepared, so this will be a small island in a sea of non-existent posts.
First off, any of you who come to visit me and also participated in NaNoWriMo, congratulations (if you succeeded)! Even if you didn't make the 50k word goal, you should pat yourself on the back, then keep going! Finish it!
As the post title says, I'm currently at 22k words into my rewrite of TSS. I had planned to do NaNoWriMo, but only started mid month, so I guess you could say I'm on track so far to hit my 50k mid December. With school though, I'm looking at the middle of January as my goal. This particular rewrite is shaping up to be a lot longer too, possibly into the 110k range as opposed to TSS 1.0, which was 86K words. The story is progressing nicely, and oddly enough, becoming more mature and complicated, despite having made my characters 2 years younger than before.
Just a small note before I take off. If you writers out there haven't looked into a program called Scrivener, you need to do so, now. Click here and watch the videos, download a 30 day trial, and prepare to be blown away as it changes your writing forever.
Well, I'm off for another week at least, nose to the wheel and shoulder to the grindstone and all that. Thanks for stopping by!
First off, any of you who come to visit me and also participated in NaNoWriMo, congratulations (if you succeeded)! Even if you didn't make the 50k word goal, you should pat yourself on the back, then keep going! Finish it!
As the post title says, I'm currently at 22k words into my rewrite of TSS. I had planned to do NaNoWriMo, but only started mid month, so I guess you could say I'm on track so far to hit my 50k mid December. With school though, I'm looking at the middle of January as my goal. This particular rewrite is shaping up to be a lot longer too, possibly into the 110k range as opposed to TSS 1.0, which was 86K words. The story is progressing nicely, and oddly enough, becoming more mature and complicated, despite having made my characters 2 years younger than before.
Just a small note before I take off. If you writers out there haven't looked into a program called Scrivener, you need to do so, now. Click here and watch the videos, download a 30 day trial, and prepare to be blown away as it changes your writing forever.
Well, I'm off for another week at least, nose to the wheel and shoulder to the grindstone and all that. Thanks for stopping by!
Giving in to NaNoWriMo.
I officially signed up for NaNoWriMo last night. Yes, I know I'm half way through the month already, and I've only been writing for a week, but their little word count graph was just too much to pass up. I'm currently at just below 16,000 words, and need to step up my daily writing to finish 50,000 by the end of the month. My current goal was 2k per day, but now I need to do 2.3K to catch up. Will I succeed? I dunno. Finals are coming up in a few weeks, and I have a massive research paper in my Art History class, so I may be doomed to failure. However, it's important to me to know where I sit, and shooting for a goal will help motivate me, even if it may not be possible. So here goes.
I'll try to link my graph somehow....
I'll try to link my graph somehow....
Converting a draft into a new story.
I'm going to try and start writing shorter posts, to make it less of a chore for you to read. So here goes.
I'm in the first steps of tearing apart The Sometimes Sword, mostly just thinking about it. I have yet to do any actual changes to the words, but I'm making progress nonetheless. Yesterday while I was walking into the Tech building for my math class, I had an epiphany of sorts. It wasn't a specific idea for the story, more like an over-all revelation. It occurred to me that I wasn't thinking big enough, despite my intentions to reorganize the book. I needed to completely re-imagine the whole thing, from the ground up.
So I spent some time thinking about everything (you might begin to detect a common theme here about thinking...): what I like to read, what I want to write, whether or not I had pigeon-holed myself, etc. I came to several conclusions, one of which was a pretty big deal. I've always been a fan of urban fantasy, and wanted some of that feeling in my book, but at the same time, I don't want The Sometimes Sword to take place in our world. So as of right now, I am in the process of converting an existing character into a modern-day visitor to the world of TSS, sort of a Narnia/Harry Potter type infiltration of a magical world...deal. This changes so much existing material that I will essentially be rewriting the book as opposed to revising it, regardless of the scale. It's a monumental change, but since I'm writing it as a new book I will hopefully make more headway than if I had continued editing.
Perhaps this will give me the motivation I need to get some real progress made toward my dream of being a writer, and as winter break approaches, perhaps I'll have the time too.
I'm in the first steps of tearing apart The Sometimes Sword, mostly just thinking about it. I have yet to do any actual changes to the words, but I'm making progress nonetheless. Yesterday while I was walking into the Tech building for my math class, I had an epiphany of sorts. It wasn't a specific idea for the story, more like an over-all revelation. It occurred to me that I wasn't thinking big enough, despite my intentions to reorganize the book. I needed to completely re-imagine the whole thing, from the ground up.
So I spent some time thinking about everything (you might begin to detect a common theme here about thinking...): what I like to read, what I want to write, whether or not I had pigeon-holed myself, etc. I came to several conclusions, one of which was a pretty big deal. I've always been a fan of urban fantasy, and wanted some of that feeling in my book, but at the same time, I don't want The Sometimes Sword to take place in our world. So as of right now, I am in the process of converting an existing character into a modern-day visitor to the world of TSS, sort of a Narnia/Harry Potter type infiltration of a magical world...deal. This changes so much existing material that I will essentially be rewriting the book as opposed to revising it, regardless of the scale. It's a monumental change, but since I'm writing it as a new book I will hopefully make more headway than if I had continued editing.
Perhaps this will give me the motivation I need to get some real progress made toward my dream of being a writer, and as winter break approaches, perhaps I'll have the time too.
I'm radically less interested in Art than I used to be.
First off, this post is a little disjointed, and I can't be held responsible for bad grammar and spelling. (I wrote it over the course of three days, shoved in between studying.)
Long before I ever thought of being a writer, I was an artist. Before I read books for pleasure I was teaching myself to draw and fumbling around with techniques (with horrible results). I eventually began to develop some skill to go with my talent, and over the years, I produced some pretty good stuff (in my humble opinion). For a very long time I thought visual art would be my calling. Once I got my first computer and copy of Photoshop, I began to teach myself computer animation and graphic design. Later, while performing vocals in my deathcore band, I taught myself to make t-shirt and other merch designs, including two CD covers.
All seemed to point to a computer graphics/animation career, and I hoped to go to college for a degree in it some day. After my band... well, disbanded, I fell out of practice, as show posters and merch designs had been my main source of work. Somewhere along the way in the ensuing years, I also fell out of love with it. This crazy idea of writing a story pushed it from its place at the adult's table then kicked it in the kidneys.
And I'm glad it did.
Right now I'm in college, working on my generals. One of my current classes is Art History 2720, and I hate it. I can't remember an exam I have feared so much as the one I just took. I'm no slob when it comes to retaining information and so on, but the amount of specific detail the professor demanded within an hour class is, quite frankly, insane. All I want to do is write, and anything that takes me away from that is a waste of time (or so I feel). Math I can handle (shockingly enough), as it only requires practice and knowledge of formulas and methods (you can't mess that up). Art History and my (shudder) Philosophy class require a different kind of brain power. And it's not just the frustration of connecting ideas and concepts, or simply memorizing dates, it's doing things the instructor's way, or the highway. It's all about their interpretation, even when it's blatantly wrong or out of context (looking at you Philosophy Professor).
I suppose it's mostly a matter of what I'm willing to place importance in, and while I know deep down that college is important, it just feels like a waste of time. Not just a waste; it is actively taking away from my ability to work on the dream of being a writer. I have no time to practice, no time to edit, and certainly no time to actually write the fiction. The only reason I continue with college is the fact that I can't simply rely on writing to support me. I'm not so egotistical as to imagine that I can "make it" or get published. It's only a dream so far, and dreams don't put food in your mouth. But if I use college as my back up plan, is it really worth it if it wholly prevents me from pursuing my dream?
Why can't I dream of being a doctor?
Long before I ever thought of being a writer, I was an artist. Before I read books for pleasure I was teaching myself to draw and fumbling around with techniques (with horrible results). I eventually began to develop some skill to go with my talent, and over the years, I produced some pretty good stuff (in my humble opinion). For a very long time I thought visual art would be my calling. Once I got my first computer and copy of Photoshop, I began to teach myself computer animation and graphic design. Later, while performing vocals in my deathcore band, I taught myself to make t-shirt and other merch designs, including two CD covers.
All seemed to point to a computer graphics/animation career, and I hoped to go to college for a degree in it some day. After my band... well, disbanded, I fell out of practice, as show posters and merch designs had been my main source of work. Somewhere along the way in the ensuing years, I also fell out of love with it. This crazy idea of writing a story pushed it from its place at the adult's table then kicked it in the kidneys.
And I'm glad it did.
Right now I'm in college, working on my generals. One of my current classes is Art History 2720, and I hate it. I can't remember an exam I have feared so much as the one I just took. I'm no slob when it comes to retaining information and so on, but the amount of specific detail the professor demanded within an hour class is, quite frankly, insane. All I want to do is write, and anything that takes me away from that is a waste of time (or so I feel). Math I can handle (shockingly enough), as it only requires practice and knowledge of formulas and methods (you can't mess that up). Art History and my (shudder) Philosophy class require a different kind of brain power. And it's not just the frustration of connecting ideas and concepts, or simply memorizing dates, it's doing things the instructor's way, or the highway. It's all about their interpretation, even when it's blatantly wrong or out of context (looking at you Philosophy Professor).
I suppose it's mostly a matter of what I'm willing to place importance in, and while I know deep down that college is important, it just feels like a waste of time. Not just a waste; it is actively taking away from my ability to work on the dream of being a writer. I have no time to practice, no time to edit, and certainly no time to actually write the fiction. The only reason I continue with college is the fact that I can't simply rely on writing to support me. I'm not so egotistical as to imagine that I can "make it" or get published. It's only a dream so far, and dreams don't put food in your mouth. But if I use college as my back up plan, is it really worth it if it wholly prevents me from pursuing my dream?
Why can't I dream of being a doctor?
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