Story Trumps Structure The pursuit of fulfilling by Steven James / www.novelwritingintensive.com unmet desire is the key to unlocking your story. To uncover the plot of your story, don’t ask what should Where will that quest happen, but what should go wrong. To uncover the meaning take your characters of your story, don’t ask what the theme is, but rather, what’s (emotionally, spiritually, discovered. Characters making choices to resolve tension: physically, mentally or that’s your plot. If your protagonist has no goal, makes no relationally)? That’s choices, has no struggle to overcome, you have no plot. what readers want to know.

To develop your protagonist’s journey through the story, think about four things: • Desire - What does she want? • Setbacks - What keeps her from getting it? • Stakes - What will happen if she doesn’t get it? • Outcome - What will change in her life when she does fulfill her desire?

Coincidences that start Action does not equal tension. In fact, it might be stories may be ones that counterproductive to developing it. Simply making more (1) initiate the unavoidable things happen doesn’t ensure that readers will be interested, conflict that follows, (2) ask but tightening the tension from unmet desire does. You don’t the essential question the need rising action, you need escalating tension and, in fact, protagonist must answer, that can often come from making fewer things happen rather or (3) present the than more. compelling desire that the character will passionately pursue. The flow of a story relies on: 1) Promise - about where the character’s storyline is heading Since everything in a story points toward 2) Tension - about what goes wrong 3) Surprise - as the story goes in a direction readers don’t expect the climax, the story’s core is not so much 4) Resolution - that could be positive or negative things occurring as it is the anticipation of them approaching. Stories revolve around dilemmas, not action. To build a story, you don’t try Excerpts come from To initiate your story, your protagonist will either (1) lose to make the right things happen, but something vital and try to regain it, rather make the right things go wrong. (2) see something desirable and try Suspense isn’t so much about to obtain it, (3) experience “making things happen” as it is about something traumatic and try to promising that they will. It’s more about overcome it. creating worry, apprehension and anticipation than it is about adding more action. Compassion for the character So we don’t increase suspense by and concern for her safety “making things happen,” but by create the worry that draws promising that they will. readers emotionally into a story. Let narrative forces rather than formulas drive your story forward. Imagine a giant ball of clay being held by a group of people. As one person presses against the clay it changes shape.

The clay is your story; the people surrounding it represent the narrative forces pressing in on it. For example:

Escalation: Does this scene ratchet up the tension of the one before it? How can I make things worse?

Believability: What would this character naturally do in this situation? Is he properly motivated to take this action?

Causality: Is this event caused by what precedes it? How can what I want to happen bow to what needs to happen based on the context?

Inevitability & Surprise: Does this scene end in a way that’s both unexpected and yet inevitable? How can I assure that readers don’t see the twist coming?

Scenes & Setbacks: Have I inadvertently included scenes just for character development? Is there an interlude or moment of reorientation between each scene?

Continuity: Do my revelations happen at the right moments within the story? Have I used foreshadowing to eliminate coincidences, especially at the climax?

Story & Genre Expectations: What requisite scenes are inherent to this genre and to this story? How can I render them in a way that’s not clichéd?

Stories include an Also available To get readers more orientation to the world of a invested in your novel, make character we care about, it clearer (1) what your introduction of a dilemma, character desires (love, escalating tension, a freedom, adventure, moment in which all seems forgiveness, etc.), (2) what’s lost, a climactic discovery keeping him from getting it, and a resolution that leaves and (3) what terrible the character in a different consequences will result if situation or mindset than he he doesn’t get it. or she had at the beginning. Nine Characteristics of the Modern Thriller

1. A bigger-than-life antagonist - A villain or forces of antagonism that are truly frightening, disturbing, or unsettling. The strength of your protagonist is measured against the strength of the adversaries he must overcome, whether these are natural forces of antagonism, or an antagonist who is a bigger-than-life villain. 2. Relentless escalation - An increasing sense of danger to the protagonist or to the protagonist’s loved one. Something will happen to make it personal. Even in a “end-of-the- world” scenario the reader will want it to be personal, so stick Granny in the city that’s about to get demolished by aliens. 3. Deep psychological exploration of human nature through the internal struggle of the protagonist or main characters - Often, several cast characters will have the same struggle from different angles. Rather than work from a theme, work from a dilemma. However, if you are working from a theme, you will need to refute your theme and then refute the refutation or it will seem like propaganda. 4. Satisfying surprises - There will be a twist that’s both unexpected and inevitable. At its essence, a twist is nothing more than turning the logic of the story around and showing the reader that there is a deeper logic, another channel of meaning that he or she hasn’t noticed yet. Give readers what they didn’t know they want. 5. Adequate clues - You must play fair. Unlike with Sherlock Holmes. Foreshadow to remove coincidence, layer in clues to hide them, review them to make the final logic of the detective more believable. 6. Point-of-view flips - The first-person POV is becoming more and more popular, as is using the present-tense rather than past tense for the story. POV switches are commonly used to increase suspense. We have learned this lesson from cinema and has become a hallmark of suspense novels. If you're ready for intensive instruction to 7. A heroic underdog - Often a normal, everyday improve your writing and if you're serious about taking your manuscript to the next level, award- person is thrown into an extraordinary world and winning novelists Steven James and Robert must overcome the odds, rise to the challenge. Dugoni invite you to join them for a 4-day retreat where you’ll receive in-depth teaching, The biggest challenge—making their growth, and encouragement. transformation believable. Two movies that do a good job with this are “The Fugitive” and “The Every spring Hunt for Red October.” In the climactic conflict Get on the mailing list today by following between the protagonist and the antagonist, the the link on the website below. protagonist will be at a disadvantage. www.novelwritingintensive.com 800.52.STORY 8. Memorable climaxes - They will push the protagonist to the edge, and then beyond it. Think of the worst thing that could happen, then extend that. 9. A mythic or archetypical resurrection - After the final conflict in which there appears to be no chance for the protagonist to survive, we see a form of mythic resurrection so that the protagonist can rise to fight for justice or counter evil once again. Twelve Sure-fire Ways to Kill the Suspense of Your Novel

1. Just as things are really getting thrilling, cut to a different point of view or jump to the next scene. Don’t worry, this won’t bother readers; it keeps them captivated. Just because they feel like throwing their Kindle against the wall doesn’t mean they’re annoyed, it just means they’re engaged. 2. Make sure your characters do inexplicable things that cause readers to scratch their heads and think, What? No! He would never do that … or That doesn’t make any sense. Why doesn’t he just ... [shoot the bad guy, call 911, wait for backup to arrive, drive away from the brain-sucking aliens by using that SUV sitting in the driveway]? 3. Start your story with a great hook, like having a woman jogging along a beach by herself while there’s a killer on the loose. Be sure to give readers lots of meaningless backstory on her life. So guess what happens. Huh? Huh? You’re going to love this twist—she gets murdered! See how original that is? It’ll blow your readers away. 4. Make sure that the bad guy is either so obvious throughout the story that even a casual observer could guess his identity, or so obscure that no one would ever believe it even after you reveal him. Readers don’t want to be surprised. 5. Whatever you do, avoid countdowns and deadlines. They’re overrated. 6. Never tell readers anything about what’s going to happen. Keep all plans a secret. You don’t want readers to worry about whether or not the main character’s plans are going to come together. 7. Keep repeating the same stuff over and over—chase scenes, prayers, kissing scenes, murders, etc. If it’s exciting once, it will be again and again. Avoid the temptation to escalate the tension throughout the story. It’s much better to stick to what’s familiar to your readers. 8. Only let readers see the danger that the story’s characters see. It’s too confusing to let readers in on information that the characters don’t have, especially when it has to do with danger that might be lurking just around the bend. 9. Readers don’t want the promise that something terrible is going to happen in the future; they just want to have exciting things happen right now. Add action! 10. Portray your villain as the hand-wringing, self-congratulatory, chortling, “Look what an evil mastermind I am!” type of character. So what if people say he’s “cardboard”? They just don’t understand the subtleties of character creation. 11. Keep the mystery alive! Don’t let readers know what your character really wants in a scene! 12. Promise that something terrible will happen, and then don’t let it happen. It’ll make for a great twist. What Keeps Readers Flipping Pages

curiosity concern anticipation entertainment obligation

“I’m wondering “I’m worried “I can’t wait to “I don’t care “I have to finish where this is about where see where this where this is this because I going.” this is going.” is going.” going. I just started it/was want to read it told it was —it’s that good/was good!” assigned it.”

intellectual emotional future current limited engagement engagement enjoyment pleasure investment found often in found often in found often in found often in found often in mysteries suspense romance humorous classics / stories literary

good for good for requires a necessary never a good creating creating satisfying during thing intrigue tension climax flashbacks

Readers don’t Readers think Readers look Readers care Readers know what will they know what forward to what most about desperately happen. will happen. will happen. what’s currently hope happening. something interesting will happen.

twitter, instagram, and facebook @readstevenjames Steven James website https://www.stevenjames.net The Story Blender podcast https://www.thestoryblender.com Novel Writing Intensive http://www.novelwritingintensive.com

To invite Steven to speak at your event, call 800.52.STORY or email him at [email protected]