Coffee With David

What young writer doesn’t make mistakes in their early years of writing? I didn’t have much advice at the time or know where to turn to correct these errors. My high school creative writing teacher didn’t give much insight in to the method of writing beyond his lesson plans and I was ignorant of any writing groups or trade magazines. By chance I ran into some writing magazines and books when I worked in a library for a year. Through my haphazard exploration and the courses I took about of my art, I learned a lesson incorrectly. I learned how to write by formula.

I am sure that there are many writers who may disagree with me in what I am about to write. Clearly those who write and/or follow the philosophy of formula writing would argue vehemently with me. So be it. I was taught that if you follow a certain formula you should be ale to write any story. All plots follow an exact model, all characters are a certain way, and you too can write your novel in 90 days. It works for some people. I am sad that I can pick up one of their books and see the plot ahead of the story’s unfolding because I know the formula.

The formula, in my opinion, is meant to be a teaching tool or a flow chart of elements that you can move about and change. What I should have learned was that the plotting formula is a tool. It is not the end-all, be-all, Lego your story together like you may a child’s castle. The formula is meant to take you down the road and get your mind working on the plot. It is meant to help you create and be certain your story is not a nebulous mess for a reader to walk away from and ask “what happened?”

Despite this denouncement of writing with a formula, I did walk away with 14 questions that I use to start plotting every story. I took these from Earle Stanley Gardner and modified them to fit me. I will answer these questions and then move on to really plotting the story. They are broken down into two sets of questions.

The first 5 are:
1) Who are the story’s protagonist and antagonist?
Protagonist:
Antagonist:
2) Where does the story begin?
3) What are the complications?
4) What is the climax?
5) What is the resolution?

That creates the beginning of the exploration of the story I want to write. A story is about the characters who live in the universe the author creates. These 5 questions define the physical aspects of the story, but to get to the real drama you have to get inside the character’s mind.

After I have written my brief answers to these, I move on to these 9 and go back to the original 5 to modify them so that the 14 questions work in unison and feed off each other:

1) The act of primary antagonism:
2) Motivation for act of antagonism: antagonist resorts to antagonism because of desire for:
3) Having committed the act of antagonism, the antagonist tries to conceal it or escape consequences, or to help carry out motive by:
4) In trying to conceal it or escape consequences, or to help carry out motive, or afterward the antagonist is confronted by complications incurred through:
5) The protagonist contacts an but not necessarily the act of antagonism either by chance or by deliberation:
6) When conflict has been joined and protagonist comes in contact with antagonism (not necessary the primary act) there are certain complicating circumstances which make for character conflicts:
7) The complication become involved with the suspense element:
8) Antagonist feeling the net closing about him tries to escape by some further act which points to a more exciting and dramatic climax when carried through:
9) Protagonist sets solution factors in motion or foils antagonist:

Sounds easy? Not really…not when you want to avoid “cookie cutter” stories. Yet, this is how I begin. This was all I was able to salvage from all the lessons on “formula writing.” It doesn’t fail me and it allows me to get away from writing “formula stories.” It allows me to bring real stories, real drama, and focus on what a story is really about—the characters who are living in the story.

Thank you fro reading and please visit www.davidalanlucas.com for updates about the stories and blogs I write.