Tag Archives | Laura Pauling

How to keep a literary novel afloat in the middle.

By on November 7, 2011 in Plotting a novel

That’s right. Let’s dive into Act II of THE SKY IS EVERYWHERE. And learn to stay afloat in Act II!

Break into two: (protagonist must make a proactive decision)

Again. This was easy for me to find. Remember the debate? It’s answered. Lennie strides into Act I by saying yes. She finally is willing to play her clarinet with Joe and all her grief comes pouring out. Joe is stunned. But it wasn’t just a random decision. In order to avoid Toby and grief, she decides to play.

B story: (the love story – not always romantic)

In Act I, Joe pursued and Lennie pushed him away. But now the world is upside down and they set off on the rocky road of love. They play together. They have fun together. And surprise, surprise because at times, Lennie feels joy.

Fun and Games: (the heart of the book – why we read it)

Why did I pick this book up? What were my expectations? I wanted to read about a girl dealing with her grief and moving on and figuring out how to do that. So, with her newfound decision of playing the clarinet comes other brave decisions. It’s really hard to call this section Fun and Games, but don’t take it too literally. It’s a breather before the tension spikes.

You’ll have to read the book to find out what those brave decisions are. #sorry

Midpoint: (stakes are raised significantly; another big game changer)

Again, in a plot-driven novel, the midpoint should be obvious. In a literary, character-driven novel what turns out to be a game changer is just on a smaller scale but still huge in Lennie’s world.

In Chapter 20, exactly half way, Lennie finally talks to her best friend, who she’s been ignoring. She tells her everything. This is huge! Lennie is letting someone into her life in a healthy situation.

Bad guys close in: (Things get even worse.)

In a character-driven novel there is no regrouping of the antagonist and his minions. It just isn’t like that. But, stakes are raised. Definitely.

I’ll just say that Lennie learns that Bailey, her sister, had secrets. Big secrets! And in her grief, she makes mistakes that affect her budding relationship with Joe.

All is Lost: (no hope left)

In chapter 30, Lennie is in her room. So many things come to a head. She realizes how Bailey’s secrets affect her too, and Joe is not coming back. And even worse, as the days pass, she no longer hears Bailey’s heels clicking in the hall. She’s getting used to her sister’s absence. Her sister’s clothes now smell like her, since she’s worn them so much. In all areas, Lennie has no hope left.

Dark Night of the Soul: (How does the protagonist feel about everything?)

Through out Chapter 30 we know exactly how Lennie feels. Miserable. Then her friend, Sarah, forces her to go to the movies. They see Joe and Rachel together. Rachel plays first chair clarinet, and Lennie plays second. But we all know that Lennie is better. At the end of this chapter, Lennie decides to challenge Rachel for first chair. (Who is this girl, who at the beginning wouldn’t even play her clarinet?)

And that ends a wonderfully structured Act II. Onward!

Can you find some of these elements in the middle of your current wip? Do you agree or disagree with me?

Comments { 22 }

“There is no secret ingredient,” says the great dragon warrior.

By on November 4, 2011 in Writing

Finally, finally, finally I watched KUNGFU PANDA. Can I just say that animated films follow the Blake Snyder beat sheet to a T. Or it seems. And this one was no different.

 

And yes, as I watched, I picked out all the different elements. #plotnerd Because that’s what I do for fun. My husband even joins in sometimes.

BUT, I walked away from this movie with three lessons.

1. As I watched the training sequence, I understood why last year my sons kept grabbing themselves saying, “Oh, my tenders.” Yup. I totally get it now.

2. I didn’t buy that this obese Panda could become a Kungfu master just because he started to believe in himself. He trained, yes. But I think it was overnight. Maybe if they had showed a season or two passing, I might’ve bought it.

My husband argued that the Kungfu skills were buried deep within the Panda.

What. Ever.

But this fact didn’t take away from my overall enjoyment of the movie. I’m not a stickler with things like that.

3. I absolutely loved the scene when Po’s father, who is some kind of goose, revealed that there is no secret ingredient to his noodle soup. Po’s face lit up as he realized it was all about what he believed or didn’t believe.

And that was the moment he started believing he truly was the great dragon warrior. For what we believe can truly transform us.

So as a writer, I truly believe that self confidence plays a huge role in writing.

What do you think?

Comments { 27 }

Find the fun! (And an interesting fact about honey.)

By on November 2, 2011 in social media

Good morning friends,

My son just looked over my shoulder and said, “Why would people want to read that?”

Exactly! Smart boy. (I just deleted my first paragraph. It’s gone into the ether. Never to be seen.)

Have you seen some of the kerfuffles happening in the blogosphere lately? Kinda crazy, huh? In a couple years, we’ll look back at this highly emotional time in publishing (because let’s face it, we are emotional people) and think, ‘Wow, no wonder why. Look at all the upheavals happening. The uncertainty! The madness!

And here’s an interesting fact. Did you know that honey never goes bad? That’s straight from the mouth of a 3rd grader in my kitchen. See, this is what happens when I write with my kids around. Thank goodness I’m not writing a story because that factoid could’ve ended up in a story that had nothing to do with honey or bears. Hmm.

One thought does weigh on my heart. Blog fatigue. I’ve seen quite a few people talk about how bored they are or how they aren’t really into social media. Twitter has become nothing more than one big promotional stream.

I’m not bored. And I’m not fatigued. Maybe I’ve only been blogging almost two years and not five? Maybe if writers want to promote their books, I don’t mind? Maybe I’m just not on it enough to feel annoyed? Not sure. What do you think?

Multiple choice question.

Why do you think bloggers are suffering from social media fatigue?

  1. Too much chocolate, which causes tiredness. (I think.)
  2. Too much pressure to build platform.
  3. Too much effort to comment on 100 blogs.
  4. Too much ranting and slamming and nitpicking going on.
  5. Too many interviews and promotions.
  6. Depression that not as many people are writing about vampires.
  7. Other.

What do you think? And do you have interesting factoid to brighten my day? Do share.

Comments { 33 }

Inventing the Future: Mindjacking

By on November 1, 2011 in book reviews, guest posts

Welcome blogger and friend, Susan Kaye Quinn! I can’t wait to read OPEN MINDS. It promises to be an exciting ride!

Inventing the Future: Mindjacking

by Susan Kaye Quinn, author of Open Minds (Book One of the Mindjack Trilogy)

picture credit

When I first had the idea of writing a novel about a mindreading world (Open Minds, Book One of the Mindjack Trilogy), my first concern was whether it was even possible. What about dialogue? How can I write a novel that operates entirely in the minds of the characters?

Part of solving that problem came when I realized: everything operates entirely in our minds.

Without diving off the philosophical ramparts, it is a simple reality that our brains process all the sensory inputs from the world and create something we call a consciousness that allows us to live, love, and occasionally fight like tomcats.

When I realized that my story would involve not only mindreading but mindjacking—with some characters able to control the thoughts of others—I immediately wanted this to be a very sensory experience. After all the mindjacker’s consciousness was interacting directly with the brain function of a mindreader. How could that not have a feeling, a taste, a smell?

During the first draft of Open Minds, I was truly pantsing my way through Kira’s world, discovering along with her what it felt like to be a mindjacker. I was surprised to discover that each mind had its own scent. That emotions could flavor a mind field, and that mind barriers could be soft like Jell-O or as hard as a rock. During subsequent drafts, I developed a hidden history of mindjackers, just like there was an evolution of the mindreading world, where the mindjackers’ abilities allowed them to stay hidden in the world of mindreaders, and also provided the motivation to do so.

What if your neighbor knew you could control their thoughts? What if they only suspected it? Kira knows intuitively know that this is a secret that must be kept.

It was a tricky to puzzle out, at times, how a roomful of mindreaders or mindjackers or a mixture of both would interact. Even if we can read each other’s minds, or control someone’s thoughts and actions, we are still people, with human desires driving us and usually some kind of morality behind what we do.

The most interesting science fiction, I find, is always stories that explore what it means for us to be human—in spite of being surrounded by technology or radically changed environments. One look at Shakespeare’s plays or ancient mythology shows that human beings haven’t changed much over the millennia. The fundamental structure of our brains evolved over a million years, and that evolution certainly didn’t account for mindreading or mindjacking. Even though the characters in Open Minds have new powers, they are still using the same basic mental equipment from the time humans were living in caves. In other words, the people in Kira’s world, are still human.

Exploring that thought continues to make for some interesting writing in Book Two, Closed Hearts.

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See more guest posts about Open Minds at the Virtual Launch Party!


When everyone reads minds, a secret is a dangerous thing to keep.

Sixteen-year-old Kira Moore is a zero, someone who can’t read thoughts or be read by others. Zeros are outcasts who can’t be trusted, leaving her no chance with Raf, a regular mindreader and the best friend she secretly loves. When she accidentally controls Raf’s mind and nearly kills him, Kira tries to hide her frightening new ability from her family and an increasingly suspicious Raf. But lies tangle around her, and she’s dragged deep into a hidden world of mindjackers, where having to mind control everyone she loves is just the beginning of the deadly choices before her.

Open Minds (Book One of the Mindjack Trilogy) by Susan Kaye Quinn is available for $2.99 in e-book (Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords) and $9.99 in print (Amazon, Createspace).

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PRIZES!


Susan Kaye Quinn is giving away an Open Books/Open Minds t-shirt, mug, and some fun wristbands to celebrate the Virtual Launch Party of Open Minds (Book One of the Mindjack Trilogy)! (Check out the prizes here.)

Three ways to enter (you can have multiple entries):

1)     Leave a comment here or at the Virtual Launch Party post

2)     Tweet (with tag #keepingOPENMINDS)

Example: When everyone reads minds, a secret is a dangerous thing to keep. #keepingOPENMINDS @susankayequinn #SF #YA avail NOW http://bit.ly/psX1Hh

Example: Celebrate the launch of OPEN MINDS by @susankayequinn #keepingOPENMINDS #SciFi #paranormal #YA avail NOW http://bit.ly/SKQOpenMinds

3) Facebook (tag @AuthorSusanKayeQuinn)

Example: Celebrate the launch of paranormal/SF novel OPEN MINDS by @AuthorSusanKayeQuinn for a chance to win Open Books/Open Minds prizes!

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Comments { 10 }

THE SKY IS EVERYWHERE (Act I) or how to make a BIG impact!

By on October 31, 2011 in Plotting a novel

Last Monday, most of you came to the conclusion that based on the description and plot that THE SKY IS EVERYWHERE is not high concept. I can see your point. But if you want to write or understand how to make a low concept book have high impact, then keep reading.

Act I

Opening Image: (the before snapshot of the protagonist)

I fell in love with this opening. Lennie is sitting with her Gram and her Uncle, known as Big, as they contemplate Lennie’s emotional health and her future based on a plant. The plant, which has always been “connected” to Lennie has black spots and is quite sickly.

You’d think the opening would show Lennie’s life before Bailey died, but it starts four weeks after. So how is this the before snapshot? Well, it’s her life without Bailey before things start changing and getting out of control.

Theme stated: (What is the story really about?)

The plant says it all. This story is about survival and grieving. Will the plant survive? Which really represents Lennie. Will she make it through this experience a survivor?

In this opening, several times over, Gram and Big ask if the plant is going to recover.

Set-up:

Because this is more literary and character driven we are absolutely drenched in Lennie on every page. Every chapter in Act I shows us a different aspect of her life and her troubled relationships.

Goal:

Lennie’s goal is to get through every day and face the challenges of how grief has changed all her relationships.

Stakes:

The stakes are extremely high for Lennie. It’s about the survival of her as a person, living, without her sister. She might not be saving the world or fighting a demon king, but to me, the stakes are just as high as if she were.

Six things that need fixing:

  1. Lennie’s soured relationship with her best friend, Sarah.
  2. Lennie sits in the closet, wearing her sister’s clothes, to grieve.
  3. Lennie doesn’t talk to her Gram anymore, refusing teatime or talks.
  4. Lennie’s lack of passion when playing the clarinet.
  5. Her bedroom, she shared with Bailey, has not changed, even down to Bailey’s dirty laundry.
  6. Lennie writes poetry and leaves the pages in random places around town.
  7. She’s been finding a reprieve from her grief while kissing Bailey’s boyfriend, Toby.

Catalyst: (the game-changing moment)

For me, the catalyst occurs in chapter 6, when Joe, new student and band mate, asks if they can play their instruments together. At this point, Lennie says no. But it gets her thinking. It symbolizes her unwillingness to let go of her grief, or even try. But we learn the problem stems to before Bailey’s death. Lennie has been struggling with a lack of passion in her music for over a year. So, a fellow talented musician asking her to play is a big deal. Almost as big, or bigger (in a personal way), than Frodo being asked to be the ring bearer and carry the ring to Mordor.

Debate: (asks some kind of question of the main character)

Okay, I’m going to be honest. I found it easier to find the debate in this character-driven story than I have some of the plot-driven stories. And maybe that’s because so much is being asked of Lennie that finding a debate is like plucking grapes off the vine.

Is she going to start living life again? But it is represented by one question. Joe keeps asking her to play with him, and she keeps saying no. When is she going to play again? When is she going to let go of the past?

At the end of Act I, Lennie is trying to pack up her sister’s stuff, but she’s having a hard time. Her and Toby go for a walk and share another emotional kiss. But it’s a kiss that develops from thinking about her sister and questioning how can the world go on? It’s a big moment. A dark moment.

And so ends, Act I.

Question: Do you think the only reason this book is high impact is because it deals with life and death and is more character driven? Have you read a high concept plot driven book with such impact?

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