Time to Write

How to use pressure to drive your story (Jon Vorhaus says)

How to use pressure to drive your story (Jon Vorhaus says…)

In his book, “Creativity Rules,” published in 2000 by Silman-James Press, John Vohaus discusses how to use pressure and conflict to drive your story forward in a way that will keep the reader wondering what will happen next. Here are a few of his tips, starting with what he calls the “change bomb,” the thing that starts the action of your story:

“[One] way to plant the change bomb is just to ask what does my character value most in the world and how can I take it away? You want your change bomb to be a vigorous event.

The truth is revealed under pressure.

Even if you don’t like conflict, learn to confront your characters.

Look for types of pressure appropriate to the type of story you’re telling.

Just by listing the types of pressures present in your story, you give yourself lots of new information about where your story might go. It helps when you get stuck. Instead of asking ‘what happens next?’ ask ‘what new pressure can I introduce?’

The pressure/response piston:
• Pressure: Cory had a crush on a new girl, Rochelle.
• Response: He asked her for a date.
• Pressure: She laughed in his face.
• Response: He ran away.
• Pressure: She told all his friends.

Pressure should escalate. Return to your theme, and orient your escalating pressures around it. Theme is your train. Pressure is your engine.

To cure stalling, make each event bigger than the last. Don’t fear the wrong choice.”

(Another book that will help you create powerful stories is my own “Your Writing Coach,” published by Nicholas Brealey and available at online and offline retailers. For more information, see www.yourwritingcoach.com.)

Writing books, writing games (do they really go together?)

The New York Times recently featured an article indicating that many publishers, especially those producing books for young readers, are coming up with related online games at the same time. One author, PJ Haarsma, said that this "brings the book into their world, as opposed to going the other way around." In other words, the game pretty much comes first. 

Another example of the trend is the "The Maze of Bones," a ten-book mystery series connected to an online game. The publisher is Scholastic Books. 

Marketing gimmick or the evolution of reading? It's not clear yet but one of the critics pointed out that one of the big differences between the two formats is that games tend to be interactive--what you do affects the action--whereas in reading the author is running the show. On the other hand, with books you have a lot of leeway as to how you imagine the characters and settings, while in games the visuals are presented to you. 

I can imagine a child reading a book and then going online to play a game set in the same world, or vice versa, but as I've said before, I'm a bit skeptical about how well these two formats actually integrate. However, I have noticed how many big-budget, big-effects movies seem to be more like video games all the time, with a set of action sequences that could be presented in any order, rather than in a compelling story arc.

The other issue is that a games writer/creator is not necessarily a good book author and vice versa, so in most cases it would be up to the publisher to acquire the book or game and then commission the other format, or hire two people to work in concert.

At any rate it's a fascinating topic and you can read the entire, quite lengthy, article, here. An earlier article by the same writer, Motoko Rich, looked at the relationship of reading online to reading books and other traditional texts, and you can find it here. 

Writing for Children (Easy...Wait a Minute)

Writing in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinal, Mary-Liz Shaw does a great job of summing up the challenges of writing children’s books:

“The misperception that it is easy to write means children's literature attracts a larger proportion of wannabe scribes - people with a minimum of skills who think they can knock out a kids' book by dinner.”
She quotes John Warren Stewig, director of the Center for Children’s Literature at Carthage College. He says, "Most people have a warm and fuzzy and kind of inaccurate idea of what children's literature is." We may remember the kids’ books we read, but, the article points out, “Among the markets for middle-grade and young-adult readers, both of which have grown in the wake of the Harry Potter and Lemony Snicket publishing phenomena, editors and readers demand a standard of literary sophistication far above that of 20 years ago.”

But if just about every actress and singer is putting out kids’ books these days, how hard can it be? The article confirms what we’ve known all along: “With a few exceptions, they read like exactly what they are: cash cows knocked out quickly and pushed on an unsuspecting market, says Mary Lee Donovan, executive editor at Candlewick Press, an independent children's publishing house.”

Thanks to author Carolyn Greene for pointing me to an active link to the article (“Child’s Play? No Way! It’s Not Easy Writing Books for Kids”).

(For tips on how to be more creative and productive, subscribe to my free Brainstorm monthly e-bulletin. Just send a request to BstormUK@aol.com)

Writing for Children (and by Children) & Digital Storytelling

If you are interested in writing for children, one blog that features reviews of lots of kids' books is The Places You Will Go, written by Daphne Lee. It’s a good place to get a quick overview of what’s already out there and to pick up some tips.

You may also want to check out a different approach to creating stories for (and by) children, at The Center for Digital Storytelling. It is a California-based non-profit 501(c)3 arts organization rooted in the art of personal storytelling. They say, "We assist young people and adults in using the tools of digital media to craft, record, share, and value the stories of individuals and communities, in ways that improve all our lives."

One approach is to integrate mapping with digital storytelling. To see how that can work, go to www.storymapping.org. They say, “Whether it is geo-tagging images on Flickr, building story-based GoogleMaps, developing Windows Live virtual tours, organizing local cell phone walking tours, or the permanent imbedding of stories into locations to be received by Bluetooth and other wireless information, we can now create maps that share stories about the places that matter to us, and place our life stories in countless geographic contexts.”

Naturally these methods are not restricted to kids' stories, and you may find yourself getting some new ideas for whatever kind of writing you are doing.