Time to Write

Do you have to know the ending?

Once in a while I read about a successful writer who cheerfully declares, "I never know what's going to happen next, I just start writing and let the characters lead me."

Please, can you send some of those characters my way? My characters lead me, too, but usually into a dead end or another story altogether. They like going off road.

My hunch is the few writers who claim to write without a map actually do have one in their subconscious mind, and they've been at the writing game so long that their internal alarm system warns them when they're about to head into a dead end.

Either that or they're lying; throwing planning to the wind sounds much more romantic than sweating over an outline.

Christopher Markus, co-writer of "Infinity Wars," told the New York Times, "we're never writing without knowing where the end goes."

By the way, if you feel that movie was too fragmented, the writers probably wouldn't disagree. Co-author Stephen McFeeley noted, "Had we started from scratch, we would not have chosen six damn McGuffins [the infinity stones]. That's not helpful. It was difficult to get all that in." Once they knew that was the end, though, they were locked into that particular journey.

Having a strong ending is important--and difficult. Lawrence Kasdan, writer on "The Empire Strikes Back," in the same NY Times article said, "All the suspense about Act III is, how will this be resolved? People are always disappointed by the third act. 'That's all you can think of?'" 

I've mentioned before that my process is kind of a hybrid. I do know the ending and usually a few key plot points, but I allow myself to write freely for about the first quarter of the project. For a screenplay that would be the first 30 or 40 pages. Then I stop and plan the rest, although not scene by scene, just the key developments. For a feature script that might be roughly a dozen important events or turning points.

I'm not suggesting you use that method, although you might want to give it a try. You have to find what works best for you, what keeps you on track without making you feel too restricted by the plan. But for sure knowing where you want the story to end will make the entire process easier.

 

 

 

What to write about

"Don't try to figure out what other people want to hear from you;

figure out what you have to say.

It's the one and only thing

you have to offer."

Barbara Kingfisher

 

How to manage an ensemble storyline

How do you construct a storyline that does justice to all the characters in a large ensemble?

An extreme version of that problem confronted the writers of Avengers:  Infinity War. 

One of the writers, Christopher Markus, described their solution in an interview with SYFYWire:

"It all started to balance out once we realized that Thanos [the villain] is the main character; he's the protagonist of this movie. He is actually the driving force. He will dictate everything that happens in the movie. Until his story or the ramifications of his story interact with certain characters, they're not in the movie. He is pulling people into the drama."

You may not have that kind of villain in your storyline but a good starting point is to ask what all of your characters have in common. That may be the key to figuring out the best way to introduce the members of the ensemble.

START WITH THE BIG QUESTIONS

It's tempting to jump right into trying to figure out the plot, but co-director Joe Russo describes how they start with the bigger questions:

"We talk about the storytelling, as directors, we talk about what we're interested in saying with the movie, what are the thematics, what's the tone of it, what are some of the bigger targets we'd like to hit."

The theme can become the criterion for whether or not a possible story element fits.

Russo says, "...the thematic question that Infinity War asks is the theme of the Marvel Universe, and can be the theme of any story which involves heroes versus villains: "What is the cost that they're willing to pay? And does the value of doing what's right outweigh the cost?"

ONE SCENE TO AVOID

Markus says, "We had written, at some point, one of those big-ass group scenes. 'Let's get everybody together in a conference room and talk about the threat that's coming.' It was cool because everyone was there, but it was awful."

It's better to let the audience see (or figure out) why and how your group fits together rather than to have an 'explainer' scene full of exposition.

DO JUSTICE TO EACH CHARACTER

Just as is true for us in real life, each character is in their own drama.

Russo describes the process that helps ensure each character's integrity in the larger story:

"It is a very vigilant and disciplined process, of sitting in a room, endlessly, going through the story you want to tell, following the story through each character's point of view. We'll spend a day going through Gamora's story. A day going through Banner's story. A day going through Panther's story. Pulling them through the movie so we understand what their point of view is, what their moments are."

A FINAL SCARY BIT OF ADVICE

A vital question that doesn't apply only to ensemble stories is how you to keep audiences interested throughout the story. Russo offers this scary advice: 

"There's a storytelling adage that says, "Write yourself into a corner." Put yourself in a place, on a narrative level, where you have no idea how you're going to get out of it. Breaking Bad is a great example of that adage. Every episode of that show ends in a place where you go, "I have no idea how this is going to continue next week. How these characters are going to move forward from here." And we've always appreciated that as good storytelling. And we love that as storytellers, because that's the great challenge.

Spend everything you have. Push everything as far as you can. Say to yourself, "Welp, that's it. I don't know how possibly there's anything beyond this." And then let it gestate for a while and it's quite possible that you find a road forward after that."

 

 

How to avoid being scammed by people like this guy

Author and TV producer Lee Goldberg has a post on his blog about James Strauss, a "convicted con artist and fake TV writer."

Goldberg has received many emails with horror stories from people saying they've been conned or harassed by Strauss.

A recent one was from a young filmmaker asking whether he should do free work for Strauss in exchange for help breaking in to the business. Since Strauss has zero real Hollywood experience and has stiffed screenwriters, conference organizers, and many others, the answer is a loud NO.,

In 1998 Strauss pleaded guilty to defrauding a teachers' retirement fund out of $400,000. He was sentenced to 21 months. In addition he was accused of embezzling more than $20,000 from a Santa Fe Business while out on pre-release from the other case. 

Unfortunately, there are many like him out there, swindling aspiring writers and others. 

HOW TO AVOID BEING SCAMMED

If you are unsure about anybody offering you services like matching you with producers or publishers, public relations, promotion, editing, publishing help, etc. do your homework before you hand over money or agree to work for free! Here's what to do:

1: Google their name, the name of their company and anything else you know about them. Go past the first page of results. Smart crooks often set up fake websites full of endorsements for themselves, but under different names.

Many times they'll have a headline like, "Is X a scam?" and in the body of the site say, of course not! They use SEO to drive these sites to the top of Google results, pushing genuine sites down to page 2 or 3 or 4.

In the case of a bogus publisher, I Googled the names of the books they had supposedly published and none were listed on Amazon, nor did any of the alleged authors have websites.

2: If they feature endorsements, follow them up. Ask for complete names and contact details. If all you can get is quotes like, "X got me a big Hollywood deal!" -- Annette F., Detroit...well, that's not enough!

It's true that some people who give an endorsement don't like to give their full names and email addresses but the person in question should be able to give you at least a few who are willing to be contacted via email.

3: If the endorsements also feature photos, do a reverse image search.

First, go to http://images.google.com/ and click on the camera button and upload the image (you can usually click and drag it off the page on the person's website). Or you can drag and drop it into the search blank on the Google image search page.

Then also use TinEye, the simple instructions are at www.tineye.com. Both are free to use and sometimes an image source pops up on one but not on the other.

If you're dealing with a con artist, the image may turn out to have been sourced from a stock image site. That turned out to be the case with one subsidy publisher I looked into a couple of years ago.

4: Ask for specifics. For instance, if they say they can get you in the door at a studio, ask whom they deal with there--who is their contact?

That may be enough to scare them off.

If they're brazen they may say, "Spielberg, of course!" Don't be afraid to email that supposed contact, tell them what you've been told and ask if they have a relationship with the person making the claims.

5. Spread the word. If you find somebody is deceiving people, spread the word via your blog, Facebook, other social media and to relevant groups (like writing groups) and organizations.

Be sure to stick to the facts. Don't say, "X is a  con artist and fraudster!" Instead, say, "X offered to connect me with producer Y, yet when I got in touch with Y I was told they have never heard of X." Or, "The pictures of supposed satisfied clients on X's websites turn out to be stock photos purchased from iStock."

The reason for being careful to stick to the facts is that scam artists often like to threaten lawsuits. I had a few threatening letters from Tate Publishing, for instance, before they went bust and two of the principals were arrested. But because I'd stuck to the facts, there was nothing to sue me about.

Usually they're bluffing, but getting into even a bogus lawsuit is no fun. The facts should be damning enough. The reason I can characterize James Strauss as a con artist is that he's been convicted of embezzlement. Is he still conning people right now? I don't know but I'd sure avoid getting involved with him in any way, based on his past and the continuing complaints.

Let the buyer beware!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Keep track of those body parts!

When you're writing, it's easy to come up with dramatic similes, metaphors, and descriptions that go a step too far. Here are a few actual examples from published books, thanks to a column David Langford wrote a while back for SFX magazine (unlike Langford, I'm sparing the authors their blushes):

"Franklin left his eyes on the floor, took a half step backward."

"His eyes fixed like grappling hooks on AAri's face..."

"...his eyes felt as if they had tendrils growing out of them, crawling like ants across the floorboards."

"Eyes like anguished talons were clutching hers." (Eyes like talons are bad enough, but anguished talons?)

It's not only eyes doing unusual things:

"The wind was shrieking, and so were her legs."

"I said through grated teeth." (Ouch, that one hurts to even think about.)

"Her face had the fragrance of a gibbous moon."

His unruly shock of red hair towered six feet above the floor."

"He felt once again the desire to bite his own backside in fury." 

And my favorite:

"His dark face was pale."

 

 

 

 

 

 

What motivates your characters? (And what motivates you?)

There are four stages of motivation, says Benjamin Hardy in an article on Medium.

That may be an oversimplification, but a useful one when creating characters for your screenplay or novel--as well as for a bit of navel-gazing. Here's how he defines the four stages:

    "At stage one, you are motivated by fear. Everything you do is to avoid punishment or negative outcomes. 

    At stage two, you are motivated by reward. Everything you do is to get what you want. 

    At stage three, you are motivated by duty. You’re going to do what you believe you should whether you receive a reward or not.

    At stage four, you are motivated by love. You have moved beyond worry for your own needs."

THE UPSIDE AND DOWNSIDE OF EACH STAGE

Naturally, each of these stages has advantages and drawbacks.

Stage one sounds terrible, but there is a kind of protection implied--the fearful person may never take any risks and therefore may not excel, but they will avoid some of the negative events that befall risk-takers.

People at stage two tend to believe that everybody else is at this stage, and they don't see any problem with being selfish. In fact, often they believe that what they do also benefits the greater good (see Ayn Rand, or "What's good for General Motors is good for America.")

Stage three removes the need to make many decisions or question your actions. The path forward is defined for you by your group or your religion. 

While stage four sounds great, it has just as many potential conflicts and complications as the others. For instance, imagine a scientist whose research could potentially save the lives of many people--but requires a dedication of time and effort that makes it difficult for him or her to also devote enough time to family. That's the story of many top artists and scientists.

Of course, nobody is motivated by only one of these all the time. Probably over the course of the day, we make decisions based on all four. Even the same action may be motivated by a mix. However, one may predominate.

HOW TO APPLY THIS TO YOUR CHARACTERS

You could use these as a pattern for the character arc of your protagonist. The character could go from stage three to stage four, or even from stage one to stage four, although a change that big that would require intense events to drive it.

You could also decide at which stage the other characters are. That will help you decide what they would do at any point in your story. 

Finally, having different characters at different levels will tend to generate conflict, always useful when you're building a plot.

____

Want tips on creating outstanding characters? You'll get them from the top writers of today and times past, in Your Creative Writing Masterclass, published by Nichalas Brealey/Hachette, and available from Amazon or your other favorite bookseller.

Learning from first pages that work...or don't

You pick up a book or check the "look inside" feature on Amazon, and read the first page.

Do you want to continue reading? Enough to buy the book?

On the Writer Unboxed site, there's a feature called "Flog a Pro: would you pay to turn the first page of this bestseller?"

As the title suggests, the feature reveals the first page of a popular book, asks you to decide whether you'd pay to continue reading, and explains why they would or wouldn't. You can vote and see how others voted.

The most recent example was the first page of Glass House by Louise Penny, which held the ninth spot on the New York Times hardcover bestseller list for Sept. 17, 2017.

I opted for "no", as did 54% of the total voters--but since this was a new post, only 17 people had voted.

The post's author, novelist Ray Rhamey, also voted no.

Like Rhamey, I felt that too much of the first page was devoted to the unremarkable musings of a character I don't know yet. The book is part of a character series, so that might not bother people who have read others in the collection. 

Focusing the the first page is an enjoyable way to get yourself to be analytical about what works (or doesn't) to grab the reader, a good source of lessons for our own writing. It's not only browsers who pay attention to the first page, so do agents and publishers. Crafting a strong first page is equally important for screenplays. 

However, avoid the temptation to try to make the first page perfect before you write the second and third. That's better left for the second and subsequent drafts, if you want to avoid driving yourself crazy.

---
Would you like writing advice from the classic and modern greats? You'll find it in my book, Your Creative Writing Masterclass, published by Nicholas Brealey/Hachette, and available from Amazon or your other favorite bookseller.

 

 

Hook me or I'm leaving (writing good openings)

I just started listening to a podcast of spooky stories...and turned to something else after about three minutes. Why? Because the opening was full of general information that didn't feel like it was going anywhere. Neither was there foreshadowing of anything scary or mysterious.

The narrator started with some descriptions of how he had a normal childhood, then told how his father arranged for him to go to college on a scholarship that required him to work for the school. Then he described the jobs he had to do, still in general terms....

Yawn.

Next!

The lesson is that unless you hook us with something specific, we're likely to wander off pretty quickly. 

I don't know what happens in the story after the point at which I left, but let's assume that he encounters a ghost. Here's a quick example of how the author could have grabbed the reader's attention more quickly:

"I guess it was the fact that my childhood was so normal that made it hard for me to comprehend what happened later. I grew up...(Now I'm willing to hear about his normal childhood for a bit, thanks to the promise that it's leading up to whatever happened later that would be outside the realm of "normal.")

Or it could have been something specific about his childhood:

"When I was a kid, my parents taught me and my brothers not to believe in superstitions. If anybody mentioned ghosts, my parents laughed and assured us that there was no such thing." (He doesn't have to say any more, we already expect that later in the story his parents will be proved wrong.)

A small detail or a bit of foreshadowing goes a long way--and keeps us reading.

[For useful information on writing your book, from idea through to publication, get a copy of my book, Your Writing Coach, published by Nicholas Brealey and available from Amazon or your other favorite bookseller.)

 

 

These qualities made Wonder Woman a Hit

Make sure that the characters are portrayed with heart, humor, hope, heroics, and optimism at the base, DC Entertainment president Geoff Johns told the makers of the new film version of Wonder Woman.

Heart.

Hope.

Heroics.

Optimism.

Sounds like what we need more of in our movies...and our politics....and our lives. 

Let's face it, if we want melancholy, irony, and dystopian themes, we can watch the news.

What research tells us about (fictional) heroes and villains

Why do viewers like TV and movie protagonists who do bad things? For instance, Walter White from Breaking Bad, or Tony Soprano. Recent research at the University of Buffalo sheds some light on the matter and can be useful for anybody writing fiction.

Who the audience meets first plays a role. 

Science Daily reports that heroes were judged to be more heroic when they appeared after a villain and villains were judged to be more villainous when they appeared after a hero.

It's all relative

Lead researcher Matthew Grizzard said, "What's happening here is that we're not making isolated judgments about these characters using some objective standard of morality. We're constantly making comparisons about these characters and the forces they face."

That applies to Walter White, who gradually does worse and worse things--but he's also up against even worse people.

The show's creator, Vince Gilligan, has said he expected the audience to turn on Walter, but most of them stayed loyal to him. A friend of mine who has discussed the show with a lot of people told me that they split into either the Walter camp or the Jesse camp. 

A LITTLE GOOD GOES A LONG WAY (FOR THE BAD GUY)

Another interesting finding is that villains get more credit for any altruistic actions they perform than heroes do. If you want to make our villain character more three-dimensional, having them perform even a minor good act will help you achieve that.

(You'll find lots of useful information about creating great characters in my book, Your Writing Coach, available from Amazon or our other favorite bookseller.)

Four Ways Music Can Help You Write

Here are four ways music can help you write:

As a transition from your work day to your writing session.

If you find that you're having trouble shaking the concerns that you dealt with during your job time (or family time), listening to a music track can help you make the shift. 

Experiment with what works best for you. For some people an upbeat tune is most effective, others prefer a meditative track that helps them to calm down and re-focus.

To energize you when you feel too tired to write. 

A recent study looking at the use of music to empower athletes tested 31 clips and found the two that were most effective were "We Will Rock You" (Queen) and "Get Ready for This" (2 Unlimited), but you probably already have tracks that you know pump up your energy levels.

To evoke the mood that you want to create in what you are writing.

If you're writing a horror script or novel, it could help you to listen to a soundtrack from an existing horror film, for instance. (Some people find it too distracting to have music playing while writing, this is something you'll have to try and see whether it works for you.)

To tune in to the energy of your major characters. 

What song or music track would best represent your protagonist's energy or world view? How about your antagonist? Listening to these before you write a major scene can be useful.

Any more?

If you have any other ways you use music to enhance your writing or creativity, feel free to share them in the comments section!

Whatever your writing is, let it be that (a lesson I learned the hard way)

I created a surreal sitcom for which I wrote a spec script not so long ago. A friend got it to a writer/producer who said he thought it was very funny, but he couldn't identify enough with the characters and I should change it to make it more like a current comedy series about the challenges of a working class single parent.

There was a time when I probably would have scrambled to try to do that, but I won't, and here's why:

IT IS WHAT IT IS.

What I mean is that while it's always possible to improve a piece of writing, it's a waste of time to change it to try to make it something that it isn't. Usually, the result is a compromise that won't please anybody. And I have the stories to prove it...

AN EXPERIENCE I CAN (ALMOST) LAUGH ABOUT NOW

Once upon a time I wrote a romantic comedy TV movie that the wonderful producer Stan Margulies wanted to make (he produced the original "Roots' mini-series).

We took it to one network and they said they wanted to do it with a particular actress. The next week, it came out that this actress had a drug problem, and the network backed out.

Stan and I took it to another network. They said they loved it, they wanted only one change: "Someone should be trying to kill the young woman."

What?! 

We pointed out that it's a romantic comedy. "Oh yeah, don't lose that," the network exec said. "Just add the thriller element."

Stan and I had a lunch of pasta and lots of wine. LOTS of wine. We talked ourselves into trying it. I hated every minute of writing that version.

I hated every minute of writing that version.

We took it back to the network exec. He loved it. However, his boss, who made the final decision, didn't, and the network didn't make it.

We'll never know whether the top guy would have gone ahead with the original if we'd been able to get it to him directly, but I learned a lesson. 

IF IT FAILS, LET IT FAIL FOR THE RIGHT REASON

In the sitcom, naturally I want my characters to be plausible within the world I've created, but the series is about the strangeness of everyday life, as reflected in fantasies and events that, while grounded in the greater reality, are not commonplace everyday events.

Giving the characters the kind of emotional reality that might attach to a single parent struggling to make ends meet would be incompatible with the basic idea of the series.

The series may or may not be any good, but if it fails I want it to fail on its own terms. 

It calls to mind a quote that has been attributed to various people, including Luther Price:

"Be what you is, not what you ain't; 'cause if you ain't what you is, you is what you ain't."

I share this in case it's helpful when you get advice about your writing. 

Ask yourself whether the change would make it a better version of what it is, or would it force it to try to be something it ain't.

If it's the latter, forget it, no matter how much wine you've had.

(Come to think of it, this might be a good practice regardless of what the advice is about.)

 

When publishing meets television: a new approach, but is it a good one?

When pitching a movie or a TV series, writers sometimes characterize their project as "X" meets "Y"--as in, "Romeo and Juliet" meets "Lord of the Flies."

There's a new approach to books that might be described as "TV writing" meets "publishing."

New publisher Serial Box produces ebooks in 13 to 15 weekly episodes. The first one and the series bible is created by one writer, who is the equivalent of the Show Runner in TV. The team works out the complete storyline, then writers compose chapters, alternating so the assembly line keeps rolling.

Each episode takes about an hour to read and costs $1.99, or you can subscribe and pay $1.59 each, or buy an access pass for all the episodes for about $20. You get both text and audio versions.

The first publication is a dystopian YA novel with a premise that sounds pretty familiar: 23 teens wake up after the Apocalypse and have to figure out what happened--while also being hunted by machines. 

Wired.com quotes co-founder Molly Barton as saying that one of the ideas behind this format is that friends will find it easier to discuss the books because they will be reading them at the same time.

I can't say that as an author I'm very excited by this development; television necessarily is a collaborative medium, but in novels I value the author's individual voice. Of course, there have been book series before that were written by various authors under one pen name, and it didn't kill literature.

Even so, it'll be interesting to find out whether readers go for this format.

Related articles

If teen and Young Adult novels were realistic

Why you shouldn't write like (fill in name)

One director's take on "write what you know"

Authors, this could be a way to get paid to write your book

How has an author recently raised over $1 million to fund the publishing of a book that tells the stories of 100 inspiring real-life women?

The answer is Kickstarter, the crowdfunding site.

Better known for raising money for tech gadgets, Kickstarter has become a powerful presence in funding self-publishing and independent publishing in the US and the UK.

MANY BOOKS, BIG MONEY

As reported in an article by Richard Lea in The Guardian, in 2015 there were 1,973 successfully-funded publishing pitches, plus another 994 for comic ands and graphic novels. 

That added up to $32.5 million. To date in 2016 another $20 million has been raised for such projects.

There are other crowdfunding sites that raise money for publishing books, but they are dwarfed by Kickstarter. 

HOW IT WORKS

The people doing the pitch set a goal sum and a time limit within which they hope to raise it; if they fail, those who did pledge money are not charged and the project doesn't get any money. On some other sites, if a project raises only part of the goal, the people doing the pitch get that amount.

Kickstarter takes a 5% fee, and payment processing charges. If funding doesn't reach the goal, there are no fees.

THE SECRETS OF KICKSTARTER SUCCESS

Some successful projects have an author who already has a following he or she can tap. Without that, you have to work much harder.

It's vital that the pitch video is compelling and that the goodies on offer are attractive to the target audience. 

There is usually a range of rewards tied to various levels of pledges, from a thank you postcard if you pledge a very small amount, to one or more copies of the publication, to signed copies, to bonus posters, to having a character named after you, to spending a day with the author. 

Even when those elements are in place, the author or publisher has to drive people to the Kickstarter site. This requires a lot of marketing, usually via social media.

The Kickstarter site says, "The majority of initial funding usually comes from the fans and friends of each project. If they like it, they'll spread the word to their friends, and so on."

THE BENEFITS (BEYOND THE MONEY)

Of course, not every pitch gets funded. One of the benefits of using the site is that it gives you a good indication of whether there will be enough demand for your book. In many cases the books haven't been written yet when their Kickstarter campaign starts. If there is a lacklustre response, the author may decide not to go ahead with the project. 

For the projects that succeed, it's a great way to guarantee a good number of readers who, if they like the book, may help spread the word. Rebel Girls, the book about inspirational women, will start its life with 20,000 readers in place, from 71 countries. 

WANT TO CHECK IT OUT?

If you have a book that you think might be suitable for crowdfunding, check out this page on the Kickstarter site: https://www.kickstarter.com/learn?ref=nav.

For a more general overview, take a look at their FAQ page.

 

A simple question to help you understand what your characters would do next

When you're stuck for what a character in your novel or screenplay would do next, there's a simple question that can help you decide.

As novelist Lili Wright ("Dancing With the Tiger") points out in an interview in The National Book Review, how you phrase the question is important. She credits it to screenwriting guru Robert McKee:

"Don't think, What would I do?

Or, what would the character do?

But: If I were him or her, what would I do?"

It's when you put yourself into the character's shoes and interpret the situation from his or her perspective that you're most likely to hit upon the most logical and true next action.

For instance, if you (the writer) came across somebody fell into some bushes and obviously is in need of help, probably you'd go to their aid. But what about your character's reaction to such a situation?

Let's assume your character has a good reason to want to stay out of the spotlight.

If you ask yourself simply, "What would the character do?" you might conclude that she hurries on, hoping someone else will come along and help the injured person.

However, if you imagine yourself to be the character and create that image of the injured person in your imagination, you might find that simply leaving the injured person and doing nothing else makes you feel too guilty.

As this character, what else could you do? For instance, maybe you'd hurry on but, keeping your head down, say to the next person you encounter, "I think there's somebody over there who's injured," hoping that person would choose to look and help. 

Vividly imagining any situation from the perspective of your character allows you to tune in to their emotion as well as the logic of how they'd react, and that will make it more authentic.