EDITING:
Since I'm at the very beginning of the manuscript, some of it has been edited already (when I was trying to figure out where to go, and to find the beginning of the story). Still, I've been having two main problems:
1. I'm working on the first six chapters(/scenes) (about 10K total). Some of the chapters have a beginning/middle/end, but some feel baggy and shapeless. I thought: maybe I should scrap these chapters? Maybe they don't belong in the story at all?
BUT: these chapters set up relationships that are very, very important later. They set up/start sub-plot conflicts. They give an intro to a pretty strange world. Maybe during another full-manuscript read-through I'll cut them out, but for now, I think they're necessary.
2. So, how do I give them more POP? How do I give them better shape?
Even though I didn't have a theme in mind while I was writing, I see now that the story's theme is RESCUE. So, I decided to put "rescue" at the center of a particular baggy chapter.
I thought about this chapter, and tried to figure out: what/who does Character 1 want to rescue? What about Character 2?
Once I figured that out (ie, Character 2 wants to save Character 1 from herself), I knew each character's goal in the scene (ie, Character 2 wants proof that Character 1 isn't a mess, that Character 1 has learned a lesson. Proof that Character 1 has learned a lesson would be Character 1's gratitude towards Character 2 for teaching it. Therefore, Character 2's goal is Character 1's gratitude).
Then I took Character 1 (the POV character) and delineated her attempts to get what she wants from Character 2 (in pursuit of her goal). Character 2's attempts at getting HER goal fell into place as reactions to Character 1's attempts.
I put those attempts/reactions into traditional five-act format.
Ok, so now I knew what they were really fighting about. The original scene had them fighting over a couple petty things, which became the cover for their real issues. Now, the scene escalates and says something about what is driving each character. It has momentum and is necessary to the reader's understanding of both characters' actions later in the story.
How it played out before: Character 1 and Charter 2 bicker. Character 2 is inappropriately bitchy and Character 1 is super high-strung.
This is how it plays out now: Character 1 wants respect from Character 2. Character 2 wants gratitude from Character 1. They fight over cookies, house-cleaning, and leaving for work as a cover for their fight over money. The fight over money is cover for a fight over respect/gratitude. Their respective needs for respect and gratitude inform how they deal with others when the action *really* heats up- AND, how they deal with each other.
Even though that particular scene is still very rough, I feel A LOT better about it now, and A LOT more convinced about its place in the story.
How I'm going to edit from here:
Now that I've got a rough version of the final scene, I'm going to cut and sharpen so that each part of scene's five-act structure has the proper amount of space (ie, "act 1" shouldn't take up half the scene. It should barely take up a fifth!).
Then, I get to do the fun stuff- clean up the dialogue, think about word choice, etc.
Obviously, the scene *still* won't be done. But the goal is: edit one part (out of eleven) of the novel every week. In eleven weeks, I should have a fairly strong novel- the best I can make it, anyway. Then, I'll put it away for a month and send out all my television fellowship applications, among other things.
When I come back and read it... well, here's hoping I'm shocked at how wonderful it is and proud to send it around to agents! ;)
OUTLINING:
The outlining I've been doing hasn't been quite as well structured because I'm less comfortable with it. But generally, I feel like it has been going very well, so maybe it'll be worthwhile to share my process.
-Watched every single episode of the show I'm spec.ing. (took about a week)
-Took notes on three or four episodes. The notes look like this:
"TITLE"
-Scene one, one-sentence/phrase description of what happens.
-Scene two, one-sentence blah blah blah
ACT BREAK!
-Scene one....
When I did this for another show, I also included the times for each scene (what time they ended, in shorthand) so that I knew how long to make each scene. This time around, however 1. I was watching the episodes on an iPod, so that would have been a HUGE pain. 2. I figure that's part of my own editing process later. I have a feel for about how long each scene should be, and how long each act is... I can nail the specifics further into the process, when I'm weighing where each scene should go in the overall story.
-Had a random inspiration while trying to sleep. Each character uses a crutch of some kind... what would happen if those specific crutches were taken away?
-Made a *very* rough outline (with lots of blank spaces).
-Went back over my summary notes for those three or four episodes. Figured out what the general structure was for the A, B, C, and D stories
(ie, a D story usually has this structure:
1. Expo.
2. Reaction to Expo.
3. Dilemma
4. Solve the dilemma
5. Reaction to the solution)
-Wrote a *very* rough first scene. Just to see what fell into place (I think best about writing while actually writing... or driving. But I was on a work break at the moment, so driving wouldn't work ;) ).
-Of course, some major elements from the show were missing from that rough scene, and writing it told me what they were. Decided this one element (ie, person who betrays) was *essential* to moving forward, and told my brain to think of possible interesting versions of it that the show hadn't already done.
-Was reminded of a version of that element in a book a read a couple years ago.
-Played with the book's version of the element for a while. Came up with an interesting, modern twist on it.
-Brainstormed: how would each character deal with this version of the modern twist?
-Decided which characters would be my A, B, C, and D story leads based on how interesting I thought their reactions would be.
-Decided which characters would be my A, B, C and D story leads, based on how interesting I thought their reactions/goals/resolutions were.
There is still A LOT of outlining to go- I don't know a whole lot of specifics for the plot yet. BUT, I have a very solid foundation, and the framework for a lot of interesting ideas.
My plan now is:
-Brainstorm about one story lead at a time. Think of the most interesting reaction/desires/obstacles they could have. See how some of the show's other essential story elements fit.
-Outline (rough) each lead character's arc.
-See how those outlines fit together. Where the other characters might or might not fit.
-Think about interesting twists. Interesting interactions. Unintended consequences.
-THEN I'LL HAVE A GREAT OUTLINE! *fingers crossed anyway*
And if this sounds like a ton of (unnecessary?) work? The brainstorming/outlining stuff only took two or three days, and watching your favorite television show isn't exactly work, right?! :) Also, I've tried to move forward on scripts without all this outlining, and I just freeze or write *TOTAL* crap. So maybe all this stuff isn't necessary for you, but it is for me.
Btw, I got some of these outlining ideas from Alex Epstein's Crafty TV Writing: Thinking Inside the Box, and Writing the TV Drama Series by Pamela Douglas. Personally, I found Epstein's book especially helpful, and he's got a great blog, too: Complications Ensue.
No comments:
Post a Comment