The Evolution a Book -- Part One: Creating a Vlog

Thanks I get from writers for the Plot Series: How Do I Plot a Novel, Memoir, Screenplay? is an added gift.

I did the vlog (which I later learned means a video blog) on a lark with my friend Cathy Cress , fiction writer and expert on the aging family and sibling warfare. My vlogs are on plot for writers. Cathy's vlogs Mom Loves You Best - Forgiveness are on sibling reconciliation and forgiveness which grew out of her own life, her writing and her lifelong work. While I filmed her, I was struck how writers could benefit from the juicy and touching and horrific sibling stories she relates for creating more realistic familial back-stories and antagonists in stories and also for tips on how to heal your own personal sibling back-story.

I brought up the idea of creating vlogs. Sight unseen, no explanations needed, Cathy was in. Cathy's latest book: Mom Loves You Best - Forgiveness was just released. The month before I had met my soon-to-be agent at a writers retreat where I was teaching plot and she was teaching about voice and being her -- a high-energy light. Jill Corcoran of the Herman Agency loves my plot teaching. I love everything about her.

Cathy and I both created a youtube channel, bought a flip camera and started filming mostly because we wanted to share our passions.

Cathy's and my spontaneity and rookie filming is evidenced in the first video -- Step One: How Do I Plot the Dramatic Action Plot. If either Cathy or I had heard LingLing (the dog barking) we would have stopped filming and opened the gate. I heard nothing, not even the sound of my own voice or what I was saying. We followed outlines on giant Post-It Notes -- Cathy's amazingly plotted out. Mine more by the seat of your pants.

The series evolved from our own gardens to using cool local landmarks as backdrops on Step Five: How Do I Plot the Three Major Plot-lines in a Novel, Memoir, Screenplay.

Another rookie mistake revealed itself in Step Ten: How Do I Plot the Beginning of a Novel, Memoir, Screenplay.

where it appears a man is mooning the camera. I was oblivious. Obviously, Cathy was too.

By Step Eleven: How Do I Plot Turning Points in a Novel, Memoir, Screenplay. the Santa Cruz Traveling Mystery Tour was born.

Cathy and I laughed our way through the steps, while my brand new (to me) amazing agent Jill pitched mainstream, national publishers for the second edition of Blockbuster Plots Pure and Simple.

Part Two: The vision for a Plot Whisperer book materializes...

For immediate tips about the Universal Story and writing a novel, memoir or screenplay, visit Plot Series: How Do I Plot a Novel, Memoir, Screenplay? on YouTube. A directory of all the steps to the series is to the right of this post. Enjoy!

Order The Plot Whisperer: Secrets of the Universal Story Structure Any Writer Can Master NOW and receive it in time to pre-plot for NaNoWriMo in November!

Deconstruct the Protagonist

Fascinating plot consultation today. The writer knows how she wants the story to end -- the Climax -- and needed support to find a way to get there. 

I have found that writers who know the end of the story early on in the writing of a story often are able to stay on track more easily than writers who have no idea where they are going (though if you're one who has no idea of the end, eventually you'll finish the first draft and know the Climax and thus, have the same advantage as the writer who knows the Climax before starting out). 

Either way, knowledge of the climax determines so many of the earlier decisions you need to make. 

The action the protagonist takes at the climax reveals what traits, knowledge, and skills are necessary for her to prevail. Thus, these necessary skills will be missing at the beginning and she will need relearn or rediscover them throughout the middle. Some skills she will be learning for the first time, but the true skills necessary for success at the climax are rediscovered after having been lost or buried due to her backstory. This is a backward approach to developing a character, deconstructing the end character to determine who she is at the beginning.

Most writers write with a forward approach to developing a character. You fill in a flaw, a strength, and five other character traits on the character profile. Either you begin writing first and the character reveals these traits to you, or you decide upon the character traits first and then construct a character using those traits. However, today was the writer who represent those who write from the climax back to the beginning.

What kind of writer are you?

All of this information and will be found in:
The Plot Whisperer: Secrets of the Universal Story Structure Any Writer Can Master released by Adams Media October 2011. Order NOW and receive it in time to pre-plot for NaNoWriMo in November!

For immediate tips about the Universal Story and writing a novel, memoir or screenplay, visit Plot Series: How Do I Plot a Novel, Memoir, Screenplay? on YouTube. A directory of all the steps to the series is to the right of this post. Enjoy!

Details, Transformation, and The Universal Story

Often, the writers who excel in conveying just the right details in a scene or depth of emotion through subtle body language during dialogue have a strength in visual perception and visual memory. 

Judging from the number of writers who have commented on the fact that I wear red (one of the brand colors of BBP) in all the videos on my Plot Series  vlog where I address plot issues in the Beginning and the Middle of novels, memoirs, and screenplays, I take heart that their stories resonate with subtle thematic clues. 

A much smaller number of writers have noted the switch from red to purple in the videos pertaining to plotting the End of a story (to show the outward change signifying the character's ultimate transformation in the Universal Story).

Writers have a tendency to get stuck in their heads, focus on themselves, and look inward rather than outward. They obsess about the stories they write to the point that they often miss the details of the world around them. 

Close your eyes. How many objects in the room you are sitting in can you describe in detail? 

Pull yourself out of a conversation you are having with another person and watch the interchange, as if watching a movie. 

Memorize the words the other person speaks. Note what she holds back and how she conveys meaning through nonverbal communication. 

Recount the last conversation you had. What did the other person say? Your answers, or lack thereof, may surprise you. 

Look at the details that surround you. What do they convey about where you are on your writer’s journey? 

What can you let go of, both tangible and intangible, to move nearer to who you dream of being? 

Whenever you are not writing, pay attention to the world around you and what others are saying. Jot down notes in your journal that you carry with you everywhere. Tune into the details of the natural world. The practice gets you out of your head and produces gems for the theme, mood, and nuance of your story. 

Most of a writer’s genius comes in the art of the finesse. How finely you craft your project before you let it go is up to each individual writer. 

The Plot Whisperer: Secrets of the Universal Story Structure Any Writer Can Master released by Adams Media October 2011. NOW available now for pre-order!

For immediate tips about the Universal Story and writing a novel, memoir or screenplay, visit Plot Series: How Do I Plot a Novel, Memoir, Screenplay? on YouTube. A directory of all the steps to the series is to the right of this post. Enjoy!

Step Away from all the Words of Your Novel, Memoir, Screenplay

A writer says her story "tanks around page 25" and bores her even to try to rewrite.

I recommend she spend some time standing back from the words of her story and view the inner workings. In other words, analyze the structure before you worry too much about the details and even the words you write. 

A Plot Planner is a visual line that represents the invisible energy of the Universal Story. It enables you to assess the significance of your characters and the dramatic action of your story by seeing how all the scenes work together against the backdrop of the entire piece. Such a multilayered attentiveness to your story allows for a unique perspective into the deeper meaning of your story.

A plot planner gives a visual accounting of all the scenes in a story. It helps you compare scenes that heighten conflict and suspense to those quieter scenes that show the character in control. Each scene delivers more tension and conflict than the preceding scene and builds with intensity to the story’s climax. Standing back from all the words and viewing the story as a whole allows you to better determine the causality between scenes and the overall coherence of the story. With such an insight, you are able to turn scenes with emotionally rich characters who are experiencing conflict into the driving force behind an exceptional story.

The plot planner is a visual aid to help you write and finish your project in a way that pleases you and ultimately satisfies your readers, too.

Writers report that when they hit a rough patch and lose energy for their stories, merely a switch from writing to filling in a template stimulates their creative juices. Before writers know it, they are back to writing.

The Plot Whisperer: Secrets of the Universal Story Structure Any Writer Can Master released by Adams Media October 2011. NOW available now for pre-order!

For immediate tips about the Universal Story and writing a novel, memoir or screenplay, visit Plot Series: How Do I Plot a Novel, Memoir, Screenplay? on YouTube. A directory of all the steps to the series is to the right of this post. Enjoy!

Emotional Guide for Writers

Writing is emotional. 

You face obstacles that unleash angst, which leads to procrastination.

My intention in writing

The Plot Whisperer: Secrets of the Universal Story Structure Any Writer Can Master is to shine a light on the spiritual journey writers undertake when writing a novel, memoir, and screenplay. 

Stand back from your story and your own life and acknowledge the bliss you encounter and find the courage to face the difficulties, difficulties that are a reflection of where you are on your own individual Universal Story. Knowing your own strengths and weakness gives you the courage to compensate for your weaknesses and the ability to rely on your strengths. 

Writing (life) isn't about what you should do and could do or need to do. 

Writing is about believing entirely in yourself and the support that surrounds you.

Get through it (the the middle of your novel, memoir, screenplay anyway possible) and get to the other side (the end).Then see what you have.

The Plot Whisperer: Secrets of the Universal Story Structure Any Writer Can Master released by Adams Media October 2011 is now available now for pre-order.

For immediate tips about the Universal Story and writing a novel, memoir or screenplay, visit Plot Series: How Do I Plot a Novel, Memoir, Screenplay? on YouTube. A directory of all the steps to the series is to the right of this post. Enjoy!

The Universal Story

Thanks to the plot consultations I do with writers from all over the world, the plot workshops and retreats I’ve taught and the novels, memoirs and screenplays I've analyzed, I have come to believe that every scene in every book is part of a Universal Story that flows throughout our lives, both in our imaginations and in the reality that surrounds us.

Every story ever told participates in this universal pattern as words grow and expand into sentences, paragraphs, and chapters. What is left after the end of the story has the potential to transform not only the writer but all those who read the story as well.

I teach the Universal Story to writers through plot. Though difficult to accomplish successfully, plot is critical to stories. As I continue to teach and write and consult, I gain new insights into plot . . . and into writers’ lives.

You bring to your writing, your art, and your stories a piece of yourself. In return, the act of creating gives you the possibility of something even greater: true transformation.

The better your understanding of how to integrate the energy of the Universal Story into your story, you come to understand yourself better. You begin to see your writing in a different light. The ways you interact with your writing and with the world around you shifts.

Be forewarned, though. Writing a story can expand your everyday life; it can also destroy the person you are now. Commit to your own journey as your protagonist embarks on hers. Explore your true essence. Whether you emerge from the experience better or worse is your choice. But I believe the act of writing offers you the possibility of transformation.

Your imagination allows you to see worlds invisible to others. Imagine the Universal Story into reality and reclaim a miraculous and mysterious way of being.

More about the Universal Story is coming in The Plot Whisperer: Secrets of the Universal Story Structure Any Writer Can Master in October and is now available for pre-order. 

In the meantime, for tips about the Universal Story and writing a novel, memoir or screenplay, visit Plot Series: How Do I Plot a Novel, Memoir, Screenplay? on YouTube. A directory of all the steps to the series is to the right of this post. Enjoy!

Establish 4 Energetic Plot Markers First

Writer labels herself as a "plotter" during our plot consultation. Whether you call yourself the same or write more by the "seat of your pants", strive to identify the following 4 Energetic Markers in your story as early in the process as possible:

• The End of the Beginning
  
• The Halfway Point
  
• The Crisis
  
• The Climax

Since the writer has revealed to me all the defining traits of a classically left-hemisphere dominate writer, such a task of analyzation brings up no resistance from her. However, she did need help defining the four scenes for both the protagonist and the love interest, too.

Once the scenes are in place on a simple Plot Planner (my apologies for the missing marker -- the Halfway Point, it's coming in the new book) -- she is better able to see the deeper meaning and energetic flow of her story.

I'm having a tough time knowing all this info and so much more is coming in the Plot Whisperer book but... not until October. (The Plot Whisperer: Secrets of the Universal Story Structure Any Writer Can Master is now available for pre-order!) Hate to make you wait. In the middle of final, tiny edits on the galleys and don't have time to go into this further now. In the meantime, I hope the videos help.

For tips about the Universal Story and writing a novel, memoir or screenplay, visit Plot Series: How Do I Plot a Novel, Memoir, Screenplay? on YouTube. A directory of all the steps to the series is to the right of this post. Enjoy!

Writer's Goals Summer Solstice Check-In

June 21st marks the beginning of summer and is the longest day of the year. After tomorrow, the days shorten until the longest night of the year on December 21st.

Where are you on your journey toward accomplishing the writing goals you set for yourself at the beginning of the year? 

How many pages, scenes or words are left to reach the end of this draft of your novel, memoir, screenplay? 

Divide that number by the 182 days left until the 21st of Dec. The final number represents the pages, scenes or words needed per day to reach your goal. 

Doable?

Revise it until it works. 

To celebrate the turning of the seasons and in honor of the Universal Story:

1) Recommit to your goals. 

2) Speak your goals out loud.

3) Mark the time needed to accomplish the page, scene or word count on your calendar. 

Everyday, focus only on what you intend to accomplish that day. Forget the big picture for now. Concentrate on getting the words on the page.

Do not assume the journey turns effortless because of your recommitment. Expect it to become way worse. Keep writing anyway.

For tips about the Universal Story and writing a novel, memoir or screenplay, visit Plot Series: How Do I Plot a Novel, Memoir, Screenplay? on YouTube. A directory of all the steps to the series is to the right of this post. Enjoy!

Writing to the End

A joy working with a writer who looks to the end of her story for clues as to what belongs in the beginning. 

Do you know the ending for your story?

How many books have you written from the beginning all the way to the end?

 

How many times have you written the beginning quarter of the book you are writing now versus how many times have you written the final quarter?

Would you call yourself someone who finishes what she begins? Someone who achieves her goals? 

If not, what or whom is stopping you?

When do you predict you will finish the story you are working on now?

For tips about the Universal Story and writing a novel, memoir or screenplay, visit Plot Series: How Do I Plot a Novel, Memoir, Screenplay? on YouTube. A directory of all the steps to the series is to the right of this post. Enjoy!

Thematic Significance for Writers

As corny as it sounds, I'm wild about thematic significance. I mean if the Universal Story longs to manifest, what better way than through a story's deeper themes?

There are writers who excel at writing character-driven stories and those who prefer action-driven stories. Also, though I've found rarer, are writers who lean toward theme-driven stories. 

Jodi Picoult in Change of Heart, shows the affects the dramatic action has on the characters' emotional development in order to bring to the fore themes about the life sentence, abuse, loss, redemption and love.

When the Killing's Done by T. S. Boyle is another thematic significance plot driven novel. 

Interestingly, both of the two theme-driven writers, use multiple viewpoint characters, each with their own chapters, with a clear first line for each switch in point-of-view and creates a minimum of confusion. When readers are immediately pulled into the next character’s mind and body, readers they have little reason to feel they will miss the character they just were connected to. And, each character has a very definite point of view about the issues at hand though the protagonist's change overtime to fulfill the role of the protagonist -- the character who changes the most in the story by the dramatic action

In the first quarter of When the Killing’s Done by T.C. Boyle, two characters alternate chapters told from their own points of view. The beginning chapters of the story are Alma’s introduction told through her grandmother’s story. The third chapter focuses on Alma herself and begins by firmly grounding the reader.

"Though Alma is trying her hardest to suppress it, the noise of the freeway is getting to her. She can’t think to slice the cherry tomatoes and dice the baby carrots, can’t clear her head, can barely hear Micah Stroud riding the tide of his emotions through the big speakers in the front room."

These two sentences immediately thrust the reader into the scene. They, showing who is doing what, how the action is emotionally affecting her, and a general idea where she is. and They also offering specific details that define herAlma: living near a noisy freeway, knowing how to cook, listening to music that rides the tide of the singer’s emotions, and a love ofloving music that is strong enough that she owns big speakers.

The next chapter switches to the male character’s point of view. 

"If there is one thing he hates, it’s a runny yolk."

That’s about all the reader needs to read in order to know the main character in this chapter. He’s opinionated and narrow-minded.

By including a reference to the stereo speakers in the female point of view ties these two major viewpoint characters together long before the reader is given any other clues of other connections, one of which Alma prefers stay a secret.

The speakers also foreshadow both character's propensity to want to broadcast, get on a soap box to proclaim their point of view about the right of eradicating invasive species to bring an island back to the balance of the past versus the right of animals to life.

Though the themes that drive you to write play out more subtly in your stories, still the search for the meaning beneath our actions and into a universal truth serves the Universal Story well.

For tips about the Universal Story and writing a novel, memoir or screenplay, visit Plot Series: How Do I Plot a Novel, Memoir, Screenplay? on YouTube. A directory of all the steps to the series is to the right of this post. Enjoy!