Jones - A Novel Idea: Learn Plotting, Dialogue, Scene Development & Characterization in Under One Hour

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Copyright 2013 by Eddie Jones

All rights reserved. Non-commercial interests may reproduce portions of this book without the express written permission of Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas, provided the text does not exceed 500 words. When reproducing text from this book, include the following credit line: A Novel Idea by Eddie Jones, published by Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas. Used by permission.

Jacket design by Eddie Jones

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file with the Library of Congress

eISBN: 978-1-938499-89-0

DISCLAIMER: This book is supporting material for classes taught at writers' conferences and in no way intended to be a full-blown writing book. Class attendees asked for a cheap ebook and we complied. The intent of this book is to present the basic elements of novel writing in UNDER 60 MINUTES. Estimated word count is 15,000. In other words, it is a SHORT book.

Content includes material from Kindle ebooks: Plotting Simplified and Been There, "Scene" That! (no longer available for purchase).

We acknowledge some may not feel this book is worth the cover price. Every writer is at a different stage in his or her writing journey. If you are not completely satisfied, we encourage you to you wish to return this book.

On the other hand, if you found this book helpful please post a review. Your comments are appreciated.

Other novels by Eddie Jones (If you buy one, let the author know if he followed his own advice.)

Dead Man's Hand (Teen / Tween)

Skull Creek Stakeout (Teen / Tween)

The Curse of Captain LaFoote: A Caribbean Chronicles Novel (Teen / Tween)

Bahama Breeze (Adult Romantic Comedy)

Acknowledgements:

Thanks to Ron Benrey, author of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Writing Christian Fiction, for teaching me the concept of plotting using the 13 plot points, and James Scott Bell for the foundational structure of plotting presented in Plot & Structure. Thanks also to Tom Chiarella author of Writing Dialogue: great examples and instruction, Tom. I also recommend readers pick up a copy of Dialogue by Gloria Kempton.

WHAT IS PLOT?

Plot is the answer to the question, Sowhat happens in the story? History is a series of events presented in chronological order. Your life is the history of one human. A story is a carefully crafted telling of events.

When a reader selects your book they ask, Whats it about? The premise of your story should offer conflict, a clearly defined Hero, intriguing bad guy, and a quest of a primeval goal. Maslow's hierarchy of needs suggest there are three primary human needs.

Safety : Security reflects your main characters need to protect his/her environment, health, or financial well-being.

Love : Affection is your Lead's need for friendship, intimacy, and family.

Esteem : A sense of self-worth reflects your Hero's primal need to be respected. Esteem presents our desire to be accepted and valued by others.

Paramount among these needs is our desire for survival, food, sex, the protection and sanctuary of loved ones, and our own fear of death.

Plot, and thus a great story, is a series of cleverly arranged events, the purpose of which is to tap into these primal needs and invoke an emotional response from the reader: Joy, hope, sorrow, laughter, fear, or anger. Your goal is to touch the soul of the reader.

The promise of the premise is encapsulated in the question, Whats it about? This is the essence of your story and your plot pitch. As you consider your storys premise, seek a single adjective that describes your Hero, an adjective for your bad guy, and a compelling goal to which the readers can relate. Your storys premise statementsummarized in your books tagline and back-cover copyhints at your Leads journey. Who is he/she? Who is she fighting? What does he want and what are the stakes?

We remember characters; we pitch plot.

Conflict

Imagine a story without problems: The journey begins; the journey ends. Nice scenery, a few postcard moments, and one big yawn. Without trouble, conflict, and a crisis, theres no story and nothing to recall. How can you laugh about the bad times if there arent any? Struggle is the substance of life. A story filled with character angst and torment pulls us in.

In our daily lives we go to great lengths to avoid conflict, but as writers, we love characters at odds with one another. Consider the popularity of todays reality TV shows. Theyre almost entirely based on one thing: conflict. Producers search for individuals who are in conflict with one another and throw them into competitive situations where jealousy and betrayal thrive.

Its the same with your story. You can create wonderful characters, but if theyre talking about the weather or what they ate for breakfast, your readers will be asleep before they reach the bottom of the first page. Conflict is energy, and energy fuels your plot.

The only hard and fast rules are that you need both internal and external conflict. Internal conflict drives your character's emotional life. External conflict drives your story forward.

The "dark moment" is where internal and external conflict collide, crushing your Lead in the middle.

The three fundamental elements of storytelling are character , plot, and conflict . Plot and conflict are intertwined.

Story Summary

PORTRAIT: Show your Leads normal life.

CRISIS: Show the great disturbance that disrupts his life.

STRUGGLE: Your Lead tries to restore order to his life.

DISCOVER: Your Lead reaches a moment of realization.

CHANGE: Your Leads life is transformed. Hint at the lesson hes learned.

PORTRAIT: Show your Leads new normal life.

Your Lead should:

• Move forward toward a goal.
• Set his/her goals early in the story. (Hint: the reader needs to see where your Hero is along his journey.)
• Seek to satisfy an overarching want or need.
• Solve a problem.
• Be fully engaged in the story. Your story will fail if the Lead can just walk away from the problem.

If your Lead can walk away from the problem, the story fails because the reader is asking:

• Whats the story about?
• Is anything happening?
• Why should I care what happens to these characters?

Your Leads objective is the driving force of your story. It generates motion and keeps the Lead leaning forward. An objective can take two forms: To GET something or the GET AWAY from something. Solid plots have one and only one primary objective for the Lead.

Power of Experience

What readers seek is an experience different from their own. Story is how readers dream. Story is what sells the book. The power of the premise is what captures the reader, editor, or agents attentionnot the characters and prose. Unless we care about the story we will never welcome the actors on stage. It is this power of desire that pulls us into the story.

Power of Desire

• What does your Lead want?
• Why does he/she want it?
• Why cant she/he have it?
• How does your Lead go after what he wants?

Knowing why your Lead wants what he/she wants is the true source of motivation and the agent of change for your character.

Who Is Your Lead?

A strong plot begins with a compelling character; an interesting Lead. In the best plots, the Lead is someone we have to watch throughout the course of the novel, someone so real, distinctive and interesting that the reader is willing to forgo food and sleep to find out how his life ends. Who is the most likeable? The one we want to root for and see win. This is your Lead. What character offers the most conflict, longest journey, greatest growth, and biggest life change? What character learns the largest lesson? Who carries the theme of your story? Find that individual and you have your main character.