Clarksville Christian Writers - Writer's Workshop, Oct. 4, 2015

Welcome

Clarksville Christian Writers WorkshopWrite That Novel: Structure, Plotting & More

Hi, I’m Hannah Conway• Kentucky Native• Army Wife, Momma &

Speaker• Author with Olivia

Kimbrell Press• “The Wounded

Warrior’s Wife”• “Wedding a Warrior”

WWW.HANNAHRCONWAY.COM

Who’s the other one?Sara R. Turnquist• Clarksville native• Wife, mother, “closet

writer”• Author with Clean Reads• “The Lady Bornekova”• “The General’s Wife”

BRAINSTORMING…Mind-mapping & Planning

Mind Mapping?What is it?

Brainstorming to make a plan

Why do it?Your mind has more ideas than are on the surface

CABINWhat comes to mind?

Let’s make a Mind Map

After Mind MappingCircle groupingsAre there patterns?Any possible topics for a second book?Can you put a grouping at the beginning?

The middle?The end?The Climax?

Hallee Bridgeman

Layering

Plot Points…Plot points are the highlights/markers in a story or outline

5 Basic Plot PointsInitial event/Exposition: An action or idea that starts the action. Normal world before life changes…Inciting Event/Rising Action: point of no return, something prompts them into actionCrisis: A choice that has to be made, the decision that propels them forward on their journeyClimax: When we find out if the hero is going to succeed or fail, we need to believe there is a chance he could fail; the darkest moment is in the midst of the climaxDenouement/Falling Action: The End, The Resolution, to untie, leave nothing left to explain or do

The Darkest Moment…Spine of the Story

Darkest Moment is Essential

Spine of the storyThe Darkest Moment or The Darkest Night of the Soul Moment

Often mixed in with the climax, directly before, after or during.It’s the all hope is lost momentIt can’t get any worseYou character faces his biggest fear/challenge

External Event(s) but the Character has internal dark moment too

What’s Your Character’s Dark Moment Story?

It’s why they are the way they aredrill down (ask character questions until you get to a story they tell (like a prologue in a movie, but don’t use it as a prologue in your book)Each Character POV (Point of View) needs a Darkest Moment Story, it drives the whole story/journey/quest

Dark Moment RecipeLIE: That thing they believe that’s not true about themselvesFEAR: What is your character most afraid of?FLAW: What’s his/her flaw? Often a strength is a flawCOMPETING VALUES: What values/relationships in the characters life conflict?

WANT: What’s the one thing your character really wants?WHY (behind whole story): Why does your character want that thing?WOUND: What hurt your character? Disappointed? Embarrassed?

Special IngredientsThe Character’s Dark Moment Story Needs to be:

SpecificRelatablePoignant

Break

LINDY HOPPlotting & Outlining

LINDY HOP…is a plotting roadmap

L = Life (Normal World)The world in which your character normally livesNormal challenges, their status quoLength – chapter, few pagesA glimpse of their regular life

LIFEFor Simba, life is normal, everything is as it should be…or is it?

I = Inciting IncidentSomething happensThe trigger, or ignitionFirst blip in their world that will change it and set them on the course of their journey

Inciting IncidentNothing is the same…nothing can ever be the same again…Simba is sent on a journey of self discovery…

N = Noble QuestThe effect of the inciting incident (I) Unpleasant I => the quest is to return to normal worldPositive I => the quest is to increase that pleasureIgnition – the start of the story where it takes offStakes –the higher the stakes, the bigger the story

The NOBLE QUEST is a cause, a journey that your character feels is worthy of his/her time and we agree it’s a good idea

Noble QuestThe search for himself, for meaning…

ACT IIAct I ends with the Noble QuestAct II begins with the Ds of the LINDY HOP

D = DisappointmentsThe obstacles they encounter, the conflictsCan be positive things that cause a rumple in the advancement of the plotIt may be revelation of information, or because of a choice, or because of outside forces Must contain 2 elements:

Unexpectedness Plausibility

Y = Y in the RoadCritical Choice/Point of No Return“What am I going to do now?” Every character reaches a point where they have to make a choice about their actionsTwo equally worthy choices, characters forced to choose between external and internal goals

Y = Y in the RoadThe choice => new conflicts => point of no return

Consequences – plot must allow for character’s choices and consequences (preferably worse) for each choice - leads to darkest pointSurprises and Choices – each testing the character’s mettle

More notes about Ds and Ys

When character comes to a D, has to make decision based on VALUES and SECRET DESIREGrows and continues journey toward becoming a better person, making better decisions5 Ds– each one helps him/her growACT II – dropping “truthlets”

D’s and Y’sSimba grows…it’s about his journey

More D’s-YsConfronted by his past

Facing himself…

“Man in Mirror” Moment• propels him into the rest of the story• tries to “do” the right thing• seems as if the lie has been dispelled by truth

Man in MirrorFaces who he is

ACT III• end of ACT II - “Man in Mirror” moment• Act III begins with the Climax

H = Help! (Climax)Final challenge – event the book has been building toCharacter’s goal in jeopardy, everything at stakeNo Hope – or the Black moment –it can’t get worseCharacter’s epiphany occurs close to Climax

H = Help! (Climax)• Darkest moment – sees lie –

accepts truth• Inner Journey – comes from

dark moment story • Climax = confirmation of the

lie

Climax…Will Simba prevail? Or will he perish like his father? Does he have the strength to overcome?

O = OverhaulThe change that occurs in the characterSomething internal or externalSomething that redefines themLogical, derived from the journey

OverhaulAin’t nobody gonna mess with Simba now… he knows who he is…he knows who’s he is

P = Perfect Ending (Resolution)

The new normalThere must be an end game, something definable to the reader, and the character.

ResolutionThe “Circle of Life” is complete

Now it’s time to do it…WHO is this?Adjective and Noun

Brooding CIA AgentNow we need to drill down…WHY is he brooding?

Why brooding?• Afraid his father is a

Russian spy/double agent

Why?• Father disappeared 6

weeks ago after mother’s death

• Father has disappeared on and off all his life and his character has logged subconsciously every time

• leads us to one of his values – loyalty, patriotism, dislike – secrets

Again…why brooding right now at beginning of book?• because he had

to take his mother off life support

• argument with father

• “you were always gone and I had to take care of things”

What happened?

What happened?• One Thanksgiving,

dad wasn’t there and Dirk and mom got a flat tire on the way home, spent the night on the side of the road in Minnesota

• dad comes home and tells him to “man up” and “don’t cry about it”

Lie: He can’t depend on anyone, can’t show emotion, must take care of mom

Greatest Fear: to show emotion, to need someone, that a decision of his will cost a life

Dark Mome

nt

WoundLie

Fear

Competing

Values

Flaw

Want

Why?

LIE: Emotions are bad

FEAR: that a decision of his will cost a life

FLAW: can’t show weakness, stubborn

COMPETING VALUES: Family, protectiveness, responsibility, loyalty, patriotic

WANT: approval from dad, perfect familyWHY (behind whole story): he wants a promotionWOUND: disappointing an authority figure, embarrassed

ACT IL – at hospital with motherI – home, left skid room open – dad is there, fight with dad, calls boss about breachN – I will find the mole (who is the boss, someone Dirk looks up to as a father figure)

(remember, N is motivated by SECRET DESIRE – approval from work)

ACT II (a) – build motivation

D – house on fireD – can’t get into CIA headquarters

“Truthlets” delivered

ACT II (b) – Man in Mirror Moment

D – dad crying at grave site D – Dirk calls love interest/coworker (her phone is being tapped) – emotional decisionD – dad is shot by boss (while dad is protecting Dirk)

ACT IIIH – Black Moment – emotional decision led to my dad’s death• TRUTH = dad’s dying words of

approvalO – does the right thing, a patriot, his father’s sonP – Thanksgiving Day, dad did not end up dying, playing football with dad

Elevator Pitch: What if…What if you grew up your whole life with a Russian spy and you didn’t know it…and now you’re a CIA Agent.

BREAK TIME

5 Mins.

RESEARCH

• Your fiction may be the only history your reader gets

• Educate and entertain

Why do we care?• “Fictional dream” • Do your best but don’t obsess• Less is more• History supports the story

Ever feel like this?

We can help…

Where to find it?

The Internet

“The problem with internet quotes is that

you can’t always depend on their accuracy.”

- Abraham Lincoln, 1864

The InternetGood sourcesBad sourcesBE CAREFUL - USE GOOD JUDGEMENTWikipedia

The Real WorldLibraries

Interlibrary loanYour friendly neighborhood librarian

BooksBird’s Eye View vs. Worm’s Eye View

Experts – museums, universities, reenactments, etcOther Documents

Period MediaGovernment Documents

More points to consider“Rule of Threes”:

Three sources establishes accuracy – three primary sourcesconsider the importance of the tidbit to the storylineconsider the “weight” of the source

More points to considerNever assume. Watch out for modern views.

we are influenced by what we see on TV and in movies, by what we read in novels; these are not factswatch out for what we think we “know”

Watch the chronologyStart general, work down to the specific

Organization and Documentation

BibliographyCapture the essential information

The ever useful BINDER!Organizing in the computer

Make sure you have BACK UPS!!!

Location, location, location…

Nothing can replace putting your feet on the ground…seeing it, smelling it, touching it

But you can’t always go there…

Google mapsGoogle earthGoogle imagesMaplandiaYouTube

Researching CharactersLet’s have some fun!

Character Profile SheetCharacter is like the tip of the iceberg above the water – you need to know the whole iceberg to understand the “tip”

Structuring for Nonfiction

Bradford Smith• West Point Graduate,

Still on Active Duty• Married with Nine

Children• Missions Pastor at The

Way Church in Clarksville• Author with Olivia

Kimbrell Press• “Scourge”• “No Higher Call”

Questions?

HOW TO FIND USHANNAH

www.hannahrconway.comTWITTER: @hannahrconwayFACEBOOK: Hannah Conway, Author

SARAsaraturnquist.comTWITTER: @sarat1701FACEBOOK: Sara R. Turnquist, Author

Clarksville Christian Writer’s GroupWEDNESDAY NIGHTS6:30 – 7:30 pmHilldale Baptist Church2001 Madison StreetClarksville, TN

Next Workshop:OCTOBER 25thTopics to include: Querying, Publishing, Marketing…and More