Revision Has A Lot To Do With Desire

My Down and Dirty - Twelve Step Program to Revision of your work in progress has a lot to do with desire. All stories are driven by desire. In more than 90% of all Hollywood movies and TV shows and most books and plays, this desire is visible and tangible. In other words, the reader or person watching the story unfold on the screen or on stage can envision what the character wants as soon as they hear it. 

Almost all Hollywood movies are about heroes pursuing only one of four visible/tangible goals: 

To win something : A hero could be in pursuit of love or in some sort of competition 

To stop something bad from happening: Think of all the disaster/cop stories 

To escape: These not only include prison escape but also stories about escaping abuse or lifestyles 

To retrieve: The kidnap stories; The hero who goes in search of gold, jewels, fame or fortune 

Now heroes can also desire self worth, acceptance fulfillment, revenge, but when you write your story, these vague desires must be tied to something concrete/tangible that the reader or audience member can see. 

For example: If you take the goal of self worth. If your character wants to feel better about her self, a reader needs to see what that would look like--does someone smile more? Tie it something concrete. 

A scenario might be: A divorced woman relocates to a new town. She has low self esteem because her husband left her for someone else. She wants to open up a knitting store. That’s something a reader can see and root for. The success of the store is tied to her feelings about herself. 

Desire will drive a story forward, but the obstacles that a character faces is what elicits the emotion from the reader. These conflicts can come from nature, other characters or from within the character himself. You want to write a story where the reader thinks there is no way the hero is going to win. 

When you move through your revision process, Step #4 of my revision process is to examine your hero’s goal. Is it concrete/tanglble/visible to the reader? If it is, your story has a much greater chance of being successful. 

If you haven’t read Deb Dixon’s Goal Motivation and Conflict, she does a wonderful job of examining some popular movies and stories and teasing out the character’s goals and conflicts, which help to bring the concepts to life. 

Next month, we examine Step #5: What to do with backstory . . .

12 Writing Quotes to usher out 2012...

...which is Part 1 of a two-part post that continues on January 30 with 13 quotes to help 2013 get off to a rousing writing year of stories.

For Part 1, I have 12 writing-related quotes to share because I love trivia, witty and thought-provoking quotes, and clever sayings. In fact, to get my daily trivia fix, I research historical trivia and
"Tweet" four or five tidbits everyday.

My favorite quote is by author, Richard North Patterson. I keep this quote on my computer to read every time I sit down to type. Since it's my writing mantra, it has the honor of being first on the
list. The quotes that follow aren't in any particular favorite order.

Richard North Patterson
Writing is rewriting. A writer must learn to deepen characters, trim writing, intensify scenes. To fall in love with a first draft to the point where one cannot change it is to greatly enhance the
prospects of never publishing.

Mark Twain
Writing is easy. All you have to do is cross out the wrong words.

Marcus Fabius Quintilianus, c. 65 CE
Write quickly and you will never write well; write well, and you will soon write quickly.

Frank Yerby
It is my contention that a really great novel is made with a knife and not a pen. A novelist must have the intestinal fortitude to cut out even the most brilliant passage so long as it doesn't advance
the story.

Gene Fowler
Writing is easy; all you do is sit staring at a blank sheet of paper until the drops of blood form on your forehead.

Charlotte Bronte
I'm just going to write because I cannot help it.

Mark Twain
The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug.

Clarence Budington Kelland
I get up in the morning, torture a typewriter until it screams, then stop.

Leo Rosten
Every writer is a narcissist. This does not mean that he is vain; it only means that he is hopelessly self-absorbed.

Robert Benchley
It took me fifteen years to discover that I had no talent for writing, but I couldn't give it up because by that time I was too famous.

Stephen Wright
I'm writing a book. I've got the page numbers done.

Mickey Spillane
The first chapter sells the book; the last chapter sells the next book.

I hope at least one of these quotes made you smile.

Until next time,

Kaye
Fall in love...faster, harder, deeper with Kaye Spencer romances
www.kayespencer.com

Kaye around the 'Net:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000877686603&ref=tn_tnmn
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/kayespencer
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/kaye-spencer/30/30a/a57
Amazon Author Central: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B004C6QR64  

      

Coulda, Shoulda, Woulda

This blog is dedicated to the secret agents who make my life a better place – one butt kick at a time.

Have you ever stopped by the supermarket to buy a loaf of bread, and walked out with something a bit different--like a fifty-inch, wide screen, plasma TV instead?

You've just encountered the power of TEMPTATION.

Let's face it. We're weak at times and a new pair of Jimmy Choos are going to make us feel oh so much better. This momentary lapse of strength can easily filter into our everyday writing life as well.

It's a great day out and (for some of us located in the U.S.) spring is just around the corner. Man, look at those weeds popping up in your flower beds! The mud from last week's rain is still on the walk. Better get out there and clean it up—the writing can wait until later.

WHOA! Time to face down the temptations like the town marshal and win the battle. But how?

Recognize the weakness. Go on…fess up. What makes you weak? Is it the thought of pulling your hair out while working on that synopsis? Perhaps the need for perfection on your rough draft? Maybe you've got the freaken I don't wanna's.

What tempts me, doesn't tempt my critique partners. I could let the house go for the rest of my life without the slightest desire to vacuum again. But I know of someone that prefers her home in order before a single word is written. She and I are just wired differently.

Diversionary Tactics. It's been said that temptation is fueled by emotion, not reason. When the temptation to go off track whispers in your ear, you'll need to divert your attention back to where it belongs—your writing. Even if that means you do some ironing.

Yup, you heard me right. Scrubbing, sweeping, folding laundry—it's all mindless work. BUT we can do these things and deepen our character's POV, work on a plot, or create worlds while our dryer hums and iron sizzles.

Don't become BFFs with your hazard. Don't snuggle up with the very thing that blocks your path. If you're tempted to answer your email every time the inbox chimes, then don't spend hours with the program open on your desktop. Better yet – have a specified time allotted for email replies, set your timer, and stay within that boundary.

If scampering around Facebook is your weakness, then don't log on! The same goes for surfing the blogsites. Stuff those non-productive things away for later. Building your platform and remaining active for your audience is a necessary part of a writer's life. Schedule that block so it doesn't interfere with your writing time.

Time doing one thing is time away from another—and your goal.

Accountability partners. I can't stress enough the importance of a good crit group or circle of friends to keep you on track. You become accountable for your word count and encourage others as well. Make a pact with one or more people. Set a weekly word count goal and agree to strive for that number. Set parameters with your time to reach your goals.

Is that a want, or a need? Needs are the basic necessities of life. Wants are more like wishes. You need to get the laundry done and fill the fridge. You want to go blog hopping and break your old comment record. Don't allow others to set your agenda.

Kicking temptation aside is hard work and so rewarding. It takes tenacity, commitment and, for some, a reliable timer.

Let's talk about WHAT TEMPTS YOU?