Beginning, Middle, & End

There are three key elements to writing a story; you’ve got to have a beginning, middle, and an end.

Beginning: The character wants something, and gets them into trouble.

Middle: Things get worse.

End: Things get even worse, every attempt to succeed is thwarted, and then finally the character succeeds.

That's the basic plot of every book (every book I know of anyway.) It’s also, strangely enough, the recipe for a trilogy.

If you want to get a little more detailed plot outline, you could follow a plot graph.

Exposition (Beginning): The character wants something, and gets them into trouble.

Rising action: The character takes action to solve their problem and things get worse.

Climax: The most emotional part, where tension is the highest and everything is at stake.

Falling action: The problem is almost solved, but a few loose knots need to be taken care of.

Denouement (Resolution) (End): Everything is solved and the hero rides off into the sunset.

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Taking your own advice

I've been trying to finish my rough draft thins week. It's been gooing good until today.

I got Writer's block.

I moped around, wandered through the house eating a cheese sandwich, googled for some inspirational photos, and then I realized that maybe I should actually take my own advice.

So what if you've got Writer's Block story_weaver?

Write whatever random crap comes into you brain. Exercise maybe. Allow yorself to write badly.

I did. And now I've fixed the plot, and I'm ready to write.

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Writing Web

A few writing websites, whether you're trying to procrastinate finishing a rough draft or you need to get some research done.

Inkygirl: Daily Diversions for writers Funny comics about writing, videos, and other random writing-related tidbits.
Alphabets This website has websites for alphabets from Arabic to Tibetan to Elvish.
Serendipity Generators for random names, random personalities, random settings, to name but a few.
Baby Names This site has one of the largest collection of names I've found, and you can search by meaning, specific letters, popularity, or origin.
Write and Publish Fiction Good, helpful articles for fantasy writers
Freerice You donate to charity while learning random, long, and important-sounding words
Onelook Find rhymes, translations, and words with a specific number of vowels, words that contain other words...
Writing World Despite their 90's looking layout, they've got a lot of helpful articles.
The Costumers Manifesto If you're writing historical fiction, they give in-depth information on how people dressed and what roles they played.

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Point of View

There are four different angles your story can be told from. Each has both advantages and disadvantages, and for the most part the point of view you choose depends on the character you're trying to reveal.

FIRST-PERSON
The narrator tells the story using “I” and plays a part in the story.
This involves slipping into the character's skin and telling it from their perspective. It can make the reader connect with the character easier, but it also makes it difficult if they're of a different gender or age than you. (Though I enjoy the challenge.)

SECOND-PERSON
The writer writes using the word "you" and makes the reader in the story.
This kind of POV is seldom used, except in Choose Your Own Adventure Books and If You Give a Mouse a Cookie.

THIRD PERSON LIMITED
The story’s told using “he” and “she” and the writer isn’t involved in the action.
The writer is completely focused on one character so they can’t write about anything the character didn’t experience. You can reveal their thoughts and feeling but not the other characters. (Unless the focus character can read minds.)

THIRD PERSON OMNISCIENT
The story’s told using “he” and “she” and the writer isn’t involved in the action.
In this third person however, the writer can write about scenes the character wasn’t there to experience and can get into other character’s heads. This is a very free way to write, but you must be careful that you don’t jump around too much so that the story’s confusing.

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How to snap out of a Writing Coma

Have you ever really needed to write but the words wouldn't come? You feel discouraged and frustrated? You're convinced that your writing sucks?

You're not alone.

(Bother. This post is starting to sound like an advertisement.)

One of the best ways I've found to get me out of that deep-blue-funk is to EXERCISE.

The science? Exercise pumps your blood faster, so it gets to your brain faster.

It clears my head and makes me think better, especially if the exercise is rhythmic (like swimming around in a circle or jogging.)

I've unraveled many a difficult plot by just running around like a headless chicken.

You don't need any fancy exercise equipment, a simple jump rope will work. And if you lose a couple pounds and put on some muscle in the process, then that's not a bad thing either.

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Observation vs. Logic

Two ways to give your book a more realistic feel; OBSERVATION and LOGIC

OBSERVATION

This entails things you've noticed from the world around you.

The way rain drops follow each other's trails when they go down the window, how sometimes mud has a layer of creamy mud on top, the sound of a broken vacuum, how rainstorms smell, how cats slowly twitch their tails, the way teenage girls walk.

LOGIC

This is based on cause and effect.

For example, if it rains and storms in your book, how does this affect the countryside? If there are rivers they will grow, trees may be knocked down. How does this affect your character?

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Writer's Worry Part 2

Yesterday I called upon my friend, another writer, to help me fix a plot. The twists are amazing, the plot is thickened, but I'm stuck.

"Are you trying to control the story?" She asked.
"Yes. But I need to write. And I don't know what happens next."
She reminded me that sometimes you can't rein in a story. Sometimes you just need to put pen to paper and let it guide you.

Let's compare it to a horse.
If you know you're destination you're going to steer your horse there. But if, like me, you don't know where you're going, then you've got to sit back in the saddle and drop the reins.

I tried to let the story take me where it wanted. I wrote eveything and anything that spilled from my mind onto the paper.

It worked.

Sometimes you've got to let the story be in charge.

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