A Dozen Ways to Create an Opening Scene

We’ve all heard readers must be caught up in your novel from the very first page if you wish them to finish this book and purchase your next. But how does one go about creating that initial burst of excitement?

There is any number of options open to us as authors, but here’s your list of a dozen that’ll work well, if crafted correctly. (Ah, the ever-present caveat!) See if any of these will work for you.

1. The proverbial Great Line. I once read and still remember this one. “When I was little, I would think of ways to kill my daddy.” How’s that for grabbing the imagination. To develop this Great Line, compress your novel’s major conflict into a single sentence, then polish.

2. Have the bad guy show up early and in a big way. Your opening might be something like, “The assassins bullet…”

3. The likeable hero can be introduced right away, but be certain to include his worthy goal. Think along the line of, “His mother understood early in Johnnie’s life he would need unique attention.”

4. Introduce humor in the opening paragraph. Make sure it fits your audience. Toilet humor might work in VYA, (Very Young Adult), but the church elders will probably, uh, “pass.”

5. Introduce a feeling of danger right away. “…he saw men on horseback, riding hard, their horses kicking up a swirl behind them.”

6. Write a scene that’s easy on the senses in a conversational tone. Make it natural but lyrical. Paint a picture with which your audience will identify. “The landscape looked as if an artist had brushed his fondest vision of nature on his canvas.”

7. Introduce an ominous foreshadowing. “Carrion birds floated in a languid circle off to the south. Something was about to die.”

8. Begin with formidable obstacles your hero must face and overcome. “Exhausted, he crested what he thought was his final obstacle but saw a snowcapped mountain range still to his fore.” (Hey, I’m working on the fly here, cut me some slack, huh?) They need not be physical barriers, of course, but you get the idea.

9. Use immediate action. Stuff blowing up is always fun, but it can just as readily be an argument, a personal conflict or even one having to face humility. Just make is pop right away.

10. Open with high level of tension. Use a heavy dose of emotion mixed with high drama. Think of the last argument you had before you demanded a divorce. That’ll get ‘em worked up.

11. A clear representation of an appealing setting might work for you. Consider your “safe place” in all its glory and invite your reader to join you.

12. An effective joining of humor and tension. “When the bullet ripped into his flesh, he knew the day was not going well.” Trite, I know, but use that as your example and get off my back.

So there ya go. A dozen easy openings to hook your reader and sell more books. Good luck.

So long for now and may all your books be best-sellers.

Patrick

Writing Forward

I attended the September meeting of the James River Writers and wanted to pass along some of the insights and information I garnered there. The writers’ group held their usual speaker panel which included three published fiction authors, Ms. Carolyn Parkhurst, (The Dogs of Babel, Lost and Found),Ms. Leslie Pietrzyk, (Pears on a Willow Tree, A Year and a Day), and Ms. Susann Cokal, (Mirabilis, Breath and Bones.)

One interesting recommendation that came to light I had instinctively followed, but hadn’t quite put into words. The idea was to Write Forward. All three speakers agreed great books are often allowed to develop this way. Basically, it means to give your story permission to write itself – allow the story to be part of the process.

As I recall, each writer went into a project with nothing more than a rough idea of how the story might develop and with little more than a basic concept of the ending. They typically had little more than an idea of the characters they would create, a rudimentary central theme they wished developed and a sense of the ending. With this, they would begin writing and see how their imaginations would allow the story to develop.

They didn’t have each and every chapter outlined, there were no storyboards or index cards taped to the wall in chronological order, there was nothing of that ilk. They sat down, started writing and waited for that wondrous muse we call “Story” to fly from their fingertips and onto their computer screens - almost by itself.

An example Ms. Parkhurst gave was a sugar bowl with a note in it. She had no idea of where or how the crockery would come into play, she simply felt it belonged in the story. As with the concept of Writing Forward, it found its way into the storyline of its own accord.

Personally, I do about the same, though I usually have only one character in mind. I think I know how the story is going to end and I start with little else. By the time I get to “The End”, the character is still there, but the ending has morphed into something much better than I’d imagined when I started. As I write, I “feel” where I have to go and then figure out how to get there. A recent example in my new novel, “Born to be Brothers” is a pocket watch. The story is set in the mid-nineteenth century when pocket watches were the norm. I understand how men feel their individual timepieces are a representation of themselves and knew I needed a watch to help fill in the story. So, as the story fell onto the page, I kept the watch in the back of my mind. When it needed to show up, it did. And when it did, it changed the entire story.

So, when you sit down to write, many writers find it useful not to have the story too complete from the start. Allow your creativity to write your story, and don’t be afraid to let loose of the intuition within you. I’ll bet your writing will be a better for it.

Until we post again, good writing.

Patrick

New, Interesting Site for Writers

I ran across a new site for writers this afternoon called Publetariat.com.

Once I clicked on the link, however, I had this flashback to my days in Catholic Schools! I thought I was reading one of those newspapers the good nuns warned us about! This place has the whole "Mother Russia" thing going on, but boy it did look like fun.

At first blush, it appears I've found a winner.

Writers should check it out at http://www.publetariat.com/.

Let me know what you think.

Patrick

Looking to Sell More of Your Books?

Maybe you should buy this one first. http://www.happilypublished...

Return with the Elixir

Hello, writers.

We’ve finally come to the end of The Hero’s Journey, The Return with the Elixir. Our hero is on his way home to his now not so Ordinary World, having defeated every imaginary bad guy in creation. There will be no more conflicts to resolve, no more challenges to face and no more evil-doers with which to contend. In this portion of your manuscript he is the acknowledged hero in both his Ordinary World and the world from which he is emerging. This is where your reader shouts, “Wow! That was great!” and talks to all his friends about your book. (We hope they do anyway, for if they don’t this book is DIW - dead in the water.)

Considering our now familiar Luke Skywalker, think about the celebration after the destruction of the Death Star. He and Han Solo walk up to Princess Leia to receive their medals amidst the adulation of all the rebellion. Everybody smiles and the guy in the white hat rides off into the sunset to great fanfare. Yipee!

We know what happens here, but why does it need to happen this way? Some say it is to wrap things up, finish the circle of your story. (Blah…) Others say it is the representation of life where one must learn to lick their wounds, if you will, and carry on with life. (Give me a break! This is a story!) Some have even said it is to show us how to live our own lives with a sense of responsibility. (Not my fiction…)

We’re writing fiction, right? In my mind, the Return with the Elixir is all about entertaining our reader. Nothing more. It is a reward to your readers for their time spent in reading your story. They deserve to sit back, close the book and feel good. Everything is right with the world and your reader feels the satisfaction of a book well written and enjoyed.

What is this elixir, by the way? It can be anything you wish it to be. Your protagonist may return home with a physical treasure, or knowledge, or love, or wisdom, or whatever he needed to succeed in his quest. It can be anything, as long as it is necessary for your hero to become what he needs to become.

Without doubt, however, what is necessary is for the reader to sit back having enjoyed your work. That is what it’s all about anyway, isn’t it?

Okay, boys and girls, in these twelve postings, we seen how your hero traverses from his Ordinary World into the depths and back. I hope you see how this will make for a good story every time. (Which is what fiction is all about anyway - a good story.)

If you’ll take the time to learn how to use The Hero’s Journey in your fiction, you’ll become a good storyteller and have the primary step under your belt in having people want to read your work.

In subsequent postings I plan to do two things: one is to show how The Hero’s Journey will apply to any type of fiction and, two, to show you how you can ignore large parts of The Hero’s Journey in your writing. (Bet you weren’t expecting that!)

Until my next posting, good writing.

Patrick
Author of “Born to be Brothers”
Twitter.com/CPatrickSchulze

The Secrets of Book Marketing

If you're a writer and have written a novel, and would like those lessons necessary to get your book published, check out the great marketing tips for authors by clicking the title above. Bookgal seems to have this thing under control.

Bet you'll find useful information even if you're not a writer.

Top Ten Writing Tips

Clink the title to reach the web site.

You'll note this post actually tells you what it means to eliminate all forms of "to be"...

Thanks to Examiner.com for this information.

The Supreme Ordeal

Good day, Writers,

We are continuing with our explanation of The Hero’s Journey as a method of storytelling.

Today we’ll discuss The Supreme Ordeal, which should be the most exciting part of your story for your hero and your reader. It is where the hero faces that most difficult of tasks around which your story revolves. Here he meets the great beast and slays it. Your readers should not be able to set your book aside until this section of your novel is complete, after which they should sit back, take a deep breath and scream, “Wow!” (And then tell everyone they know!)

This beast need not be a creature with horns and blood-soaked fur. Neither need it be an alien with thrashing tentacles and/or menacing, retractable teeth. (Although we all know those creatures work quite well.) The beast can be anything that causes your hero extreme fear.

Could an honorable man who loves his family be the beast? You bet! He can be If he dies leaving his family penniless and hungry. (And as long that situation has the same fear for your readers!) Can a loving daughter who goes away to university be the beast? Sure, if her mother is left alone in the world. So, don’t think of your hero only as a muscle bound warrior that crushes some mythological creature from the underworld. The beast is anything that is supremely fearsome to your hero and, more importantly, your readers.

Now that we know what The Supreme Ordeal needs to be, what is its purpose? First and foremost in my mind, The Supreme Ordeal changes your hero. It takes the flawed person he was and transforms him to the person he needs to be.

For example, we’ll again call on Luke of Star Wars to enlighten us. Where in that story did Luke experience his supreme ordeal? It is when he rescues Princess Leia.

How did all the excitement involved with rescuing her change Luke? He went from an orphaned farmer to a masterful Jedi. Pretty serious change, don’t you think?

Why else might you, as a storyteller, need an effective ordeal for your hero? One of the most important aspects is to engage your reader. Have you ever stopped watching a movie or set down a book and never finished it? Why would you do that? Because, for whatever reason, you were not engaged with the story or the hero. The instant your reader decides not to continue with your novel, you’ll lose your word of mouth advertising - your buzz. Your novel will almost never go viral with poor buzz.

Are there other goals to accomplish with The Supreme Ordeal? Of course. It can’t be that simple, now can it?

As a writer, you need to give your audience a feeling of exhilaration upon conclusion of The Supreme Ordeal. They’ve come accustomed to that feeling and are expectant of it. They want to think he will not succeed, in fact, may even die! They want your hero to slip and fall. They want him to get up, too, but first, they need to be convinced he will fail. That emotion is what they want, and you must give it to them. If you do not engage your audience emotionally, your buzz, and your book, are dead in the water. An old maxim in business, (and you are in the business of writing), is to give them what they want to buy. I recommend you do just that.

In my next post, we’ll discuss what happens after your hero survives. That part of the story is called, “The Reward.” Until then, good writing.

Patrick
Author of Born to be Brothers
CPatrickSchulze.blogspot.com
Twitter.com/CPatrickSchulze

The Approach

Good day, Writers,

We’ve traveled quite a way toward our goal of learning how to utilize The Hero’s Journey to craft your manuscript. In this posting, we’re going to see how The Approach plays into your story.

The Approach is the part of your manuscript where your hero prepares whatever it is he must do to come to the entrance of the greatest danger he will face. It is here your hero must ready himself to face his primeval fear. He is about to “disappear” into the Belly of the Beast and must be ready or he will surely die. During The Approach is when he defeats the lesser villains and readies himself for the Big Enchilada!

It ends when he stands on the precipice into which he must descend to locate and take hold of the item of his quest. Classical representations of the end of The Approach, as you might imagine, are the mouth of caves, dungeon doors, and the like. Wherever it is, it’s ominous!

Keep in mind your hero need not approach a place. It can be a mental state or even something as innocuous as a party. It’s simply anything that causes ultimate anguish for your hero. However, your reader must be convinced your hero will surely die. (At least figuratively.) Without this ultimate danger, the next step in your story won’t fly.

The Approach is another interesting part of your novel and may be approached, if you will, from a number of different prospective. Here you can work in some appropriate humor, for example. Have you ever heard of people laughing before battle? It’s just another way to handle one’s nervousness. You might even work in some romance, if you’d like. We’ve all heard the line, “We may not survive!” This is usually spoken by the man as he readies for battle or in another form by a character before the meteor strikes. Regardless, it’s a fun part of writing with endless possibilities.

In our example of Luke in Star Wars, A New Hope, can you envision a scene where Luke was on the precipice of some unholy situation? How about when he and his compatriots fret as the trash masher’s walls close in on them? (Being crushed into goo is, by law, a primeval fear which causes ultimate anguish.) Of course, your hero needs to escape and rescue the princess, as literally happens in A New Hope.

Okay, Writers, if you’ve been following along, your novel is at the point where the world is about to explode. Getting exciting, isn’t it?

My next posting will cover the following step your hero obviously must take – The Supreme Ordeal! (This is gonna’ be fun!)

Till then, good writing.

Patrick

C. Patrick Schulze

Twitter.com/CPatrickSchulze

Author of “Born to be Brothers”

Tests, Allies and Enemies

Good day, All,

We’re working toward telling our novel’s storyline by way of The Hero’s Journey, a formula for storytelling that has survived the millennia. In our case, we’re following Luke of Star Wars fame. We’ve followed him through his Ordinary World, watched as he receives his Call to Adventure and shook our heads when he made excuses to Refuse the Call. After that, he Met his Mentor then Crossed the Threshold to his new adventure.

The next section, Tests, Allies and Enemies, is one of the most intricate to develop and one of the most critical to your story. It can also be the longest. Here is where you flesh out your character and where he transforms to the true hero he needs to become. It shows your reader his true inner strength. However, it must be done in a way that keeps your reader connected with him. If your hero shows personality traits your readers dislike, they close the book. Here we also give the reader the exciting part of the story, those things that test your hero. This part of your novel also introduces more of those people, creatures and situations that assist your hero in completing his quest.

Okay, here are a few tips for writing this part of your story. First, consider the Rule of Threes. (“Huh?” You say.) As in so many things in life, threes work well with readers. By this I mean the story will do well to have the hero face three major tests, find three important allies and encounter three premier enemies. The Rule of Threes need not be followed, but it is a great concept if you’re new to storytelling. I don’t know why, but threes do seem to work.

Another hint is to have your hero encounter a simple test or two early on so he can grow into his new, more dramatic self in realistic fashion. You don’t want someone with a fear of heights to go over Niagara Falls in a barrel in chapter two. He has yet to build the necessary courage and knowledge. Instead, maybe he climbs a tree and freezes half way to the top. He falls and survives, thus learning a valuable lesson he needs to go over the falls. That’s the sort of thing I mean for your readers will not believe he goes over on purpose without first accumulating a bit of knowledge. Your reader also needs to know who your hero will react to various situations. If he fell over Niagara Falls right away, he’s going down screaming like a little girl, yet maybe only a yelp escapes him as he falls out of the tree. By the time he goes over Niagara, he’s able to hold his tongue and only moan a bit. Smaller tests help him to learn how to grow into the larger, more sinister tests.

A third tip, and a classic tip, is to use the seedy bar or nightclub as the setting. Of course, you can use any setting, but like the Rule of Threes, this seems to work. In my second book, “Pretty Boy and the Bugler” I used a saloon and it worked out quite well.

My fourth and final tip is to consider having the hero falter as he faces his initial tests. Again, this isn’t necessary but can lead to more excitement. If he does waver, how might he overcome? Ah, it’s good to have allies!

Okay, let’s take our regular look at Luke as he meets his Tests, Allies and Enemies.

Review the third tip above and you’ll see a seedy bar is a good place to begin. Well, remember the famous bar scene in Star Wars, A New Hope? What happened there? Luke confronted enemies, (the storm troopers, the creature who wanted to fight him), was tested, (he didn’t step down from the fight even though he would’ve lost), and he met two major allies, (Han and Chewbacca).

So, there you have it, Tests, Allies and Enemies. It was an interesting scene, wasn’t it? In fact, it was so interesting, it’s now classic of its own right. That is how important Tests, Allies and Enemies can be.

Keep in mind there may be more, many more, of these people and events in your story. For example, does Luke meet other allies? Sure he does. How about Yoda and the guy in charge of the cloud mining operation, (I don’t remember his name.). Does he meet other enemies? You betcha! He even meets someone who presents himself as an ally, (the cloud city guy), turns out to be an enemy, (he turns the band over to the Darth Vader), and an ally again. This guy even ends up a Rebellion general! Whew… what a roller coaster ride he is! By the way, this type of character is called a Shape-Shifter – something we’ll get into later.

Don’t think of this part of your story as done with a single scene for there should be many to build the excitement for your readers. Does Luke face other tests? How about the fight with Vader? He had a million tests as the story progresses. Does he meet other allies? Yoda is a perfect example. And talk about learning and growing! Yoda makes the guy hump around the planet with the Jedi on his back! It goes on and on.

So there you have it, Tests, Allies and Enemies. Make ‘em real, make ‘em scary and make a lot of ‘em.

Until we get together again, good writing.

Patrick

Twitter.com/CPatrickSchulze

Author of: Born to be Brothers

Crossing the Threshold

Good day, Writers,

We’re learning how to write a novel by way of The Hero’s Journey, a classic “formula” for storytelling. We are using the original Stars Wars as our model and have seen Luke’s Ordinary World, watched him receive his Call to Adventure, saw him Refuse the Call and then he met, Obi Wan, his Mentor. Now Luke must face Crossing the Threshold.

Crossing the Threshold is an exciting time in your novel for it is here your hero leaves the world he has known and begins his epic quest. In the case of Star Wars, when does Luke cross his threshold? It’s when he returns after meeting with Obi Wan and finds his Aunt and Uncle killed by Federation troopers. In this scene, his very way of life is no more and choices must be made. He decides to become a Jedi. Why does he do that? Because it must happen to move the story foward.

Let’s evaluate this scene, shall we? Three things have happened here. The character is placed in a position where he must make some sort of decision, his only real option is to answer the earlier Call to Adventure and, finally, he made the correct choice by becoming a Jedi.

Looking at each of these stages of Crossing the Threshold, we find Luke’s entire life is gone and is given no choice but to decide something. Did he have other options? Sure. He could have simply gone to a friend’s home and taken a nap. He could have committed suicide. He could have become a hermit and spent his life fighting off sand people. There was any number of decisions available to him. However, had he not taken the choice he did, what would have happened to the story?

Next, Luke had to have not only a reason, but the reason, to take this very specific route. (Ah, motivation!) Why didn’t he take that nap? Why did Luke decide upon the Jedi route? Basically, the authors insured he had no other option. They forced this decision by developing the character to desire military training, having him meet Obi Wan and so on. The author’s made sure the right decision was the logical step to take.

Finally, Luke saw no other option than to make the very specific decision to become a Jedi.

So, how do we apply this to your novel?

You follow the same outline. You should put your hero in a position where he must make a decision. How do you do that? By destroying, metaphorically speaking, his Ordinary World. In A New Hope, that literally happens. It is not required you be quite so destructive, but in some way, your hero must face this traumatic crossroads. If he never faces this juncture, why would he ever leave on his journey?

Your hero must have motivation to take the route you wish him to take. In The New Hope Luke decides he must punish those responsible. Imagine if, instead of becoming a Jedi, Luke becomes an alcoholic. You can see how without the correct motivation, the story falls apart. So, too, your hero must receive the motivation to take the very specific action you want him to take.

Finally, your hero must take the correct action or, again, the story fails. What if your hero’s family is killed by a murderer and the hero decides to kill his aunts and uncles in retaliation? This decision makes no sense. His motivations must logically presage his actions.

He must face the problem, have the correct motivations for the particular action you wish him to take, and he must formally take the proper action. Without these three aspects, properly presented, you’ve cheated your readers and probably doomed your novel.

There you have it, Crossing the Threshold.

Until my next post, good writing.

Patrick

Twitter.com/CPatrickSchulze

Author of Born to be Brother

Meeting the Mentor

Okay, guys, here we are again with a new post on how to tell your story by way of a novel. Today we’re discussing the next step in your literary journey, Meeting the Mentor. If you recall in my last posting on this subject, I asked you to try and determine when it was that Luke Skywalker met this character.

I think it is obvious Luke’s mentor is Obi Wan Kanobi, his uncle if memory serves. Luke meets Obi Wan when he saves the young boy from an attack by the sand people. Soon after Obi Wan reviews the message from Princess Leia, he starts talking to Luke about “The Force.”

Okay, again the question rises, “So what?” Why does our hero need to connect with a mentor? Can’t he just go on his journey and get things done? He could, but how much of your novel will be needed to “teach” your hero what he needs to know? The Mentor speeds this process by offering your hero information he cannot get on his own. The Mentor provides knowledge, motivation and training.

One of the first things Obi Wan gives Luke is knowledge of The Force. (How important is this bit of information to the story?) You simply don’t have the word count available to give your hero all the knowledge he requires if he is forced to learn it on his own. It must come in quick bursts. Thus the need for a mentor arises.

How about training for Luke? It was Obi Wan who introduces Yoda to Luke. Although your story does not need formal training as we see in this story, but some sort of enlightenment for your hero is required. If you remember, our hero has already refused the Call to Adventure and needs someone to move his along his path. He needs inspiration and this, too, is the job of your mentor.

In general, your mentor arrives early but can arrive later if it fits your storyline. Can your hero have more than one mentor? Sure, Like had Obi Wan and Yoda, for example. We’ll discuss more about additional mentors, called “allies” in a later posting.

So, here we are. We’ve our hero in his Ordinary World which is disrupted by the Call to Adventure. His normal response is a Refusal of the Call, but then he Meets The Mentor and everything is about to change.

What do you think must happen next in your story? He must take the first step on his adventure by Crossing the Threshold!

When does Luke Cross his Threshold?

Until my next posting, good writing.

Patrick