Inspired by the classics

2010-11-26T11:19:00.000-08:00

If you are following me on Facebook then you know there was a period in time when I was watching, back to back BBC Jane Austen movies and watched a Charles Dickens movie "Little Dorrit" and am currently reading "The Picture of Dorain Grey" I recently watched that movie.

Well after being flooded with the greats I decided that I wanted to write a story that incoperated something of all three. Jane Austens formulatic theme, Dickens mystery and characterizations and Wilde's prose.

The last thing I should be doing right now with school being a priority is starting another WIP but I can't seem to stop myself from #amwriting.

More to come on this title-less story.

Further studying my protagonists

2010-08-12T16:07:00.000-07:00

August 12 2010

Determined to finish at least one Work in Progress before I return to school in the fall my focus has been that one particular story. I know the beginning, middle, and end, written and unwritten, like the back of my hand….at least I thought I did.

I was driving around the other day listening to my musical muse @afi on of course, when I started to think about the story and wonder about my characters. I understand the main female character her path is clear, solid. I get her relationship with one of the males. But then I wondered, what any reader would wonder, “What the hell is up with the main protagonist?” The one who’s eyes the story is told through.

I mean he is involved with the story, but why does he care to report? What have I missed in telling his part of the tale? The story needed something big to happen, something to change the relationship between the main protagonist, and the other characters.

That is when it hit me like a Mack truck…or minivan (wink wink). This new part of the puzzle was indeed the perfect insert to the already existing story. What happens jolts the main protagonist, this is the part of the story where he is at his best, where he is changed and conflicted and we as readers feel for him, worry about him and his well being. This is where we have to wonder yet again what happens next.

I am so excited and as I posted, grateful for procrastinating on this piece a bit. When I’m done all the necessary parts are in there and the finished product will be at it’s best.

Tools and Tips
Another thing I learned from this experience was not just typing out the beginning middle end but there are things that can be done when I can’t seem to write. When I just don’t know how to write, or what I want to write, or how to connect certain pieces of the story. I sit back and play out the story in my mind, beginning, middle, and end and ask;
Are the actions and dialogue consistent throughout the story with the personalities of the characters?
Not just one character but all of them? So even though the story is told through one character’s POV. I played out what was happening to each of the characters…as if it were through their POV also. Does that make sense?
What motivated my main character to stick in this story?
For me I had to wonder why the hell did he stick around? Why was he so chill about it everything not an active participant but more of an observer? I went back to asking, why did he want to come to this place in the first place? What was his goal, his purpose? What does he want now? What has to happen so that he gets what he wants?

Just being open to ideas and possibilities, and to take the “down time” of writing to reflect and daydream, seems to help the fate of the characters unfold until then all that is left to do is write.

Happy writing,
Stacy

MyFiqtionalWorld

Inspired by the classics

Further studying my protagonists