Month: May 2019

What is a story?

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Time once again for an Extra topic, and as with the previous Extra: Story Essence, we’ll be focusing on the content of your work, rather than the production. In fiction, we try to tell a story…and in non-fiction, we have some knowledge to share. Both can use similar concepts to get the message across, though in fiction we are appealing to the reader’s emotion, in non-fiction, intellect.

So…what really is a story? We’ve heard it described as a narrative of events…with a beginning, middle, and end. It that it?

Consider this:

  • Bill woke up. He ate breakfast. He left for work.

Is that a story? It has the requisite three acts, a protagonist, some form of choices, and it’s a natural progression, but something is missing. It’s a news article, not a story—there is no passion, no crisis, no struggle, and most importantly, no change. The main character ends the same as he started.

Let’s step through the process of creating a story. Right up front, we have to get the reader’s attention, create a connection, and set the scene (build the world). In other words, we need to entice the reader to continue reading—we need to set the hook.

Starting the story:

Question: But when do we start the story? Answer: When something extraordinary happens. We don’t care about boring lives—we want to break that routine. Ask yourself: Why is this day different from all others? That’s where you start the story, and it sets up the Story Question asked in Act I: Will things get back to normal? We’ll have to wait for the resolution to get that answer.

Once started, we need to introduce the rest of the characters. There are two kinds: Pebble and Putty. Pebble people don’t change over the life of the story, bouncing back from whatever acts on them, set pieces, not interesting. Putty people are the central ones. We’re interested in watching them to see if they’ll ever get back to the shape they were in the beginning…but they won’t.

Middle of the story:

The middle part of the story is where all the action takes place, but anything that happens has to be the result of our hero doing something…no happenstance allowed. Don’t forget to throw in a few clues and red herrings for the end of the story.

“If you say in the first chapter that there is a rifle hanging on the wall, in the second or third chapter it absolutely must go off. If it’s not going to be fired, it shouldn’t be hanging there.”—Anton Chekhov

The bulk of the actions should be the hero trying to solve the problem created at the beginning, and though all attempts need to make sense (something logical, something you might try in that situation), none of them work—things just get worse.

Tension is created by unfilled desire, so give the hero something to crave, then prevent success. What is wanted? What is to be avoided? Focus on external struggles that need to be overcome or internal ones that need to be understood—the more intimate, the more personal, the more devastating they will be.

End of the story:

When the end finally arrives, it needs to follow from what happened earlier, almost unavoidable, but not obvious until it happens. Tie up loose ends, show us how the hero has changed, and answer the Story Question. Remember, the entire story is one of transformation—no change, no story. Don’t worry…we’ll cover details of Transformation later.

Comparatives and Superlatives

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Some things are good and some are bad. But some things are even better than that…and others worse. Then there are the ones that are the best…or the worst. How do we know the difference? We use Comparatives and Superlatives. English has two ways to relate objects, ranking them according to some (often unspecified) scale in quality, quantity, or degree. The Comparative balances one item against only one other. The Superlative evaluates one item against a bunch of others. Remember to use the Comparative if you have only two things to compare.

Two Ways to Form Comparisons

There are two constructions for comparing: Morphological and Syntactic. In the morphological system, we morph (or change) a word. In the Syntactic, we use syntax (the rules of sentence construction) to show the level of comparison. The morphological comparison is usually used with short words of Anglo-Saxon derivation by adding ‘er’ for the comparative and ‘est’ for the superlative, but there are some irregular forms to consider as well. The positive word ‘good’ becomes ‘better’ or ‘best’ and the negative word ‘bad’ becomes ‘worse’ and ‘worst’, so it still seems to follow a pattern.

Using the syntactical technique, we would add words instead of changing them to make the comparison, and the words we usually add are ‘more’ and ‘most’ for an increasing attribute (or ‘less’ and ‘least’ for a decreasing one). This method is often used for longer words, or words of French or Latin origin. For example, when ‘beautiful’ grows, it becomes ‘more beautiful’ and ‘most beautiful’. On the other side, when ‘wide-awake’ is reduced, it becomes ‘less wide-awake’ and ‘least wide-awake’.

Null Comparatives

You’ll sometimes see a Comparative used with only ONE item…often in adverts or political comments. What is being compared isn’t always clear…and that seems to be the intention. Consider these statements:

  • Our bread is softer.
  • The display is sharper.
  • We give you more.
  • More doctors recommend it.

The bread is softer than what? A rock? Of course it is, and the display is sharper than what? Last year’s model? Probably. They give you more than…the other guys? Maybe so. It is recommended by more doctors than sewer workers? I would hope so, whatever it is!

These Null Comparatives are intentionally used to convince us that something is better, trying to get us to buy (or buy into) whatever it is that they are selling. Be careful to avoid such empty comparisons in your writing…even if you are writing advert copy.

Comparing Absolutes

Another thing to watch out for is trying to compare absolutes—something that is either all the way on or all the way off. If one of the buckets is full, it can’t be fuller. If another one is empty, it can’t be the emptiest. There is only one unique gem, so there can’t be a more unique gem. And a funny one is trying to consider one lady to be less pregnant than another—it just doesn’t work.

Basic Layout of a Book (cover)

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Most readers are familiar with what a book looks like, but from an author’s point of view, there is much more involved in putting one together. Let’s go over the basic parts:

  • Obviously there is the cover first, made up of the front, back, and spine.
  • Then there’s the inside, but that’s just a bunch of pages, right?

Not quite, but we’ll get to that part in a post about the layout of the inside—we’ll examine just the cover in this post.

Front:

Focusing on the front of the cover, the reader will expect to find a title and possibly a subtitle (especially for non-fiction). Then there’s the author’s name, and of course some wonderful image that will catch the reader’s eye—but when the cover artist lays out the words and pictures, make certain enough room is left somewhere for that wonderful sticker you get when you win the book contest!

Back:

The back cover also has a few items that are expected. The genre is specified, typically in the upper left corner, along with the appropriate BISAC code. The middle has a paragraph or two with enough information for the reader to make the decision to buy the book—here is where you put your hook. You may also have a few blurbs from advance readers or reviewers. The lower left area is where you put your own picture, along with a bit of info about you. (Some readers will buy the book based solely on the author’s credentials.) Publisher info goes just below that. The lower right corner (near the spine) is where the ISBN goes with its bar code.

Spine:

There isn’t much room on the spine, so the only things expected are the title (possibly shortened), the author’s name (usually just the last name), and the publisher’s logo.

Although it’s usually the spine that the reader sees first, it’s the cover that gets the book get picked up, and the back gets the book opened—that’s where you have to convince the reader to buy it.

That pretty much covers the cover. The inside is a whole ’nother matter.

Menu key

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As you may know, I’m a bit of a keyboard kinda guy. If I can find a way to type a command, instead of mousing it, I’ll do it. Well, with the advent of the 104 key keyboard back in Sept of 1994, when Microsoft upgraded the standard 101 key keyboard, a few new keys were added…but no one pointed them out: two Windows keys and a single Menu key. We’re going to cover the Menu key in this post, but don’t worry, we’ll cover the Windows key in a later one.

Usually found a bit to the right of the space bar, there is a new key that is rather useful—the Context Menu key. It’s supposed to look like a little drop-down menu, a box with horizontal lines on it. Sometimes it has an arrow on it (like the picture), but some keyboards have a different version with no arrow.

When you type that key, you get the same thing as if you right-click* the mouse—a menu that changes every time depending on where the focus is. I haven’t found much use for it when I’m writing (in Word), because mostly I’m just typing copy, but when I’m analysing data (in Excel), it gets used quite a bit. Just a quick ‘shift-space menu-i’ will insert a whole row, and ‘ctrl-space menu-d’ will delete a column. Quick and easy.

It may be a bit awkward at first…having to reach down past the “?” key…but you’ll probably find that the more you use it, the more you’ll find other ways to make it work better for you. If you’re curious, just tap it whenever you might be reaching for the mouse. The command you want might be right there waiting for you.

*When I say “right-click” I’m showing a prejudice. I’ve had to support many engineers who were left handed, so for them a “right-click” involves clicking on the left button of the mouse. Unfortunately, they’ve gotten used to everything being backwards, but I just want to acknowledge the difference. Thanks!

Story Elements (Characters)

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Characters are important, but how important? Well, if you have no characters, then there is no story, and according to some folks, they are more important than even plot:

“An idea has no worth at all without believable characters to implement it; a plot without characters is like a tennis court without players… Personality. That is the key, the drum, the fife. Forget the plot.”—Chuck Jones, an animator of such characters as the Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote

That’s pretty important, but who do you include? Populating your story with people who feel real will help humanise it, so consider what roles you will need:

  • The Hero (protagonist), often the POV character, needs to show courage and willingness to sacrifice for the greater good in the face of danger and adversity.
  • The Villain (antagonist) opposes the Hero, either physically, intellectually, or emotionally, and he doesn’t need to be a single person. The government, a crowd, even the environment could be the villain. He often has a helper: The Tempter.
  • The Tempter works in the shadows, manipulating the Hero and trying to convince him to join the dark side.
  • The Sidekick, the Hero’s helper, is an unconditionally loving friend. No matter how bad things get, the Sidekick thinks the Hero is right—Sancho Panza in Don Quixote.
  • The Mentor acts as the Hero’s conscience, guiding him toward the right path…guiding only, not controlling. The Hero has to make his own choices—Gandalf in the Hobbit stories.
  • The Sceptic doesn’t believe in the Theme, he doesn’t support the Hero’s goal, and he doesn’t mind getting in the way. He has his own agenda—Han Solo in Star Wars.
  • Love Interests add much to the fullness of a story, whether boyfriend, girlfriend, or even a pet animal of some sort. This character can add a whole subplot (or even the main plot…romance stories?). Their relationship isn’t necessarily solid, as the villain is constantly interfering, trying to distract the Hero from his goal.
  • Finally the Spear Carriers, bit parts, filled in by folks who walk on, give their lines, and walk off, never to be seen again. Just one of the masses adding to casts of thousands. Still important, but mostly as information givers. Let them have their moment in the spotlight…then move on.

Not all those roles will be needed in all stories, but any character you have can be lumped into two types: Emotional and Logical. Emotional characters follow their gut, often acting before thinking, and help the Hero by making a decision that a thinking person would never have even considered…and often fail, spectacularly, by leaping without looking.

On the other hand, Logical characters plan ahead, look for common sense solutions, and answer questions with facts. They are useful, but the Hero may find that the head needs to listen to the heart to work at its best.

Keep a good balance, and your story folks will not only seem real, but also be talked for years to come.