On Writing

Creating properly structured Reaction Scenes is another key skill novelists who create pageturners have mastered.

Three elements comprise a properly structured Reaction Scene. They are as follows:

– Reaction – Hero reacts emotionally to the frustration of his key goal as it played out in the Scene immediately preceding.

– Rumination – Hero reacts logically to his frustration. He thinks through what his options are.

– Decision – Hero decides on his next course of action.

You will note that this sequence corresponds to the normal human reaction to a frustration or disappointment. We don’t immediately swing into Plan B, when Plan A fizzles. We usually have a moment of anger, sorrow, or some other emotion, or combination of emotions. When we sort out our emotions, the ability to think clearly returns and we formulate Plan B. As we sort through our options, we then decide to act on what appears to be the best of those options.

Note: Reaction Scenes are generally shorter than Action Scenes. This is because Scenes that feature thought and rumination are intrinsically less compelling than Scenes that feature action.

Here’s an example of a memorable Reaction Scene. It’s from near the conclusion of Nicholas Sparks’s The Notebook. Spoiler warning: If you haven’t read The Notebook, you may want to do so before reading further.

Here’s the setup for the Reaction Scene we’ll highlight from The Notebook: The hero, Noah Calhoun, lives with his wife Allie in an assisted living facility. His wife has Alzheimer’s and despite the fact that Noah and Allie’s love for each other was extraordinarily passionate, the disease causes Allie to often be unable to remember Noah, and even to react in violent fear to his presence. Noah persists in patiently caring for Allie, despite the episodes in which she rejects him. Then a further disaster strikes: Noah suffers a stroke.

Below is the structure of the Reaction Scene following the Scene in which Noah is hospitalized with a stroke:

– Reaction – Noah’s stroke has left him half paralyzed on one side of his body. He reacts by labeling himself “only half a man now.”

– Rumination – As evening falls, Noah takes stock of his now diminished physical capacities as they will affect his key concern in life: his ability to care for Allie. He worries that he will predecease her, an eventuality that had not occurred to him before. He re-assesses and reaffirms the extraordinary love he and Allie share. The love he feels wells up within and he feels impelled to see her again.

– Decision – Despite the fact that the rules of the care facility forbid night visits, as Allie’s tendency to react fearfully to Noah is worse after sundown, and despite the great difficulty he now has walking, Noah decides he will visit Allie in her room to leave a love letter under her pillow.

This Reaction Scene sets up the Action Scene to follow, in which Noah must struggle with antagonistic forces (the facility’s rules and his own physical weakness) to try to achieve his goal of visiting Allie to affirm the great love which binds these two souls.

Does Nicholas Sparks succeed in creating a pageturner Reaction Scene? Countless readers who were deeply moved by this bestselling romantic story would seem to affirm that he did.

Recap: A novel of average length (75,00 words) is comprised of about 60 Scenes (Action Scenes and Reaction Scenes). Scenes can be anywhere from a paragraph long to several pages long, with the average Scene being about 600 words long. Reaction Scenes are generally shorter than Action Scenes. An Action Scene can be followed by another Action Scene. (i.e., Not every Action Scene needs to be followed by a Reaction Scene.) See previous posts for more on this.

Here’s the Checklist for an Action Scene that Works:

– Hero’s goal is clear

– Hero meets and resourcefully tries to overcome the antagonistic force (whatever it is that blocks him from his goal).

– Antagonistic force prevents hero from achieving his goal.

– or,

– Hero achieves goal, but immediately faces another complication.

– The action of the Scene takes place in one single flow of time.

Now let’s look at how one bestselling author meets the above requirements for creating an Action Scene that works. We’ll explore the opening Scene in Kate DiCamillo’s children’s book, Because of Winn-Dixie.

In Chapter One, the heroine, Opal, is shopping at her local Winn-Dixie supermarket when she notices a stray dog who is in sad shape running through the store, knocking things over (including the manager), and having a great ol’ time. Opal immediately falls in love with the dog.

Heroine’s goal? To get the dog and take him home.

The antagonistic force? the store manager, who has been literally knocked off his feet by the dog, is set on calling the pound.

Heroine’s resourceful response? Opal claims the dog belongs to her.

Antagonistic force’s response? The manager says, if the dog belongs to you, you know it’s name.

Heroine’s resourceful response? Opal makes up a name for the dog on the spot, and calls him by it. The name is the first thing that comes to her head, Winn-Dixie (the name of the supermarket).

Outcome? The dog bounds over to Opal and the manager reluctantly accepts that Opal owns the dog.

Residual suspense? Opal has saved Winn-Dixie from the pound – but will her father let her keep the dog?

Does the opening (Action) Scene of Because of Winn-Dixie fulfill the requirements noted above? Yes, it does. Had Kate DiCamillo chosen to write this Scene as an Event, she would have described Opal encountering the dog in the store and deciding to take it home. Opal would have met her goal without any opposition. The store manager would not have been set on calling the pound. The heroine would not have needed to think quickly to come up with a solution to the “antagonistic force” (the manager’s decision).

And the opening chapter would have been a bit of a snoozer, and the book would not have gone on to win a Newbery Award for excellence.

Pull a novel that has kept you glued to the pages from your shelves. Read a chapter or two with analytical eye, keeping the above guidelines for Action Scene structure in mind. Novelists who aspire to create pageturners absolutely need to master the art of structuring an Action Scene. Mastery of Action Scene structure enables a novelist to build a hypnotic rhythm into a work that compels a reader to keep turning pages.

Note: If you get a chance, read or re-read Because of Winn-Dixie and you also will appreciate and enjoy the additional “value add” (humor) that imbues this novel.

In an earlier post, “Construct Compelling Scenes,” we looked at how to structure an Action Scene, the key building block of your novel’s story.

It is important to always keep in mind that an Action Scene is an Action Scene only when it embodies conflict – i.e., an Action Scene should show the hero struggle against an antagonistic force.

For example: If your hero needs a job, and you show him applying for one and getting one, that’s an “Event” – not an Action Scene. If your teen heroine wants to take flying lessons, asks her parents for permission, and she receives it, that also is an Event, not an Action Scene.

Events may be mildly interesting, but they are fairly tepid in their ability to compel a reader to turn pages. Properly constructed Scenes comprise the engine that powers a pageturner – and you need to build your Action Scenes properly.

Checklist for a Action Scene that Works:

– Hero’s goal is clear

– Hero meets and resourcefully tries to overcome the antagonistic force (whatever it is that blocks him from his goal).

– Antagonistic force prevents hero from achieving his goal.

– or,

– Hero achieves goal, but immediately faces another complication.

– The action of the Scene takes place in one single flow of time.

How long should a Scene be?

A novel of average length – 75,000 words – is built with 60 Action and Reaction Scenes. (See the “Construct Compelling Scenes” post for more on Sequels.)

That means the average Scene is about 1,250 words long, or five typewritten pages. But this is just a guideline. Reaction Scenes should be shorter than Action Scenes, because Scenes that describe thought and reflection versus action are less compelling. In addition, the trend today is toward shorter and shorter Scenes. And it’s always a good idea to vary the length of Scenes now and again. Why? Because variation adds texture and interest to the structure of your novel.

What qualities should a writer build into the opening sentence or sentences (the Hook) of a pageturner novel?

Perhaps a good way to answer this question is to explore the qualities one writer (J.K. Rowling) built into the opening sentence of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, the first Harry Potter book – and one of the most successful pageturners ever.

Rowling’s first sentence is: “Mr. and Mrs. Dursley, of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say they were perfectly normal, thank you very much.” This accomplishes the goal of hooking the reader, and does so with added layers of value for the reader: a unique narrative voice, characterization, and humor and wit all packed into one short sentence. What reader wouldn’t want to read on and keep turning the pages?

– Wit and humor – Note that Rowling speaks with a delightfully variegated tone in her opening line. She doesn’t just bluntly state: “Mr. and Mrs. Dursley had something to hide.” In and of itself, that isn’t a bad hook, by the way. But what J.K. wrote is better. Her line both duplicates the smug self-satisfaction that typifies the Dursleys (as the reader will come to find out). At the same time, Rowling’s word choices in that first sentence skewer the Dursleys’ narcissistic and closed-minded outlook.

– Careful language choice – In Rowling’s opening sentence, the Dursleys don’t just see themselves as “normal.” They see themselves as perfectly normal. And the narrator adds the snarky, “thank you very much,” a verbal fillip that the Dursleys would undoubtedly offer to anyone audacious enough to question their status as they perceive it.

The choice of Privet Drive as their address serves two purposes: a privet hedge is a barrier homeowners erect between themselves and the public; it’s something that provides privacy, that can cloak the goings on in a given home or yard. In addition, the word “privet” sounds like the word “private.” Privet Drive for the Dursley’s address is an inspired language choice.

Note also that the Dursleys are “proud to say.” In British English, “I’m proud to say” is a common expression. It means you are about to share what you consider a bit of good news about yourself. But Rowling here uses the word to signal something more to us. The Dursleys aren’t just being conversational in using that phrase. They really are proud – and it’s the kind of pride that teeters into arrogance and edginess – which Rowling underscores with the addition of the snippy “thank you very much.”

– Hint of conflict/mystery– Rowling’s opening sentence lets the reader know that the Dursleys are edgy about the issue of normality. Why? the reader wonders. Why is it such a big deal to them? What might they be hiding?

– Enticement for the reader to read further – With the Dursleys putting such an emphasis on being “perfectly normal,” and combining that emphasis with edgy language designed to stop an inquirer from asking any further questions, Rowling has signaled they are hiding something. The reader wants to read to find out what that something is.

So there you have it. In the hands of a masterful writer, the Hook is packed with enticements to read on; it assures the reader he is in good hands, that he can safely entrust his precious time to this work, and – by doing so – will be rewarded with more moments of absorption, excitement, insight and delight.

And note how Rowling’s Hook achieves all this with very few words, and with a light deft touch.

Put yourself in a reader’s place.

You’re looking for a new book to read – specifically, a novel. You have about a kazillion novels from which to choose – classics, new imprints, self-pubbed, ebooks, hardcovers, softcovers, books that have been around for a while but that you’ve never gotten around to reading – books with enticing titles and/or covers, books with themes and subject matter that spark your interest.

You, the reader, need to make a decision. However, once you do, you know you will be investing hours of your precious leisure time – time you could use to get chores done, to perhaps earn overtime pay, to meet with friends, to watch that new movie everyone’s talking about, to attend that concert (rock or pop), to shop, to visit Gran, etc. You also know you’ll have to plunk down $10, $20, or $30 of your hard-earned cash.

So you want to pick a winner. You want quality and value for your investment of time and money.

Now, author person, how do you make a reader who is in this sitch, choose your book over the competition?

Here’s how:

Right from the start, right from the first page, you promise the reader an amazing journey, a journey she will kick herself for if it’s something she misses. You promise her a journey that includes wit, tears and laughter, action and depth, an emotional wallop, insight, suspense, and maybe even closure for her own psychic wounds via fictional surrogate.

In the best case, you promise the reader all of the above.

How?

Here’s the tried and true way:

Create a compelling “Hook.” What is a Hook?

More specifically, what is a successful Hook?

– Simply stated, the Hook is/are the opening line(s) of your novel written in such a way that the reader is drawn to keep reading your work. It can be one sentence long, two or more sentences long, or a whole paragraph – or more – long. Shorter is better.

– The hook draws the reader in. This means it either enchants/charms the reader, tantalizes her, makes her laugh, puzzles her, piques her interest, and/or sparks her curiosity in such a way that she keeps on reading.

Here are some examples of great Hooks:

“When I wake up, the other side of the bed is cold. … Prim must have had bad dreams and climbed in with our mother. Of course, she did. This is the day of the reaping.” – Suzanne Collins, Hunger Games

“Mr. and Mrs. Dursley … were proud to say they were perfectly normal, thank you very much. They were the last people you’d expect to be involved in anything strange or mysterious, because they just didn’t hold with such nonsense.” – J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone

“Renowned curator Jacques Sauniere staggered through the … museum’s Grand Gallery. He lunged for the nearest painting he could see … heaved the masterpiece toward himself until it tore from the wall and Sauniere collapsed backward in a heap beneath the canvas.” – Dan Brown, The Da Vinci Code

“Tell me, O Muse, of that wily hero who traveled far and wide after he sacked the famous town of Troy. … He suffered much while trying to save his own life and bring his men safely home.” – Homer, The Odyssey

The above post is an excerpt from Jessica Hatchigan’s How to Write a Pageturner Novel, available via Amazon.com. All rights reserved.

Watch Jessica Hatchigan’s video tutorial – “How Bestselling Authors Create Pageturner Novels: Plot & Structure” instantly on your PC, Mac, compatible TV or device via Amazon.com’s instant video.

Now that you have your One-Sentence Summary , your One-Pager , and your Beat Sheet in hand, it’s time to actually begin writing your novel.

Here is where I need to explain that the 60 or so Scenes you will create to build your novel, are made up of two types: Action Scenes and Reaction Scenes.

And, before you begin, keep in mind that you are now creating a First Draft. That means, you will have an opportunity, when you have completed all 60 scenes, to rework them. You will, in fact, be able to revise them as many times as you need to to get them right. So, relax and enjoy the writing process.

That said, go to it!

Here’s how to create an Action Scene:

• Keep the acronym GCF in mind. It stands for Goal, Conflict, Frustration.
• Begin an Action Scene by making clear to the reader what your hero’s goal is (Win a contest? Win someone’s heart? Save the family farm? Make a fortune? Slay the dragon? Get a ship to port in a storm? etc.)
• Show how the hero is met with Resistance which means he Conflicts with another person, the Antagonist, or with a group of people (war narratives), or with Nature (The Perfect Storm), or with any other force that frustrates his ability to achieve his goal.
• Show how your hero’s efforts are defeated and so meet with Frustration.

Here’s how to create a Reaction Scene:

• Keep in mind the acronym RRD for Reaction Scenes. It’s short for Response, Rumination, Decision.
• So, after your hero’s efforts meet with Frustration, show your hero Responds to the frustration emotionally (anger, sorrow, resignation, disbelief, physical revulsion, etc.).
• Show how your hero reacts to his rationally, how he Ruminates (thinks through) his options as to what he can do to yet achieve his goal.
• Show how your hero reaches a Decision as to what he will now do to try again to achieve his desired outcome.

Keep in mind is that Action Scenes generally are longer than Reaction Scenes.

The reason for this is that writing that depicts action is more compelling than writing that depicts thinking – as Reaction Scenes do. So, to maintain a novel’s pace, you want to keep your Reaction Scenes shorter than your Action Scenes. Sometimes a Reaction Scene can be condensed to a few short sentences

Note: keep in mind that you can follow an Action Scene with another Action Scene. You do not need to always need to write a Reaction Scene.

How many Reaction Scenes do you need then? Enough to clarify the story – to explain the hero or heroine’s actions (how they make their choices) when it cannot be done through the preceding or following scene alone.

Important: In the first scene of the novel, remember to also create a “Hook” in the initial paragraph – and,  ideally, in the initial sentence – of your novel.

More about the Hook in the next post.

Once you have created your One-Sentence Summary  and One-Pager , it’s time to write your “Beat Sheet.”

What is a “Beat Sheet”? It’s a summary of the 60 or so scenes that make up an average length (say 75,000-word) novel. Since you have 4 sections to your novel (see your One-Pager), that might be about 15 scenes per section.

However, it’s more likely that Section 1 of the novel you’re writing (the Opening) requires fewer than 15 scenes – perhaps only 10 or so. Section 4 (the Resolution) also might require fewer than 15 scenes; let’s apportion 12 to Section 4. That leaves 38 scenes to be divvied up between Sections 2 and 3 (the two halves of the book’s Middle) – say 19 scenes each.

Note: You are free to determine a shorter or longer word count for your novel.* On average, novels range from 60,000 to 125,000 words. You would adjust the number of scenes accordingly. You also are free, no matter what the word count, to divvy up the number of scenes in each of the Sections to your liking.

So let’s get back to writing that Beat Sheet.

To create a Beat Sheet for your pageturner, grab your novel’s One-Pager. Now is the time to flesh out how the action in Sections 1, 2, 3, and 4 of your novel actually play out.

– In Section One, your novel’s opening section, write one or two sentences each for the 10 scenes that launch your novel. (One sentence is better.) These 10 scenes must accomplish the following: They show your hero’s current situation. They show what your hero wants most. They show what’s holding your hero from going after what he wants most. Also, one scene will show the incident that forces your hero to try to achieve his goal.

NOTE: It’s handy to use bullet-point format to create your Beat Sheet.

– In Section Two, the first half of your novel’s middle section, write 19 one- or two-sentence descriptions scenes that: show how your hero resourcefully struggles against the antagonistic force that is keeping him from what he is trying to achieve; show how your hero meets with continued frustration despite scoring minor victories; show how he meets with resistance, resistance, resistance in trying to achieve his key goal.

– In Section Three, the second half of your novel’s middle section, write 19 one- or two-sentence descriptions of 19 scenes that show how: 1) something happens that points the hero in the direction of resolving the conflict, 2) that show how  your hero – now smarter and tougher because of all he’s learned on his journey so far – goes after the antagonist more ably and forcefully – but only to meet with Defeat yet again, 3) show the hero enduring a Black Moment when all seems lost and the hero has, apparently, run out of options.

– In Section  Four, the resolution of your novel, write 12 one- or two-sentence descriptions of scenes that show how, 1) things, yes, get even worse for the hero, 2) show how the hero has an Epiphany – how he brings together all he has learned, all his growth, all his capacity to act resourcefully, 3) show him making one last ditch effort, 4) show him in his Showdown with the antagonist – the Climactic Battle, and 5) show how he loses or (hopefully) wins!

Do all of the above and you have your Beat Sheet, a helpful navigation guide to assist you in writing your novel. A Beat Sheet can be 3 to 10 pages long. One really useful aspect of the Beat Sheet is that it gives you a “bird’s eye view” of the action of your novel. It allows you to “re-route” your story for maximum effectiveness early in the game – before you begin writing.

* Some publishers have specific requirements, especially publishers of genre fiction. If you hope to write for a specific imprint, take the time to research any requirements.

Copyright, 2012 – Jessica Hatchigan. All rights reserved.

When newbie writers first feel the calling of The Craft, they often believe novels stream from keyboards in bursts of inspiration.

Yes, they do. But a modern novel is 60,000-plus word-long creation. Somewhere along the line, those inspired thoughts, words and phrases need to be analyzed and structured. It is the job of the novelist to impose that structure. This can be a challenge.

Many novelists who rely on inspiration alone get lost in the woods, fail to complete work they started, or need to do massive rewrites, wasting time and effort.

The good news is, you can do impose structure on your novel before you begin the actual work of writing it.

Here’s how:

How to Write a Novel: Step 2 – Create a One-Pager

– Start with a single sheet of paper.

– Put your working title at the top of the page.

– Divide the paper into four sections.

– In Section One: This is your novel’s opening section. Describe your hero’s current situation. Describe what your hero wants most. Describe what’s holding your hero from going after what he wants most. Describe the incident that forces your hero to try to achieve his goal.

– In Section Two: This is the first half of your novel’s middle section. Here, describe how your hero resourcefully struggles against the antagonistic force that is keeping him from what he is trying to achieve. Remember: Your hero must meet with continued frustration here. In other words, he may score minor victories in Section Two, but he should not achieve his key goal (or the story tension dissipates). He meets with resistance, resistance, resistance.

– In Section Three: This is the second half of your novel’s middle section. It begins with the Midpoint of the novel. To avoid a common blight in novels – saggy (i.e., boring, plodding, tension-less) middles – this section should start with a “Shift.” Jot down how – at this Midpoint, Something happens that points the hero in the direction of resolving the conflict. As noted, we’ll call this something a Shift.* After the Shift, describe how  your hero – now smarter and tougher because of all he’s learned on his journey so far – goes after the antagonist more ably and forcefully – but only to meet with Defeat yet again. Section Three – in a well-plotted novel – needs to end with a Black Moment when all seems lost and the hero has, apparently, run out of options. Ask yourself: “In terms of this story world, what’s the worst thing that could happen to my hero?” That’s how Section Three should end.

– In Section  Four: In two or three sentences describe how things, yes, get even worse for the hero. Then, how the hero has an Epiphany – how he brings together all he has learned, all his growth, all his capacity to act resourcefully; how he arrives at a way to make one last ditch effort; how he has a Showdown with the antagonist – the Climactic Battle, and how he loses or (hopefully) wins! 

Thinking through all of the above and fitting it on one page isn’t easy. But if you take the time to do it, you’ll have a road map that will speed your journey to the final sentence of that successful final draft.

* Examples: In Robin Cook’s first novel, Coma, a doctor who is imperiled after she discovers illegal organ trading in her hospital realizes that the hospital’s directors (the people she hoped would help her) are involved, so she has to find an alternate way to escape the bad guys and stop the baddies. In the movie Bridget Jones’s Diary, Bridget wants to find true love but discovers her boss, with whom she has been carrying on an affair, has been cheating on her; she quits her job and resolves to change her life for the better.

Planning to begin a novel? Super!

Here are the questions you should ask yourself as you start:

– Who is my hero/heroine? (Man? Woman? How old? Occupation? What one single adjective would best describe him/her? (Examples: friendly reporter, arrogant politician, worried teacher, loud chef, etc.)

– What does my hero/heroine want more than anything else?

– What is stopping my hero/heroine from achieving his/her goal?

Write one or two sentences describing the concept for your novel. Incorporate the answers to the above questions.

Examples:

– A skilled archer saves her younger sister’s life by taking her place in deadly games of combat; she must then fight others to the death to survive. (Hunger Games)

– A resistance fighter seeks letters of transit held by an angry former lover because the letters will enable her freedom fighter husband to escape the Gestapo and defeat the Nazi regime. (Casablanca)

– A wealthy society girl seeks to escape a loveless engagement to a cad, and with the help of her lover finds a way to escape when the ocean liner on which she is traveling collides with an iceberg. (Titanic)

– A rat who wants to become a master chef must overcome people’s revulsion against rats, his family’s discouragement, restaurant inspectors, and a snooty food critic to achieve his dream. (Ratatouille)
Tips:

– Try to create a one- or two-sentence synopsis that will intrigue an agent, editor or reader. This is more difficult than it sounds – but very important. This short synopsis becomes a key marketing tool once your book is written and you seek representation, publication, and – most important of all – readers!

– Be original. Be wild, inventive, and even extreme as you shape your novel’s concept. You can always scale back if you need to. People seldom err when they push the boundaries of creativity but they do err when they remain in safe, all too well-known, yawn-inviting territory. Banish the bland. Go for innovation and freshness. Tantalize!