Posts Tagged ‘writing a novel’
writing a novel – sub-plots
In every story, sub-plots help with the story telling and contribute their own dynamic to the action, characters, and the relationships between characters.
sub-plot : a smaller, separate story strand that provides support for and adds complexity to the main plot
The courses I have taken have taught me that often subplots contain a minimum of three re-occurrences or ‘beats’ in a story. A sub-plot is introduced, more is learned and the sub-plot is resolved.
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To help me identify the subplots, I have used my ‘story board.’ I identified some key subplots and put stickers on the scenes on my ‘story board’. Here you can see the subplots ‘A’ and ‘P’.
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This mapping of subplots can help me decide if some of the story is missing. In the ‘story board’ below, sub-plot ‘P’ could be improved by a mention on Day 3 and 4 (the vertical rows of green trees indicate a day in the action). Major inclusions of the subplot P on Days 1, 5, and 8 will be my three subplot ‘beats’.
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Copyright 2015 Jane Tims
writing a novel – character arcs
Title: unknown
Working Title: ‘Crossing at a Walk’
Setting: a writers’ retreat – the renovated Landing Church, the hall and the rectory now used as a Learning Center, a Sleeping Hall and a home/base of operations for Sadie and Tom
Characters: main character Sadie, a writer; her husband Tom, a retired welder; people from the community; writers participating in the first weekend of the writers’ retreat
Plot: Sadie wants the first writers’ retreat to go smoothly, but the history of an old covered bridge keeps getting in the way
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I have finished the first draft of my novel. Still lots of holes to fill and editing to do. But I am now certain of the basic story-line.
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For the next while I will be spending some time with each of my characters. I know a bit about them, because I have a character sketch and a drawing for each character. Now I want to make sure each person has their own story arc. I would like each character to grow in some way during the novel.
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some of the characters in my novel
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My first step is to print a copy of the draft ‘Table of Contents’ for my book.
On a separate page, I also list the events (or scenes) in each chapter and the characters involved in each event.
Then I use the initial of the character’s first name to show on the ‘Table of Contents’ where the character occurs in the story. For example, my characters include Patricia and her brother Rob … marked P/R on the extreme right hand side of the ‘Table of Contents’.
Right away, I can see if a character falls off the radar. I can also make certain the characters are distributed through the action so my reader doesn’t forget they exist. For example, one of my main characters, Alexandra (marked A) doesn’t occur in four chapters … this may be OK but I want to think it through.
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Once I have completed this step, I have a list of additions to make to the manuscript (written up and down along the bottom of the page).
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I also write, in a simple sentence, the story arc of each character. I write the arc in the format of: what the character wants, the obstacles he or she encounters, and the resolution.
Patricia (the rather sour-looking woman on the far left of my drawing above) wants to feel connected with her brother who left home and died years before – she reconnects with him by learning some of the details of his story.
Tom (below) retired from his career as a welder due to ill health. He is surrounded by writers attending the writer’s retreat. He is at loose ends and tries to find his purpose, discovering it embedded in his daily routine.
Matt (third from the left in the drawing above) is a theatre student who wants to attract a fellow writer. In spite of repeated rebuffs, they find a common interest, the basis of a friendship.
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Tom, Sadie’s husband, doesn’t always feel comfortable around writers.
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I have learned from various courses that story arcs are often expressed as sub-plots. The story arcs often occur in three ‘bumps’ in the action. Although most of my characters occur several times in the book, this is a good minimum guide to follow for the significant events in their stories.
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Back to work …
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Copyright 2015 Jane Tims
writing a novel – next in the series !
Having sent my first novel ‘Open to the Skies’ (aka ‘Saving the Landing Church’) out to three publishers, I have begun my next novel in the series. I intend for the series to focus on the adventures of running a writers’ retreat. Same characters, same setting, same struggle to be a part of the community.
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Title: unknown
Working Title: ‘Crossing at a Walk’
Setting: a writers’ retreat – the renovated Landing Church, the hall and the rectory now used as a Learning Center, a Sleeping Hall and a home and base of operations for Sadie and Tom
Characters: main character Sadie, a writer; her husband Tom, a retired welder; people from the community; writers participating in the first weekend of the writers’ retreat
Plot: Sadie wants the first writers’ retreat to go smoothly, but the history of an old covered bridge keeps getting in the way
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My first novel was about an abandoned church. The subject of this book will be yet another feature of our built landscape, one also having a difficult time … the covered bridge. In the 1940s there were 340 covered bridges in New Brunswick. Today there are only 60.
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I chuckle all the time about my ‘Saving The …’ series. Lots of buildings to save out there! However, I have no intention of sinking into the formulaic (Sadie falls in love with the … and takes steps to save the …). Instead, each story will take a unique approach to honoring the bit of built landscape it portrays!
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As I have said, in New Brunswick, we have 60 remaining covered bridges. Their numbers are dwindling, the losses due to flooding, fire and vandalism. For a look at the covered bridges in New Brunswick, see the map and photos at http://www2.gnb.ca/content/gnb/en/departments/dti/bridges_ferries/content/covered_bridges.html
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So how does a covered bridge get in the way of a well planned writers’ retreat?
- Sadie includes a local tour during the retreat, to introduce the writers to the community and give them new experiences to write about. The covered bridge is outside the tour loop, but a couple of the writers would love to go there.
- the covered bridge is part of the community’s history. Inside the bridge are the carved initials of some of the many people who have lingered there. The writers want to know ‘who was Phoebe?’ a girl whose name is carved in the bridge and imprinted on the memories of some of the members of the community.
- after the retreat is over, heavy rains and flooding threaten the bridge to its very foundations. Can the bridge be saved and will Sadie be willing to take on the cause of another community icon?
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Sadie … my main character … a writer and weaver … she wants the first weekend of the writers’ retreat to go smoothly … I still think she needs an afternoon at the hairdressers
Sadie’s husband Tom … a welder with a fatal case of welder’s lung … a likeable fellow, he refused to die in the first novel … I wonder what will happen to him in ‘Crossing at a Walk’?
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Copyright 2015 Jane Tims
writing a novel … next (brave) step
For the past two years, I have been working on a novel. The working title of the book is ‘Saving the Landing Church’ – the actual title is ‘Open to the Skies’. For more information about the process of writing ‘Open to the Skies’, have a look at the category ‘writing a novel’. https://nichepoetryandprose.wordpress.com/2012/12/03/writing-a-novel-telling-a-story/
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The book is about a woman who falls in love with an old church and decides to save it from demolition, in spite of active resistance from members of the community.
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the setting for my novel … an old church and its hall and rectory are moved to a new location along the St. John River to create a writers’ retreat …
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After taking my book through nine drafts, numerous readings of bits with my writing groups, and a third-party edit, I have taken the next (brave) step. I am sending my novel to three publishing companies. I chose the publishers based on their dedication to Canadian authors and subjects, their willingness to read unsolicited manuscripts, and their current book lists.
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It will be a long wait. I know from past experience that I may not hear from them for six to eight months, and then it will likely be ‘no’. This is not lack of confidence or uncertainty about my skill. It is reality – most book publishers get up to a thousand submissions per year and, of course, can only choose a few of these to publish. However, on my side is the characteristic of doggedness.
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I will be sure and let you know what happens next with ‘Open to the Skies’. Meanwhile, I’ll be busy working on a sequel to the first book and, of course, on my poetry.
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Copyright 2015 Jane Tims
writing a novel – plotting the change
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Title: unknown
Working Title: Saving the Landing Church
Setting: a writers’ retreat, including an abandoned church
Characters: main character Sadie, a writer; her husband Tom; people from the community
Plot: the story of how Sadie tries to win over a community in order to preserve an abandoned church
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In writing and editing my novel, I have had to turn my attention to the plot, again and again.
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Last November, when I started to write my novel, I learned quickly – stories usually are built on the concept of change.
- the main character wants something (a need)
- The character sets about trying to fill the need and is thwarted at every turn
- In the end, they either fill the need or they don’t
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During the story, the main character must be altered in some way.
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this is my main character, Sadie … how will she be changed during the novel? She does look like she could use a hair salon …
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As my novel has progressed, I have realised that Sadie not only wants the church, she wants the church with the blessing of the community
How does Sadie change? Her understanding of the community and her attitude towards the community changes. She realises that ‘community’ is a necessary component of the church she wants so badly … without the community, the church is just a hollow building …
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To make certain my main character is changing and growing in the right direction, I’ve plotted out her understanding, her attitude and her progress with respect to the community …
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This excerpt from my writing journal will make no sense to you, but it shows that I write to make the novel and the characters progress towards an end. If I encounter something in the plot (or the subplots) that does not fit, I look at it again and rewrite or reorder events …
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If you write short or long fiction, how do you make sure the plot is always moving in the direction you intend?
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Copyright 2013 Jane Tims
writing a novel – objects and symbols
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Title: unknown
Working Title: Saving the Landing Church
Setting: a writers’ retreat, including an abandoned church
Characters: main character Sadie, a writer; her husband Tom; people from the community
Plot: the story of how Sadie tries to win over a community in order to preserve an abandoned church
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If you are new to following my Blog, you may not know I have been writing a novel since last November. If you have followed my Blog for some time, you may be wondering if I have abandoned my novel for the world of watercolor painting – not so.
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I am on Draft Six. I have taken the comments of my readers and members of my writing groups to heart, considered them carefully and made many revisions in the Fifth and Sixth Drafts. I have also paid careful attention to three workshops I attended on writing fiction.
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One of these workshops was exceptionally thought provoking, teaching me to look at elements of my book in a new way.
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Our instructor at this course suggested we pay particular attention to the objects mentioned in our writing. Mentioned once, an object, such as a table, is just a table. Mentioned twice, it becomes a symbol, and the reader remembers the first mention of the object and draws understanding from the symbolism. So a table may be remembered for the people siting at it and the subject of their conversation. Perhaps it becomes a symbol for family, for example. If, in the second mention, someone breaks the table by putting too much weight on it, this may make a comment on the idea of family in the story. By breaking the table, the family may be damaged or broken. The use of symbols deepens meanings and helps the plot reverberate throughout the writing.
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The instructor also said that symbols operate like mini sub-plots throughout the story. These mini-plots echo the main plot, and the objects change in a way that illuminates the main plot. The mini-plots also tend to occur in three ‘beats’, providing a beginning, middle and end. For example, the table is bought at an auction, broken and finally mended.
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In this round of edits, I have tried to examine the use of symbols in my novel. To do this, I built a list of the objects I have used as symbols. Then I looked for their occurrence in the novel to see if I could identify three ‘beats’ and a mini sub-plot. In some cases, I identified gaps – fixing these has helped me to solidify my overall plot and improve the understanding of my readers.
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a lych gate is one of the objects I use as a symbol in my novel
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This is a short version of my list of some of the objects/symbols in my book. When I assembled the list, the items in red were missing and I had to fill out the story accordingly. Perhaps you can use this method to help strengthen the narrative in your own fiction.
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| Object | Symbolism | Occurrence (Chapter Numbers) | Mini-plot | ||
| long bench | togetherness | 11 | 21 | 23 | bench moves from private to communal space; people start working together |
| stained glass | relationship between sacred and secular | 1 | 9 | 23 | stained glass window breaks and is repurposed; the sacred becomes the secular |
| lych gate | death | 1 | 9 | 20 | lych gate falls into decay; fear of death is no longer the driving factor in a family |
| red shoes | respect | 1 | 9 | 21 | community’s view of main character is altered |
| minister’s collar | mentorship | 1 | 15 | 21 | although he leaves the church, a minister grows as mentor to a family and the community |
| blue plastic truck | secular within the sacred | 3 | 11 | 21 | a plastic toy becomes an object worthy of protection; the secular becomes the sacred |
| Jasper the dog | companionship | 8 | 16 | 19 | a new dog helps build a family |
| air fern in a swan vase | ability to change (a sea-creature poses as a fern) | 3 | 8 | 23 | something unwanted becomes valuable |
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Jasper the dog was a late addition to my novel, but he opened up so many story possibilities, I’m glad he came to be one of the characters
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Each time I add something new to the narrative, I have to make other edits in consequence. However, I find these changes are worth the effort since they contribute to building the story.
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Have you considered the use of objects as symbols in your writing?
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Copyright 2013 Jane Tims
writing a novel – taking a break from the draft
On Friday of this week, I begin a weekend Maritime Writer’s Workshop with the University of New Brunswick’s College of Extended Learning. I will work with a dozen other writers at revision of our written work under the leadership of Joan Clark. Joan is an award-winning novelist of both adult and children’s fiction, and I am anxious to find out what she thinks of my work.
I have chosen to submit ten pages of my novel ‘Saving the Landing Church’ to be examined during the weekend. I will get some good insight into how other writers respond to my writing. No doubt, I will also discover some aspects of my writing that need improvement. I hope the other writers will find my work interesting and help me discover some strengths as well as weaknesses.
Sometimes it is difficult for me to hear criticism about my writing, but I have to listen carefully and keep an open mind …
I will also read and comment on the work of the other writers. This will help me to hone my own editing skills and discover more about what readers like in written work.
Once I have done the workshop and incorporated various comments into the draft, I will take a three-week break from my novel. I will put the current (third) draft away. During that time, I will not read the draft and I will try not to think about it. Then, after March 4, I will spend a couple of days reading a paper-printout of my novel. The theory is, it will be new to my brain after the break and I will see, with great clarity, what I certainly should have seen before.
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I expect to find:
simple edits (Sadie takes a drive on the car, rather than in the car)
discontinuities in the action (Sadie goes for a hike a week after cracking her ribs)
slip-ups in characterization (Nicola suddenly has blue eyes instead of green)
cases of inverted time (July cames before June)
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I may discover that Tom and Sadie are going for a walk and listening to the rustle of the leaves in the birch trees in the dead of winter….
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From these observations, I will make some changes and then will come a series of decisions about how to get my novel published.
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on the road to novel publication
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Copyright Jane Tims 2013
writing a novel – why couldn’t I invent a ‘character generator’?
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So the poet has decided to write a novel…
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Title: unknown
Working Title: unknown
Setting: an abandoned church (in part)
Characters: main character a writer (not a very successful writer) who spends a lot of time at some other creative endeavor
Plot: unknown
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Characters are the stuff of novels. I am sure someone has written a novel without characters, but for me … no character, no action … no character, no growth …
The characters in my novel were not in my head before I started writing. Once I knew a little about my setting, I began to write and the characters began to suggest themselves.
A lot of writers have said this to me. Begin the story, and the characters and plot will start to unfold. Stephen King says (in Chapter 4 of his book On Writing – A Memoir of the Craft, Scribner, 2000): ‘Stories are relics, part of an undiscovered pre-existing world.’ So, with not much more than an idea for the setting, I began to write.
My main character emerged as I started to write about the setting (the old abandoned church). I like to write in the first person, so this character was immediately ‘I’. But, of course, this does not mean my protagonist is ‘me’.
Before I had written three pages, I knew my main character, the ‘I’ in my book, wanted desperately to be a successful writer. But she (still not ‘me’) was also noticing things in the setting that showed she was doing something else with most of her time. Whether she admits this to herself or not in the book, it will be revealed to the reader. Or perhaps a clue is contained within this post…
So, I have my main character. But what about the other characters? Why couldn’t there be a tool for writers called the ‘character generator’, a simple device a writer could use to build the basic characters. Get the characters and the story writes itself, correct???
My ‘character generator’ would look a little like one of those oragami-type fortune-tellers we used to make in school. A number was chosen, fingers flopped back and forth and some ‘secret’ was revealed.
My character generator would be similar, only it would tell the color of the character’s hair, perhaps if he or she was timid or brave, and what sort of work she or he would be good at… a very three-dimensional character… well, it’s a start…
So you think this idea is too ridiculous for words??? Did you know (I discovered this from reading Stephen King’s On Writing ), in the 1920s a writer named Edgar Wallace is credited with creating a Plot Wheel. When a story-teller came to an impasse, all the writer had to do was consult the Plot Wheel to see what should happen next. Once the wheel was spun, the writer could read the result… perhaps one result would be ‘heroine tied to railroad track’ or ‘heroine rescued’… Since then, I suppose many computer-based plot generators are available. I think I will discard my idea of a simple ‘character generator’.
So, now I have a main character who is a writer, but who spends most of her time in some other creative endeavor than writing. Perhaps this is where her real talent lies, or perhaps it is a ‘diversionary activity’. Perhaps she is just using this to avoid facing her fear of never becoming a successful writer.
You see, ‘I’ is not ‘me’.
Copyright Jane Tims 2012
writing a novel – getting started
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So the poet has decided to write a novel…
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Title: unknown
Working Title: unknown
Setting: an abandoned church (in part)
Characters: main character a writer (not a very successful writer)
Plot: unknown
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Before beginning my novel, one of the steps I have taken is to read several books on how to write a novel. This is not because I believe a novel can be written if you just follow some rules. I do want to think about how the novel is constructed and to hear what successful novelists say about their craft.
I have been reading various perspectives on writing the novel and I will talk here about three of these:
1. Stephen King, On Writing – A Memoir of the Craft (Scribner, 2000).
Though I don’t usually seek after the horror genre in books, Stephen King has my admiration for his ability to take you ‘deep into story’. I can’t think of another passage as well done as his description of the running topiary figures in The Shining (Doubleday, 1977), or his chilling account of a father trying to save his son from running into the road in Pet Sematary (Doubleday, 1983). His book On Writing is, itself, highly readable, and contains excellent advice for a writer. I’ll try to pay attention to his cautions about adverbs (she said resolutely) and about using the passive voice (the parishioners abandoned the church, not the church was abandoned by the parishioners). He also says I have to ‘stand in the corner’ if I use the phrase ‘at this point in time’.
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2. Phyllis Whitney, ‘Guide To Fiction Writing’ (The Writer, Inc. Publishers, Boston, 1982).
Phyllis Whitney’s Thunder Heights (Appleton-Century-Crofts, Inc., 1960) was among the first adult mystery novels I ever read and in my early twenties, I devoured her books. I read her every chance I got, often while everyone thought I was studying. The interesting thing about her Guide to Fiction Writing is how different writing is today. The Guide suggests extensive planning of the novel, working out outline, plot, and characters in labelled sections of a binder. I had to do this for my first book, since it nearly drove me wild trying to remember when such-and-such occurred and whether my character was wearing a pony-tail or not in the chapter before. However, at this point in time [get in the corner, Jane], everything can now be put in a single computer file! And blessings on Word and the ‘Find’ search feature. The advice I have taken from Phyllis Whitney? – do a detailed word sketch about each of your characters. I have done this with my present cast of characters and I believe knowing how the characters will behave in various circumstances helps the story write itself.
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3. John Braine, ‘Writing a Novel’ (McGraw-Hill, Inc., 1974).
Although I have yet to read a novel by John Braine, I love his no-nonsense approach to giving advice. He says not to write a novel if you are ‘married or permanently entangled’, and suggests a first novel ‘shouldn’t be written much before the age of thirty’. Also, he absolutely advises against making the main character a writer. Bad luck for me, I have decided my main character will be a writer, although not a particularly successful writer. Braine does have advice I plan to take. In particular, he presents the following sentence: ‘he got up, went downstairs, and hailed a taxi’ … he says, ‘test every sentence against it; if any has that same flat, dead quality, rewrite or cut it.’
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a born writer – a young girl, writing about her experience at the Falls, on any surface she could find – I snapped this photo at Athabasca Falls in Alberta in 2003
And so I am writing my novel with the best advice… and now you know my main character is a writer… but what else will I have her be?
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Copyright Jane Tims 2012
a poet … writing a novel
As you may know, my manuscript of poetry on ‘growing and gathering’ local foods is completed (see the page ‘awards and accomplishments – completed my Creations project!!!, November 1, 2012’ under ‘about’).
Now, I have about six months before I can begin the next poetry project I have planned. I have to wait until spring because the new project also involves plants and uses of plants. And, of course, spring and summer are the best time to pursue this subject. In the meanwhile, during the fall and winter, I have decided to work on a different kind of writing project. I want to try my hand at writing a novel. I have written novels before (nothing published), so I have a little experience.
a stack of my Rough Books
I know how different writing a novel and writing poetry are, and yet there are similarities. Both forms of writing are creative, both seek to use words well to convey ideas, both require vetting before a writerly audience, and both need the energy of the edit. I also think both benefit from a little exposure before completion. So I have decided to bring my novel-writing project to my blog.
When I worked on ‘growing and gathering’, I benefited greatly from being able to explore my ideas on-line. I found both the writing practice, and your comments and ongoing readership, very helpful.
Since I want to publish the novel when I complete it, I will be careful to publish only a small percentage of the story on-line. I also want to maintain suspense, so I will not reveal too much of the plot. However, I will explore where some of the ideas for the book originate, a little about characterisation, and something about the process as the book evolves into being.
During this month, I have been taking a course called Writing Life Stories from a friend and writing coach, Deborah Carr (for her beautiful website ‘Nature of Words’ and information on taking her Writing Workshops, see http://www.natureofwords.com/ ).
Deborah has helped me to understand the basic ‘three’ of all stories… a story tells us:
1. someone wants something
2. how they reach for it
3. the result
When I think about the story I want to tell, I will also follow this simple path…
Copyright Jane Tims 2012
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