World Series--Third Base
Off to Philly we go. Which leads me to . . . .
By the time you round third in your book, the character arc should be apparent. So what sort of character change is your protagonist undergoing?
I think, in my potential work-in-progress, is about choosing love above all things. Even if it means turning your back on the entire world. But I'm still playing.
It's no secret that I love character development more than anything. I love characters . . . when I think of my books, none of them ever started with "what if there was a ticking bomb and the world needed to be saved." All of them started with . . . "What is there was a protagonist who [insert back story here] and now they had to [insert novel's plot here]."
Rounding third . . .
How is your character going to change--profoundly.
GO YANKEES!
And a tantalizing P.S. I have a special guest Monday. No, it's not a Yankee, but it is someone interesting.
22 comments:
Evie goes through several levels of changes in my story -- from being settled to be being unsettled in her life; from being suspicious to being trusting; from being naive to having eyes wide open; and from trying to fit her life into a box to building a box in which her life fits.
Ah, this one is easy compared to 2nd base, at least for Parker. If Parker solves the murder of his brother (yes), then there's some closure there (although I'm the sort of writer--or person--that doesn't believe that necessarily brings complete closure, that just because you think you've come to terms with tragedies doesn't mean you're over them). But the more interesting thing for Parker to me is that by obsessing over his brother's murder he's kept most people, at least women, at arm's length with his charm, etc. But now he's had what he thought was a one-night stand with a much younger girl (21) and she's inserted herself into his life and influenced him in ways he doesn't quite know how to deal with. Partly it's that she sees through his bullshit (and maybe he through hers) and he finds himself really giving a damn about her. At least so far. Lot more words to write to nail it down.
Hi Amy:
I think in women's fiction, expecially, those are the kinds of changes other women will relate to, as well.
Mark:
I am a firm believer in the "show" often being those around the main character, how they play off them. I think newbie writers often think of sidekicks as comic relief or what have you, and not enough for the real opportunity for depth they can offer. I think as you explore HER . . . and WHY he starts to care . . . I think that can open up a ton of dramatic possibilities!
How old is he, by the way? Should I be creeped out by her being 21? ;-)
All I can say is
LET'S GO YANKEES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Trinidad is going to have to choose to let go of his past (in which he lost his family due to his father's suicide bombing) and move forward in love. He's going to have to accept that he has to find forgiveness in living rather than dying.
Pearl's change is one of the big milestones of the story. She recieves her gift from a very different kind of person than most. Her changes are more from the outside in than the inside out as she tries to find out who she truely is in this big world.
All I can say is Flaming Red Hair.
That's all..for now.
Mid to late 30s. I was thinking early 40s, but as I break down the timeline and the events, he's getting a few years earlier. So he's maybe 15 years older.
Here's to Phillie's "Rally Towels." God, I hate those things.
I concur with your form of character building.
And on to my question for you (this is my way of getting in a mini-workshop this morning). Since I learn by example, mind sharing the GMC of the main characters in Freudian Slip? I always have difficulty with the definition.
Ello:
THEY ROCKED!!!!!!!!!!
E
starbucks:
Letting go of the past . . . great character trajectory.
JT:
Flaming red hair . . . Flaming Lips . . . pretty much, if Flaming is in the mix, I'm digging it. ;-)
E
Mark:
Good. Better than 40s, I think. I had two long-term relationships at 19 and 21 with men 10-15 years older than I was . . . they worked on a lot of levels, but also had interesting dynamics. I also dated someone in his 40s . . . the dynamic/vibe was much weirder.
E
Kath:
Oddly enough, I don't use GMC. If I had to think about it . . . the Goal of Julian is to get the hell out of Neither Here Nor There any way he can (deal with devil or earning his way out). His motivation is purely selfish . . . the conflict is external at first (he is forced to work within the parameters of the world--albeit now a strange new world with unusual "rules"). It becomes an internal conflict (remain selfish and keep Kate beholden to him to do the right thing and release her) . . . and the real climax, in many ways, is the scene in Washington Square Park when he tells GUs to send him back before he loses his nerve. Some romance writers (not me, but some) call that the black moment or something like that. The rest of the book his motivation changes . . . he is not only more altruistic . . . he is lost and seeking, but doesn't know what . . . until he finds it.
I always think of every book have an external conflict and an internal one.
E
Erica,
If you ever read Stephen King's "Bag Of Bones," one of the big issues is the narrator's relationship with a young woman. He's 40 and she's 20 and Mike has some issues with it (that she doesn't, seemingly). At first I didn't get the problem (a guy problem, not getting the age difference problem, I guess), until I considered the 20-year-olds I knew and realized, Oh yeah, she's the one who babysat my kids when she was 10.
Thank you, thank you, thank you! It's always in the back of my mind as a sticking point, especially after once being confronted by an RWA chapter member a couple of years ago. She felt that I "HAD TO" know my characters' GMC from the get go. Ever since then, whenever I begin something new I hear that person's voice and see her face, which looked something like a bull dog hybrid.
P.S. Between school work I began a new story the other night, which is why I posed the question to you, my writing guru. ;-)
I've been thinking about character arc all week, since I had a sneaking suspicion it would appear as one of the bases.
Of my three POVs, the widow's growth is the most obvious. She goes from living in a suburban bubble where everything depended on her husband, to having to fight for her family & learn to provide for them on her own -- all in the face of cruelty from her community.
The male POV starts out by accidentally killing his best friend (creating the widow above) and must accept what he did if he wants to move on with his life, and learn to let go of the past -- to quit beating up on himself for not "seeing the signs".
The teenager mainly gets over the physical and emotional effects of being attacked by someone she trusts.
Mark:
Yeah . . . I could go into a HOST of oddities once you cross the 20-year-age difference . . . not that I think they are insurmountable, but they are definitely there. I think some of it boils down to character . . . I could see what is appealing about an older man--intelligence, life experience . . . I liked the intellectual conversations. But when you look at HIS motivations . . . is it purely sex, or is there something more. And a lot of times the imbalance is really about that and not about intellectual equals . . . which then leads down a slippery slope of other issues.
Rent Venus. WAY huge age difference, but still interesting for dynamics (Peter O'Toole).
E
Kath:
I don't follow any formulas like that and I don't like when writing classes try to box you into them. If it works for you, great, but I think my general process is more meandering and character-centric. I guess AFTER the fact, I might see it. But generally not suring.
E
Melanie:
I'm REALLY curious as to the WHY of the attack.
E
In one of my WIPs Brian eventually chooses to follow his own path instead of letting himself be pulled along by his peers. When he does this a whole new world, some of it bitter and some of it sweet, becomes accessible to him.
Erica, that took me a long time to figure out. :)
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