Writing plot with executive dysfunction
jojobean
Veteran
Joined: 12 Aug 2009
Age: 49
Gender: Female
Posts: 3,341
Location: In Georgia sipping a virgin pina' colada while the rest of the world is drunk
Well in that case the scene does not change until the other person goes away from the conversation with the newfound conviction...as long as they are conversing even if the character has a change of heart in the middle of the conversation, the scene does not change until what holds that event together is altered. In that case, it may be the other person walking off with some ideas in mind.
Scenes are not static...they do not change when actions or changes in thought occur...They change when the nouns that hold the scene together change in number or change all together.
_________________
All art is a kind of confession, more or less oblique. All artists, if they are to survive, are forced, at last, to tell the whole story; to vomit the anguish up.
-James Baldwin
The summary of plot was pretty helpful, nice and succinct. There really are a lot of complicated details that contribute to a well-delivered plot, even if you as the writer have the plot already worked out in detail. They don't separate those two facets of it well in plot books, I've found. They start with plot building and roll into the smaller aspects right after. My mistake is reading through instead of working it out by chapter, I think. That said, things change as you write, so it's a tough call whether to map in detail.
But the descriptions of scenes left me completely in the dark. I agree with Dandelion... I don't think it's quite so clear. Everything I've been given to understand about scene tells me that it isn't as simple as leaving one place and going into another, as with the walking 2 to driving 3 example. I have learned that there are different kinds of scenes, and I mean to look more into that. I mean, many scenes seem to tell a mini-story, but others simply bridge those scenes. I worked with one book where the author, as far as I could tell, had one scene per chapter, with a nice little hook at the end. His books were on the simple side of adult literature (Robert Asprin, by the way) and I could only figure that he had a little trouble with structure himself. Others seemed to have scenes fade out and new scenes begin within a chapter, suggesting the author had to move on but hadn't found his hook yet, so could not end his chapter, or that the content of the chapter went together but still the scene had changed at some point...
It's fuzzy. I always had trouble with this in school. I hated that teachers tore the stories apart and inferred meanings I could not see and ranted about symbolism that meant nothing to me. In the end, I may just have read enough books and seen enough movies that Aristotle's incline has become second nature to me. In the end, I may never complete a book... I hope someone will find my notes and finish the story. But I don't mean to leave them undone if I can help it.
I have found a little cheat on one of my stories. I have realized that one has a very "Little Mermaid" plotline, without being too close to that story. There are enough differences that you could read it and only realize afterward that it was similar, I mean. I can figure out what's missing by seeing what elements are in that story and deciding what I want to do... for example, is the hero's entire purpose to convince the girl (switched 'em) that he is the guy she remembers? Does he find it isn't that simple? Is there an actual evil presence behind his transition to another world, or a mishap? Something has to fill the role, but it doesn't have to be a witch.
I'd love to be totally original, but I mentioned that I know it's not likely to happen. I can settle for being pretty original. This stuff is hard for me. And the story took the shape as I worked the ideas, so I don't feel too bad realizing late in the game that it resembled the earlier tale.
Well, I'm off... still trying to work out scenes, a little clearer on my nemesis, plot.
_________________
"Pack up my head, I'm goin' to Paris!" - P.W.
The world loves diversity... as long as it's pretty, makes them look smart and doesn't put them out in any way.
There's the road, and the road less traveled, and then there's MY road.
jojobean
Veteran
Joined: 12 Aug 2009
Age: 49
Gender: Female
Posts: 3,341
Location: In Georgia sipping a virgin pina' colada while the rest of the world is drunk
well I have an idea, as it was mentioned before....you can write it like you are writing a journal and each entry is a scene...which is far less complicated, sometimes you have to adapt to your issues instead of forcing a round peg into a square hole
_________________
All art is a kind of confession, more or less oblique. All artists, if they are to survive, are forced, at last, to tell the whole story; to vomit the anguish up.
-James Baldwin
Writing plot with executive dysfunction - Naturally, I tend to think along the lines of why would a baseball player who hits a home run have to run around the bases for the home run to count. The batter is already at home plate. Who needs a story?, just count the home run as 1 more number. Regarding writing, have heard things like: A good story has a beginning, middle, and an end. Often a story is along the lines of a person having to jump over three hurdles, each hurdle being higher than the last (problem solving/obstacle overcoming). Many stories involve a change in a major character, such as Scrooge in A Christmas Carol who goes from a miser to a gentleman of generosity. Some writers have extraordinary gifts for transforming the same person in their stories: example, Flowers for Algernon. Many writers are word artists. Many have extraordinary imaginations such as J.K. Rowling or H.G. Wells. The best writing seems to come from a God-given gift (so to speak) which writers allow to unfold. Creative writing is not logical/not always logical (my view). Often characters embody basic emotions or character traits as the seven dwarfs in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.
