Tag: originality

Categories
Guest Posts

Plot Structures: Predictable or Helpful?

Guest posts

Girl meets boy. Even though it’s obvious to the reader that they would make a perfect couple, they don’t like each other. Somehow they’re forced to spend time together. They gradually fall in love but then they have a big argument and break up. Eventually they come to the conclusion they can’t live apart. They reunite and live happily ever after.

This is a basic romance plot structure. I want to address your immediate instinct which is to roll your eyes and complain, ‘It’s so predictable.’

When it comes to stories, predictability is generally considered a bad thing. Would you read a book if you knew the ending? You said no, right?

Chances are, you’ve read a romance novel. You’re probably thinking about ‘Twilight’ or ‘Cinderella’ right now. What do these two stories have in common?

‘Nothing. One is about vampires and one is about fairy godmothers.’

Wrong. They both end with a romantic happily ever after. You knew (consciously or subconsciously) when you started reading that the girl and boy would end up together. It was predictable. Did it take away from the story?

‘Twilight’ and ‘Cinderella’ follow the same basic plot structure but originality is still achieved through characters and context. Even though they fall into the same genre, these stories attract different audiences. ‘Cinderella’ is for little girls who like dressing up as fairies and princesses. ‘Twilight’ is for edgy teenage girls with weird types. (No judgement.)

One of the benefits of using a basic plot structure to craft your story is ease of writing. Girl meets boy is a good place to start if you’re stuck. And that predictability we were talking about makes it easier to read as well. There’s a clear beginning, middle and end. That makes a story.

You can edit it into a good one later.

Many writers don’t decide to use plot structures but they emerge naturally as the story evolves. The truth is, plot structures are a good place to start if you’re suffering from a bad case of writers’ block.

In the words of Jodi Picoult,

‘You might not write well every day, but you can always edit a bad page. You can’t edit a blank page.’

 Deborah Rose Green is the author of ‘Dragon Pearls’ (2019) and ‘Crown My Heart’ (2020). She’s the Contributing Editor for the ‘Hey Young Writer’ blog and starting her Creative Writing degree in September.

Categories
Devotions for Writers

Oversize Armor

devotions

“Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

1 Samuel 16:7 (NIV)

The Israelites were trembling in their sandals. Goliath terrorized them by day and haunted their dreams at night. A teenage shepherd told the king he would fight the giant, with God’s help, and, lo and behold, the king agreed. King Saul brought out his personal arsenal for battle, but he stood a head taller than other people (1 Samuel 10:23), and the armor was too big for David. For the full account, read 1 Samuel 17.

How would the narrative have been different, had David done things Saul’s way?

How are our stories constrained by doing things like everyone else?

Just like God equipped a shepherd boy to fight a giant, and one day become king, He has equipped each of us with the tools to write His story.

Exercise:

  • Don’t compare yourself to others. Do look at what God is doing in your life. (Galatians 6:4-5) Make a list of places you have placed articles and celebrate your accomplishments!
  • What has God called you to do, that only you can do (Ephesians 2:10)? Write it down.
  • What specific gifts are in your wheelhouse? 1 Corinthians 12:4-6
  • Is your armor the wrong size? (1 Samuel 17:38-39) What are you trying to imitate instead of adding your personal spin?
  • So many of us suffer with “self issues.” Either we’re too big for our britches or we think the pants are too big for us to fill. (Exodus 4:13)
  • Are you trying to keep up appearances or are you working to obey God’s prompts? (“To obey is better than sacrifice.” 1 Samuel 15:22)
  • How’s your faith? Write out 2 Corinthians 9:8. Do you believe the Lord can do this?
  • Write out Ephesians 3:20-21. What about God makes us think He can’t accomplish what He’s asked us to do?
  • Believe in your calling and persevere. Galatians 6:9-10
  • What do you need to ask God for, today? (James 1:5)

God had the prophet anoint David to be the next king, not because he was a perfect leader, but David was chosen for his heart for God. Is the Lord looking for someone like you?

What gave David confidence? He didn’t place faith in himself, but in God (1 Samuel 17:36-37). So, trust God’s calling and character, and lean in to the job He’s given you. The battle is the Lord’s! (1 Samuel 17:47)

Over 140 of Sally Ferguson’s devotionals have been published in Pathways to God (Warner Press). She’s also written for Light From The Word, Chautauqua Mirror, Just Between Us, Adult Span Curriculum, Thriving Family, Upgrade with Dawn and ezinearticles.com. Prose Contest Winner at 2017 Greater Philly Christian Writers Conference.

Sally loves organizing retreats and seeing relationships blossom in time away from the daily routine. Her ebook, How to Plan a Women’s Retreat is available on Amazon.

Sally Ferguson lives in the beautiful countryside of Jamestown, NY with her husband and her dad.

Visit Sally’s blog at www.sallyferguson.net

Categories
Romancing Your Story

Should Your Romance Contain a Trope?

In case you’re unfamiliar with the word trope, let’s define it. A trope is a character trait or plot line that has become commonplace. If you read romance, you’ve seen quite a few romance tropes. Some of the most common are: the love triangle – two men competing for the love of the same woman; forbidden love – (this one goes all the way back to William Shakespeare and his classic Romeo and Juliet), where the boy and girl are forbidden to love one another due to parental stipulations, or differences in status (he’s rich, maybe in line for the throne, and she is a commoner or comes from a family with no wealth); Mail-Order Bride; marriage of convenience; and the list goes on.

Now that you know what tropes are maybe you have a favorite romance trope or maybe you don’t like tropes because you prefer a unique romance story. No matter what you think of them, tropes are popular. Recently tropes have been getting a lot of attention. Therefore, including a trope in your book could be helpful in obtaining readership. That doesn’t mean your trope has to be predictable and “just like all the rest”.

If you’ve submitted any queries or studied what agents and publishers look for in a query, you’re aware that one of the questions an agent or publisher wants answered is: how is your story different from those already published in the same genre?

So, if tropes are so popular and used so often, how can you use a trope and still have an original story?

There are several ways, but the first thing you should do is become familiar with the popular tropes. For instance, a current popular genre is fairy tale Retellings. If you haven’t read any, this may be a good place to start to see how an author takes a popular trope and puts their own spin on it. I recently read The Rose Princess by Ivy Hollins, a retelling of Sleeping Beauty, and Ivy had several unique plot points that made her retelling distinctive, such as the Prince and the beauty having a unique link years before they first meet. This story was just as enjoyable as the original fairy tale.

When you consider which trope to use in your story, consider your purpose for using the trope. Are you using it because you know it’s popular and has been successfully used in lots of other romance stories? If this is your reason, you should reconsider.

Instead, start by considering how you want to present your story or what you want your character’s values or point of view to be. Then consider how to use the trope by putting your own spin on it. Think about how the trope will best serve your story. Use your own voice and your own plot. You can also use a bit of the expected before surprising them with your own unique details to create fresh characters and an unexpected twist to the plot.

Kelly F. Barr lives in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. She is married and has three sons. She writes historical romance. She has also been a blogger for ten years, and every Friday, you can find her Flash Fiction stories posted for your reading pleasure. She loves her family, including the family dog, books, walks, and chai lattes.

You can find her online at:

Categories
Fantasy-Sci-Fi

How to Write Fantasy and Science Fiction

So, you’re a writer. And you’d like to write fantasy and science fiction. You have a great idea for a story set in a world of dragons, sea monsters, and wizards. Or on a space ship orbiting a distant planet. This all feels so exciting, and you can’t wait to get started. Except.

Except you know very well that dragons, sea monsters, and wizards aren’t real. And that man-made space shuttles haven’t yet found a way to orbit planets at the other end of the galaxy. Also, you’re quite aware that many authors have already established fictional worlds of their own in these settings, and you don’t want to rely too heavily on what’s come before – you want to create your own take and leave your mark on these genres.

How do you go about all of this?

Here are some tips, from a self-published fantasy author who has faced all of this herself.

Do your research. Huh? For stuff that doesn’t exist yet, or may never have existed at all? Yup, that’s right. As we’ve already noted, there are numerous published titles in the fantasy and sci-fi markets, which have created a sort of baseline for the genres. So, find out just what has come before your work – but don’t feel obligated to adhere to any of it. Genre novels run the risk of becoming clichéd, and readers can get tired of hackneyed plot devices and cardboard character archetypes. This brings me straight to my next point…

Be original. Once you’ve figured out what all the tropes (or common elements) of recent sci-fi and fantasy are, attempt to break them. For example, we’ve all read several tales of nasty aliens trying to wipe out humanity by nefarious means. Why not write a novel about kind aliens who want to help us reverse pollution to the environment and cure disease?

Before I started writing my fantasy series, The Order of the Twelve Tribes, I dug and dug through literature on mythology, fairytales, Tolkien and CS Lewis and JK Rowling, hoping to find a “hook” that would make future readers sit up and take notice. In the end, I went with a snippet of Celtic Christian folklore I stumbled across, connecting the origin of fairies to Fallen Angels after the War in Heaven. And one of the main praises from my subsequent reviews has been the originality of the premise.

Where necessary, find out how things really work. Yes, you are building a fictional world, but it still needs to make sense. If you have a magic system, determine early on how it operates. Can your characters acquire it, or do they have to be born with the ability? Does it come from an outside power source or influence (such as the One Ring in Middle Earth)?

Are your characters in a galaxy far, far away, but still human? Then what requirements would their planet/space ship need in order for the survival of their carbon-based life forms? If a race of dragons – or aliens – has remained undiscovered for x number of centuries by your protagonists, how did that happen? Was there a lack of funds for space travel in your home setting? Were the dragons suspected of being extinct, and they used this to their advantage, hiding deep in remote wilderness?

Readers will appreciate that you fleshed out the details.

Self-published author and blogger Daley Downing is also a stay at home parent, autistic adult, ballet teacher, and cat lover. She spends her days writing the YA fantasy series “The Order of the Twelve Tribes,” and wrangling special needs children.

Categories
A Lighter Look at the Writer's Life

Hey, you! Can you hear me?

lighter look at a writer's life

The other day in my Interpersonal Communication class, we talked about “acoustic space,” which is the distance your voice carries in a given situation. It was a lively discussion, and I came to a realization.

My acoustic space is the length of the Atlantic Seaboard. My voice is loud and proud, and people tell me my laugh is distinctive (What are they talking about, anyway? LOLOLOL). All the time, friends say, “I knew you were in the store because I heard you!” What can I say? My voice is loud! No getting around it.

I have learned to live with my booming voice and laugh, but I hope my writing voice is just as unique. In my experience, I try to write like I sound. That may be oversimplification, but it works for me.

I approach my writing voice as if I were sitting down with you over a cup of coffee (or lemonade, since I gave up caffeine awhile back). Most of the time I write humor, and, as already mentioned, I love to laugh. So, as in conversation, I am going to break out every witticism, every cliché, every funny thing I can think of to make you laugh as I try to inspire you. I’m wacky that way.

That’s my style, and I’ll stick to it as long as the Lord allows. My type of writing would not work for everyone or in every situation. Imagine if I tried to write a suspense novel. It’s funny to think about, but I believe it would be DISASTROUS if I actually attempted such a work. Not my style, not my voice. I’ll leave the suspense to authors like Ted Dekker and Brandilyn Collins, who have honed and developed their unique voices in that genre (And who probably make a lot more money from writing than I do—on second thought, maybe I should try . . .).

All in all, writing voice is about letting your personality shine on the page or on the screen. It’s quite unusual that I am such an extrovert who is also called to write, but blame God for that—He often uses the foolish to confound the wise. In person, I’m ALL CAPS AND EXCLAMATION POINTS!! I try to pull that back in my writing, but I still want to make you smile.

So grab a cup of coffee or lemonade or even water and get ready to smile for a while. Be warned: you may need earplugs if we’re together in person.

During weekdays, Carlton Hughes sounds like Charlie Brown’s teacher (wah-wah wah-wah-wah) as a community college professor of communication and journalism. On Sundays and Wednesdays, you’ll find him playing games, performing songs with motions, and doing object lessons in his role as a children’s pastor. He and his wife Kathy also attempt to keep up with their two college-age boys, Noah and Ethan.

In his “spare” time, Carlton is a freelance writer who has been published in numerous books, including several recent releases from Worthy Publishing: The Wonders of Nature, So God Made a Dog, Just Breathe, Let the Earth Rejoice, and Everyday Grace for Men. He has been featured in Chicken Soup for the Soul and other publications and is represented by Cyle Young of the Hartline Agency. He contributes regularly to two writing blogs, almostanauthor.com and inspiredprompt.com. He specializes in humorous observations of everyday life, connecting those experiences with spiritual application.

Carlton loves watching classic sitcoms like I Love Lucy, eating way too much chocolate, and rooting for his favorite college and high school basketball teams. He is on the planning committee for Kentucky Christian Writers Conference and a year-round volunteer for Operation Christmas Child.