Michael Hauge's Characteristics of a Successful Novelist!

Ever since Seeker Tina Radcliffe introduced me to Michael Hauge and The Hero's Journey CD series, I've been a big fan of following his website and reading the articles he lists there. They are filled with gold nuggets of encouragement, insight, and guidance for writers.
Below is an excerpt from one of his recent articles found at www.storymastery.com. I have a few of my comments (in italics) interwoven into the article.

FYI, this article has been particularly encouraging over the past two weeks as I struggle with continued edits on two novels, and try to juggle 'real life' along with my daydreaming job. I hope it encourages you too.


Every successful screenwriter or novelist I know possesses one outstanding quality: tenacity. The difference between working writers and wannabes isn’t talent or age or gender or geography or connections or the industry or the economy or sunspots or anything else writers tell themselves to avoid facing this awful truth: writers write. They write every day, they started their current book or script as soon as they finished the last one, they think in terms of career and not a single sale, and they look at every unsold story as a necessary step toward improving their craft.

The traits that fall in line behind that essential one include (in no particular order):

www.freedigitalphotos.com 

• Remaining open to ideas and criticism while standing up for the essential components of their story and characters (This is a very fine balance between these two. I hope over time our skills to manage the two becomes stronger as we practice it. For me, it's still a skill I'm learning - the ability to hold on to the heart of my story, while trying to view with fresh eyes (from a crit partner or editor) the areas that need strengthening)
• Reading lots of recent, successful screenplays (for screenwriters) or novels (for novelists), and seeing lots of movies (for both) (Never a hardship for me. How about you? :-))
• Considering the commercial potential of a story concept, and not just its personal appeal(This is something I've not put my mind to as much, but it makes perfect sense. forward thinking)
• Keeping each of their stories simple – easy to express in a single sentence, and adhering to a single, strong through line defined by the main character’s compelling desire – without lots of extraneous characters or tangential plot elements (Um...I might be in a little trouble on this one ;-) Another skill I hope I'm learning. I think the main goal of this is that there is a 'goal' in place for the story and the author is aware of the prevailing theme or purpose)
• Employing conflict to elicit emotion, and making it almost impossible for the heroes of their stories to succeed (Anybody else have trouble with this consistently? I know Ashley's written about this before in her blogs. I think it's important to note that Michael writes "conflict to elicit emotion". Not conflict for conflict's sake, but conflict which draws the reader deeper into the story and the characters' lives.
• Keeping their writing style vivid yet simple enough to ensure a fast, easy and enjoyable read (this one seems self-explanatory)
• Making sure everything is professional: format; spelling; grammar; punctuation – and their own behavior (Wow, isn't this a nice one to throw in at the end. I have to get help from people on the grammar/punctuation thing, but I think, as Christians, our behavior and the way we handle this process should definitely show professionalism and grace. Does that mean we'll always have it together? Ooze confidence? Shine joy-light? :-) Nope, we're as flawed as the next person - however we do have an abundance of strength, hope, peace, and joy provided to us by our Heavenly Father. besides those things, he's given us a 'calling' to write! What he calls us to do, he equips us to do - and we should strive to perform it in a way that glorifies Him.

Have these tips encouraged you? Which one do you struggle with the most? The least?

Memorable Characters - The Basics

Over the next few months, I’m going to tackle the heart of good fiction. Characters! Now, I know a lot of you plot-driven writers might disagree, but most of our best fiction is memorable because of the characters who make up the stories.

1.       Lizzie Bennet

2.       Scarlet O’Hara

3.       Atticus Finch

To name a few – are memorable because  of some basic components.

In the coming weeks I’ll go over 9 different traits for compelling characters. Some of the tips will come from Michael Hauge, some I gathered from James Scott Bell, and a few I tagged on myself. But let’s start with an overview of what GOOD characters do for us.

They cause us to C.A.R.E.

In one way or other, we are impacted by them. That's why we remember them. How do well-developed characters do this?

1.       Conflict – Good characters have conflict – and cause conflict in the reader. I can’t recall one character who didn’t have to deal with some sort of conflict to make it to the end of the story. Probably because those types of characters are not memorable. “Nothing” happens to them – therefore “nothing” happens to the reader.

      When a character can cause the reader to feel conflict – then we remember them, good or bad. They do something we don’t expect. They respond in a way that is conflicting to our natures. They cause us to see the world from a different perspective or strengthen our own resolve and choices. Something to leave a mark on our minds as we read– and so we are more likely to remember them.

2.       Arc – This is very important. Memorable characters have an Arc. What does that mean? All great characters grow. Michael Hauge refers to this as a character moving from his identity to his essence. I’ll talk more about this next time, but it basically means that a character goes from not really knowing who they are (showing a certain ‘identity’ to the world) to realizing/accepting their essence (who they are at their core). It's usually part of the internal goal for your character. I can’t wait to talk about how the romantic relationship touches on this element of character development.

3.       Relate – At some point, great characters are relatable. I’m not saying you will have a super power or have to time travel to the Civil War, but what the character cares about, their struggle, their goal, their dreams, their life – will somehow be relatable to the reader. We may not live in Regency England, like Lizzie Bennet, but we can relate to her because she wants a love that is more than what her parents, or even society, expects. I can't travel to Middle Earth, but the strength of friendship, and desire to serve others through sacrifice, makes Frodo Baggins and Samwise Gamgee memorable. We can relate to those things...with or without hairy feet :-)

      Btw, even bad-guys need to have these traits. The BEST bad guys give us a way to relate to them (which causes conflict in us and emotion). They may not have an arc, but they usually have the other three components.

4.       Emotion – Much like conflict, great characters cause us to experience emotions. We read fiction because we want to experience what the characters are experiencing . We want to fall in love as they do, laugh as they do, embark on an adventure, solve a crime, hyperspeed to another galaxy, fight dragons, or destroy the one ring….like the characters. But the journey is remarkable because of the emotions we experience through the characters along the way - and because of those emotions, we remember the characters.

How do you make your readers CARE about your characters? Do you have conflict? Is there a clear arc? Are your characters relatable in some way and do they evoke emotions in your readers? Those are the starting points for developing strong characters.

Next time, I’ll go into a little more detail about ARC and then we’ll begin going through the 9 Character traits for memorable heroes/heroines.

As a teaser, here they are:

C - Complex

H – Heroic/Courageous/Hopeful

A – Able/Adept/Resourceful

R – Raw Wound

A – A bit unpredictable within their predictability

C – Craving/Ache/Yearning

T – True/Noble/Honorable

E – Emotion/Passion/Purpose

R- Redeemable (even if only a little)
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Pepper Basham writes romance peppered with grace and humor. She’s a native of the Blue Ridge Mountains, a mom of five, a speech-language pathologist, and a lover of chocolate. She writes a variety of genres, but enjoys sprinkling her native culture of Appalachia in them all.  She currently resides in Johnson City, TN where she works as a university instructor, searches for unique hats to impress her friends, and plots new ways to annoy her wonderful AlleyCat friends. You can find her on her personal blog, Words Seasoned With Salt¸ or at her group writing blog, The Writers Alley. She is extremely blessed to be represented by 2012 ACFW Agent of the Year, Nicole Resciniti.
 

Plot Points from a Pantster

Hi everyone!
Pepper here and I discovered about four months ago that I've been wrong about my...er...pantsterhood. I'm not a pure pantster. Now, there's a lot I still leave up to the 'ride' in writing, but I do have an outline - one I discovered about a year ago and have been using it ever since.

I've blogged about Michael Hauge's The Hero's Journey before, but I wanted to kind of share how that information plays out in my writing life.

Just yesterday a story idea winkled its way into my thoughts. That's how they start. An idea. Yesterday, while I was working on my historical WWI romance, I ran across some cool information. There were three German prisoners on board the ill-fated Lusitania when it left New York Harbor. Now, most people assume they went down with the ship when it sank in less than 20 minutes...but...

what if.....

And, what if a sister of one of the prisoner's was forced to go undercover to try to save her brother...

what if....

I think whether we're pantsters, plotters, or planners - the genesis of a story begins with the 'what if'.

But what happens next?

I usually get a pretty solid beginning and ending in my head, but I don't start writing until I get to know my characters a little. I play scenes in my head, 'chat' with them, add more 'what ifs', long before I start chapter one. I guess I just daydream about them for a little while.

Then.... I take The Hero's Journey.
I try to plot my story out along those lines. Recently I've started typing out internal and external motivation too - so I'll keep it fresh in mind.

So - what does the Hero's Journey look like?
It's a loose outline, which suits my pantster tendencies well, but it gives my ADD brain some nice focus too.

Well, I WAS going to plot out my WIP using the Hero's Journey - but that probably wouldn't be very interesting for you guys - and it would be SUPER long.
So I've just put the outline.
What you do is fill in the outline for your novel and it gives you a basic direction of your plot structure:

Internal Motivation
External Motivation
Moral Premise (if you have one)

Set Up Plot - the regular life of the hero/heroine

Make the Hero's Motivation Clear - what does the hero want? How do you set up from those first few pages to make us 'care' about the hero?

Begin the Hero's Quest - short transition here. Recognition of a change
Change the Hero's Direction (door #1) - The actual change - a decision. Frodo decides to take the ring. Peter, Susan, and Lucy decide to rescue Edmund from the White Witch, Annie Reed decides to research the lonely widower known as Sleepless in Seattle/

Challenge the Hero with Problems - first batch of trouble, gradually becoming more and more difficult to challenge the hero's new choice/direction

Change the Hero's Status (midpoint) - big decision time. Once he/she makes this decision they can never go back to life the way it used to be.

Give the Hero Tougher Problems - more trouble. Bigger troubles.

Let the Hero Suffer Maximum Angst - the BIGGEST trouble. no hope. all is lost. Superman beaten up and weakened by the kryptonite while Lois Lane is dying in an earthquake.

Off the Hero a Transition -  choices become available

Change the Hero's Direction (door #2) Hero makes his/her choice. In the Titanic, Rose must choose whether to live or die with Jack.

Give the Hero New Hope (these next two usually happen pretty close together if not at the same time)
Achieve a Win/Lose Conclusion The choice ends a happy or sad ending. The hero either obtains what htey wanted or don't. In the Titanic, Rose loses Jack but gains her freedom.

Tie Up the Loose Ends - What does the hero's life look like now? How has he/she changed for (we hope) the better?

If you're like me, then I hope this glimpse of the Hero's Journey will give you another guideline to use in your writing plan.
I take this general outline and build from there - usually I let the story take me.

Are you a pantster, plotter, or planner?
Do you have a system/process you use to brainstorm your plot?

Creating Character Emotion from Michael Hauge

Good mornin’ all.


Pepper here, and I’m currently going through a great DVD series by famous scriptwriter and speaker, Michael Hauge. It’s called The Hero’s Two Journeys and is filled with fantastic info I want to share with you guys.

First of all, I’d like to ask you a question.

Why do you read fiction?

I mean, really. Bare bones answer.

If you’re really honest, one of the reasons you and I read fiction is to experience adventures we don’t experience in the everyday. To become emotionally involved in a story. To escape into someone else’s journey.

At the heart of it all – emotions.

Usually, the reason we keep reading a book is because, from the first page, our emotions become involved and we MUST finish the story.

Michael Hauge gives 5 ways to help readers identify with the characters, thus building emotion. What does your hero/heroine need to capture a reader’s emotions?

1. Make the character sympathetic – For example, in the movie Sleepless in Seattle, we immediately feel sorry for Tom Hank’s character because we learn from the first that he’s lost his wife. We’re emotionally drawn into the story to see how the character will overcome, or move past this heartbreak. Or in Laura Frantz' newest novel, Courting Morrow Little, about a young girl whose family was wiped out by rebel Indians. The first chapter grabs the reader and has him/her asking questions about 'what would this type of loss cause a girl to be like when she's grown?"

2. Place the character in jeopardy or danger – Your best suspense stories start this way. Peril. All the CSI shows, or Castle (one of my favorites), or Criminal Minds. They all start with peril. The Fugitive with Harrison Ford starts off with a tragedy that immediately puts the hero in danger, AND builds sympathy because his wife dies. Jamie Carie in her novel Love’s First Light starts the first chapter with the main character running for his life during the French Revolution. While he hides, he watches his entire family go to the guillotine.

3. Make the character likeable – Good people cause us to want to read more. Not only does Julie Lessman make Faith O’Connor passionate in A Passion Most Pure, but she is kind and giving. Her inner conflict with her love for Collin versus her love for her sister and her God, makes us want to root for her.

4. Make the character funny – Nobody does character humor like Mary Connealy, and in all of her books, she starts off the stories with humor…and peril. – so you get two for one. Usually the characters are likeable too.  Humor immediately builds emotional connection. We love to laugh, so it makes us want to keep reading.

5. Make the character powerful – (skilled, determined) Is your character good at something? Skilled. Most of John Grisham’s novels have a hero who is brilliant at some occupation or particular skill. Tillie, in Deanne Gist’s novel Maid to Match, is very good at her job as one of the head maids for the Vanderbilts. Harry Potter’s own Hermoine was brilliant, a walking encyclopedia, on The Mentalist , the main character has a way of reading people’s body language to solve crimes. (He gets some of the best lines in that show too).

So, here are a few tips. Which ones are you using in your wip? It’s important to employ 2 or more to get the most emotional bang for readers.

Tell us about it.