About 20 years ago I read the famous yellow book, Techniques of the Selling Writer by Dwight Swain. I decided then I knew exactly how to plot a novel.
I had charts and graphs and Q&A…Goal, Conflict, Disaster–the elements of the scene. Emotion, Reaction, Dilemma, Decision–the parts of sequel. I wrote an article published in one of RWA’s newsletters on how THIS was the solution to all my plotting problems, and with THIS magic tool, I could plot any book.
Yeah, well. It worked for two books.
Then, I couldn’t get it to work anymore. Everything felt flat, so I looked around and found the new Holy Grail–Debra Dixon’s Goal, Motivation & Conflict. Yes! This was what I’d needed!
I wrote more books using this and they were so easy to write! It was the solution to my plotting problems! I could go from here and know exactly what to do every time I sat down.
Then the well dried up. Again. Debra rocks, but the magic *poofed* on me.
The heck with it–everybody I knew was pantsing it! They sat and they wrote, and the words flowed. I switched to first person on one book and let it flow…and I liked that book. But it only worked for one book. Everything else I started sounded ridiculous and I got lost somewhere in the middle of two different stories and couldn’t find my way out.
So, what else? Over the years, I did the Snowflake (Randy Ingermanson), writing the synopsis first, mindmapping, brainstorming with groups, brainstorming alone, wikis, flash fiction, the nano…you name it. Everything worked for a while…not for good.
I went digging one more time, trying to find out how to do what I’d been doing and had suddenly forgotten how to do–plot a novel! I needed the magic solution to this problem! I stumbled across Joseph Campbell’s The Hero’s Journey. Here we go! THIS WAS IT!
I wrote two books using this method with note cards and a couple of software programs to organize it all. Success!
Then, you guessed it, nothing. It never worked again.
Which leaves me where? I’m struggling, and trying to be philosophical about it. The search and successes along the way haven’t changed the fact that I can’t find the one, simple answer. I can’t manage to write the story perfectly and easily the first time.
Maybe the simple answer is this: a writer never stops learning how to do this thing we call writing–we don’t find one solution that works for every book.
And wishing it was easier and searching for easy answers doesn’t make them appear.
Hmm…anyone ever try The Artist’s Way?
Moira's struggles and successes: www.readmoore.com
