The Glory of Young Characters

Full motion video depictions of Laguna (left) and Squall, two of the main protagonists (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I've noticed that main characters, even in adult fiction, tend to be young. Even when they are not young, they are often prone to teen/ young adult traits that foster conflict. Traits like impulsiveness, lack of censorship in dialogue, rebellion, and identity crises. All of these are universal traits that people experience to greater or lesser degrees throughout their lives but are distilled – exaggerated – in youth. This distillation, above all, is why I think books tend to use young people as protagonists. But these traits are useful and realistic in characters of any age, so take a look even if you write older characters.

• Impulsiveness: Teens and young adults are impulsive. They are more likely than their older counterparts (generally) to act before they consider the consequences. Many parents lament over the trouble their children (and not-quite-children) land themselves in because they didn't stop to think. But for the purposes of a book or poem, this is a positive trait.
• Conversations: This ties into impulsiveness. Young people (especially younger people) speak without censoring what they say. They say what is on their minds and they speak without regard for how their words will make other people feel. This is a valuable quality for generating conflict in dialogue.
• Rebellion: Many teenagers and young adults question social conventions, take up causes, and find themselves feeling like outsiders. All of these set up conflict because they are not living in accordance with pre-established rules and expectations. At some point they will have to stand up for their beliefs. Conflict!
• Identity: Many protagonists are in the process of learning who they are. This makes for juicy conflict with loved ones, society, and himself. Even the past and future are in conflict, with the protagonist's present caught in the middle.

When NOT to Start the Book With Conflict

Who Brings A Knife To A Gun Fight? (Photo credit: Cayusa)

Actually, I can think of some downsides to opening a first chapter with conflict. The reader won't care about the character unless the type of conflict is chosen carefully because the reader won't know the character enough to really care. To combat this, I'd use the conflict to say something about the character. But what about the initial hook? Use suspense, tension, reader curiosity, mystery, just long enough to set up character before diving into the conflict.

Some types of conflict are rarely effective as an opening hook because most books (except sequels) start with the reader knowing nothing about the characters, issues, or world. And the opening hook makes promises to the reader about what kind of book they are about to read. So avoid starting in the middle of a conflict that is...

• Character-dependent.
• setting-dependent
• back-story-dependent
• different type of action than typical
• different mood than typical
• no connection to main issues

Revision Step 1: Delete for Conflict!

This blog post looks at what to delete from events in order to improve clarity, voice, logic, and flow. By deleting content in your first step of revision, you won’t waste time polishing material you will only remove later on. And if deleting content leaves holes, you can brainstorm and fill the gaps with something even better.

The blog does NOT delve into different types of conflict, a break-down of what a scene is and is not, or types of transitions. Again, each of those would need its own post. The post carries the subtitle “Delete for Conflict!” because most of an event is made of conflict (I know you know this). But remember to look at the entire event – both before the conflict starts and after it is resolved – because the entire event can benefit from these warning signs.

• Ignores main story goal. The characters are not trying to reach (or prevent) the main story goal. Every sub-goal needs to tie back to that main story goal.
• Lacks conflict, tension, or suspense. The three are not the same. Conflict is a struggle between two or more characters. Tension is the physical, mental, and emotional strain caused by the conflict. Suspense is the reader's uncertainty about how the conflict will end. If you are missing any of them, the reader will probably loose interest.
• Takes tangents. A tangent differs from a valid digression. Sometimes a character will get deflected from the initial scene goal – and that can be fine. BUT: Is the scene goal answered by the finishing event? Can you justify the diversion? Was it somehow caused by the last event or did the even “just happen”? (Hint: the second scenario is bad.) Does the tangent serve some purpose? Ex., foreshadowing, essential backstory. If not, it needs to go.
• Story still drags. When this happens, then the pace may be too slow. Use all the articles as a check-list to see what can be removed. But don't stop there. Also try shortening the length of sentences and paragraphs. This alone will make the story flow faster.
  
  

This is Part 2 of a series of five blog entries that look at deleting to improve Style, Events, Summary and Description, Characters, and Dialogue.

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Three very different book on planning events…

Bell, James Scott. Conflict & Suspense. Cincinnati, Ohio: Wiriter's Digest Books, 2011.

Dibell, Ansen. Plot. Cincinnati, Ohio: Writer's Digest Books, 1988.

Franklin, Jon. Writing for Story. New York: Plume, 1994 (republished).

Use Avoidance to Heighten Conflict

As I rewrite an early chapter, it would be convenient to have the main character prefer to avoid conflict. My first reaction was: no way I can do that. It will reduce my chances for conflict. But then I started thinking…

1. The stakes in any given chapter or scene won’t let her avoid conflict. So she will have an inner conflict (the wish to avoid conflict warring with the need to reach her scene goal) as well as an external conflict.
2. If the main character was argumentative by nature, any conflict with another person would mean less because she’d be following her nature rather than fighting it. More tension there.
3. When I change POV and the scene goal pits two other characters against one another, it will be natural for her to play peace-maker. Which makes for three-way tension because the strength of the scene goal and opposition won’t let them make peace without first resolving the dispute.
4. If she avoids conflict when the stakes don’t matter, then she isn’t communicating truthfully and it can lead to misunderstandings and isolation from other characters. This presents problems she will be reluctant to address – much less solve.

Three guesses as to what I decided. Come on, surely you can come up with at least three possible paths forward…

April Fool's - 10 Things "To Do" with Your Story

Some WONDERFUL ideas for your book. (some exceptions apply)

1. Don’t know what to write? Just cut and paste from your favorite book.
2. Bored with your main character? Change his name half-way through the book.
3. Hate your bad guy’s guts? Kill him off in the second scene.
4. Word count too short? Add random scenes to flesh it out.
5. Word count too long? No one cares how the book ends. Cut it out.
6. Don’t feel like meeting that deadline? Then don’t write!
7. Not enough sizzle in a genre romance? Make it a harem.
8. Too little suspense in that thriller? Give the detective a Tahiti vacation.
9. Bored with fantasy worlds? Make it an all-human cast with identical sociopolitical values and views.
10. Need more back story? Just do an “As you know, Bob…” info dump.

Add your favorite ideas here…