Anxious to leave a legacy, more and more baby boomers are turning to writing their memoirs or the next Great American Novel. For some, the story reveals itself effortlessly. Others have difficulty raising the veil for clarity. In the second case, I often find the problem lies in having lived a vast and rich life. What to put in and what to leave out becomes the dilemma.
In order to bring a story to fullness, a writer searches for the underlying sttucture that will best demonstrate some sort of meaning. As far as I'm concerned, there are three ways to do this.
1) Write what you are drawn to write and see what you end up with
2) Pre-plot scenes and ideas on the Universal Story form, alert for the moments that could constitute a major Crisis which in turn creates a jumping off place for the crowning glory of the work ~ the Climax.
3) Write what you are drawn to write and, at the same time, plot out scenes and ideas, keeping in mind the Universal Story form.
A scene does not warrant staying in a story merely because "it happened that way."
A good writer also knows that in order for a certain passage or sentence or character or plot turn to be in a story is not because of the beauty of the writing or the cleverness in the plotting or the depth of the characters, although these things are critical in captivating the reader. A good writer knows that each line and each element in each and every scene belongs there because it has a definite purpose in providing an overall meaning to the piece.
The only scenes that belong in a piece are the ones that best show how a character responds to the challenges, conflicts, tension, and suspense in one's own life as they move closer to transformation, and that contribute to the overall meaning of the story.
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Blog: Plot Whisperer for Writers and Readers (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
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Join me in my first ever teleseminar plot talk. It's for a memoir group of writers, but any writer is welcome and will benefit. Below is the press release blurb.
Looking forward to tomorrow.......
October 16-2008 11 AM PST
Plot for Memoir Writers
We are pleased to have Martha Alderson, an expert on plot and structure and author of Blockbuster Plots, present a special topic that challenges all memoir writers: how to create plot and structure in a memoir. As an international plot consultant for writers, Martha Alderson employs helpful strategies to help writers develop plot for writers of all genres.
Memoir writers struggle with what parts of their life to put into the memoir and what parts to leave out. The challenge is to choose what is most important.
A memoir needs to focus on a specific time period that illuminates and develops the thematic significance to the writer's life, often with the hope that these themes and the lessons learned might benefit others. But being so close to the story of “what really happened “challenges the memoir writer to think in terms of plot.
1. What is plot and why is it important?
2. How to construct a plot plan for the overall memoir
3. The art of writing plot in scenes
4. The importance of the main character -- You!
Martha’s Bio
Martha Alderson, author of Blockbuster Plots has created a unique line of plot tools for writers, including the upcoming Plot for Memoirists eBook. She teaches scene development and plot workshops privately and at conferences. For plot tips, visit: Blockbuster Plots for Writers
Best-selling authors, screenwriters, memoirists, writing teachers and fiction editors turn to Martha Alderson, M.A. for help with creating plot. She has won attention in several literary writing contests, including the William Faulkner Writing Contest and the Heekin Foundation Prize.
Martha takes readers and writers alike beyond the words into the very heart of a story.
As the founder of Blockbuster Plots for Writers, she manages a popular blog: Plot Whisperer
If you are interested, email Linda Joy Myers, President and Founder of NAMW ASAP
So when are your novels getting published Marta? Are you going to self-published?
B.
Thank you for your query, B.
An author with a strong platform and built-in following can make a great deal of money self-publishing non-fiction.
Fiction, on the other hand, can be more difficult.
I self-published Blockbuster Plots Pure & Simple. My students asked for the book. I didn't want to wait the couple of years it generally takes through traditional means, so I formed my own publishing company. The decision transformed my life, one I've never regretted.
However, self-publishing my fiction has never appealed to me.
THanks Martha.
Your blog and book has been of tremendous help and I can't wait to read some of your fiction. I know that the publishing biz can take a long time. My writing partner got his first piece of fiction published after 3 years...
Where are you in the process? Have you submitted? Or are you still in the revision process?
B.