another thing i am looking forward to is the gore scenes and the deaths... i dont know why.. but i've just never used them and in the book i am using, there will be a lto of gruesome deaths and stuff.. so yeah
Here's the thing with my writing; everything I write, even a 500 words flash fiction, end up having some sort of a beginning, a middle, and an end. That's not a bad thing I suppose, but I worry if this habit will be counter productive when I write my first novel. I understand that a novel is not a straightforward beginning, middle, and end thing. There will be many chapters which doesn't require to have that arc (or whatever it is called). Hmm... I am not sure where I am going, so let me just ask you again: Will my habit influence (negative or positive) my first attempt at novel writing? Thanks in advance for your replies.
No matter how many sub-plots you include, I think all stories have a B-M-E. I mean, you have the first page, the book ends, and the action is in the middle. (BTW, I call the overall story an "arc" myself, and I don't know if that's the proper word, myself.) I did try to scew with the reader. The first chapter of my story is entitled The "End." That's not a typo or a misuse of punctuation. That's the real title. But I do congratulate you about looking for originality.
I agree with this. Every story has this in some capacity or another and I don't think you can avoid it.
Of course you're habit will influence your first time writing a novel. But it's normal for your story to have a B-m-E. every good story has this, a story would suck if it only had a Beginning and a middle with no ending.
Most people expect some kind of a three-act structure in their entertainment, and it's very hard to write without using it. Two acts and people feel short-changed, more acts and people start to wonder if you climaxed too soon and got lost in epilogue.
Don't think it'll be counter-productive. If anything it'll help your novel. Every chapter is meant to have an arc of some kind - every chapter should move the plot forward in some way, which means something important needs to happen. Think of it as two dozen short stories tied together by one overarching plot
This may be the case for screenplays, but I don't buy it for novels in general. The reading audience has few expectations other than that the action and intensity will escalate to a climax at or near the end of the story.
Agreed. It can be a useful structure for screenplays, but you have more freedom in a novel. Novels vary so much in pace and structure, far more than films.
...picky, picky... But seriously (yeah, I know, from me) what I meant to infer was the thought process the OP brought to the table. He/she was worried about the concept and if it had a counter-productive bent. Yikes, I don't think many authors give a rip about delving into the creativity at that level. I thought it showed his/her sincerity to the craft. I think we should reward that. I want to read the excerpts because of this concern.
The only thing that matters is that you get the readers attention, keep them interested and then give them a finish that makes them glad they read the story. You never know if you've accomplished it till you're done writing, rewriting, editing and everything else. The process of how you get the job done doesn't really matter to anyone but you. What works, works, and only you can decide what does works for you.
I agree. It's just nice to see an author take a track that catches your attention and whets your appetite. I remember reading a story that began something like, "Killing a man is easy, what comes after that is essentially up to him." I didn't have the faintest idea where that was going, but I read the story, anyway. The OP questioned the format of the traditional three act play, and it's a good question. William Holden once started narrating a movie with him floating dead in a swimming pool. That caught my interest, as well.
It's not a bad habit. It's worth following your intuition here, which is telling you good things. If you analyze stories, they do have a straightforward beginning, middle, and end, though it takes a little knowledge to understand how sometimes.
Thanks for your replies, very insightful indeed! That's a very interesting first chapter title. With a title like that I would expect a prologue style chapter, a bit of foreshadowing and may be a mysterious element to it to keep the readers interested, not necessarily requiring a B-M-E arc in that particular chapter. And that is where I think my habit (sometimes obsession) will be counter-productive if I were to write such a chapter. This is my worry. Thanks. I do want to know all the possible pitfalls before I start writing my novel and more importantly I am trying to find out if I have all the skills to write a novel. This is encouraging, because that means I can start writing right away But is it that simple? I gathered that short story writing and novel writing are very different beasts. You are right but surely no harm knowing what usually don't work beforehand specially for someone who has never attempted a novel before.
Congratulations. Novels should have a BME, especially if you are a novice writer. The most original writers are just subtle about it. I gave the example of The French Lieutenant’s Woman in another thread--a really unusual work which still follows a clear arch.
Yes, it does have a prologue-ish entry at the beginning, I'm just not sure I like what mine implies. It's more of a story about personal spirituality and making the right choices for a ll of the right reasons. However, I'm, trying to be careful about the lead's singular purpose. The problem is that I believe that I have a singular purpose. And I also believe that your core values color your prose. In reading the opening post I became reassured that many authors were also struggling to tell a story and get it right. Where does the line between 'making adjustments' and 'selling out' begin and end, as well? For me it's a matter of your personal comfort zone. There are many things I enjoy, and many things I have enjoyed. That's an important issue. You do get pressured in life, both to go along and not become a stick in the mud, or you get outright barked at because you managed to hit some fraud under his armor. Both of these conditions set off alarm bells for me. We pour a lot of ourselves into our stories. You might be innovative--in which case those who are not try to encourage you to be more mainstream. You're making them look bad. Or your prose is clearly and unshakingly an affront, and the claws come out. A story is your baby. It should be protected as such. Idiots come and go, but the idea of compromising an important issue will heap guilt on you for a very long time. This B-M-E issue is one of those ideas. Your story will be avant garde, making a statement and a fun read. That's an important issue to see through to the end.
This is an essential quality for all story's. it may not be linear but it remains the same - a good story has a beginning, a middle and an end - which does not necessarily mean that every string needs to be tied up into a neat bow - life is not all about tying things up. Depending on the story some conflicts (ideally not the major one) may never be resolved. Scenes or storylines might never be fully developed because the MC only interacts briefly with that story. This, I feel, is your major point of the question. A chapter need not have a beginning a middle and an end in the linear sense. It does of course need a start, but the start may be a lead on from a previous chapter. Naturally the chapter needs to be a collection of inter-related scenes which tells an important piece of the story - that I would regard as 'the middle' or 'the meat' of the chapter. It does not necesarily need an end. In a lot of cases chapters end on a cliffhanger moment to entice the reader to read on. If every chapter opens, progresses and concludes like a mini-story then it may become boring and tedious for the reader, or it may make the overall novel seem disjointed. Of course your habit will influence your writing - that is your style. Read some of your favourite writers and see how they approached the chapter / novel selection process. What was the point of the chapter, what were they trying to say, and where did it fit into the whole story? In brief: Main plot and MC, B - M - E is fine. Chapters - not necessarily an issue.
Good Evening! So I have taken the time off of the forum to focus on writing and ideas along with breaks in between. Now after speaking with some close friends about writing in general, the topic that came up the most was "I can start writing an idea but I cannot finish it!" I admitted I have this problem too. I do believe it is the fear or the "over-thinking" that the story is not perfect. Other problem is trying to keep track of an idea that keeps changing even on paper. I have experimented with breaking up my stories into mini chapters where I can interchange different directions into how to continue the story. Anybody have problems with this and how can I help get out of this phase in writing?
That's my primary motivation for writing the little bitty short stories I've been writing, and for kinda sorta participating in the "StoryADay" thing. When the rule is that I have to _start and finish_ a story in one day, I somehow find an ending. StoryADay was, I think, supposed to be a story a day all May, and I've only written about six and May is over, but I intend to continue it until I have thirty stories, each of which was started and finished in the same day. I'm hoping that after thirty, I will have learned something about myself and endings. Then I'll figure out the next exercise, because the goal in the end is to finish a novel, not just stories.
I have been working on approx. 4 stories that have started as short stories and are growing into potential novels. However it is the ending or closing of the story that I cannot get through. I have been storyboarding and I keep hitting roadblocks and put it away for later until inspiration comes. When I do have an idea of what I am looking for I end up not writing at all. Almost like I know how the story is going to end so why write it?
Thats odd. I love knowing the ending. It gives me a goal to achieve, plus writing out the ideas is half the fun. Maybe your not interesting yourself with your ideas. Maybe your not writing the right genre. If you struggle to write, then try a different approach. Try something out of your element. Try even just writing a short story. To prove to yourself that you can finish something you start. Even a one page short can give you confidence in your work.
Having had this problem myself, I discovered a very basic solution: physically write out your stories. There's something far more finite about pen and paper than there is digital text that's easily modified. What's written is written, and you have to flow from there. To be completely open about it, the part that sucks the most is typing your story into the computer when you're finished, but this can easily serve as a first round edit, correcting typos and small changes you want made. While this doesn't work for everyone, give it a shot. Sometimes writing something by hand gives you that last bump of inspiration you needed.
I don't have the problem but I'm so driven by my story that I'm sure it's completely unhealthy. No matter how hard I try I can't work on anything else, so it's either the current story or nothing and nothing would probably make me dry up and blow away. You could try writing the ending first.
I always let the story finish itself as I write. I, too, can start writing a novel and at times finishing it is tough. You just have to push yourself and create a drive to know more about the story and what will happen. You are not alone.
