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Free Tips For Writers - Plot and Structure - Part 7

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First Draft - Rewrite

The First Draft is your first version, the one full of the crazy and the boring stuff? You remember. Now it's time to Purify by fire, Cut, Kill, Reduce, and---most of all---Ruthlessly Rewrite.

Start by writing your own Press Release, or the back of the book cover blurb, you know---the one the Reader looks at in line at the supermarket and decides whether to buy the thing or not.

 

When you write your blurb, Distill down into a few slam-bang paragraphs exactly what the book is About, and what's the Exciting part. Easy, right?

Fine. Once you've got yourself and your mate all excited about how brilliant you are, it's time to Re-write. Except this time, you have to hammer out a Plot, the Elements of the Plot, What the book is About, and Where the whole thing is headed, step by passionate step. Remember, each scene must deal with the Hero or Heroine, the Objective, the Conflict, and be setting up the Final Battle or Outcome and Aftermath in Act III.

 

 

So. Go ahead and write Chapter One. Then, figure our what you're doing in Chapter Two. Easy, right? Maybe you need some Ideas?

 

 

Need some Ideas? OK. Decide what is the Lead's Emotional State at the end of Chapter One. Where can it take him? How will he therefore be reacting to Events in Chapter Two? What is the Next Step, the Next Action he has to take to go after the Objective, deal with the Conflict, and Other? Does he maybe need some New Events or Disturbances or new Characters? Is there a really Big Killer Scene coming up that has to be Prepared For, Set Up? What needs to Happen First, before that scene can play out logically.

You can always Raise The Stakes, Increase the Rhythm, give the Characters Stronger Motivation, make Something Happen, Insert a Problem or a Threat, squeeze the Timeline down shorter to Increase Pressure, Make the whole thing as Unpredictable as possible. As you do these things, New Avenues will open, New Ideas and Requirements will appear and Add to the Mix.

To jazz up the work, fall back on the Lattice of making the Lead more Memorable, show inner strength and a need to reach the Objective. Make the Opposition (Antagonist) stronger and show what he's thinking, how he justifies in his mind what he's doing, examine the Glue that Bonds him and the Lead so strongly, why don't they each just walk away from the Conflict, go out on their own? What is each Character's Purpose in Life?

Make your Scenes big, broad, and surprising. Drawwww them out, make them suspenseful, get in there and write passionately for all you're worth (we'll clean it up , later). Make the Reader wish s/he was right in the story itself, right down in the middle of all that Action and Turmoil, Pushing Onward to the Goal, the Objective that is so desperately needed for Survival.

However! If it doesn't Advance The Objective, then cut it out, no matter how brilliant and/or poetic, and no matter much it may hurt---You!
 

Cut!


That's it. Then Think About It for a few days or weeks. Don't write, just let it percolate awhile. Read a book, walk the dog, clean under the bed.
 

 

Let's next take a look at what to do when you come back from all that. Something will occur to you by then, right?

 

 

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"Truby's BLOCKBUSTER puts over 300 professional techniques at your fingertips to help you create a great story, in a fraction of the usual time and effort. Don't believe that's possible from a software program? Try it. You'll write your best script ever. We guarantee it."

The new BLOCKBUSTER 5.0 makes you an even more accomplished storyteller. What's new? BLOCKBUSTER 5.0:
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• Truby's complete Story Structure Course, the 103 Greatest Characters in fiction, 23 most valuable Story Techniques, and much more.


 

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