I Know Why!

Okay, so it's well-known that Sherry (and sometimes Valerie) like to twit me about WHY? But WHY? WHY WHY WHY WHY WHY WHY WHY?

As discussed yesterday, Valerie insisted there MUST be a plot to drive the story, so it seems oddly and ironically fitting that I was in the car this morning, on my way home from dropping Kiddos #3 and #1 off for school...listening to Toby Keith as I sat in the long line of cars inching through the 3-way stop intersection when the brainstorm hit. 

Clipart from clipartheaven.com

The ideas are marinating even as we speak, which is good, and I'm excited to get to the writing today. 

And of course, I had to IM Sherry as soon as I got home, to share the news. She's already in a state of disbelief that I'm going back to do some layering before the rough draft is fully completed (she wickedly accused me of mocking her - as if I would do something like that) and her response to my joyful "I know Why!" was: 

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Stop it. It's early and my heart is delicate.

Sherry Jones

Then she provided me a list of MORE Why's to consider. Because she can't help herself. Gotta love her determination to drag me into thinking on a more conscious level about plotting, rather than the unconscious level I tend to prefer. 

Why?

It's the most important question you can ask about what happens in your WIP. If you know why, you're well on your way.

However...I am hereby cancelling all "Why" pop quizzes. I do know why...I just don't always have it defined enough to articulate it to someone. That's the great thing about writing...no one can tell in the final product just how it got written. :D By the time I'm finished, all the why's have been addressed. 

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A story to me means a plot where there is some surprise. Because that is how life is - full of surprises.

Isaac Bashevis Singer

I Blame Valerie Parv

Okay, as I've said many times, I write by the seat of my pants. Make an outline? Are you kidding? Why would I do that? White board jokes abound, my plotter friends (Sherry Jones) throw dry erase markers at me. These planner types are very fond of questions like "Why?" and "What about the plot?"

So, what about the plot?

Until yesterday, I was happily tooling along, writing on the WIP, overjoyed that that words were flowing. It's all awesome, getting the story down, in the first, very rough draft, and just having a heck of a good time getting to know my characters, playing with scenes - in short, having a blast playing in my own little world, ecstatic to be there.

Now then, I'd sent Valerie Parv an IM that said, "This is the Writing Police."

Her response? "You have no jurisdiction here."

Bwahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!

Apparently, she believes that we're on two different continents, in two different hemispheres means I have  no jurisdiction to hassle her a bit. I disagreed, and we wound up talking about my WIP. (Sometimes we talk about Valerie's WIP, but yesterday, it was mine in the hotseat.)

She liked the title, liked what I told her, then she dropped the W bomb.

"Why?"

Uhhhh....

Shrugging Emoticon

"What why?" (Me, disingenuously.)

Valerie: "You have to have a plot."

Head Scratching Emoticon

Valerie: "It drives the story forward."

Well, yeah, it does. I KNOW that, but Valerie, you're asking such HARD questions. I don't analyze, I don't ask questions (in the first draft round of writing)...I just take dictation from the Muse. Valerie made a fairly rude suggestion about what I should tell the Muse about the way she does things.

Shocked Emoticon


But, and I'm REALLY loathe to admit this (and many will snicker - Sherry Jones, Valerie Parv, possibly Angie and Grace...and likely an entire cave of bats, and they know who they are, just as well as I do)...The wheels started turning as I considered just what I could do with the elements I already had down, and it had it's own soundtrack by The Cars. *You Might Think* is a fun song to have playing on an endless soundloop in your noggin while you go through your morning ablutions. *Nodding. And rather appropriate that I have The Cars serenading me while contemplating Plot...because both cars and plot DRIVE something/someone somewhere. Yeah, I just made an analogy. I'm shocked and dismayed that I did, especially since it's so...PLOTTERISH.

And because I'm so busy answering questions, I"ll pose one and provide the answer..."What does this mean for the WIP?"

Why, I'm glad you asked! This means that I will go back to the beginning (I'm almost through chapter 6, but it's in a good spot to just abandon it and pick up later), and start layering in all these crazy, plotterish notions that have been occurring since OMG, The Sun's Not Even Up Yet O'Clock this morning. Let the fun begin! It's all creative, it's all writing...Creatively writing = Happy Laura.

And it's all Valerie Parv's fault.


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When we read, we stat at the beginning and continue until we reach the end. When we write, we start in the middle and fight our way out.

Vickie Karp

The Plot Thickens...Or...Writer's Jambalya

To plot or not to plot...As in create an outline or some sort of road map of the novel you'd like to write. That's writer's choice---there is no one right way to write. The right way to write is the way that works best for you.

But this is not exactly the type of plot I had in mind when I decided to blog about plot. I'm talking about the plot that drives your story. Oh! Yeah! THAT plot! Without a plot, there is no story, no matter how scintillating your characters are, no matter how witty the dialogue, how sparkling the description---there must be a reason for everything those scintillating characters do, a reason for the witty dialogue and the sparkling description. Without a good plot, you may as well try to drive your car without first turning on the ignition.

Plot needs conflict, much like a car needs gasoline. For more about conflict, please visit the following links:

Creating Conflict in Romance Novels (one of my Squidoo lenses)

Conflict and Resolution in Romance Novels by Linda Shertzer

Internal Versus External Conflict

Romantic Conflict

No Conflict=No Story

Yeah, that's a lot of links just for conflict. Aside from the initial idea itself, conflict is the most important part of any story---the defining element of any plot.

So...Plot...What goes into it besides conflict? Characters. Setting. Goals. POV. Motivation. Pacing. Flow. Plot is a good, all encompassing word for what it is, because if we called it "Jambalya," we'd be hungry all the time. Hunger is what we want to elicit in our readers---a hunger to read MORE. So maybe we should call "Plot" "Jambalya" instead, anyway. If we build a good Jambalya, like the edible dish itself, we'll have a nummylicious, spicy concoction on our hands that will tease, entice and satisfy. Just be sure that anything you toss into the pot enhances, clarifies or somehow otherwise contributes to the tastiness of your Jambalya...er...story. :D

For more about Jambalya...er...PLOT...please visit the following links:

Plotting Your Romance Novel

Choosing Your Plot

Plot Whisperer for Writers and Readers

Romance Writers Offer Tips (newspaper article)


The Mechanics of Writing Romance Novels (one of my Squidoo lenses, this one with all sorts of information.)

I'm fond of links, yes, I am. LOL. Why? Because, searching out articles on any given topic gives me a chance to read, refresh and relearn or learn something new myself.

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Yesterday, in attempting to help a friend figure out how to work on her new blog at wordpressdotcom, I started a new blog. Because I clearly need another one, obviously. Thought it might be a good place to track my writing habits. So, here it is: Diary of a Book in Progress. We'll see if it actually helps me or if it turns into another procrastination destination. Comments are always welcome, here on this blog, and on my new one.

Happy Writing!


Easy reading is damn hard writing. ~Nathaniel Hawthorne

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