The first part of Story Deconstruction Notes
left off with the saying that real writing arises during the rewriting. This
was so true for my first novel.
In summary, I developed a story
deconstruction process to guide a complete novel rewrite. As discussed in part
one, notes included writing the major
conflict of the story in one sentence. And making notes on the story’s genre, setting, narrator, point of view, tone, and tense. All
obvious, but the act of writing down details allows your story to crystalize.
Writing down theme, motif, symbol, and keyword notes forced me to focus in on story. In searching for a concise
story line, I considered if each word in my notes was accurate and clear. Then,
how the words, or concepts, connected in the story. All of the words/concepts
sorted into groups of words reflecting plot
and subplot points. The concepts
honed with story informed the notes under problems,
solution tools, or resolutions.
I organized the words/concepts driving the
storyline further into tide words or
anchor words. Tide words, my made-up
ideas, move back and forth, like the tide, in the story and create movement in
the main character. Tide words align with the story’s problems and resolutions.
Anchor words grab, like an anchor thrown into the sand, at the main character
as he or she faces transformation by new understandings. Anchor words belong in
solution tools as key moments or plot points to push story along. Examples: “missing”
is a tide word; “dog” is an anchor word. The tide words can flow through the
manuscript, weaving a lyrical story. Plot points surface with reoccurring anchor
words moving to resolution.
Novels for younger readers have fewer
subplots. But in writing a first novel, I found that minor character arcs
created the subplots that merged into the main character’s journey. In a sense,
the subplots nudged the overall plot toward the inevitability of resolution.
Once again, the serendipity of life journey mirroring
writer’s journey during my rewriting effort created for another “in flow”
opportunity. However, for a successful rewriting to connect all details and
plot points, I needed to develop the tide and anchor concepts. One could say
that I outlined after writing a first draft, but a more fully realized outline.
Story deconstruction notes for rewriting, the
real writing.
FINDING
FLOW: THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ENGAGEMENT WITH EVERYDAY LIFE by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
(Basic Books/Perseus, 1997).
Note
earlier LIN posts:
Story
Map: Story Deconstruction Notes I, with story structure notes, November 2013
Story
Map: Gold Vein, September 2013
Story
Map: Edge and Hope, November 2011
Story
Map: The Journey, March 2011
