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WHAT MAKES A NOVEL
COME ALIVE?
1.) Memorable characters
More than plot, riveting, absorbing characters draw us in.
I read and re-read the Spenser mysteries for the quick wit and snappy dialogue
between Spenser, Hawk, and Susan.
Raymond Chandler made Philip Marlowe a person you wanted to listen to no matter how confusing the mystery.
“From 30 feet away
she looked like a lot of class.
From 10 feet away
she looked like a lot of class.
From 10 feet away
she
looked like something
made up to be seen
from 30 feet away.”
from 30 feet away.”
2.) Original Plot
Take the movie, Mirage:
Gregory
Peck is caught in a building’s blackout,
and rather than wait for the
power to return and use the elevator,
he makes his way down the stairs.
He bumps into Diane Baker who greets him as a friend, but he does not know her.
Alarmed, she flees into a sub-basement.
He returns to try to find Diane only to discover there is no sub-basement.
Shaken, Gregory hires a private investigator to help him sort things out.
He brings the detective to his office, only to find a blank wall.
It is an absorbing, riveting film because the plot is totally unique.
And since it was made in 1966, there are no Matrix explanations ... only well-thought out ones.
3.) Do you like being a victim?
Neither does your reader.
Most of us feel powerless in life more than we wish.
We read to lose ourselves, to live vicariously adventures
where the protagonists take control of their problems
and after thrilling adventures triumph.
4.) Make them laugh.
Novels with serious themes like The Fault in Our Stars and Me and Earl and the Dying Girl
use humor for good reason.
Joss Whedon:
“Make it dark, make it grim, make it tough,
but then, for the love of God, tell a joke.”
A good laugh is a great way to relieve non-stop tension to set up the reader for the next jolt.
Humor in dialogue also is a way to quickly, subtly convey character relationships.
WHAT ARE SOME GOOD WAYS
YOU BREATHE LIFE
INTO YOUR NOVEL?
Hey Roland, a good post for novel writers. I like the bit about humour. Not everyone can do it, but a joke can add much needed light relief in a heavy plot, like Fault in our Stars.
ReplyDeleteCheers, Denise. :-)
Thanks, Denise. You did a wonderful post for IWSG too.
DeleteEven the blackest stories need some humour to lighten them. It's hard to digest otherwise. Excellent tips!
ReplyDeleteYes, people have enough darkness in their lives without some light thrown in their reading!
DeleteYou raise a good point: readers don't relate to victims. Too much women's fiction relies on sympathy to connect the reader to the protag, but there must be something more to hold my interest, some spark, some spunk.
ReplyDeleteFacing stiff challenges is one thing, but doing so with feisty resolve engages most readers I think. Thanks for visiting and staying to chat. :-)
DeleteIf that movie. had a reappearing black cat in it, then that would've been really creepy.
ReplyDeleteA living story doesn't stop to admire the scenery for ages every other page.
Yes, it would have meant an agent had entered the Matrix! :-)
DeleteA still life or living--what a great question. I'm going to think about that.
ReplyDeleteWhat a nice compliment, Jacqui! :-)
DeleteA lot of my stories have more of a serious edge, but I do find that there are funny moments that can make a reader laugh or at least smile. It is something I try to add to my stories, to take a break from the action and seriousness.
ReplyDeleteNailed it!
ReplyDeleteAnna from elements of emaginette