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Category : Novel Writing

The Bully Archetype

Filed Under : Novel Writing,Ramblings by nutschell
Mar.10,2011

My character counts contest, will end this Monday, March 14, 2011. In order to remind you again of the fabulous prize, and because I did promise to do a series on archetypes, I now present a blog on one of the popular archetypes in media:

bully 707x1024 The Bully Archetype

Archetypes

*NOTE: Expect this introduction at every archetype spotlight article. It’s a great way of reminding us what we can gain when we study archetypes.

Just to refresh your memory, let me define archetypes again. An archetype is an original model of a person, ideal example, or a prototype after which others are copied, patterned, or emulated; a symbol universally recognized by all.

Archetypes are scattered everywhere in media. Many writers use archetypes because they provide a guide for the readers to understand the storyline better. As writers, it’s important that we understand the many archetypes out there. Why? Because when we understand the definition and function of an archetype, we may:

  1. tweak the definition to suit our storyline
  2. break the rules of what a particular archetype is supposed to do to spice up our story
  3. apply a particular perspective to the archetype according to the message of our story. For instance, we may have an anarchist Mentor, a feminist Knight or a Freudian Hero

(If you are so inclined and have time at your disposal, might I suggest that you read or re-read my article on Archetypes and Characters?)

Now that you have a good idea of how archetypes can help us writers, let’s get to know the Archetype in today’s spotlight.

The Bully

There is really nothing even remotely amusing about bullies. They pick a target (usually one who they know will never fight back) and abuse the poor person repeatedly. They may employ one or all of the three forms of abuse—emotional, verbal, and physical abuse. Bullies may also have a posse—lieutenants who are only to eager to assist him in his show of domination and power.

mean girls The Bully ArchetypeMean Girls

Often plaguing schools, the bully may also appear anywhere were humans exist—in church, in the neighborhood, the workplace, and even at home. Bullies have an authoritarian nature, combined with a need to control or dominate.

The bully’s motivation for bullying can be varied. He could be envious or resentful of his peers. He could simply be arrogant and narcissistic—seeing himself as superior and everyone else as fodder for his domination. He might be a bully because he wishes to boost his self-esteem—by demeaning others, he feels powerful. Or, he could also be using his bullying power as a tool to conceal shame or anxiety. Perhaps he himself is a victim of bullying at home.

Bully Functions

Caroline Myss, author and creator of the Archetype Cards (which I happen to be giving away as a prize for my Character Counts Contest), describes perfectly the function of the Bully as an archetype:

Bully (Coward)

The archetype of the Bully manifests the core truth that the spirit is always stronger than the body. Symbolically, our physical bodies can “bully” our spirits with any number of reasons why we should back down from our challenges, which appear to overwhelm us by their size and shape. Your relationship to this archetype should be evaluated within a framework far more expansive than evaluating whether you “bully” people. Consider whether on your life path you confront one experience and relationship after another that appears to have more power than you and ultimately leads you to ask, “Will I stand up to this challenge?” People are often called to take on bullies for the sake of others, as David did Goliath, and this is another criterion of your connection to this archetype.

Conventional wisdom holds that underneath a bully is a coward trying to keep others from discovering his true identity. Symbolically, the Coward within must stand up to being bullied by his own inner fears, which is the path to empowerment through these two archetypes.

Films:Matt Dillon in My Bodyguard; Jack Palance in Shane; Mel Gibson in Braveheart; James Cagney in The Fighting 69th; Bert Lahr in The Wizard of Oz.; Jack Nicholson in As Good as It Gets.

Fiction:The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Vincent Benet.

Fairy Tales:Jack and the Beanstalk; Jack the Giant Killer

Our stereotype of bullies usually involves a big man/boy—a dumb brute lacking in social graces, but not in physical strength.

biff tannen back to the future The Bully ArchetypeBiff Tannen, Back to the Future Movies

But this is not often the case. Girls, even smart ones, are also capable of bullying.

Patty in the movie The Bully ArchetypePatty, Diary of a Wimpy Kid

Bully Types

Dr. Carol Watkins, Board Certified in Child, Adolescent & Adult Psychiatry and in private practice in Baltimore, MD, explains the different types of bullies:

Sadistic, narcissistic bully

Lacks empathy for others. Has low degree of anxiety about consequences. Narcissistic need to feel omnipotent. May appear to have a high self esteem but it is actually a brittle narcissism.

William Zabka karate kid 320 The Bully ArchetypeJohnny Lawrence,  (original) Karate Kid

*Johnny Lawrence, played by Billy Zabka is a great example of the narcissistic bully.  Behind his seemingly high self-esteem lies a boy who just wants to be appreciated by his martial arts master.


Imitative bully

May have low self esteem or be depressed. Influenced by the surrounding social climate. May use whining or tattling or be manipulative. Often responds well to a change in the culture of the classroom or social setting. If depressed may need other intervention.

draco1 The Bully ArchetypeDraco Malfoy, Harry Potter

* Draco Malfoy, is a classic example of the Imitative bully.  Taking his cue from his father Lucius Malfoy, Draco often employs manipulates his posse Crabbe and Goyle into doing his dirty work for him. He also gets Harry and his friends in trouble by tattling to their teachers, or making up stories about them.


Impulsive bully

He is less likely to be part of a gang. His bullying is more spontaneous and may appear more random. He has difficulty restraining himself from the behavior even when authorities are likely to impose consequences. He may have AD/HD. He may respond to medications and behavioral treatment and social skills training. He is also likely to be bullied.

warren peace Steven Strait The Bully ArchetypeWarren Peace, Sky High

* Steven Strait plays Warren Peace in the movie Sky High. I consider him a good example of the impulsive bully. He doesn’t go looking for trouble, but often lets his anger and compulsion to aggression get the better of him. In the end, however, with help from other people, he becomes one of the good guys.


Accidental Bully

If bullying is a deliberate act, this individual might not be included. The behavior may be offensive because the individual does not realize that his actions are upsetting the victim. If someone patiently and compassionately explains the situation, the individual will change the behavior. Sometimes social skills need to be taught. There is some overlap with the impulsive bully.

practical magic The Bully ArchetypeTownswomen in Practical Magic

* The townswomen in the movie Practical Magic comes to mind as great examples of accidental bullies. Afraid of what they can’t understand, their minds filled with scary stories about witches, they bully Sally and Gillian Owens, as well as their strange aunts. However, at the end of the movie, they come to the sisters’ rescue once they overcome their fear and the situation is explained to them.

Bully Mine

The antagonist in my own story, is a bit of a bully himself.  Like most bullies, his trauma starts from childhood. And like most bullies who end up in jail as adults, by the end of this series I envision my bully as a full blown villain. Or not. We’ll see what happens as the series is yet to be complete.

Now that you have been acquainted with the Bully Archetype, look back at your own story. Do you have a bully character? What type of bully is she/he? How does this bully affect your protagonist’s journey?

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The Mentor Archetype

Filed Under : Novel Writing,Ramblings by nutschell
Feb.17,2011

In order to encourage you to join my character counts contest, and because I did promise to do a series on my favorite archetypes, I now present a blog post on one of the most popular archetypes used in media:

The Mentor

Mentor 704x1024 The Mentor Archetype

Archetypes

Just to refresh your memory, let me define archetypes again. An archetype is an original model of a person, ideal example, or a prototype after which others are copied, patterned, or emulated; a symbol universally recognized by all.

Archetypes are scattered everywhere in media. Many writers use archetypes because they provide a guide for the readers to understand the storyline better. As writers, it’s important that we understand the many archetypes out there. Why? Because when we understand the definition and function of an archetype, we may:

  1. tweak the definition to suit our storyline
  2. break the rules of what a particular archetype is supposed to do to spice up our story
  3. apply a particular perspective to the archetype according to the message of our story. For instance, we may have an anarchist Mentor, a feminist Knight or a Freudian Hero

(If you are so inclined and have time at your disposal, might I suggest that you read or re-read my article on Archetypes and Characters?)

Now that you have a good idea of how archetypes can help us writers, let’s get to know the Archetype in today’s spotlight.

What do Yoda, Cinderella’s Fairy Godmother, Merlin and James Bond’s Q have in common? They are all mentors.

Christopher Vogler in his very helpful book The Writer’s Journey, says:

“Mentors provide heroes with motivation, inspiration, guidance, training, and gifts for the journey. Every hero is guided by something, and a story without some acknowledgement of this energy is incomplete. Whether expressed as an actual character or as an internalized code of behavior, the Mentor archetype is a powerful tool at the writer’s command”

If you’re wondering where the word Mentor comes from, look no further than The Odyssey.

odyssey The Mentor Archetype

Telemachus, Odysseus’ son, is helped by a character named Mentor who is actually Athena in disguise.

odyssey mentor 1 The Mentor Archetype

And since Athena is the Goddess of Wisdom, the Mentor Archetype is also typically personified as the “Wise Old Man” or “Wise Old Woman”.

Which is probably why most of the Mentor Archetypes you see in media are wizened old men or women.

yoda ep3 2 The Mentor ArchetypeYoda

346712 sam neill miniseries merlin The Mentor ArchetypeMerlin

q gadgets The Mentor ArchetypeQ

cindygod The Mentor ArchetypeCinderella’s Fairy Godmother

Mentor Functions

The Mentor Archetype has two major functions:

  1. Teaching/Guiding
  2. Gift-giving

Mentors often serve as the hero’s GPS. They are the hero’s conscience and teacher. They motivate the hero to achieve their goals, plant ideas in the hero’s mind that later on the hero draws upon, or initiate the hero into the mysteries of life and love. They also train the hero so that he may have the skills to face dangers he will encounter on his quest. (Example: Yoda training Luke Skywalker)

YodaBackpack The Mentor Archetype

They also invent items which the hero might need along their journey (as in Q’s case) or they bestow the hero with a particular gift to aid them in their quest (as in Merlin giving Arthur Excalibur, or Cinderella’s Fairy Godmother providing her with the pumpkin coach and such to get her to the Ball).

cinderlla pumpkin The Mentor ArchetypeCinderella and her Fairy Godmother, Disney’s Cinderella 1950

According to Christopher Vogler, the Mentor is there to protect the hero and to help him discern between right and wrong. More often than not, the Mentor is teaching the hero lessons he has learned from his own experience. Mentors are often former heroes who have survived the quest and are now passing the lessons they have learned to the hero who is just starting out. Think of Brom, passing down his wisdom to Eragon.

brom and eragon The Mentor ArchetypeBrom(Jeremy Irons)  and Eragon (Ed Speelers) in Eragon Movie 2006

Mentor Types

Although Mentors usually come in the form of wise old men and women, don’t be fooled. There are several types of mentor archetypes which  you can choose from in your own stories.

Comic Mentor

They come in the form of hero sidekicks, giving advice that seems wrong in the beginning but often turn out to be the perfect solution in the end. They are often seen in romantic comedies or stories with elements of comedy in them. Glinda the Good Witch in Wicked is a fun example.

Kristin Chenoweth as Glinda. jpg The Mentor ArchetypeKristin Chenoweth as Glinda the Good Witch, Wicked

Continuing Mentor

These are often recurring characters in a story series. They may be the boss (such as Charlie in Charlie’s Angels), or the butler (Alfred in Batman). Their role is to give assignments or set the plotline in motion.

dark knight michael caine christian bale 011 The Mentor ArchetypeMichael Caine and Christian Bale as Alfred and Batman in Batman Begins 2004

Dark Mentor

They are the anti-hero and represent the inversion of the hero’s values. Often, Dark Mentors mislead the hero (and the audience). They pose as mentors, but in reality, they lure the hero into danger and instead of motivating the hero, they become obstacles to the hero himself. Gordon Gekko (played by Michael Douglas) in Wall Street 2 as he teaches Jake Moore (Shia LaBeouf), is a good example.

wall street 2 The Mentor Archetype

Fallen Mentor

These fallen mentors are actually characters who are dealing with issues in their own heroic journey. They are mentors who are experiencing a crisis of faith or who have fallen far from grace. They parallel the hero in his own journey and often serve as a warning to the hero of who not to be. Haymitch in The Hunger Games comes to mind as a great example.

Hg jacket 210 The Mentor Archetype

Inner Mentor

Some characters have no need of or no contact with an actual physical mentor who can act as their teacher. These heroes often carry their own internal mentor in the form of their own conscience or a code of ethics or a code of honor they follow. The inner mentor can also be in the form of a long dead being whose advice still lingers in the mind of the hero. The inner mentor can often be seen in Samurai or warrior movies. Ip Man, and The Last Samurai are examples of movies which show the inner mentor at work.

ip man The Mentor ArchetypeIp Man

imgThe Last Samurai2 The Mentor ArchetypeThe Last Samurai

Multiple Mentors

Sometimes a hero needs more than one mentor as he undergoes several steps of training. Each mentor can focus on a different aspect of the training which a hero must learn. Jackie Chan as Lu Yan , the Drunken Immortal and Jet Li as  the Silent Monk play mentors to Jason Tripitikas  (Michael Angarano) in the movie Forbidden Kingdom.

the forbidden kingdom The Mentor ArchetypeJet Li, Michael Angarano and Jackie Chan in The Forbidden Kingdom, 2008

Shaman

Sometimes all the hero needs is a vision to get him started. The Shaman is a healer who can help the hero by giving her a vision to point him to the next leg of his quest. Monk Gyatso, Aang’s airbending master in Avatar the Last Airbender is an example. Another example would be Guru Pathik, also in the Last Airbender.

250px Monk Gyatso The Mentor ArchetypeMonk Gyatso, The Last Airbender Nickelodeon Series

Aang and Guru Pathik The Mentor ArchetypeAang and Guro Pathik, The Last Airbender Nickelodeon Series

Mentor Mine

Mentors are wonderful archetypes to have in any story.

In my own book, URTH, I make use of Multiple Mentors. I have a Comic Mentor in the form of Will’s best friend Finn, and an Inner Mentor in the form of the lessons Will has learned from his dead father. I also have a Shaman who guides Will on a Spirit Walk, as well as a Continuing Mentor in the form of Terra, the Guardian who teaches Will Urth Magic as well as trains him in the Fighting Art of Urth.

Now that you have been acquainted with the Mentor Archetype, look back at your own story. Do you have a Mentor character? Do you have one mentor or multiple mentors? How does this mentor influence the hero’s journey?

——-

References:

http://adventures-in-creative-writing.blogspot.com/2009/11/archetypes-unveiling-mentor.html

http://www.applewarrior.com/lps/writing/hero/hero_quest_archetypes.pdf

http://members.optusnet.com.au/~mgoodin68/archtype.htm

http://shanna-s.livejournal.com/265009.html

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The Year of the Rabbit – Astrology and Characterization

Filed Under : Novel Writing by nutschell
Feb.3,2011

Gong Xi Fa Cai! (Kung Hei Fat Choi)!

Translated that means Happy (Chinese) New Year!

Today, February 3rd, 2011, marks the first day of the Chinese New Year. Chinese families gather together to celebrate this important holiday. They exchange gifts, enjoy festive decorations and eat symbolic foods to bring them good luck for the new year.

I’m not Chinese myself, but I pay attention to holidays such as these. Aside from the fact that the Chinese New Year is a great excuse to eat mooncake, it also is a great opportunity to learn about a different culture.

One of the great things about writing, is that we can gain inspiration from anything and everything around us. Festivals and holidays such as the Chinese New Year are one such source of inspiration.

So today, I took the time to research a little bit more about the Chinese New Year, and the Chinese Zodiac.

I also looked up Chinese astrological forecasts for 2011, the Year of the Rabbit.

Lop Eared Rabbit The Year of the Rabbit – Astrology and Characterization

In case you’re interested, Chinese astrologers say that the focus of this year leans towards reviving the arts and culture, getting finances in order, cultivating intimate relationships, and building family and community. They base their predictions on certain elemental energies, as well as planetary alignments.

Apparently, this year will be great for Metal Monkeys such as myself.

I don’t follow astrology all that much, but aside from being entertaining, astrology is also a great resource for creating Characters.

When I first started writing my story, I realized I needed to flesh my characters further. Sure I have their archetypes all set (hero, mentor, etc), but in order to make my characters come alive, I needed to give them certain sets of personality traits.

One of the things I found helpful was astrology. I researched on personology and found books such as these:

secretlanguage of birthdays The Year of the Rabbit – Astrology and CharacterizationThe Secret Language of Birthays


the power of birthdays The Year of the Rabbit – Astrology and CharacterizationThe Power of Birthdays, Stars & Numbers


I picked several birthdays, then looked up the personality traits listed for persons born on those day. It was the thing I needed to jumpstart my characters. Now I not only had a set list of traits, I also had my character’s birthdays!  (Of course I didn’t stop there. I also gave my characters certain quirks, and gave them the three most important things for any character to have: goals, motivations and conflict).

Here’s a sample of what you’ll find if you open up a book on Chinese astrology:

HARE:
January 29, 1903 to February 15, 1904 (water)
February 14, 1915 to February 2, 1916 (wood)
February 2, 1927 to January 22, 1928 (fire)
February 19, 1939 to February 7, 1940 (earth)
February 1951 to January 26 1952 (metal)
January 25, 19673 to February 12, 1964 (water)
February 11, 1975 to January 30, 1976 (wood)
January 29, 1987 to February 16, 1988 (fire)
February 16, 1999 to February 4, 2000 (earth)

Celebrities include:
Michelangelo – Napoleon – Albert Einstein – Walt Whitman – Marie Curie

Hares (rabbits) are happiest when with friends and safely inside of social circles. They are often meek and withdrawn among groups of strangers. They seldom like to argue and enjoy quiet, peaceful lives. A Hare is cautious and will weigh the pros and cons from every angle before moving ahead.

A lover of good conversation, reading, and intellectual discussions, the hare is sincere and are often gifted healers, herbalists, and doctors. Traditionally associated with clear-sightedness, the Hare is an excellent judge of character and has a certain ability to recognize when others are lying. A Hare’s home is typically a beautiful one, and they take great care and expend a lot of energy making it comfortable. You will find a lot of expensive and precious items in the home of a Hare personality.

The Chinese have many strange legends about the Hare, one of them is that they inhabit the moon, together with three-legged frogs. Another legend has it that the Hare possesses the secret recipe for the elixir of immortality.

As writers, we should make use of anything that can spark our creativity (which is basically everything). So whether we are believers or not, we can make use of Astrology to help us flesh out our characters.

If you’re interested in finding out more about the Chinese Zodiac and the personality traits associated with them, here are some articles that you might find helpful:

www.chinesezodiac.com

www.qi-journal.com

www.life123.com

And while you’re at it, check out articles on Chinese New Year traditions or on the Chinese culture in general. You might find a story idea or two in the process.

Gong Xi Fa Cai! (Kung Hei Fat Choi)! May the Year of the Rabbit be a great year for everyone!




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Hunger Games Dream Cast – Katniss

Filed Under : Novel Writing by nutschell
Jan.25,2011

I was looking through my comments folder and I discovered that my post with the most comments was the one where I had talked about my dream cast for the Hunger Games movie that Hollywood was planning to make.  While some people agreed with my choice of who should play the role of Katniss, others disagreed and left their own suggestions.

So I checked out the actresses my readers suggested for the role of Katniss, and was I ever glad I did. It made me realize that there are indeed a lot of actresses out there who could easily fit the role of Katniss in terms of physical qualities (which the book described).  I guess I wouldn’t really mind who they picked to play Katniss, as long as the actress was able to portray her personality accurately.

The great thing about books is that they can easily describe what the character is feeling or thinking.  Though movies can show us a great visual feast, it is always left to the actors to portray their roles well and to get the characters’ feelings and thoughts across to the audience. The trilogy gave me the impression that Katniss was a tough girl, who also had a vulnerable side.  I hope that whoever they pick could show this on screen somehow.

But, for fun and because I love reading comments about who should play the characters in one of my favorite books, I present the following nominations for the role of Katniss:

Chloe Moretz Hunger Games Dream Cast – Katniss

Chloe Moretz  (Kick-Ass, Let Me In)


emily browning Hunger Games Dream Cast – Katniss

Emily Browning  (Lemony Snicket)


Kaya Scodelario 005 Hunger Games Dream Cast – Katniss

Kaya Scodelario (Clash of the Titans)


Lucy Hale Closeup Hunger Games Dream Cast – Katniss

Lucy Hale (Pretty Little Liars)


Camilla Belle48830 787x1024 Hunger Games Dream Cast – Katniss

Camilla Belle (The Ballad of Jack and Rose)


Are any of these girls suited to play the role of softie but toughie chick Katniss?

Who would you pick to play the role of Katniss Everdeen in the upcoming silver screen version?

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Finding Inspiration in Old Journal Entries

Filed Under : Novel Writing,Ramblings by nutschell
Jan.7,2011

I look at all the chapters I’ve edited—all five of them. Five chapters in two or three weeks. That cannot be good. I still have a long way to go and if I hope to start querying, I have to finish editing soon.

I feel a bit of despair rising up in me. What am I doing wrong? Why can’t I focus on my rewrites? I’m at the 7th and final draft of my manuscript for goodness’ sakes! I’m almost there! But it all feels so far away. I should just crawl into a cave and die.

Okay, maybe not crawl into a cave and die.  I don’t like dark and enclosed spaces and I still have quite a lot to live for. But I do feel desperate. I just want to finish editing SOON, but I don’t seem to have the strength to push through.

Sometimes when I don’t know how to proceed, or when I feel my inspiration to write or edit running low, I look back at old journal entries I’ve written about writing and my writing process.

I re-read entries about low points in my writing life— times when I doubted my writing abilities, or when I almost quit. Then I look at all the good that has happened to me since I started writing—all the things I’ve learned, the story improvements I’ve made, all the friends I’ve met—and I feel grateful that I didn’t give up. After all, this is my 100th blog post. I’ve made it this far, right?

I also re-read entries about my love for writing.  I find that it helps me remember why I started writing in the first place, and what I hope to achieve with it.

I found one of those entries and I’m ever so glad I re-read it.

Feb.7, 2008

10:21am

I just read my friend’s blog. It always amazes me how her words just flow so freely and naturally. I guess it helps that she doesn’t write for anything else except for the joy of expressing her thoughts.

I used to be able to write like that. This probably explains why I felt that I wrote better before. I wrote for the sheer ecstasy of making words appear on paper. I didn’t think about my writing form or style, or about punctuation marks or verb tenses. I wrote naturally and freely, without regard for anything English teachers consider important in writing.

And then I became an English teacher.

That’s when I started to write less and less. First of all, I never seemed to have the time to write. I was always checking papers or creating lesson plans or teaching my students how to write properly.  Secondly, I had to edit hundreds and hundreds of essays and journal entries and academic papers. The more I found things to edit, the more I felt like I myself had to be wary of these same mistakes I was capable of making.

Every time I tried to write for pleasure, I was hampered by thought that I had to be perfect. After all, I would edit each of my student’s work meticulously. If they chance upon something I write and realize that I, too, was capable of making mistakes however small they may be;  I would lose their trust in my ability to teach them how to write correctly.

So it happened that every time I wrote, I found myself editing words as I was writing them. I rearranged and reconfigured my sentences even before I wrote them. Instead of allowing my fingers to type out my thoughts as they came, I edited the thoughts in my head. It took the fun out of writing. But I figured it was better to not write at all, than to write a meaningless article, or a piece full of juvenile mistakes.

Out of frustration at my inability to write naturally, I just quit writing.

I really have no one to blame but myself for my own intellectual constipation. I had eaten up so much of the forms and functions, the rules and laws of writing to let my thoughts flow freely. At this point, I would rather have intellectual diarrhea, and have all my thoughts scattered all over the place, than to have all these toxic ideas just swimming in my head, poisoning my system again and again.

I’ve become a perfectionist in writing and that is my downfall. I realize now that the writers who have made their mark in the world, wrote either because they loved writing, or because they completely believed in what were writing.

No matter their reason for writing, it was their passion for the written word that made them write their masterpieces. The rules and laws, the acceptable forms and even styles were only secondary to their desire for their words to be heard, or read.

I am slowly relearning the real joys of writing. I try to read books more often, in the hopes of finding my own voice again, of picking up on other writers desire to write. Perhaps I, too, could be swept away by their passion until I find my own way to ride the waves of my own desire to write.

I have always dreamed of writing the next great novel, of writing a book that could change the world; or maybe even touch a few lives here and there. I dreamed of writing a masterpiece, a literary epic, a magnum opus that everyone would refer to time and again, a contemporary work that would soon become a classic from which every great persona in the world would quote from. But much like Budgeron in Richard Bach’s “Writer Ferrets: Chasing the Muse”,  I have realized that the great literary novel is not something I should aim for.

My true aim is to write my thoughts out loud in the hope that my thoughts would affect someone for the better. And if the book that I write changes but one life in the course of its run, then I know for sure that I have achieved my goal of writing a masterpiece.

After all, a masterpiece is defined as an outstanding work of art or craft. And if my art can change a single being’s life in a positive way,  I could call it outstanding.

I will finish editing this novel soon. I know I can. I will.

I am ready.

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My Purple Pen

Filed Under : Novel Writing by nutschell
Dec.23,2010

I just finished the 6th draft of my novel last Monday. That means I’ve been over my entire manuscript six times. Yes, writers are extremely patient beings (at least when it comes to the page).

And now I’m working on the 7th draft. As they say, “seventh time is the charm”.  Okay, okay, so it’s “ third time’s the charm”, but my third draft wasn’t exactly working, so there.

Some people might think me crazy for editing my manuscript through the holidays. The truth is, writers take advantage of all the time they can muster to work on their manuscripts– especially writers who have daytime (or night time) jobs. I, for one, am quite grateful that I actually have time to edit. (Besides, I love my characters, and I’ll take any excuse to spend time with them.)

Editing isn’t easy. It takes up an enormous amount of time, and an infinite sum of brain cells to spot errors and replace weak words with better ones.

I have a whole slew of writing implements whenever I edit.

yellow My Purple Pen

I use my yellow highlighter to highlight characters, locations, objects and time references so I can then input them into my Ywriter program. Since I’m writing a series, I think it’s important to keep track of these things for future use.

blue1 My Purple Pen

My blue highlighter is used to highlight words, phrases or whole sentences which could be translated from American English to British English. This is because though I have American major characters, part of my story is set in England. I have a roster of minor characters, and I feel readers should have an authentic feel to the language they actually use. For example, I must be sure to use the word “trousers” for my British characters, instead of “pants” because apparently “pants” are what they call their underwear.

green My Purple Pen

Though it is very difficult, I try very hard to be aware of repetition in my chapters. Repetitive thoughts, tags (swallowed, gasped, etc), words and phrases are highlighted using my green highlighter so I can replace them with new and better words.

For everything else, however, I use my purple pen.

Purple Energel pen My Purple Pen

I dropped by Staples the other day to buy Purple Pentel EnerGel, metal tipped, .07 mm liquid gel ink pens. Actually, they come in packs of threes, so I just got one pack. At least, I’m hoping I won’t need more than three pens to edit my manuscript.

My students (from seven years ago) will remember that I used to correct and edit their papers using a purple pen. I thought red pens were too overused, and bit scary (all my teachers had used it to remind me I was human). So to blunt the blows (and to make my students’ papers look less intimidating), I used a purple pen.

Now my students are probably averse (and maybe slightly traumatized) by the color purple, but I did have good intentions.

Anyway, back to editing. My purple pen is used to encircle all of the following words:

1. –ly adjectives and adverbs

2. –ing/ – as construction

3. Weak nouns

4. Weak verbs

a. Interiors (think, wonder, realize)

b. Infinitives (to come, to see)

c. Passives (was hit, was sitting)

d. Subjunctives (would, could, should, might, must)

5. Exposition  – usually introduced by the following: If-then, not only-but also, either-or, neither-nor, more-than, some-some others, not-but, etc.

6. Punctuation errors

7. Spelling errors

8. Capitalization errors

9.  Grammatical errors and all other problems with the chapter which I need to fix.

Sometimes, -ly adjectives and –ing/-as constructions, and weak verbs are actually necessary to make the paragraph work, but more often than not, they are weeds that need to be cut. In any case, my purple pen highlights them for me so I can decide if they can stay or not.

Though I  use many other editing tools (internet, books, dictionary, thesaurus, a cup of tea, etc), I love my purple pen the most.

We’ll be spending a lot of time together, my purple pen and I. Through the holidays and everyday until my manuscript is published, we will work on ways to make a good story even better.

What’s your favorite editing tool?

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The Amazin’ Kindle

Filed Under : Novel Writing by nutschell
Dec.17,2010

With Christmas just around the corner, and while many people are doing last minute Christmas shopping, some people might still be twiddling their thumbs wondering what to give the avid reader and writer in their family.

As a voracious reader and writer, I can probably speak for the rest of us—we writers/readers would love nothing more than to be able to carry a thousand books (at the very least) in our pockets so that we can read anytime, anywhere.

“Impossible!”  you say.

Not really. Not if you get us an ebook reader. I don’t recommend things I myself haven’t used, or things that fall below my standard of quality. So while there are many ebook readers out there, I can only recommend one with utmost confidence–the Amazon Kindle.

amazon kindle 2 1 The Amazin’ Kindle

How do I love the Kindle? Let me count the ways.

1. I love the convenience of being able to carry 1,500 books in my pocket. (Well, okay, maybe my pocket’s not that big—but you get the picture.) The new Kindle is now able to hold more books than I can possibly read in a month. 3,500 books to be exact.

2. I’m a big fan of books in any format. Aside from being able to carry ebooks and pdf files, the Kindle can also store mp3’s (this means music if you want it)—and more importantly, audiobooks. Since my commute to and from work takes an hour (if I’m lucky), listening to audiobooks is a great way to pass the time (or not go insane). I have an account with Audible.Com, which allows me to download audiobooks into my Kindle in a matter of minutes. All I have to do to enjoy these audibooks while I’m driving is to plug it into my car’s auxillary port using an audio cable (the same kind ipod users use to plug their ipods into their cars).

3. The Kindle’s fast, free 3G wireless means I can download books anytime, from almost anywhere in 60 seconds. Kindle has a Global 3G Coverage which allows users to download ebooks in a minute from over 100 countries and territories. You can check the wireless coverage here.

4. I used to be one of those people who scoffed at the idea of reading a book through a piece of machinery. I seeing the words come alive on paper, and was worried that reading the through an e-reader wasn’t going to give me the same satisfaction. While I still prefer the feel of paper under my fingers, I have to admit that reading from my Kindle is not only pleasurable—it is also very convenient.

First of all, I don’t have to lose my place on the page if I wanted to drink/eat something while reading. The Kindle is lighter than a paperback at 8.7 ounces and 1/3 of an inch thick. I only need one hand to hold the Kindle, and a thumb to turn the page.

Secondly, Kindle’s high contrast e-ink screen makes it look like I’m actually reading a page from a book. More than that, I can read in bright sunlight without the glare.

Thirdly, when my eyes get tired, but I still want to read, I can simply use the Kindle’s Text-to-Speech function. This allows me to close my eyes and listen as a computerized (but not entirely unpleasant) voice reads the rest of the passage to me. This also means that I can listen to the books I’ve purchased while I drive home from work.

5. I’ve never encountered battery life problems with my Kindle. A single charge from my Kindle can last me weeks—if I don’t use my wireless coverage. If I use my Kindle’s wireless capacity, the battery life will probably last me for a week at least. I can even re-charge my kindle from my car using a Kindle car charger. The one I use is the igo everywhere universal car charger kit with the kindle igo tip.

igo everywhere universal wall and auto charger The Amazin’ Kindleigo everywhere universal car charger kit

i go tip kindle The Amazin’ Kindleigo kindle tip

6. I have several ebooks on my Kindle and almost all of them have been downloaded for free. I choose from the 1.8 million free, out of copyright pre-1923 books to download to my Kindle. I don’t even need my Kindle near me to download these books. I can simply go online and download ebooks to my Kindle from my Amazon webpage.

7. Buying the ebook version of a book I need is sometimes the smarter choice. Ebook versions are usually cheaper than either paperback or hardcover versions. Plus, I get to download and read some chapters for free before I decide to buy the book.

8. Although I don’t use the function myself, the Kindle offers not only books but blogs, newspapers and magazines as well. This means that if you so choose, you could get a subscription from the New York Times and have it delivered everyday straight to your kindle.

9. I don’t have to worry about losing the books I’ve purchased on Kindle because these are automatically archived and backed-up on Amazon. This means that if I’ve accidentally deleted a book on my Kindle, I can easily re-download the book wirelessly for free anytime.

10. If I want to read a Kindle ebook, but my Kindle is for some reason not within my reach, I can read these ebooks using Kindle’s Whispersync technology—through my iphone, ipad,pc, mac, android device and blackberry—if I had any.

11. The great thing about the Kindle is that it comes with functions that are useful to writers like myself. It allows me to share meaningful passages from a book I’m reading with friends and family through its built-in Twitter and Facebook integration. If I’m reading a book and I don’t understand a word, I can easily look it up using Kindle’s dictionary lookup. I can also highlight helpful passages and make notes to use in my writing.

12. My favorite thing about the Kindle is that it allows me to carry anywhere the many writing/story related notes I’ve made for myself. How?

I’ve downloaded this software called Stanza. This software helps me transform my pdf files/ word documents into a kindle format, thereby allowing me to save many valuable notes into my kindle. So if I need to pull up some notes about the book I’m writing, I don’t need to lug around a lot of notebooks or papers. I can simply pull up the information using my Kindle.

stanzablackberry The Amazin’ Kindle

I imagine this kind of thing might be useful for college students as well, who meticulously write out their notes for classes. Whenever they need to study for an exam, they only need to take out their kindle and retrieve the notes they’ve stored in there.

To see all these functions in action, take a look at this video from Amazon:

Still not convinced that the Kindle is worth buying? Let me tell you a story.

One day, I broke my Kindle’s 5-way controller. (That’s the little button on the lower right corner that acts as the Kindle’s mouse and lets you choose options from the menu.) Don’t ask me how I did it because I really couldn’t tell you. I just looked down and noticed a crack straight in the middle of the 5 way directional button.

I could still use my Kindle, but not very conveniently. I had heard a lot of good things about Amazon Kindle’s customer service. So not knowing what else to do, I called them up.

Was I ever so glad I did!

I explained the problem to the perky agent on the other line. I expected him to tell me that there was really nothing they could do about it since I was already out of warranty. After putting me on hold for a few seconds, he announced that they would be sending me a replacement and I should receive it within the next few days.

I thought, well cool, I can probably figure out how to replace the 5 way button myself. I clarified this with the customer rep, who said that it wouldn’t be necessary since they were sending me a replacement not for the part, but for the whole Kindle.

Say what?

Flabbergasted, I asked them how much it would cost me. “Nothing,” the agent said gleefully. He said that I would be charged 3.99 for the shipping cost, but that this would be refunded a day later so in truth I really wouldn’t be charged anything. All I had to do was return my broken Kindle using their UPS shipping label within 30 days.

The agent had told me to keep all my kindle accessories, including the wall plug as they only needed the broken Kindle unit returned to them. He also told me that if I had ebooks or audiobooks which I hadn’t downloaded from the Amazon store, I should probably save those since Amazon only has a copy of the ebooks I downloaded from them.

Three days after calling up Amazon, I received my brand new Kindle. It even came with its own charger, which means now I have a spare charger. All this for FREE.

When I got the Kindle as a gift, my best friend had bought it for over a hundred bucks. That was two years ago. Now the Kindle is selling for as low as $139 (Free wi-fi), or if you want to be fancy and have free wi-fi and 3G–for $189.

So if you’re still wondering what to give the readers and writers in your life, give them the Amazin’ Amazon Kindle. They will be indebted to you for life.

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The Most Amazing Writing Software

Filed Under : Novel Writing by nutschell
Jun.19,2010

Whenever I go to schmoozes or writing groups, I make conversation and casually try to spread the word about this amazing writing software I’ve been using.  Some people might think it’s a waste of time trying to convince writers to change their writing habits. They reason that if these writers are bent on writing their entire manuscript on Microsoft Word then nothing can change their minds. This might be true. Writers are stubborn creatures (especially when it comes to their manuscripts and writing habits).

But why should I shut my mouth when I can offer fellow writers something that can help them write their novel?  After all, if it were the other way around, I would love it if a fellow writer came up to me and started talking about this fabulous program she’s using and all the cool stuff it can do. I’m all about learning new things and finding ways to ease my novel writing.

I’ve promised several new friends (you know who you are) that I would write about this software program I’ve been blabbing about. So here it is—the first post in a series about the fabulous writing software program known as…

Ywriter5!

I’m thinking about adding several articles on how to use Ywriter5 under my Writing Tools webpages. Owing to my busy schedule, it will probably take me a month or two to get there. So in the meantime, I’ve decided to list down several amazing facts about YWriter5 just to get all fellow writers (and anyone interested in novel writing) started.

Amazing Fact # 1: Ywriter5 was created by an accomplished novelist.

Simon Haynes, author of the Hal Spacejock Series wrote this program. Say what? How can a writer create a software program, you ask. Well, Simon Haynes isn’t only a bestselling writer; he’s also a computer programmer with 20 years of experience. He’s the perfect man to create a program for writers because he actually knows what writers need.

Amazing Fact # 2: Ywriter5 is a specialized word processor for writers.

When I first started writing my manuscript, I typed it using Microsoft Word. After writing a few chapters on word, I immediately realized that Word wasn’t enough.  What if I ended up writing 60 chapters and I wanted to restructure my story?  What if I realized I didn’t need a particular scene – or several scenes and wanted to delete them?  What if I wanted to remove a particular character or location or item from my manuscript?

I would have to go through each and every page of my very long manuscript just to accomplish all these things. Rewriting was going to be a b***h if I didn’t find a good writing software soon.

Research is a wonderful thing. It led me to this website called www.spacejock.com, and here I discovered the software that would make my life so much easier.

Ywriter5 works with scenes –which are small and manageable pieces of the overall plot.  Ywriter5 allows you to drag and drop these scenes from one chapter to another as you work out the overall flow of your book. The best thing is, Ywriter5 allows you to mark a scene as ‘unused’. This means that if you’ve written a senseless scene, it will be kept out of the word count and can be exported without deleting the content.

Amazing Fact # 3: Ywriter5 is a great organizing tool for writers.

I love lists. Lists make my life easier and help me organize my thoughts. Lists are also very helpful when you’re a writer churning out a 500 page manuscript. Have you ever wished that you could create a list of all the objects/items, locations and characters in your novel, without having to open several word documents?

Ywriter allows you to do this. You can create a list of all your characters/items/locations, add information about them (even pictures!), then set the program to automatically add character/item/location whenever they are mentioned in your scenes.

Amazing Fact # 4: Ywriter5 generates reports which will prove to be useful when rewriting/editing your manuscript.

Reports such as Character List, Item List, Location List, Scenes per Character/ Location/Item, Scene Notes, Chapter Notes can be easily printed and used as guides when we do our rewrites.

Amazing Fact # 5: Ywriter5 is FREE.

Yup, you read it right. This is probably the most important fact when considering a software program. The truth is, not all writers are well-fed or well-off. We scrape by with minimum wage jobs and dream of the time when we can publish the next Harry Potter type novel. So why should we by writing programs which cost  hundreds of dollars when we can get an awesome one for FREE?

You’re interested now, aren’t you? You should be! Where else can you find an amazing writing program, which you don’t have to pay for?

Simon Haynes has done all of us writers a great service by creating this program, and allowing us to use it for free. I’ve actually vowed to send him a donation through his website once I get my finances in order. For now, I shall have to content myself with spreading the word about his fabulous program.

If I’ve managed to spark your interest, then it’s time to explore the program on your own. Click Here to download Ywriter 5.

If you want to know more about YWriter5,  before you download it, feel free to watch the video below.

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On Content and Typos in Blogs

Filed Under : Novel Writing by nutschell
Jun.17,2010

A writer should always be on his/her toes.

At our most recent Westside Schmooze, Lee Wind and Rita Crayon-Huang, (our wonderful moderators), mentioned that we should be careful what we blog about because if an editor or agent happens to find our blog and reads an unsavory book review about something he/she edited… Well, it’s easy to imagine 101 ways our budding writing careers can go down the drain.

Our careers as writers are built on words. It only makes sense, then, to make ourselves fully aware of the words we send out to the ether. Words come together to form the content of our posts or articles, and content is something we should definitely be wary of.

We should write posts with value and meaning so we don’t end up wasting our readers (and our own) time.  We might also want to make our posts anger-free and positive because generally people don’t like downers. Sure, we can rant and rave about our horrible day or about how our writer’s block has lasted for the last decade–but we could at least make it interesting so our readers can learn from our experiences (or funny, so they might have a laugh or two).

Aside from content, we should also be aware of our presentation. How we write is just as important as what we write about. We should be wary of little devils called typographical errors. I was talking to a friend last night and she said: “I love your site, but I saw a couple of typos and as a writer you may wanna check on those.”

She was absolutely right, of course. As a first-time blogger and as a very impatient writer, I have the tendency to write whatever comes to mind at the moment and publish it. Well, okay, so I do give the article/post a once (or twice) over–but that might not be enough.  As a writer who’s trying to get into “the biz” of writing, I should be careful about my words and how they look on the page.

Typographical errors seem like such a small thing to worry about, but as writers we should always be on the lookout for these little buggers.  They not only ruin the flow of the article, they can also make our readers scoff and say “you call yourself a writer? You can’t even spell ‘orange’ right.”  (Sufficed to say, grammatical and spelling errors are also something we should beware of.) Of course, our readers (mostly family and friends) are kind enough not to say it out loud or leave comments on our pages, but they probably think it.

Having been chastened by my friend’s comment and having said my piece on the importance of being aware of content and typos in our blogs, I vow to go through all my posts and articles and check for grammatical errors, spelling errors and typographical errors and remedy them. I also vow to read through my copy of William Strunk Jr.’s and E.B. White’s The Elements of Style. (That book may be old, but the wisdom in those two authors’ words still hold true.)

Don’t get me wrong, though. It’s perfectly reasonable for blogs to have typos. We all have very busy schedules and between work, family and our favorite TV shows, we have no time to do a line-by-line edit of our posts.  As writer-bloggers, however, I feel that we should make an extra effort to make our posts as typo-free as possible. What we write and how we write says a lot about us as writers. As much as possible, we should come across as writers who are conscientious about our use of words. After all, whenever we see any kind of typo on whatever material we’re reading, we wrinkle our nose in annoyance. We might as well try to avoid making the same mistakes.

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Helpful Books for Character and Plot Development

Filed Under : Novel Writing,Writing Books - My Reviews by nutschell
Jun.10,2010

* NOTE: This article is actually from one of my webpages under Novel writing but I thought I’d post it anyway.

There’s a debate raging on about whether plot-driven stories or character-driven stories make better books. What’s the difference between the two anyway, you ask?

Character-driven stories are propelled forward by the characters of the book. The character’s actions, feelings, thoughts and choices cause the events to happen.  The famed Alice, for instance, fell down a rabbit hole – but she wouldn’t have been there if she hadn’t chosen to follow a certain white rabbit.

Plot-driven stories, on the other hand, are stories where things happen to the character. The characters react to the events happening around them and do not actively create the events or situations by themselves.

I, myself, am more partial to character-driven stories. I love a book that can make me relate to the character on its pages, and I love characters I can find similarities with. But that’s just me.  Whatever our preferences are, one thing is important to keep in mind: character and plot are inevitably intertwined. Without these two elements working hand in hand, a book will not stand the test of time.

The following books have been helpful to me with regard to creating my characters and developing my plot. They are invaluable references and are written by people who know what they’re talking about. I reread them constantly whenever I’m stuck on a character or story idea and I find their sage advice consistently helpful.

1. The Writer’s Journey: Mythic Structure For Writers (3rd Edition) By Christopher Vogler

writersjourney3rddrop2 203x300 Helpful Books for Character and Plot Development

Product Details

  • Paperback: 300 pages
  • Publisher: Michael Wiese Productions; 3rd edition (November 1, 2007)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 193290736X
  • ISBN-13: 978-1932907360
  • Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6 x 1.5 inches

About the Author

CHRISTOPHER VOGLER is Hollywood development executive who has worked for Disney, Fox and Warner Brothers.  If you’ve watched The Spiderwick Chronicles, Beowulf, 10,000 BC, I Am Legend, Hancock, Then She Found Me or The Wrestler, then you’ve seen the result of his consulting work.

About the Book (Amazon.com Review)

At the beginning of The Writer’s Journey, Christopher Vogler asserts that “all stories consist of a few common structural elements found universally in myths, fairy tales, dreams, and movies.” Some may be hard-pressed to accept this idea (and will wonder how storytellers from Homer to Shakespeare to Robert Altman might respond to the proposition). Others may imagine that since Vogler uses movies like the Star Wars trilogy and The Lion King to defend his mythological philosophy, he is, unwittingly, listing the reasons why Hollywood films of the last 20 years have been so unimaginative. But there’s no doubt that Vogler’s notion, based on psychological writings by Carl Jung and the mythmaking philosophy of Joseph Campbell, has been profoundly influential. Many screenwriters have used Vogler’s volume to understand why certain scenarios sell, and to discover a blueprint for creating mythic stories of their own.

Now in its second edition, The Writer’s Journey sets forth archetypes common in what Vogler calls “the hero’s journey,” the mythic structure that he claims all stories follow. In the book’s first section, he lists the different kinds of typological characters who appear in stories. In the second, he discusses the stages of the journey through which the hero generally passes. The final, supplementary portion of the book explains in detail how films like Titanic and The Full Monty follow the patterns he has outlined. –Raphael Shargel –

How the Book Helps Writers (Or My Review)

By combining Carl Jung’s psychological writings on Archetypes with Joseph Campbell’s myth-making lessons, Vogler has created a valuable tool for writers who’d like to create characters who stand out in our imagination. In this book, Vogler discusses eight archetypes and their role in the Hero’s Journey. More importantly, he talks about the twelve stages of the hero’s journey.

I had a story idea and several unconnected scenes in my head. Using the 12 Stages of the Hero’s Journey, I was able to create a sensible story arc with the scattered scenes. The chapter on archetypes also helped me flesh out my character with regard to the role they’re supposed to play in my story.

The book also has appendices which I found useful. The appendix on Polarity, in particular, helped me shape my hero and villain’s relationship with each other to create more conflict.

2. Inner Drives: How to Write and Create Characters Using the Eight Classic Centers of Motivation by Pamela Jaye Smith

inner drives1 199x300 Helpful Books for Character and Plot DevelopmentProduct Details

  • Paperback: 239 pages
  • Publisher: Michael Wiese Productions; illustrated edition edition (May 1, 2005)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1932907033
  • ISBN-13: 978-1932907032
  • Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces

About the Author

PAMELA JAYE SMITH is a Writer, Mythologist, Consultant, Speaker, and award-winning Producer/Director with international clients and credits in features, TV, commercials, music videos, documentaries, and corporate films.

About the Book (From the Author’s Website )

Inspiring and practical, INNER DRIVES goes to the very source of character motivation and action. Exploring the fascinating world of archetypes, mythology, and the chakra system, writers will learn to apply timeless principals of successful story-telling through fascinating examples and valuable exercises.

From patterns of speech to styles of walking, writers can use Pamela Jaye Smith’s guide to structure character arcs, devise backstories, up the conflict, pair up couples, and form ensembles — all with unique, believable characters.

Informative and entertaining, this book helps writers, directors, designers, development executives, and actors expand their artistry and influence on the audience to gain a creative advantage in a highly competitive industry.

How the Book Helps Writers (Or My Review)

Pamela Jaye Smith approaches character archetypes from the eight centers of motivation. According to her book, Centers of Motivation are bundles of actual physical nerves and their associated endocrine glands which affect us physically and emotionally through the particular hormones secreted by those glands. They are called Chakras in Sanskrit and are said to have etheric counterparts which influence us as well.

The book is divided into three sections. Section 1 is a background and explanation of the inner drives through the centers of motivation. Section 2 explains the eight individual centers.

The centers description is useful in showing how a character focused in a specific center of motivation should look, sound, fell, act and react according to their inner drive. For instance, a character whose center of motivation is in the Root center has only sheer survival as his inner drive and will stop at nothing to save his neck.

Using the insights in each part of section two, you can make your major characters more complex, create in depth backstories, and create other characters who will challenge their moods, thoughts, ideals, actions, etc. and make them more authentic characters.

Section 3 is about how to use the inner drives within and between characters in various combinations. This section is particularly helpful for creating internal conflict ( “a character torn between their own centers makes for very good drama”) and conflict between and among characters.

Once you’ve read the book, you’ll know not only when to plot certain actions but also what to do, why to do it and how to back it up with appropriate character motivation.

3. The Power of the Dark Side: Creating Great Villains by Pamela Jaye Smith

darkSideCover 200 Helpful Books for Character and Plot Development

Product Details

  • Paperback: 242 pages
  • Publisher: Michael Wiese Productions (May 1, 2008)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1932907432
  • ISBN-13: 978-1932907438
  • Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.7 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces

About the Author

PAMELA JAYE SMITH is a Writer, Mythologist, Consultant, Speaker, and award-winning Producer/Director with international clients and credits in features, TV, commercials, music videos, documentaries, and corporate films.

About the Book (From the Author’s Website)

Who doesn’t love the Dark Side? Darth Vader, Cruella De Vil, Tony Soprano – everybody loves a great villain. And every story needs dramatic conflict – internal and external – to really resonate. This comprehensive, accessible book gives you tools to write the most despicable villains.

Conflict is the very heart and soul of drama, and Smith’s latest work explores character conflict and the various ways to portray it both in scripts and on the stage.

Defining the Dark Side helps you select and clarify the worldview that influences your character’s actions.

How the Book Helps Writers (Or My Review)

All great books have great villains or antagonists.  If our stories were all rainbows and roses, it wouldn’t be much of a story. At the heart of a story is conflict – that baptism of fire that tests our characters and makes him or her come out better than before. Conflict, in this book, is otherwise known as the Dark Side.

The book is divided into six parts. In Part 1, Pamela Jaye Smith defines the Dark side and asks, and answers questions like:  What Is Evil? Who Is Evil? Why Is There Evil? What Does Evil Want? Why Is Evil Sometimes So Alluring? What’s The Difference Between Evil And Bad? What Can We Learn From Evil? How Do We Defeat/Defuse Evil?

In Part 2, Pamela Jaye Smith talks about the three levels of the dark side: The Dweller on the Threshold or our Personal demons; The Dark Forces or impersonal forces like the laws of physics, the elements, time, and nature itself; and The Dark Brotherhood or the Supra-Personal entities who control the cosmos and manipulate the evil in the world.

In Part 3 Pamela Jaye Smith describes in detail the many archetypes of villains and the many faces of evil. I found this particularly useful in my own book because I had no idea how to make my villain more evil so I could bring out the best in my hero. Part 3 discusses the anti-hero, the bad boys and girls like the tricksters, evil twins, pirates, bad cops, mad scientists, psycho killers; the evil empires, child warriors, big brothers, organized crime and religion, culture clashes and racism which are all brought about by groupthink; and paranormal evils such as witches, wizards, warlocks, ghosts, ghouls and gods.

Part 4 discusses the lure of the dark side and the many reasons evil-doers do what they do. It also discusses the devices the dark side employs to get their way such as: sleeping with the enemy, violence, dealing with the devil, power corruption, etc.

Part 5 is about confronting the dark side. It discusses the various defenses our good characters can use against them such as charms, chants, therapy, laughter, education, etc,

Part 6 is about working with the dark side—not literally, of course, but literarily. It gives us story tools which we can use to create the best evil we can for our stories.

Pamela Jaye Smith has kept her word and more when she promised the following things at the beginning of her book:

  • Your character will be richer if you know and include their worldview of evil, its origins, its goals and its methods, since these beliefs will color how they approach every aspect of the emotions and actions in the story.
  • Dramatic conflict can be enhanced by bringing different characters’ belief systems against each other, as well as taking a character through an arc from one belief to another, or to/from, from/to lack of belief

In conclusion, this book is the best out there if you want to create the best (or worst?) conflict you can for your own story. It’s the only book I’ll ever need to create a villain worthy of my hero and a dark side capable of bringing out the light in my characters.

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