Everything I Learned About Writing I Learned From Shakespeare

Today marks the anniversary of Shakespeare's birth ... and death. At Stratford-Upon-Avon, 450 years ago, one of the best-ever tale spinners made his way into the world.

As a former English instructor, I see nuances of Shakespeare's style shine through in a lot of books that I read. He definitely influences legions of scribes who create alternate worlds and unique people and shape all those wonderful elements into a breathtaking work of art.

And, when I taught the tales of love of woe to swooning or pretentious teens - Romeoo and Juliet or Macbeth  or Much Ado About Nothing - I guided students to look for the moral lessons behind the story, the applicable story elements that resonated with each of their lives. I pointed out the craftily-worded phrases that were embedded in my memory from my teenage years (when my dad was my English teacher and pointed out the same phrases).

And, one of the most important lessons I taught students was decipher how to balance good and evil within the power triangle of themes: love, power and revenge.

It's a lesson I put into practice every time I open a book or start crafting my own fiction.

For example: Macbeth - my personal favorite when it comes to Shake's work. The quest for power dominates the storyline yet within that quest, forces of good and evil work together and against each other to create tension. Think about the actions of the witches and how they create a sort of fantasy inside Macbeth's head. Once the seed is planted, a bit of tug of war begins in his mind, until ultimately, he's converted to the dark side.

Once that storyline is established, Shakespeare introduces the second predominant theme: love. A strong love story filled with conflict drives any story. Shakespeare is the master. He pits a somewhat henpecked Macbeth against his strong-willed wife. Do they love each other? Yes, but she sees opportunity and uses her warped sense of love and desire to drive Macbeth further into darkness.

Ah, the plot thickens.

For added measure, Shakespeare weaves in strands of the revenge theme. Macbeth takes revenge on those who purportedly kill Duncan. Macduff seeks revenge on Shakespeare. Good triumphs over evil.

If you think about your favorite books, most use a combo of the power triangle because it is the easiest way to set up the underlying movement that moves a story forward. That underlying movement is conflict and tension. Without these elements, a stagnate story is born.

And who wants that?

What Shakespearean writing concepts do you use?

By LuAnn Schindler 

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2 comments Conflict, creating conflict, creating tension, LuAnn Schindler, shakespeare, shakespearean themes, tension, themes, writing like shapespeare

Generating Suspense in Fiction

It happened. Again.

I picked up a new novel, excited to dive in, only to find myself disappointed almost from word one.

What was the missing element?

Suspense!

A strong sense of suspense snakes its way around you, through your mind (and maybe sense of reality), and pounces immediately.

Need to get a grip and add a tinge (or ton) of suspense to your WIP? Try these tips. They'll get the hair to stand up on the back of readers' necks and cause them to cheer for your characters!

1. Begin immediately. It's common sense, but think about the number of times you've read or written a scene that doesn't begin with tension. Instead, you (or the author you are reading) start with casual details, attempting to create backstory or establish setting. Face it. It's not working. So, why not jump right in and show what's wrong? One of the best examples I've read that begins building suspense from the first word on the page is Love You to Death by Shannon K. Butcher. (Check out my interview with Shannon.)
2. Develop empathy. Does character drive suspense or does suspense drive character? Until the reader feels a sense of empathy for the character and the impending conflict, the writer should be building suspense. Sure, the suspense doesn't have to pound you on the head; it can be subtle, but it should create a empathy, devise and spread a sense of understanding the motivation of a character. One of my favorite examples of a subtle use of suspense is in Caroline Leavitt's novel, Pictures of You. I read it in an afternoon sitting, crying while I read, because of the empathy I developed for one of the characters. 
3. Find the flow. Building suspense reminds me of listening to music. Action builds to a crescendo before it plummets to the abyss, then builds again, sometimes adding staccato, sometimes extending a whole note for an extra beat. Suspense thrives on flow and rhythm. Strong comedic pieces create  suspense, too, utilizing rhythm and flow to keep readers off guard. One of my favorite examples for establishing rhythm comes from author Claire Cook. Just when you think you've reached the pinnacle, her words take you to another level, and that gentle, lulling rhythm keeps you tuned in. Check out Best Staged Plans as an example.

These basic storytelling elements will add a strong, suspenseful presence that's sure to hook readers...and keep them coming back for more!

How do you create suspense? Suggest a novel that starts with a suspense-building scene.

by LuAnn Schindler

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2 comments creating rhythm, creating tension, develop empathy with character, empathy, generating suspense in fiction, LuAnn Schindler, suspense, tension, writing suspense

Where Should I Break My Chapter?

For my latest WIP, a middle grade fantasy novel, I tried something different in terms of chapter breaks. In the first draft, I didn’t use any. Sentences and paragraphs worked as they usually do and I inserted an extra line wherever I needed to indicate a passage of time or some such.

I didn’t do this because I intended to leave my manuscript chapter free. I did it because of my writing goals. While I was drafting the manuscript, I set a daily page goal. I know myself well enough to realize that if I finished a chapter and it was one or two pages short of my daily goal, I would probably stop for the day. My solution was to simply get the story down. I’d worry about chapters later.

I didn’t bother with chapters until I was well into the rewrite process. Doing it only after the plot was more or less set and I had my scenes in order, I was more aware of how I used chapters to break up my story.

Scene by Scene
Normally, each of my chapters is a separate scene. When I move on to the next scene, I add a chapter break. This works well because I tend to write scene-by-scene. Even in this manuscript some of my chapters begin and end with an individual scene. But as I inserted chapter breaks, I realized that this wasn’t always the best use of my chapters in terms of building tension.

Reversals
At the beginning of the chapter, my character always has a goal, something she wants to find or hopes to accomplish. But, as often happens in life, someone or something comes along and messes everything up. This isn’t a moment of physical danger. It can be as simple as getting a message with a key bit of information. Whatever it is, my character needs to set a new goal. My job is to decide which builds the tension – including that goal at the end of one chapter or at the beginning of the next.

Cliff Hangers
Sometimes my character is struggling to meet the goal that she had at the beginning of the chapter and she is put in danger. All of a sudden, the rope she is climbing breaks. Or, she’s supposed to be alone, and someone speaks behind her. Or an alarm goes off. When I pick a time like this to add a chapter break, I create a cliff hanger and drive my reader to turn the page to read what happens next.

As you work on your current project, look at how you use chapter breaks. Are you making the best use of your chapter breaks?

–SueBE
SueBE blogs at One Writer's Journey.

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1 comment chapter breaks, chapters, creating tension, tension

A Fish Tale: Plotting Trouble

I’m at the beach this week and taking a little time to work on plotting. I’ve been wondering about trouble, as in how to make trouble for my protagonist, and then I remembered a fish story.

Many years ago, I was sitting in a lounge chair on the beach, when a boy, fishing in the ocean, pulled on his line and started yelling.

And so his friends came running, and the boy heaved and heaved, and the line bowed and bowed. A crowd started to gather, watching this boy trying to pull in whatever was on the other end of that line.

The line began to drag the boy down the beach. He splashed through the water, running parallel to the shoreline, block after block, always pulling on the line. He looked like the Pied Piper of Hamelin in surfer shorts, with little kids and big kids, moms and dads, old-timers and me, too, following behind him, shouting and asking, “What is it? What could it be?”

Until finally, we saw it, skimming the top of the shallow water—a stingray’s wingspan—and it was huge! The gray behemoth’s barbed tail flashed, and then suddenly, it flicked those wings and with a snap, the line broke. The boy fell on the sand, exhausted.

That was some kind of high drama, and I’ve never forgotten it. And working now on my plot, I’m reminded that if I want good drama, I need bad troubles.

Every story has a protagonist that wants something. The boy on the beach, for example, wanted to bring in the fish on the other end of that line. Lots of kids and adults were fishing at the water’s edge that day, wanting the same thing. But I’ve remembered that particular boy for one reason: he had a whole lot of trouble reaching his goal.

He slipped and slid down that beach, playing out his line, matching wits with the unknown. He hollered to his friends for help. The strain on his face, the tension in his biceps, was visible testament to his refusal to give up! He was absolutely compelling in his quest, and that made his story compelling.

So don’t make it easy for your protagonist to reach his or her goal. Make that protagonist work! Throw in obstacles, ramp up the troubles!

I guarantee you’ll land one whopper of a story.

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5 comments creating tension, drama, plotting, writing craft, writing tips

Cooking Up Complications: Making Things Tough for Your Character

Don’t make things easy on your character. In fact, you should make things as difficult as possible. Most of us know this and we throw one complication after another in the path of our beloved character.

When it comes time to cook up a complication, many writers turn to their character’s flaws. Perhaps a character, let’s call her Marie, who is a compulsive shopper needs to get home for her sister’s wedding. Unfortunately, she’s maxed out her credit cards and can’t charge the air fare.

In many ways this works. You have the complications you need to create tension and, if you handle the story in the right way, your character grows by the time your reader reaches the last word. Marie scrambles around returning and selling all that she can. By the time she can afford the air fare she’s realized how little all this stuff meant and how truly grateful she is to make it back to her family.

Not bad for a feel good story but what if you want to create something with more tension? More depth? Then the complications need to go deeper. Create a moral dilemma for your character with complications based on her strengths.

This time we are working with Diane. Diane’s friends and family love her honesty because she isn’t going to hide facts or sugar coat reality when they go to her for advice. This unwillingness to lie could make some people harsh but Diane is also incredibly loyal. She truly has the best interests of her husband and friends at heart.

Now let’s consider how these positives can become negatives.

Scenario: The company Diane’s husband works for is failing. He has confided in his wife but the information can’t be made public for weeks. If it is, he will never find another job in the industry. Unfortunately, Diane’s best friend has come into an inheritance. She wants to invest the money to assure a good life for herself and her children. She is consider the failing company as her primary investment.

Diane can’t be honest and loyal to both her husband and friend at the same time. Instant moral dilemma.

Now its your turn. Look for ways to use your character’s strengths to create tension and soon she’ll face a moral dilemma that will drive the story forward and keep your readers talking long after the last word has been read.

–SueBE

Author Sue Bradford Edwards blogs at One Writer's Journey.

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