marycatelli | Entries tagged with middles

Yes, there are always questions about "what goes here?" while writing, but this time, after I put a question in a crucial moment, the muse starts to babble about questions.

At the turning points, the heroine's victories will turn on her having correctly framed the questions. Victory turns on that.

Not, of course, that I have three questions (and answers) for the three crucial points. I may have to generate one. sigh

Juggling two outlines -- trying to keep them traveling in separate lines -- and the one that seemed to have more of a story has proven -- sketchy. The heroine has to solve problems, but that means I have to define the problems.

Meanwhile the other one is revealing that there are animal themes among the magic involved. Go figure.

Had a story idea, months ago. It dumped a character into the middle of a big problem, and I had no idea how the problem existed or what she could do to solve it.

Had another idea, wherein she figured out that there are two sets of spell-slingers, one of which is evil, one of which is as much a victim of the first as anyone else -- perhaps more. And resolved the matter.

All right! Plunge into the outline! Discover that the middle is still entirely vague!

Oh, well, I have a few inklings.

essayed again

The hero is about to kill another evil wizard living under the protection of the king's knights.

( Read more... )

One advantage of a plot structure -- Save the Cat, Hero's Journey, Lester Dent's, what have you -- is that it gives you a place to put story ideas in order when the story is incomplete.

( Read more... )

Along comes inspiration: a vivid and moving scene. In the middle of the plot -- in media res.

I ponder how on earth the characters in it met.

Needless to say there's no inspiration there. (I can't even start the story in media res because the question of how they met will come up even if I did so.)

sigh

Got ideas. Got a lot of ideas. They go together nicely but do seem to spell out a series.

( Read more... )

And how long can you make a series? Was pondering this question and hit on a blog post that made me think more on the answer.

( Read more... )

The heroine is on a quest.

Go to I Know Not Where, Bring Back I Know Not What --

Which is technically true. She wants something to solve a problem, but she doesn't know exactly what. Those are fun to organize.

Fortunately, though she is not in a fairy tale and doesn't get a mysterious figure to advise her, she had a clue from the start, and followed it to where she has another. It introduces a complication.

Ah, getting somewhere in your story
( Read more... )

Crossposts: https://marycatelli.livejournal.com/1336226.html

There I was having happily matched up the princes to their tales and plugged along with the story.

Then I thought of having her father's coronation in the story to provide some variation and set up a location.

( Read more... )

Crossposts: https://marycatelli.livejournal.com/1302956.html

How should her search go?

( Read more... )

Crossposts: https://marycatelli.livejournal.com/1296326.html

Knowing how the story ends does not tell me how the middle goes. I could do a travelogue, but that would mean no rising action, and there's too much plot for that. (Ironically enough, the first outline had to be junked because it rose too fast, too soon.)

( Read more... )

Crossposts: https://marycatelli.livejournal.com/1294868.html

Been a while. And usually ideas come and go and never return. But Jonnet wandered by to casually observe the fix for my dilemma.

( Read more... )

Crossposts: https://marycatelli.livejournal.com/1294736.html

All stories need outlines because otherwise they peter out in the middle. (sometimes they peter out in the outline, which is less frustrating.)

( Read more... )

Crossposts: https://marycatelli.livejournal.com/1252435.html

Opening scenes of a novel: villain hears a prediction that the heroine might be trouble, and frightens her to help avert it.

Closing scenes of a novel: villain attacks

( Read more... )

Crossposts: https://marycatelli.livejournal.com/1221962.html

I know the ending, I know up to the (exact) middle. . . .

It occurs to me that the first thing that will happen at the midpoint when they realize what they need to use something the queen has. And it will be of advantage to her if they have it and use it.

( Read more... )

I have the beginning up to the point at which the team forms and knows what villainess they face (and are aware there's two more in existence, though they do not realize how they will actually interfere with the problem).

( Read more... )

Crossposts: https://marycatelli.livejournal.com/1183548.html

The fun and games of the middle of a story --

( Read more... )

Crossposts: https://marycatelli.livejournal.com/1177858.html

Profile

marycatelli

June 2025

S	M	T	W	T	F	S
1	2	3	4	5	6	7
8	9	10	11	12	13	14
15	16	17	18	19	20	21
22	23	24	25	26	27	28
29	30

Syndicate

Page Summary

Style Credit

Style: Over The Hills for Bannering by branchandroot
Resources: OpenClipart

Expand Cut Tags

No cut tags

Page generated Jun. 13th, 2025 03:22 pm

Mary Catelli's Erraticly Updated and Exceedingly Ill-Organized Journal

being chiefly about the written word

Entries tagged with middles

questions

something happens here

muddle in the middle

Inspiration And Aristotle

rule of three

outlining out of order

in media muse

juggling ideas

series and structure

next stop on the quest

plot points

oh you prince

a foe in every port?

twists and turns

The Return of Jonnet

center of the story

so what's a villain to do?

plot holes

beginnings, ends, and middle

fun and games