The story-worthy problem is the beating heart of all superlative fiction. Unfortunately, creating this central core can often be overlooked. This is particularly true for writers relying on school training.

English teachers didn’t mind we used twenty-five metaphors on one page because their goal was to teach us how to properly use a metaphor…not how to write successful commercial fiction.

Creating the core problem and then—possibly (depending on genre)—the many overlapping layers and misdirections, is tough mental work.

Story as Structure

Like any structure, a story demands a strong foundation and sturdy frame. Without structure, it’s easy for author (and audience) to become lost.

Without those elements? The story caves in. But, foundations and framing aren’t nearly as fun as picking out paint, furniture, or drapes.

Face it, for most of us, decorating a house is much more fun than building one. This can be the same for stories. Crafting the perfect sentence, poring over descriptions, tinkering with dialogue is fun.

Alas, like our ‘building’ everything has a certain order. The story-worthy problem is critical.

It will be this problem (requiring a satisfactory resolution) that holds the structure together and gives meaning to the existence of all the players on the field (characters).

Lack of a Story-Worthy Problem

I began this craft series not only for those who want to write at a professional level, but also for those who might find themselves stuck. Writer’s block has often been attributed to laziness, but I don’t wholly agree.

I believe—for those stuck—your subconscious begins by pumping the brakes. This is the warning something is missing.

You start off writing and the word count soars. Usually this lasts about 10,000 words. Then, your pace steadily slows. Finally, around the 25,000 to 32,000 word mark everything begins to collapse.

By this point, it can feel you’re trying to drag a boulder through a swamp.

My opinion? This is your subconscious now slamming the brakes. Something is missing. What?

The reason for the story.

Finally? You set your hard work aside, frustrated. This is why most writers keep going back and reworking the beginning, which makes sense. It was the only time the words came easily.

We long to revisit that carefree flow. Description is easier.

Why Are We All Here?

The story-worthy problem is why we’re all here. It’s the sole reason for the MC (main character) to even exist. The story-worthy problem is the sole reason for any and all characters to exist.

Without that core problem, everything is fluff and window-dressing.

Notice I keep using the term ‘story-worthy’ problem. Not all problems are created equal.

We have to ask, ‘Why are we here?’ ‘What is the point?’ ‘Why would an audience CARE?’

We live in a world with innumerable other distractions and ways to be entertained. This said, WHY would a reader choose to dedicate 10-15 hours (average time to read a novel) to your book?

Frequently, when I edit, the lack of the core problem is the single largest reason writers either can’t seem to finish. Or, if they do finish, sales are lackluster.

They’ve not defined that compelling reason an audience would choose reading over social media, video games, or another episode of The Bachelor.

Audiences MUST CARE

I know this seems simple. But guess what? A basic soufflé is very simple, yet one of the most challenging dishes to successfully create. Simple doesn’t mean easy.

Compelling story problems actually begin very simple. How much is then layered onto this is a matter of genre and taste. Yet, the problem is the hook.

Even a work as soaring as Game of Thrones has a simple goal—secure The Iron Throne, stabilize the realms before winter arrives. Granted, this ‘simple’ story-worthy problem evolves into a vastly complex web of lies, betrayal, and intrigue.

But, the core goal is simple—secure The World’s Most Uncomfortable Chair.

Elementary, My Dear Watson…

In a mystery, the story-worthy problem is frequently the crime. It might be a murder, a burglary, a forgery, a stolen identity, whatever. The point of the mystery is to solve the crime and deliver justice.

During quarantine, I’ve been watching the fabulous and binge-worthy BBC Sherlock series. I’ve simultaneously been inhaling The Complete Sherlock Holmes. Sherlock is presented with a case and how do we know the story has ended?

The great detective has not only solved the case and identified the what, how, where, and who, but the perpetrator is exposed and apprehended.

That is the point of a mystery. Same can be said for detective and crime novels (eg. Harry Bosch series).

Genre & the Story-Worthy Problem

Genre acts as a useful guide to answering WHY we (the audience) are there. Thrillers usually involve beginning with an initial taste of the far larger plan the MC needs to stop.

In thrillers, there are BIG consequences (e.g. stopping a terrorist attack on The Palace of Westminster). Say a seemingly random bombing in the tube is anything but.

This initial act ignites the story-worthy problem. It’s no random bombing, rather a race against time to stop the larger and TRUE goal…a much larger bomb attack when the House of Lords and House of Commons meet to pass a certain piece of legislation.

Story-Worthy Problems: Thriller or Suspense?

Suspense differs in that the consequences are more personal. Many serial killer books are a good example. For instance, Red Dragon follows Thomas Harris’s hero Will Graham who nearly died apprehending Hannibal Lecter.

In Red Dragon, however, Graham is on the trail of a killer known as The Tooth Fairy who’s infamous for wiping out entire families indiscriminately (or so they believe).

Graham’s goal is to figure out the pattern that will reveal the identity of the killer and then stop him.

But, notice the difference between thrillers and suspense. The collateral damage differs in scope and scale.

Save future families from extermination (suspense) versus a plot to implode the Western political system (thriller).

For more on details on genre (and the many variations), I recommend my older posts Fizzle or Sizzle? How Genre is Fundamental for Story Success and Choosing a Genre: Anatomy of a Best-Selling Story.

What’s Missing?

Why am I talking about the story-worthy problem? First it follows as a natural progression from our initial discussions of The Big Boss Troublemaker.

The core problem can be simple for a short story as well as for a sweeping and layered space opera. The only difference is in plot and how much is layered on top of that strong core problem.

The Story-Worthy Problem MUST Exist

Sadly, as an editor, what I see too often is writers believe they have a novel, when in truth, they have 80,000 words of ‘bad things happening.’

Me: What is your story about?

Writer: My main character wants to find out about her past.

Me: Why?

Writer: Because she does.

Me: Why? What happens if she fails? What is so important about her finding out about her past?

Writer: *blank stare*

Most audiences aren’t interested in the literary equivalent of watching over the shoulder of a stranger reconstructing a family tree for no purpose other than ‘to know.‘

This isn’t a story-worthy problem.

Yet, this is a ‘story’ I’ve been presented with more times than I care to count. But look at what’s missing. There are no stakes, no burning reasons to learn about this character’s past that can engage an audience.

It’s like being trapped on an airplane with the passenger next to you relaying her nasty divorce. Not only do we not care…we probably would resort to feigning air sickness to escape.

But with some minor changes, it’s EASY to change this ‘bad situation’ and ‘non-story’ into something interesting. We add in the story-worthy problem…the WHY.

Everything is in THE WHY

The WHY influences the stakes, the ‘what will happen if the MC fails.’ So our MC wants to find out about her past. WHY?

What if she discovers she is adopted right after becoming newly married? Shocking enough, but then, during a routine medical exam, she finds out she has a very rare disease even the best specialists can’t figure out.

They only can surmise it’s a congenital illness and fatal. If she can find her birth parents, she might find the cure.

But, to make matters worse (raising the stakes) the same routine examination reveals she’s pregnant. Now her life isn’t the only one on the line.

She (and the physicians) don’t know how much longer she’ll be able to carry the baby without terrible consequences.

Now, it is a matter of life and death to find out about her past if she hopes to live, if she hopes to save her child. The stakes are about as high as they can get.

Additionally, the clock is very much ticking because her health is failing and two lives are on the line. Or, if you’re feeling froggy, raise the stakes and on the second sonogram she realizes it’s TWINS!

WHY Impacts & Guides Genre

My made-up example above can easily become a suspense.

When our imaginary MC begins looking into her past, someone tries to burn down her house. Her new husband is attacked. On and on.

The reason she was put up for adoption was to keep her safe. She was the daughter of a powerful and dangerous mob boss/drug lord/sadist of your choice. The irony is she must search out the person thought likely to kill her for the very key to her survival.

NOW we have a story-worthy problem.

Add in that it maybe isn’t a disease, it’s magic manifesting in her and now we have Urban Fantasy.

What I am hoping to make clear is the WHY inexorably leads us to a far more fascinating journey than ‘she wants to find out about her past and who she is.’

A ‘Simple’ Story-Worthy Problem

This next section is a spoiler alert if you haven’t seen the movie. Usually, I try to use movies that were also books and that followed closely to the books. That is a hard task.

Don’t always have this luxury.

I tend to shy away from action films, not only because the gun scenes and fight choreography are enough to give me apoplexy most of the time, but so many lack enough meat to the story I grow bored within fifteen minutes or less.

***If I am not screaming at the screen about magazine changes.

Action films devolve usually into mostly shooting, fighting, car chases and explosions….wash, rinse, repeat.

Yet, recently, I watched a fantastic Netflix-produced action film Extraction, starring Chris Hemsworth, Rudhraksh Jaiswal, Randeep Hooda.

This is the premise:

A hardened mercenary’s mission becomes a soul-searching race to survive when he’s sent into Bangladesh to rescue a drug lord’s kidnapped son.

If you’ve followed this blog long enough, I often lecture that ‘surviving’ is not an active goal. Be careful using this as a plot.

But the Netflix log-line might be a tad misleading. While this is an action film that rivals John Wick in fight choreography, in my POV, there is a VERY deep story to this that might not be obvious.

The ‘Not So Simple‘ Story-Worthy Problem

The biggest drug lord in Bangladesh (Amir) kidnaps the biggest drug lord in India’s son as a way to shame his rival. The one drug lord, Amir, knows Ovi Mahajan Sr. is imprisoned and his assets frozen.

When Amir kidnaps Ovi Jr. right from under Saju—the father’s head of security—Amir does this to humiliate his competition. He knows Ovi Sr. cannot afford the ransom nor afford to send anyone in to get back his son.

Ovi Sr. is therefore imprisoned and seemingly impotent with only the knowledge of the horrible fate of his son to think about.

Enter in our mercenary hero, Tyler Rake. This is clearly a man battling personal demons with an obvious death wish. Why? We don’t yet know.

It’s clear he carries a guilt he can’t deal with other than by immersing himself in painkillers, booze or wet work.

In fact, the entire reason he takes the job is it is, for all intents and purposes…a suicide mission. But, the private firm he works for believes they’ve landed ‘a whale’ (code for a client willing to pay millions).

Tyler goes in with the team and the extraction initially goes off without a hitch.

But then the money never comes through.

They’ve been played.

Saju, the head of security who lost the boy, used the team to lead him to the boy and plans to steal him away and deliver him safely home himself (to save his own son from the drug lord’s threats against HIS family).

Now Tyler is waging a multi-front battle (with no money to show for his pain). Every authority in Dhaka is in Amir’s pocket and the city locked down.

Saju is former special operations and hunting him. The city is a deadly labyrinth teeming with child gangs and informants ready spring on them at any time.

Tyler’s company orders him to leave the boy. It would be easy for him to slip out of the city and live. THIS is the critical turning point.

Story-Worthy Problem? A Shadow

In a rare moment of respite, Tyler bonds with the boy who opens up about what it is like to be the son of a man like Ovi Muhajan Sr. In doing this, he coaxes out the ghosts inside of Tyler.

Tyler’s son died of lymphoma at age six and he wasn’t there. He wasn’t there when his son died. His shame? He volunteered to be away because he was too much of a coward to watch his only son die.

Despite back-stabbing, treachery, and the instinct to survive telling Tyler that his best course is to leave Ovi Jr. and look out for himself, he can’t do it.

Until this point, his life or death had no meaning. BUT, in this final act…he can face his shame and be brave for one boy when he couldn’t be brave for his own.

Yes, it is a shoot-em up movie. Some might think there was little plot. But I actually saw a very rich depth to the story. It was a story of one man stepping off the road to perdition and choosing the path to redemption.

Yes, Tyler’s job? Save a notorious drug lord’s son, but fate had other plans. Saving the boy translated into his own salvation…a twist he could never have foreseen.

Ovi Jr. couldn’t help how his drug lord father failed him any more than Tyler’s son could help how his mercenary father wasn’t there when he was needed them most.

Tyler sees in Ovi Jr. a chance the boy might one day be different than his father. I believe the kidnapping changed both Tyler and Ovi Muhajan Jr.

Story-Worthy Problem? Shame

Story-worthy problems usually include story-worthy shame. I’ve blogged before on the power of shame.

I feel, when the screenwriters added in this thread of shame turned sacrifice? It elevated the entire movie from what might have otherwise been just another BANG BANG BOOM movie.

Simple…but far from simple. Ultimately, VERY intriguing a fascinating story-worthy problem.

I included the trailer (below) because I feel it’s a very good movie to study. Perhaps my ‘spoiler alerts’ might make you watch the movie with different eyes.

In the end, though, I get it’s not everyone’s taste. BUT if an action movie—a genre notorious for almost zero story and the emotional depth of a puddle—can make me think this much? I believe Netflix did a stellar job.

Some Lockdown Love

Speaking of the story-worthy problem. We are all living in some strange times, indeed. I haven’t merely been watching shoot-em up movies.

I’ve also been doing an incredible amount of studying so as to bring YOU GUYS—my fave peeps in the world—new and fresh classes.

Now that I’ve finally stopped coughing up a lung (or both) #FunWithCOVID…or not. I had to stop teaching for a while since it has been a LONG road and unpredictable road to feeling healthy again.

In the meantime, I’ve been reading…a LOT. Loads of audio books, paper books, and ebooks.

I’m finally finished Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Complete Sherlock Holme’s Heirloom Edition (58+ hours), the history of the Pinkerton Agency. Toss in some H.P. Lovecraft, Clive Barker’s Imajica (*groans*) and almost every book by Anthony Horowitz and we have a fair fruit salad of fiction there.

Puzzles are my passion. What could make a better story-worthy problem than murder or crime? But that’s me.

But I hope this blog has helped y’all understand the difference between a simple bad situation and the vastly different creature…the story-worthy problem. It may only be a simple tweaking, but the devil IS in the details.

Speaking of devils. As promised, I have three new classes and three ON DEMAND CLASSES I’m listing below.

Two commenters from the previous blogs get a free ON DEMAND class. I am also—inspired by my feverish readings—offering a SUPER brand new class…The Unreliable Narrator: Turning the Reader’s World Upside Down.

My apologies for the delays in blogs. Between trying to regain my strength, after having COVID-19, was late in the game filing taxes. Alas, life has been FUN…not. But…I…am…*gasps*…still…here. Taxes FILED! *happy dance*

I Love Hearing From You!

Does the idea of ‘bad things happening’ as opposed to a centralized CORE story-worthy problem make more sense now? If not, more blogs to come. Also, as promised, I’ve loaded a few remaining On Demand classes we’d not deleted from the server before I fell ill.

I’d expected to start teaching right away after the new year, but the relentless cough and wanting to DIE kind of got in the way of that.

But we’re getting BACK on schedule with some more Bad Lamb Goodness…or would that be Baaahhdness?

*bada bump snare*

For those who participated in my comments contest, I have not forgotten you….

Winner #1 Roger L Nay

Winner #2 Ruth Molenaar

See? Participation pays off! Just email me at kristen at wana intl dot com. Scroll down and let me know which On Demand Class interests you and it’s yours!

I’ll have some more new classes soon, but for now….

Trouble with Story-Worth Problems? NEW CLASSES to HELP!

There and Back Again: From Good Idea to Successful Novel

Class is May 26th, 2020 from 7:00-9:00 P.M. and a recording (as always) is provided with class purchase. Price is $50 but use lockdown15 for $15 off.

The Unreliable Narrator: Turning the Reader’s World Upside Down

Class is June 4, 2020 from 7:00-9-00 P.M. and a recording (as always) is provided with class purchase. Price of the class is $50 but use lockdown15 for $15 off.

For those who want BOTH classes PLUS a BONUS class as well as an EXCLUSIVE and PRIVATE workshop? I offer you…

The Deep Dive Bundle: Two Classes & EXCLUSIVE Log-Line Workshop

Almost nine hours of training! This also includes working one-on-one in a private workshop with moi! Workshop ONLY available to bundle participants. No discount codes because the discount built into the pricing. Recordings included.

Can’t wait to see y’all in class!

On Demand Classes

Ah, very few remaining On Demand classes we’ve not yet purged from the servers so take advantage while they remain.

On Demand: Dark Arts, Building Your Villain

$50 but use lockdown15 for $15 off ($35)

The Edge: How to Write Mystery, Suspense, & Thriller

$50 and use lockdown15 for $15 off ($35)

Tick Tock: How to Write a Mystery Suspense Series

$50 and use lockdown15 for $15 off ($35)

The post Creating a Story-Worthy Problem That Will Captivate an Audience appeared first on Kristen Lamb.

Which is more important? Plot or character? Though an interesting discussion—sort of like, Could Ronda Rousey take a Klingon with only her bare hands?—it isn’t really a useful discussion for anything other than fun. To write great fiction, we need both. Plot and characters work together. One arc drives the other much like one cog serves to turn another, thus generating momentum in the overall engine we call “STORY”.

If we goof up plot? Readers/Audiences get confused or call FOUL. Watch the movie Ouija for what I am talking about *shakes head*.

Goof up characters? No one cares about the plot.

New writers are particularly vulnerable to messing up characters. We drift too far to one end of the spectrum or the other—Super-Duper-Perfect versus Too Dumb to Live—and this can make a story fizzle because there is no way to create true dramatic tension. This leaves us (the frustrated author) to manufacture conflict and what we end up with is drama’s inbred cousin melodrama. 

If characters are too perfect, too goody-goody and too well-adjusted? If they always make noble, good and professional decisions? Snooze fest.

Again. Bad decisions make great fiction.

Of course, the other side of that is what I call The Gilligan Effect. Yes, I am dating myself here and don’t want to upset ant DIE-HARD Gilligan’s Island fans, but I remember being a kid and this show nearly giving me an aneurism (being the highly logical child I was).

After the third time Gilligan botched up the escape off the island? Kristen would have gone Lord of the Flies and Piggy Gilligan would have mysteriously gone “missing.”

I also recall how the stranded party could make everything out of coconuts except a freaking BOAT, and the only reason I kept watching was because it was better than being locked outside to play in heat that returned asphalt back to a plasma state (Yay, Texas summers!).

Today we are going to talk about how we can make characters flawed without crossing over into TDTL (Too Dumb To Live) Territory. That and I SO had to blog about something that let me share THIS! *giggles*

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yrrw0wNLc2g]

Let’s hide behind the CHAINSAWS!!!! *clutches sides*

Okay, I’m back *giggles*.

Great stories are filled with characters making bad decisions, and when this is done well, we often don’t really notice it beyond the winding tension in our stomach, the clenching that can only be remedied by pressing forward and seeing if it works out okay. When characters are properly flawed, the audience remains captured in the fictive dream.

When we (the writer) goof up? The fictive dream is shattered. The audience is no longer part of the world because they’re too busy fuming that anyone could be that stupid. They also now cease to care about the character because, like Gilligan? They kind of want said TDTL character to die.

If this is our protagonist? Extra bad. Our protagonist should make mistakes, just not ones so egregious the reader stops rooting for him/her.

Bad Decisions Birthed from The Flaw

When we create a protagonist, we should remember that all strengths have a complimentary weakness. If a character has never been tested by fire, the protagonist is blind to the weakness.

For instance, great leaders can be control freaks. Loyal people can be overly naive. Compassionate people can be unrealistic. Y’all get the idea.

This dual nature of human strength paired with fallibility is why plot is just as critical.

The plot is the crucible that tests the mettle and reveals and fires out the flaw. The strength ultimately will have to be stronger than the weakness because this is how the protagonist will grow to become a hero by story’s end.

A great example of this is one of my favorite movies, The Edge. Anthony Hopkins plays billionaire Charles Morse. Charles is extremely successful and very much in his own head. Though he’s a genius, he lives the sheltered existence of the uber-wealthy.

What happens when all that “head-knowledge” is what he needs to survive a plane crash in the unforgiving wilderness?

When the plane crashes and he and the other two survivors make it to shore, Morse does the right thing. He knows they need to get dry before they all die from hypothermia. He also realizes Stephen, the photographer, is in full panic. What is the intelligent thing to do? Put the photographer to work doing something fruitful to take his mind off his fear.

The problem, however, is Morse assumes the photographer has the same knowledge-base and doesn’t take time to show Stephen how to use a knife properly and the man is badly injured. Now we’ve already had a problem (plane crash) and now we have a complication (bad injury) and then it gets worse.

Morse, again, being an in-his-own-head-guy and unaccustomed to having to communicate WHY he wants certain things done, tells Robert Green to bury the bloody fabric. Green is jealous of Morse and rebellious and instead of following instructions and burying the material? He hangs the blood-soaked rags from a tree where an incoming storm whips up the scent of an newly opened All You Can Eat Buffet.

Soon, the men are being hunted by an apex predator with the munchies for humans.

But all of this was birthed from a myriad of flaws. Morse failing to communicate and assuming his comrades are operating with the same head knowledge (because he’s never HAD to use this type of information in a real-world way) and also the two photographers who are City People and don’t have the sense to know 1) NOT to drag a knife towards the body and 2) that the smallest scent of blood will draw predators.

These men are used to the “civilized world” and at the beginning, have failed to properly appreciate that their position at the top of the food chain is NOT static.

Bad Decisions Depend on Circumstances

Sometimes characters will make bad decisions simply because this is a completely new world or a set of circumstances they’ve never faced, thus have no way to fully appreciate. The “bad” decision was not a “bad decision” before the adventure.

A good example? Merry and Pippin in The Lord of the Rings. In the Shire, people talk and are sociable. These naive characters haven’t yet felt the consequences of this new and dangerous world. To them? Chatting away and freely sharing information at The Prancing Pony is NOT a bad decision in their minds. Neither is frying bacon on top of a mountain.

They’ve always lived a life that if they were in a pub? They drank and made friends. If they wanted bacon? They just made bacon. They’ve never had to think beyond their mood or stomachs and don’t have the experience base to realize that fire is a “Come and Kill Me” beacon to the enemy.

Bad Decisions Can Be Birthed From The Wound

We have talked about The Wound before. In Thelma & Louise what is the wound? A lifetime of male oppression. In Thelma’s case, her husband controls every aspect of her life. Thus, when she finally does get on her own, she has poor judgement and is naive and that’s how she nearly ends up raped in a honky-tonk parking lot.

Louise was raped and no one was there for her. She’s been a victim and doesn’t trust men or the law. Thus, her baggage is what leads her to shoot Thelma’s attacker, but then also dovetails into the really, really bad decision to run.

But if we look at all these examples from an analytical distance, these characters are just DUMB. But why aren’t they TDTL? Context. Because of plot we (the audience) are not staring down at them like specimens through a microscope. We are immersed in their worlds and thus empathize with the bad decisions.

The bad decisions are forgivable because unless we live in the Alaskan wilderness? We can empathize with maybe doing something seriously stupid if we were stranded, too. We (the audience) have “been” to the Shire and know what world created the childlike Merry and Pippin. We appreciate they are grossly out of their depth and give them a pass.

In Thelma & Louise we can understand how damaged people make poor decisions because, unless we’ve been living under a rock, we’ve made similar choices, and suffered consequences created from fear not reason.

What this means is that, while ALL of these characters made really wrong decisions, they are necessary and pardonable decisions that serve to drive the character arc and thus the plot’s momentum.

That is the final note on characters making bad decisions. Do we have a character making a mistake, withholding vital information, acting irrationally because it is coming from a deeper place of flaws, circumstance or wounds?

Or, do we have a character playing marionette? Characters are making a mistakes because we NEED them to. The tension has fizzled, so let’s just let them do something epically stupid (and random)?

Audiences can tell the difference between mistakes that are organic and flow from deeper emotional waters versus something contrived. And we can ALL be guilty of forcing characters to make bad choices simply because we sense tension is missing. Even I have to go back and ask the tough question…WHY is this character doing this?

For more help on how to use characters to ratchet anxiety to the nerve-shreding level, I am finally back teaching and offering my Understanding the Antagonist Class on April 18th and YES, it is recorded in case you miss or need to listen again because this class is jammed with information.

I LOVE teaching this simply because our antagonists are pivotal for writing a story readers can’t put down. Yet, too often we fail to harness characters for max effect. I look forward to seeing you there! I also offer the Gold level for one-on-one. Maybe you’ve hit a dead end. Your story is so confusing you need a GPS and a team of sherpas to find the original idea. Instead of wasting time with misguided revisions, I can help you triage your WIP and WHIP it into fighting form .

What are your thoughts regarding characters making poor decisions? What are some of your favorite examples? Ever quit a book, movie, or show because you wanted everyone to DIE? Did you hate Gilligan, too? Do you think Ronda Rousey could take on a Klingon with her bare hands?

I love hearing from you!

To prove it and show my love, for the month of MARCH, everyone who leaves a comment I will put your name in a hat. If you comment and link back to my blog on your blog, you get your name in the hat twice. What do you win? The unvarnished truth from yours truly. I will pick a winner once a month and it will be a critique of the first 20 pages of your novel, or your query letter, or your synopsis (5 pages or less).

For those who need help building a platform and keeping it SIMPLE, pick up a copy of my latest social media/branding book Rise of the Machines—Human Authors in a Digital World on AMAZON, iBooks, or Nook. 

The post The Difference Between "Flawed" Characters and "Too Dumb to Live" appeared first on Kristen Lamb.

Image via the movie 28 Days by Columbia Pictures.

Creating a core story problem is essential for any kind of fiction. Dimensional characters should have an inner want, a desire. The story problem is what shoves them out of that comfort zone and dares the character to try and maybe even fail.

There is a great quote in David Corbett’s The Art of Character:

One of Constantin Stanislavski’s key innovations was recognizing the central role of desire in our depiction of the human condition. The fundamental truth to characterization, he asserted, is that characters want something, and the deeper the want, the more compelling the drama. Desire is the crucible that forges character because it intrinsically creates conflict.

It is not enough for a protagonist to sit and think about how she really needs to be a better team player, to have a home, to find love, to overcome addiction, to fit in.

SHOW IT

This can be easier when the plot problem is clearer. In murder mysteries, the goal is to find the killer. In thrillers? Locate the terrorists and stop the bomb. But what about the more existential stuff? This is where a lot of writers can get lost and end up navel-gazing instead of writing great fiction.

Man Against Himself

Your antagonist will often represent the shadow side of the nature your protagonist wants to overcome. If she is an alcoholic, then her old boozing best friend, her alcoholic family, or her heavy drinking coworkers are all antagonists (either scene antagonists or the core antagonist—Big Boss Troublemaker—responsible for the core story problem in need of resolution by Act III).

The BBT creates the story problem. In 28 Days, the BBT is alcoholism, but a PROXY—a judge who’s job is to punish drunk drivers—sentences the protagonist Gwen Cummings to rehab (creating story problem). If Gwen doesn’t complete rehab (ticking clock), she goes to jail (stakes). Yet, though the judge creates the problem and the stakes, he’s not seen more than a couple times.

The real force of tension her being placed in a position where she must choose between the hard-partying boyfriend, Jasper (who represents ALCOHOLISM), who wants his girlfriend to go back to being fun (drinking) versus counselor Eddie Boone (represents SOBRIETY) who offers her the path to a sober life and authentic love. Drinking and Jasper allow her to numb the demons, whereas Boone forces her to face the real reason she drinks and challenges her to a sober life.

BUT…if Gwen hadn’t gotten busted for DUI (story problem), her demons could have remained happily trapped inside her as she partied with Jasper. The STORY PROBLEM forces the internal demons to the surface and grants Gwen opportunity to succeed or fail.

Without being sentenced to rehab, Gwen could remain in pain, drinking the demons into silence.

In your current WIP? Is there a CORE STORY PROBLEM in need of resolution? Can your protagonist fail? What are the stakes? What are the consequences?

Man Against Nature

No, we are not interested in a 70,000 word book about bad weather. Nature is often the backdrop, the catalyst that drives the interior flaws to the surface for the character(s) to succeed or fail. Often Man Against Nature will also be a Man Against Man (The Perfect Storm) often coupled with Man Against Himself (Left for Dead–My Journey Home from Everest).

Man Against Society

Again, what issue are you (the writer) wanting to tackle? If it’s how blacks are treated in Southern white society of the 1960s? Create a protagonist caught in the middle of this dilemma (The Help), and an antagonist who represents all this protagonist is fighting against.

Celia Foote (antagonist) represents the repression the protagonist is battling.

An aspiring (female) author, in the midst of the Civil Rights movement, decides to write a book about the struggles of the African American women who rear and care for so many of the wealthy white children. This story forces the protagonist onto a battlefield where she will be forced to choose sides and answer these tough questions as stakes grow steadily higher.

In Footloose, the BBT was religious fundamentalism that forbade dancing, represented by the town preacher (and father of the love interest).

Writers can tackle major societal issues. It’s what we do and how we’ve been changing the world for centuries. Yet, to really connect with a reader, it’s a good idea to focus that issue in the manifestation of something tangible. Fascism is evil, yet hard to wrap our heads around. Ah, but fascism represented by Adolf Hitler? THAT places fascism in context and focuses our emotions and repulsion.

What are your thoughts? Questions? Did this clear up some of your struggles? Or are you more confused than ever? What are some of your favorite books or movies that addressed deep human issues, and how did they do it?

I love hearing from you!

To prove it and show my love, for the month of May, everyone who leaves a comment I will put your name in a hat. If you comment and link back to my blog on your blog, you get your name in the hat twice. If you leave a comment, and link back to my blog, and mention my book We Are Not Alone in your blog…you get your name in the hat THREE times. What do you win? The unvarnished truth from yours truly.

I will pick a winner once a month and it will be a critique of the first 20 pages of your novel, or your query letter, or your synopsis (5 pages or less).

And also, winners have a limited time to claim the prize, because what’s happening is there are actually quite a few people who never claim the critique, so I never know if the spam folder ate it or to look for it and then people miss out. I will also give my corporate e-mail to insure we connect and I will only have a week to return the 20 page edit.

At the end of May I will pick a winner for the monthly prize. Good luck!

The post DON'T TALK ABOUT IT—Drive the Flaw to the Surface for Great Fiction appeared first on Kristen Lamb.