Angela VanWell

Author | Reader | Traveler | Tea and Coffee Drinker

NaNoWriMo

My Writing Journey: Writing a Killer Prologue and Epilogue

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We made it to the final chapter of the book! And the best part is it is a bonus chapter. The focus of this chapter is on prologue and epilogue development.

Prologues are set before Chapter One. Many readers prefer to skip the prologue, according to the exercise book Plot Development Step by Step by Jesper Schmidt & Autumn M. Birt– I for one always read them — so if you are to add one, ensure it is engaging and revealing information interesting enough to hook the reader.

A book with a fantastic prologue is Elantris by Brandon Sanderson. For those who read my Inspiring Author of the Week posts, yes. I chose this one because I spent the last week back in Brandon Sanderson’s story world. So it was the first one that popped out at me!

Elantris was beautiful, once. It was called the city of the gods: a place of power, radiance, and magic. Visitors say that the very stones glowed with an inner light, and that the city contained wondrous arcane marvels. At night, Elantris shone like a great silvery fire, visible even from a great distance.

Yet, as magnificent as Elantris was, its inhabitants were more so. Their hair a brilliant white, their skin an almost metallic silver, the Elantrians seemed to shine like the city itself. Legends claim that they were immortal, or at least nearly so. Their bodies healed quickly, and they were blessed with great strength, insight, and speed. They could perform magics with a bare wave of the hand; men visited Elantris from all across Opelon to receive Elantrian healings, food, or wisdom. They were divinities.

And anyone could become one.

The Shaod, it was called. The Transformation. It struck randomly—usually at night, during the mysterious hours when life slowed to rest. The Shaod could take beggar, crafts­man, nobleman, or warrior. When it came, the fortunate person’s life ended and began anew; he would discard his old, mundane existence, and move to Elantris. Elantris, where he could live in bliss, rule in wisdom, and be worshipped for eternity.

Eternity ended ten years ago.

Elantris prologue, Brandon sanderson

The first line hooked me in. The idea of of place of eternal beauty, before set my imagination on fire. What happened? Then he followed up with a visually engaging view of Elantris and how it was open to those who were mysteriously chosen. Where they could be turned from a beggar into a ruler to be worshipped for eternity. However, eternity ended. How can eternity end?

The setting up of the history of Elantris through visual details engaged my senses and drew me to the story. I needed to know what happened as well as what is happening now, after eternity.

An epilogue can be used in a similar matter. It can be used to add to the reader’s understanding of the character, their personal growth since the final chapter, or it can be used to set up the next book in the series. I am a serial series reader, so I am always hoping for the next book in a series. Having a piece of writing that alludes to what is coming, is a glimpse into the next adventure I cannot wait to read.

An epilogue that shows character growth and their paths in the future I enjoyed was the ending of the Wheel of Time Series by Brandon Sanderson and Robert Jordan. It is too long to share the full ending so I have to excerpts from it:

“I see the answer now,” [Rand] whispered. “I asked the the Aelfinn the wrong question. To choose is our fate. If you have no choice, then you aren’t a man at all. You’re a puppet.”

Memory of Light, Robert Jordan & Brandon Sanderson

The wind blew southward, through knotted forests, over shimmering plains, and toward lands unexplored. This wind, it was not the ending. There are no endings, and never will be endings, to the turning of the Wheel of Time.

Memory of Light, Robert Jordan & Brandon Sanderson

The final quote is one of the last paragraphs in the series. It is similar to how the series began, with the wind and the understanding of the Wheel of Time. The text suggests the epilogue be kept short. But when the epilogue is the end of a fourteen book series, I think there is an expectation of all the character arcs and the story arc to be complete. A chance to say goodbye to the characters we loved and hated.

Thus ends my examination and execution of the exercise book Plot Development Step by Step by Jesper Schmidt and Autumn M. Birt. I think this book supported my story development and outline, made it stronger. Soon I will find out if it makes the editing process shorter. NaNoWriMo has one week left and I am currently at 45,463 words. I look forward to finishing the book and in another month, the editing process.

Next week I will examine a story exercise suggested by Neil Gaiman in the Masterclass Course. Happy Writing!

My Writing Journey: Pillar 6 Deepening the Plot

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Pillar 6 is all about revising the outline. Just like with a first draft of a book, Jesper Schmidt and Autumn M. Birt, authors of Plot Development Step by Step, believe the outline requires revision. Looking at the outline as a whole provides the opportunity to look at pacing, balance of Point of View (POV), as well as ensuring both the internal and external plot lines are clear.

The Revision Chapter, or Pillar 6, is a set of questions to ask yourself while working through the outline. They suggest you go through the manuscript outline chapter by chapter. I do not write or outline in chapters, I write in scenes. So the first thing I need to do is to combine my scenes into chapters and cut a part of the last scene so it can end in a cliffhanger and start the next chapter. It was not too difficult for me to do so because this novella is written from one character’s point of view.

A few of the questions to consider when going through your outline are:

  • Will both the “E” (external) and “I” (internal) plotlines be clear to the reader?
  • Are the subplots paced well and merged with the overall plot? Refer to Pillar 3 for the subplot development.
  • Do all of the POV (Point of View) characters have complete character arcs incorporated in the outline? Refer to Pillar 1 for the Character Arc. Check for a clear positive, negative, or neutral character arc.
  • Has your protagonist(s) struggled enough?
  • Is there a balance of humour and darkness in the story?
  • Are the relationships given the attention needed for the story?

My outline was almost 9,000 words in length by the time I had completed it. I have written to the midpoint at this time, (November 14th, NaNoWriMo is almost half over!) It was a nice buffer to have the outline made and input in my document. I was able to shape many of the statements into scenes, dialogue, settings, so many of the original words are still in place. When writing my outline I am telling the story to myself. So changing it into a manuscript is partially changing the telling into showing. Adding description, reactions, thoughts, dialogue, and action to each of the scenes.

The final Pillar of the book is Pillar 7, revising opening and closing chapters. I have written my opening chapter so I think the exercise will make it a stronger opening, it will be interesting to see how it impacts the closing chapter. I should be 3/4 of the way through writing the book, so I should be writing Act 3 at that time. I look forward to both!

Just get it down on paper, and then we’ll see what to do with it.

Maxwell Perkins

Happy Writing!

Moving During NaNoWriMo in 2020 is Challenging

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I was optimistic. I thought it was possible to do both. How could I not pack the car, drive, unpack the car, repeat? In the small gaps of time between, I could write. After all, I am getting used to being Between.

Between countries, between houses, between times. That is what 2020 had been to our family. The Between Times. I had big plans with an ambitious timetable. We moved out of the Netherlands in December of 2019 and moved to our temporary accommodations in the USA in the same month (Home 1). We brought in the New Year in a whole new place a celebrated our latest adventure. This would be the eighth move between countries. But then COVID struck.

I am not a negative person, but it hit all of us around the world hard in different ways. In our case, the borders between Canada, our passport country, and the USA while we were in Canada visiting family. We had just (And I mean I had less than a week) unpacked our new house in Houston (Home 2). All of the main level furniture was in the living room because my husband was in Argentina while I was unpacking, and I have learned my lesson about moving heavy furniture alone. Well, I have learned not to try and go up and downstairs with furniture without help. So we decided to stay in Canada while the border was closed for a month and the world adapted to isolation and lockdown. We relocated to my grandparents’ homestead as no one was using it at the time (Home 3). It was the first time my daughter lived on a farm. The perfect time to see what it was like to live with no close neighbours. But then my husband was told to return to work, so he crossed the border and left us up north.

Once our daughter finished school, I left her with my mom. It was our original plan for our daughter to spend the summer with our family while I focused on my writing and we settled our new home (Home 3). Instead, our daughter stayed with family while we finished moving into the house and packing the car. We decided it was in our best interest to move our daughter and myself to Canada since I could no longer work in the USA. No new work visas meant I was out of luck. So I drove up north, collected our daughter, and moved in with our friends (Home 4).

We would stay with our friends while I signed up our daughter for the local school and waited for our house to be available. I am so fortunate to have good friends who were willing to double their home occupancy while we waited for our home. We kept our Canadian house and other people were living in it. This was in August. Finally, in November, we have our house back (Home 5).

So now, once again, we clean. We clean because…. COVID. It is best to make sure the house is empty and disinfected. More so then I have done between our other world moves. And this makes me tired. So tired. And that is why I am now behind on my writing and my blog posts. I apologize for not posting the Inspiring Author of the Week post Tuesday with Faith Hunter. I simply have been too focused on cleaning our newest home. But now the beds are made, the kitchen stocked, so tomorrow I will catch up. I promise.

My Writing Journey Pillar V: Plot Validation

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My outline is written, the plot points highlighted, my characters are ready to jump in. To be honest, they already have! NaNoWriMo started November 1st. Of the 50,000 words I am challenged to write this month, I am already 12,846 in. The reason I know the number, down to the word, is that the NaNoWriMo site keeps tract to support writers on their journey. If you want to join us, it is never to late! Sign up and join in.

There are many pansters, people who write as ideas come to them, also know as gardeners who take part in NaNoWriMo, I tried but failed. I found the beginning each writing session without an idea of where story was going was too daunting for me. Somedays I spent my writing time writing myself into corners and then having to write myself out of them again. It was stressful and the book was shelved as a learning experience.

Since then, I took classes to explore writing, editing, and the publishing industry. They were also great learning experiences, but I was no closer to writing the first draft of a full length novel. Then I found outlining. A nice way for me to explore my characters and put them into challenging situations. For me this looked like a good fit. It is the reason I picked up Plot Development Step by Step, the workbook the Pillars used for the novella I am writing this NaNoWriMo are outlined from.

Pillar V, The Tension Graph, is a validation method for the tension building of the plot. The first step was determine my novella’s story arc. The three main arcs mentioned in the book are the Traditional Arc, The Cliffhanger Arc, and The “Soft” Cliffhanger Arc.

The three charts below are from the Plot Development book and can be found on their podcast:

The tension increases until the story climax. Stand alone stories, such as romances, have this arc.

The tension increases until the story ends with a dramatic twist or the character is left in a precarious situation. Serial stories often have this arc.

The tension increases and the main plot ends. There is second inciting incident at the end of the story. Book series often follow this arc.

As my novella is a prequel to a trilogy, my intention is for story to end with a soft cliffhanger arc. For Ally and Riley to have a complete adventure with ends in an inkling of how the next book will start. As the trilogy is already in draft form, it is the best way for me to end the story.

So I need to determine the tension level of each scene. As every scene should move in a positive or negative direction, there should be movement progressing in one of the two directions. I then look at the cumulation of the tension build and where it increases and lay it on the appropriate story arc. Does it align well? Are there places where there is a prolonged time before tension builds? This is the time to go back and change around the outline so the tension continues to rise, and the story is well paced.

For my outline, the ending, or the denouement, is still incomplete. I need to reflect on how I will built the second inciting incident. Do I want it to lead into Veiled Shadows, Book 1 of the River Run Series? Or do I want to add another prequel novella or short story before the series begins. It is something I will have to reflect on while I am writing this month!

I suggest you go out and read your favourite book(s) and see how they end. Then you too will know your preferences. And who does not love reliving their favourites stories? Happy reading!

My Writing Journey Pillar IV: Creating Awesome Chapters

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For centuries storytelling has been used to share news, explain events, entertain, inspire, and lecture. The earliest known example of written literature, as of the date this was written, is from Mesopotamia. The Mesopotamians first developed cuneiform markings on clay tablets around 3400 B.C.E. At first the texts focused on administration, but by the third millennium B.C.E., there were also poetry and myths.

Poetry has a rhythm to it. A means to make it easier to memorize and pleasant sounding. Myths, and other story types also have a rhythm to them. There is a conflict or problem, the hero must determine how to solve the problem, and then they either do or they don’t. This can be broken down further into chapters. Each chapter is in itself its own little story. It will have a beginning, a middle, and an end.

In Pillar IV of Plot Development Step by Step by Jesper Schmidt and Autumn M. Birt, the Chapter is broken down into a series of questions:

  • What is the character trying to achieve?
  • What is the obstacle or conflict between the character and their goal?
  • What inner emotions are attached to this obstacle? If they overcome the obstacle, how will that effect them internally? If they fail, how will the respond?
  • What is the climax of the scene? The point of greatest tension before the character wins or loses.

Ending the chapter before the climax is resolved, leaves a great cliffhanger. For readers like myself, it means I turn the page and read on to find out how the character is doing. Which is the point of the cliffhanger. Who can go to sleep without knowing if their character lives, saves the prince, or makes it out in time before the confetti bomb is released.

They end the outline process with a list to validate the outline. Ensuring all subplots are folded properly into the main plot. And the most important point to remember: “the story always trumps the template.”

For my novella, my chapter outlines are synopsis. I think better in sentences than in bulletin points. Remember, this is my outline, not the written or finished product. So it is sparse in detail and missing formatting. It is my thoughts all pushed together and shared here. I am sharing the scene where the Inciting Incident occurs. Where Ally and Riley lose the envelope they have taken responsibility. An envelope that contains a signed contract that would save Riley’s family river cargo business.

Remember: this is a first draft, unedited. Therefore, expect it to be full of mistakes:)

“Riley. Riley!” Ally shouted over the boisterous crowd who surrounded her. It was then she realized the band were louder than the crowd. One of the brothers was glaring at the other one and pushed him out of the stage area. They both dropped their instruments and a fight broke out.

Ally, whose table was close to the stage, was pushed away from the table, her chair slammed back into the person seated behind her. Ally turned to apologize as other band members, and Riley, try to break up the fight. One of the brothers snarled, then punched his brother in the face. The injured brother stumbling and smashed into Ally’s table. The table broke under his weight, all of Ally’s papers, her drink, the table and the guy, collapsed to the floor. The patron she had been pushed into, pulled her chair back away from the fight. Ally lost sight of her papers and her bag as more members of the band jumped into the fight. 

She could see Riley on the stage, his arms wrapped around one of the other band members who was throwing his drum sticks at the members of the fight. She was thankful to see he hadn’t been pushed into the fight. Once he had the guy under control he searched the room and looked relieved when he found Ally. She waved at him from across the fight to let him know she was okay. 

Their must have been police already at the pub, because within minutes they were pushing their way through the crowd and breaking up the fight. The rest of the pub noise fell to a hush as the police broke up the fight. The band members swore at each other as they were subdued. Ally watched, wanting to pull Riley out and make sure he is okay. There was more than her table broken. Several chairs, glasses, and plates littered the floor from the nearby table and along the bar. The patrons who had been sitting in those places looked angry but she didn’t see anyone injured. The bartending was pouring fresh drinks and handing them out to those who had lost theirs. They must have been regulars, because the bartender didn’t need to ask what they were drinking. 

“Thank you.” Ally said the the gentleman who had pulled her back. He nodded at her and took a drink from his stein. She turned to see what had his attention.

The bartender was shaking his figure at the band and swearing in German. She understood the band were told if they don’t leave now, the bar would press charges. Ally’s stomach tightened. Riley hadn’t done anything wrong and might get in trouble for being with the band. One of the band members stormed out while the rest agreed to clean up and leave. Ally searched the floor for her papers, hoping they were not too badly ripped or stained. She had been intending to show them to her parents to show the school would be paid for. But if they were covered in beer stains and ripped, they would not give off the best impression. She would have to see if the information was online and she could print off a cleaner set. Riley nodded at her and then turned to help the band carry out their equipment as Ally helped straighten up the bar. Collecting broken glass and plates on the floor so no one was injured.  She would have to talk to Riley about this band. She already had a bad feeling about the two guys, but now she knew they were no good. It wasn’t a good idea for Riley to be connected to them. The villages along the Rhine were close, problematic people were shared to keep the locals safe. If Riley’s name was associated with this band, his parents would find out and the police would be monitoring him as well. All bad.

Riley finished carrying out the last drum then joined Ally who had filled a box the bartender had given her, with broken dishes. “Are you okay?” he asked as he carried the box and placed it on the bar. 

“I’m okay.” Ally moved her chair aside and tried to find where her bag had landed. But she couldn’t find it anywhere. She had all of her papers, some in worse shape than others. If she had been drinking water it would have been better but the cola stains were through everything, there was no getting the stains out. At least it wasn’t beer. 

“Riley, do you see my bag?” It was as if the chair and the bag simply disappeared. She couldn’t find either anywhere. 

Frowning, Riley moved aside the broken table and found the chair in pieces below. But no bag. A chill swept up Ally’s back. She didn’t have anything valuable in the bag, but Riley did. “Riley, your parents envelope was in the bag.” Ally said quietly. 

 His naturally brown skin paled. “We have to get it back. It’s a signed contract between my parents and a new client. If they do not have it to him on time, they could lose the deal. And it was a really big one.” He swallowed, “They purchased a new boat for that contract. If we don’t get it back then the job could go back to tender and they could lose it. And they would still be responsible for the payment on their new boat.”

Ally was the one holding it, her stomach plummeted. She was responsible for the loss. “I’m sorry Riley. I don’t know what could have happened to it. I don’t know what we can do.” 

My Writing Journey: Pillar III Subplots

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Subplots are a way to expand character development while supporting the main plot. The main plot of this story is how Ally and Riley are going to recover the document they were trusted with and lost.

If you read the character development sheets, there is a lot of potential subplots for these characters.

Ally is hiding her desire to leave the family business to the extent that she has hid her applications to various secondary institutes and acceptance. She is not sure how she can sell it to them as a benefit for everyone. She does not want to disappoint them. They love her and support her but she is ashamed that she does not want the life they have built for her. How can she tell them she doesn’t want it? What if they find out without her telling them? The worse thing that could happen is hurting them. But it feels like Ally is held with golden handcuffs; a home, a business handed to her, but in a lifestyle that she cannot stand. Yet, they have no other children, no one else to leave the business they built up to. They were only able to have her, a sick child who took all of their love and care to bring to an adult.

Riley loves his family too and although he supports Ally and helps her to reach for her dreams, he does not forget he will be left behind as well. And it hurts. Especially since he knows there is more to their world, there is magic. But he does not want Ally to choose to stay because of him. He wants her to follow her dreams and he is going to start following some of his own. As the youngest son, he does not inherit the family business and is treated as the baby in the family. They love his support but do not trust him with the important parts of running a river cargo business. If only he and Ally could change places. But then he would have to give up his mom’s home cooking and there is no way he would hurt her. So he will find his way. find something for himself for when Ally leaves him and he is alone.

Hunter, at this point, does not have a large part in this story. (But I rarely follow an outline to the T, so who knows what part he will play when its written?) He is only there as a favour to Logan because he knows Logan cares about Ally and Riley. Not much older than the two friends, Hunter begrudges them their easy, safe lives. He owes Logan for saving him, so he will help the two out, though he would rather enjoy a beer at the pub and ignore them.

Ciarron and Darragh have a lot in common with Riley. Music, the need to escape from the family business, and to start making money on their own. They plan to make their family proud. It was at a concert they had met Riley as they dreamed about making their own music. They didn’t usually like humans, other than their music, but Riley was from the Riverboat Community which meant they did not need to hide who they were. Life was looking up for them. They have their own sound, though they get hired more for their cover tunes, and were starting to make a name for themselves. But then, the boss took an interest in their band, and now they are being used as spies. So, instead of taking gigs that will spread their musical sound, they have to take the gigs that will help the family business. If only they could get a big score, maybe then, they would be allowed to go back to playing the music they love and make their mom proud.

Ally, Riley, Hunter, Logan, Ciarron, and Darragh, all with wishes and dreams, all wanting and needing something different in their lives. But who will win and who will lose?