Hey there,
In case you're new here—I'm Janine Eaby, an author helping aspiring writers reach their dream of writing and publishing their book. If that's you, you're in the right place.
This is not Save the Cat.
This is my personal structure when writing (personal as in what I use, not necessarily unique to me). It works for both plotters and pantsers.
I’m a pantser myself, making up the story as I go. I usually have characters in mind, a general sense of the story, and the ending. I know where it needs to go, but the middle takes unexpected turns. That’s the joy of discovery writing. If I had seen a detailed story outline when I first started writing, I would have been too daunted to even start.
These pillars anchor my story progression. While writing, I ask myself these three questions.
- What is my character trying to accomplish? On the flip side of this, if they fail, what is the unexpected (from the character’s POV) outcome?
We see this with The Hunger Games. Katniss wants to protect her sister. That’s her goal. That’s why she volunteers.
By the end of the series (spoilers), she fails. The districts win the war, but Prim dies. It’s an emotional gut punch and extremely effective. It makes this series memorable.
But what’s the outcome from Katniss not being able to save her sister? She kills the leader of District 13, whom she holds responsible for Prim’s death, potentially saving the districts from a dictator’s takeover.
My YA fantasy is a bit unconventional, but it still follows this. Alaira wants answers. She wants to know who/what she is. By the end of the story, she gets that answer, but not in the way she was expecting.
2. If and when the character reaches their end goal, what does it cost them?
A good example of this that lives in my mind to this day is The Forest of Hands & Teeth by Carrie Ryan. The story is set in a zombie apocalypse where the main character lives in what is potentially the last human settlement on Earth. She has a photo of her grandmother at the beach and dreams of seeing the ocean. Then the settlement gets overrun by zombies, and she gets the opportunity to leave.
Eventually (mini-spoiler), the character reaches the ocean after a long and arduous journey. But the cost. THE COST. (I won’t say more than that. No official spoilers here because this book isn’t as well known as The Hunger Games.)
These first two questions focused on keeping the ending in mind. The last one ties the whole story together:
3. What are my themes, and what am I trying to say with this story?
Writing with themes in mind helps the overall cohesiveness. Themes can be added in the revision process, but it saves time to keep them in mind up front.
If we look at Harry Potter, Harry wins and Voldemort loses because Voldemort can’t understand love. (This is also explicitly stated in the books. Zero subtlety so it can’t be missed.) It’s a mother’s love that defeats Voldemort the first time and Harry’s love for his friends that ultimately gives him the courage to face Voldemort in the final duel. The theme here is that love ultimately wins. You could also say love is not weakness but strength (Naruto does this theme well).
It doesn’t matter if your theme’s been done a thousand times. What matters is how you execute it. The characters and setting are the easiest places to tweak a story to make it feel new and original. You can see that in the examples above for themes around love. Harry Potter and Naruto are two very different stories. (If you don’t know what I’m talking about with Naruto, I specifically have Gaara’s character arc in mind, but it comes up in other places too.)
This doesn’t have to be complicated. The themes in my books revolve around identity, trust, and power, specifically how power relates to human nature. Those seeking power are the most likely to be corrupted by it (no, my books are not The Lord of the Rings, but that theme is present there as well).
Here’s an example from my book, Beyond the Water’s Edge:
She looked again over the sloping line of houses with their bright flower gardens, and she couldn’t help but think of the Carolina jessamine from home with its flashy yellow flowers: pretty but poisonous.
Still reading? Great! Reply back to this email and tell me something about yourself—what is one thing I can help you with?
Dovan the book dragon’s quote of the week:
“Words held weight, more than just ink and paper. The most dangerous were banned or burned. In this case, hunted.”
—Janine Eaby, Beyond the Water’s Edge (Yes, I went there and just quoted myself. It’s in a book, so it counts.)
Until next time—happy writing!
Janine Eaby
