More DNA...
Jonathon Grant over at Oberon pointed me to a Joss Whedon
interview.
I haven't gotten sucked into Firefly or Serenity yet, but I'm already a fan based on what he says about his writing process:
"The way I work, I’m like a vulture. I circle and circle and then I dive. I usually don’t actually write anything until I know exactly how it’s going to turn out. I don’t “let the computer take me away.” I’m an absolute Nazi about structure. I make outlines. I make charts and graphs with colors."
YES! I am not alone. I have done quite a bit of writing on Quantum already, but I'm still circling like a vulture, as he puts it.
He goes on in response to a question about Wonder Woman:
"Not for “Wonder Woman,” because I’m still working out the plot. But I’m finding the moments that matter; I’m finding the things that make the story really resonate; the things that I just can’t wait to film. I have great big questions to answer, but I’m in that beautiful, free-form poetical place where you just get to think up moments and see if they fit in your movie. And that’s almost more fun than anything. And that work, which is a vital part of what got me interested in doing the job in the first place, is being done."
Being a Nazi about structure. Finding the things that make the story really resonate.
"I'm in that beautiful, free-form poetical place"
I think it makes a bit more sense if you reverse that to FORM-FREE.
THAT is Story DNA.
Holy Trinity, Writer's Perspective
Inspiration, research, and play are mostly the same thing when it comes to writing.
Inspiration comes when something hits you, something speaks to you, or about your life, your problems. Or it simply shares a belief you have. It can come from books, movies, games, any form of media or medium.
Research is usually the act of seeking out specific kinds of inspiration, usually inspiration that's focused on a certain topic.
Play is taking new info or knowledge, or ideas, and plugging them in various places. Probing the system. Gaming the system. It's just as much a part of real life as it is game-playing. It's also a huge part of the creative process.
This 'holy trinity' is what makes up the creator's perspective.And Perspective is really what it's all about.
I've been researching Quantum Physics because my character Frank Quantum ends up dealing with it a lot in the story. There's a lot of scientific explanation for what happens in the story, or backstory if you want to call it that.
I don't intend to give a lecture on quantum physics in the beginning of the story. Michael Crichton tried that in his novel Timeline, and it was not only butchered but a little awkward. And when your goal is to tell a good story, scientific white papers are unnecessary.
They are useful for research though.
So I'm reading lots of quantum physics books. Not because I really need to... I could write the story without them. I'm doing this research for perspective.
There's so much good stuff in quantum physics that you could supply 10,000 sci-fi stories with meaty material. It really is pretty weird. We're on the edge of a whole new understanding about the universe. Some of it could change our world as we know it.
While it's already been used as the basis for time travel, and a few other sci-fi premises, there's still a lot to be milked out of the subject, fiction-wise. There are a few sub-categories of quantum physics that haven't been explored by writers much at all. I'm actually a little shocked.
Sci-fi writers do read this stuff, right?I remember reading somewhere that Philip K. Dick subscribed to Scientific American or one of the science magazines. I can think of one specific instance where it paid off--one of his early novels. Solar Lottery, 1955. The solar lottery the title refers to is a lottery that decides who becomes leader of the galaxy.
Anyway, the process of the lottery is formed by the basis of John von Neumann's Game Theory.
*AHEM* His work on game theory wasn't published until the 1950s I believe. So at the time Solar Lottery was written, it was brand-spanking new. Keep in mind there wasn't much TV, no cable, nor any internet. If you wanted to look up information you had to get off your butt and head down to the library. And there was no guarantee they'd have the information you were looking for... especially not cutting edge science or mathematics.
So it was pretty smart for Philip to have his science mag subscriptions... which is the only likely place he got Game Theory.
In today's world, we've got the web, and all kinds of information saturating the broadband and air waves, satellites, etc. But that doesn't mean a mag subscription is a bad idea. I say wherever you can get fodder for inspiration, research, do it. It's really more about perspective.
I had a subscription to New Scientist for a year, til they started to cover some of the same stuff over and over. And til I started to notice a 'pattern' in the information. They were featuring more and more stories from 'scientists' on the fringe. People with really outrageous ideas and theories on what the future was going to be like.
That sounds perfect for someone looking for sci-fi ideas. For a while, it was. I did get some good ideas from the mag. But when you realize their goal is to sell magazines rather than provide strictly science news, the conflict of interest can jump out at you and pee on your cornflakes.
So after a year, I let the subscription slide. It was worth it for that year though. I did get a few reportings on the exact topics that Quantum features. But enough about science...
Another area of my research is a certain foreign culture. Frank Quantum and his family belong to this culture, and it's another thing that sets him apart from other action or sci-fi characters. This foreign culture, it's history, etc. are what make up a large part of the universe, backstory, and even some of the literary metaphors and symbolism of the story.
Between quantum physics and the study of this foreign culture, the story of Frank Quantum is pretty rich. I'm not done with the research yet. I still have a few connective holes and bumps. Things that don't really tie together or make sense. Things aren't totally coherent.
So I have to keep reading.
Something will jump out at me. I will find what I'm looking for. That's the beauty of researching from multiple sources. Amidst several different angles, something will click. I'll get a new perspective.
I suspect that's why literary theory, writing and drama teachers, journalists, and other pros harp so much about perspective. The importance of perspective transcends writing... it's very important to artists, musicians, songwriters, anyone who creates anything.
If it is godly to be a creator, and creation a matter of perspective, then perspective is GOD.
Story DNA
Drafting vs. PlottingNovelists usually work by a process of drafting. They start writing and push straight through until they have a 1st draft. Then they change the things they don't like in the 2nd draft, and push straight through again into a 3rd, etc. Drafting is a linear process of iteration.
Plotting, also sometimes called 'blocking' is used by film script writers to establish the scenes in a script, and to make sure all the significant moments are there. Plotting is not necessarily a linear procss, although it can be. But where it thrives is in its non-linear flexibility. The writer doesn't have to push straight through with a draft. The writer can work on any scene or plot point at any time.
When I've discussed writing with others in the past, they seem to lean towards drafting as
The Way to write anything. It seems that's the way most novelists work too. In Stephen King's On Writing, he says more or less that drafting is the only way to go. Otherwise you putz around, lose energy, momentum, and never really get anything done. And the only way you're ever going to get a finished form for a novel or story is if you just push on through.
I agree 100% if we're talking about just cranking out a novel.
But that's a novel. I couldn't disagree more if we're talking about writing something for any other medium, including film or games.
Why?
Because being concise, efficient, and logical is far more important for a film script than it is for a novel. If you write a novel, you can do whatever you want and go wherever you want. The entire story can be a random train of thoughts inside the character's head.
In a novel you
tell, rather than show.In a film or game,
you show rather than tell.Logical consistency becomes much more important in a film or game script. Ease of understanding also becomes much more important. What might take 5 chapters of a novel to explain has to be crammed into a scene or two for a movie or game. You can't just ramble in into infinity.
Drafting is still better, right? Well, that depends. The most important question to ask yourself in determining a process is this:
What do you intend to do with the story?
What medium do you want to publish it in?As a writer if you're dead set on writing a novel with the goal of also turning it into a script, you should just start with the logical consistency and clarity of a script. Keep things simple. It's easier to turn a script into a novel than it is to turn a novel into a script. That's my firm belief anyway.
Adaptation from one medium to another is easier if you write with adaptation in mind from the beginning.
As opposed to say, hacking apart your novel after the fact and trying to bulldoze it into a script.
There's also the issue of creative block. With drafting, if you run into a dead end there's nowhere to go. You just stop writing. It's hard to remaing productive when your wheels are spinning at a single point in the story and you can't go forward or back.
Wouldn't it be nice if getting a creative block meant you could just shift your focus to another part of the story? It's very difficult, if not impossible to do that with drafting.
This is where medium-less writing comes into the process of intellectual property creation.
Story DNAThe process of writing a story that is flexible for all mediums is much easier if you work within a nonlinear framework--that is, keeping everything at the higher level of plot points, characters, and the universe.
You can still do a draft. Drafting is still valid. Don't worry. :)
In fact, it's easier to do a draft using this method, because once you've filled in all the chunks, all you have to do is formalize it. Just write.
I use mind-mapping software for my writing process, to arrange scenes for a tight script, and also to stash any useful notes, example images, or any other information.
There are several mind-mapping applications on the market, such as
Mind Manager,
Personal Brain, although there are some free ones such as
FreeMind. With most mind-mapping software you can arrange linear sequence points, such as scenes of a script or story while retaining the full flexibility of editing or changing any point at any time.
This makes your story more like DNA, a blueprint for whatever medium you decide to publish it in. Being nonlinear as opposed to drafting, you can change any part of your story at any time. This makes editing and iteration an ongoing process while you write, instead of plowing straight through and then fixing everything afterwards.
If you care about intellectual property, there isn't much room for just cranking stuff out and then hoping it's ok or fixing it later. You need to get it right before you publish. Adaptability is just as much an important feature of your IP as your main character... if you care about adaptation.
If you don't, then stick with drafting. If all you care about is publishing a novel, then maybe it doesn't matter. I'd still argue it's easier to arrange scenes and work on things nonlinear or out of order when you get stuck.
I've worked both ways, and there's nothing more frustrating than getting stuck at a certain point in my story, and being unable to move on or do anything else. Using mind mapping software and focusing on scenes and plot points has alleviated that problem.
I've been working with this nonlinear 'story DNA' process on Quantum since 2002. It's worked out really well for a number of reasons. When I started in 2002 I really didn't have a firm grasp on storytelling. I had just started to read some books on character development. It wasn't until 2004 that I really began to delve into proper drama techniques and story structure. In other words, I was trying to write a story without really knowing how.
If I had just pushed straight through with the drafting process, would I have had a novel by now? Probably. I can pretty much guarantee you it would have sucked though. Anybody can tell a story. I want to tell a
good story.I also didn't have 100% of my free time to devote to learning about storytelling or Quantum because I was also learning a lot about business and reading tons of biz books over the last 5 years. It's been a very comprehensive learning process without a lot of room for intense specialization. The bulk of the knowledge I needed to do what I want to do has been acquired, and so now it's mainly a process of research and development.
A large portion of Quantum exists as a mind map. Scenes linearly arranged, many even with dialogue. When I get stuck I jump forward or back and start hammering away on another part of the story. This flexibility has been my savior. If I was forced to do this in a linear process I would have either produced crap, or given up a long time ago. I love the fact that I can work within something that, at times, seems like a living and growing organism. DNA.
Sometimes drafting is easier. I've done my share of drafting. But inevitably I get stuck, even with short stories. Being stuck is terrible.
But what about the intricacies and specialties of each medium?I've kept those in mind. I make notes regarding medium specifics right within the mind map. For example, if some portion of the story would someday work really well as an interactive thing, as gameplay, I'll jot down a note how that might work. If something would play out better in a scene of a movie with some kind of specific visual detail or camera movement, etc. then I make a note of that as well. If there's a thought process or internalized perception that I think could be elaborated upon in greater detail for a novel, I note that too.
So what I have is a medium-less story with specific notes on the execution for each particular medium.
But what about playing, and experimenting within the form of a medium? You can't do that with this broad logical mapping process!Sure I can. It's all just ideas, right? Sometimes I'll spend a day working out how one part of the story might work in one of the mediums. There's plenty of play.
A lot of people won't like this process, because they see themselves as artists within a specific medium, and are married to the idiosyncracies of the medium, or the creative process within that medium. They also believe in the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy and other romantic notions about the creative process. They believe the act of creation is all 'magic' and there's zero theory or principles behind it. And hey, if they want to believe that, more power to them. But if you believe there can be a principled and structured approach, then maybe this way is for you.
Bringing logic and order to the creative table just ruins everything, doesn't it? Not for me. It brings beauty and cohesion, and coherency, and sanity.
For me, Story DNA is the only way to go.
Minor Characters, B-List, Roles & Synthesis...
I had a minor breakthrough the other day...
My main character, let's call him Frank Quantum. That's not his actual name, but anyway. Frank Quantum has a girlfriend. We'll call her Lucille.
Frank and Lucille get separated by circumstances beyond their control--torn apart by the villain of the story. We'll call this villain Peter although that's not real name. Get used to the alternate name thing... you know the drill.
So Peter starts some things in motion that separate Frank Quantum and his girl Lucille. Frank already has his character arc established. In fact, most of Frank's details, hooks, positioning, and his development over the course of the story are all set in stone.
But I had a problem. Frank's girl Lucille was useless. I'd always wanted to turn her into a spinoff character--a strong female character that could star in some stories of her own. I hadn't given her too much thought, and for the roughing out of Frank's story she was just a shell. She was
"just kinda there" in the beginning, and then separated from him after
Big Stuff Happens.Now, the Big Stuff is none other than the primary motivation for Frank to complete the story. It's the Major Wrong that he has to right. But it didn't involve Lucille much. Frank gets isolated for a little while... which is where the seriousness of the problem hits him, and where his character starts to evolve a little.
Meanwhile, Lucille is just twiddling her thumbs wondering where Frank is...
But that's
boring.Yet I just couldn't think of what to do with her. I didn't want her milling about, biding her time. I'd thought maybe about having her grow and evolve a little on her own, and maybe be changed or different when Frank reunited with her--to the point that they just didn't get along anymore, and went their separate ways.
But all of this stank too much of
been-there-done-that domestic drama, or something you'd see on the Lifetime channel.
No thanks.So I was seriously stuck. It's a bit hard to explain in hindsight why I was stuck, but it had to do with the way I was looking at the whole problem. My solution actually came from an interesting angle.
Bear with me for a brief aside.
I've never been much of a comic book fan. Sue me. While I enjoy the Superman movies, and I can enjoy superhero movies like X-men, it doesn't exactly tickle me with delight. I'm not thrilled by fantasy characters with mysterious or contrived super powers. Superheroes fall more into the generic fantasy category for me. I like there to be reasons and explanations for everything, sometimes to a fault. You could say I'm too rational of a person,
if there is such a thing.So I don't appreciate a lot of the gobbleteegook that is the comic book arena as a medium.
The other day I was in Deep Ellum, the trendy bar and night club area of downtown Dallas. My wife and I ate at bar called Fat Ted's. There was a mural on the wall that was a 1940s or 1950s comic book called Detective. I'm not sure if that's a real comic or not, but it looked real enough to me.
It depicted a car load of either detectives or thugs (not really sure) brandishing weapons towards a waitress on rollerskates at one of those oldsk00l drive-throughs.
Aside from the fact it was a carload of guys threatening this poor waitress, there was something about the mural that struck me. Sexist or not, right or wrong, the mural had
style.
Although not a huge comic fan I've read a couple graphic novels, including Sin City which I generally like. The movie oozed style as well.
Fluff Style, if you will... the style is just there in excess and doesn't serve any particular purpose... which doesn't say much for substance, but it's style nonetheless.
Attitude.So I thought to myself
"Forget superhero crap... where are THESE comics?" You know, the hardcore gritty comics. Not that superhero magical mystical power stupidity. Maybe what I've missed out on in the comic book world is the
Real McCoy, the grit, the dirt, the grime... the realism. The brutality. The Good Stuff.After doing some searches online and asking some coworkers I hit upon paydirt: Transmetropolitan, Preacher, 100 Bullets.
There is some seriously sick stuff in these comics. Some of the things the characters go through is either really bizarre, or really twisted, or both.
While not exactly 1950s true crime comics they had a certain amount of realism while providing a darker edge. Exactly what I was looking for...
And then it hit me.
BAM!The problem with my character Lucille wasn't necessarily to do with just picking something for her to do while Frank was away... the solution was more
stylistic. Something really awful needs to happen to her. Not just a minor setback, mind you. She needs to get destroyed, and go through her own character arc, her own development. But what's strong enough to do that?
The villainous Peter has to throw her to the wolves. She has to be fed into the machinery of vice... abandoned to animalistic impulses and all sorts of terrible things. And not just subjected to them, but forced to stay in a dark gruesome psychological place until Frank returns or she can escape. Only then can her transformation into a proper Hero for her own stories be complete.
Bingo! Bammo! Golden.
And so the solution to this particular problem came from a synthesis, a merging of separate ideas. For me it was an unlikely place--comics.
This illustrates the need for creative people to seek out fresh things, new things, things they haven't examined before. You can't synthesize without proper Input. And not just the same old humdrum Input will do... you've got to find something different or new.
Abandoned your usual sources!
What is project Quantum?
This is the journal for project codename Quantum. Quantum is a writing project being developed by
redchurch.
Why a codename? Eventually I'm going to copyright and trademark all of this stuff, and so there are certain concepts, names, and specific details that need to be codenamed or abstracted so they can be freely shared with you, the reader.
What is this blog about?I will be talking about the writing process, character development, and intellectual property development. I may occasionally ramble about marketing or branding, but mostly this will be a worklog or 'thought log' of all the issues I'm dealing with in creating a cast of characters, a universe, and a story.
This blog is more for me, but I've listed it as a public blog in the hopes that maybe somebody can relate to what I'm going through or might learn from some of this.
