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Barry
B. Longyear's
The Write Stuffnow Online Writing Seminar Course Outline Copyright ©
2001-8 by Barry B. Longyear
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The Write Stuff
Course Outline: Part
I:
The best and most fulfilling stories you will ever write are not
the
result of market surveys or guesses about what readers read or editors
want.
Your best stories will be those drawn from who and what you are, the
total
of everything that you have experienced and will experience.
CHAPTER 1. THE WRONG STUFF CHAPTER 2. GREAT EXPECTATIONS Self discovery, your unique writing potential, and do you have the courage to write your own stories? CHAPTER 3. FINDING YOUR WRITE STUFF Collecting your "vibes." Discovering the parts of you that will form your unique writing machine and its fuel. CHAPTER 4. WHY IS THE WRITE STUFF THE RIGHT STUFF? The mother of all homework assignments. Going through the vibes as parts of a story. Collecting and assembling the parts and fuel to your unique writing machine. CHAPTER 5. THE MACHINE
Writing what you know, finding out what you know, making more stuff
that you know, focus killers, and a special laxative for removing
writer's block.
Part II:
"Where do you get your ideas?" is probably the most common
question authors
are asked. Every human is sitting in an ocean of ideas. The trick
is in realizing that and then developing methods to see the ideas,
capture
them, allow them to mutate and mature, and then use them.Generating Ideas CHAPTER 1. THE IDEA BANK Checking and Saving. Experience as literary treasure, and the "do you have what it takes" test. CHAPTER 2. MAKING IDEA DEPOSITS Day-to-day Receipts, earnings on investments, loans, and stuffing that mattress. CHAPTER 3. LIVING ON THE INTEREST The ideas will present themselves as needed, sitting back and trusting the process, reinvestment. Part III:
What Is A Story?
A
story is a machine of events, conditions, and circumstances, and there
is
as much difference between reading and writing as there is between
driving
a car and designing and building one. Here we learn the parts of
a
story and how they should work together.
CHAPTER 1. PARTS AND ASSEMBLY CHAPTER 2. CHARACTER What is a story character? What is characterization? Where do they come from? CHAPTER 3. CHARACTER GOALS The core of every story, what they are, different kinds, how they function, and that thing called motivation. CHAPTER 4. THE SETTING Where and when to go, conveying it to yourself and the reader, setting changes and transitions. CHAPTER 5. OBSTACLES It stands between the character and the character's goal. Story obstacles and obstacles for the hell of it. What does a story worthy obstacle need to do? CHAPTER 6. BUILDUPS Call it a plot if you want. Character contests with obstacle. Methods, things to do and to avoid. CHAPTER 7. RESOLUTIONS Character wins or obstacle wins, stories that fail to resolve, "right" and "wrong" endings, hiding the dessert: twists. CHAPTER 8. CHARACTER CHANGE Who am I? What am I doing here? What is the story machine designed to do? Is that what your story does? CHAPTER 9. WHO IS TELLING THE STORY? Points-of-view, the different forms and uses, benefits and dangers, and do not cheat the reader. CHAPTER 10. GETTING TENSE When is the story being told and why it makes a difference. Things to try, how and why they work, and some major don'ts. CHAPTER 11. OTHER PARTS Titles, hooks, backfill, bright and dark moments, plants, story divisions (sentences, paragraphs, scenes, chapters, volumes), narrative frames and flashbacks, purposes and lessons, and trailers. What they are, how they work, things to do and things to avoid. Part IV:
The Research "Write what you know." In this section we learn strategies for researching settings, occupations, and characters, as well as organizing the information to enable it to be at your mental fingertips when needed. The secret is to use real people in real places, regardless of the actual existence of either. CHAPTER 1. GOING THERE Dangers of not doing the work, cautions in referring to real places, persons, and events, the research iceberg and how not to inflict all of your research on the reader. CHAPTER 2. REAL PEOPLE Stories are about people. How to make them real to yourself, and therefore, real to the reader CHAPTER 3. LOOK AT ALL THAT STUFF What to do with all that research. The Alphadex, maps & spreadsheets, uses in series, and how to find what you need when you need it. Part V:
Everyone is
born a natural storyteller.
Beginning with being punished for telling lies, embarrassing our elders
with inappropriate words, and scorn from our friends for being
different
from them, obstacles get placed in the storytelling path. The
final
shot in the head comes in high school and college with the creativity
assassinating research paper. How to get out of your own way and
get the words on the paper.The Writing CHAPTER 1. HOW TO GET IN YOUR OWN WAY Looking for snags, writing for the wrong reasons, beating the muse to death, and the sheer waste of your most valuable commodity: Time. All manifestations of the fear of writing. CHAPTER 2. OVERCOMING THE FEAR OF WRITING Discipline: What is it? Self doubt and the possibility of making a mistake. Changing you to enable you to change things. CHAPTER 3. RIGHT REASONS FOR WRITING RIGHT STUFF The shape your head is in is up to you. How to allow your story to capture you. Guaranteeing yourself success (Sufficient reasons for writing the story). CHAPTER 4. PICKING A LIFE When does your machine work best? How many balls are you juggling? What about maintenance ( exercise, diet, mental exercise, mucho moderation)? Family, friends, social life, work, and is there anything left over for the story? CHAPTER 5. FIRING YOUR EDITOR ON THE SHOULDER Judge Not. Until the writing is done, then judge the hell out of it. If you need more help, get it. CHAPTER 6. IT'S MAGIC TIME Where to start: Idea, character, background, title, plot? Starting from the story situation. Characters who want to go their own ways. Trust the process and unleash your demon. Part VI:
The object is
to write your story your way and
do the best you can to have the story feel and say what you want in the
way that you want. In this part we learn things to do and not to
do in judging our own efforts, discovering story problems, and
repairing
them.The Rewriting CHAPTER 1. LETTING IT COOL Emotional distance necessary to allow judgment to become engaged. Get Started on the next one. Putting the out-of-body experience to work. CHAPTER 2. ASSAYING THE ORE Reading as a reader. The Cringe Test. The Maximum Cringe Test. Sparing family and friends the "Whaddya think?" ordeal. Useful and useless input. CHAPTER 3. CHECKING THE PARTS LIST Checklist: Is it a complete story? Are all the parts there? CHAPTER 4. CHECKING PARTS PERFORMANCE Going through each part, from character to story resolution, to see if it fits, is clean, and works properly. CHAPTER 6. MORE PERFORMANCE PROBLEMS Show and tell, speech tags, echoes, transitions, jumpy plot lines, POV shifting, story seams, stalls and breakdowns. CHAPTER 7. CHICKEN FEATHERS Ways to sabotage yourself through cowardice: Distant POV, undeveloped characters, detouring around emotional situations, avoiding or disguising controversial subjects in hopes of improving marketability. CHAPTER 8. LEARNING & DOING Leaving the nest. There's no risk in reading about learning. The learning never stops, but unless the writing starts and continues, the story will never be realized. Part VII:
The Paint Box INTRODUCTION A, E, I, O, and You remember all that stuff you were supposed to learn back in school? CHAPTER 1. FONTS AND FACES When to be bold; how to get regular. CHAPTER 2. WORDS You can do stories without them, but miming your epic for each and every one of your readers is exhausting. CHAPTER 3. WORD USE AND MISUSE There are things you do good, things you do well, and things you can do better. CHAPTER 4. CLAUSES, PHRASES, SENTENCES, AND PARAGRAPHS Words get together and the next thing you know they begin to organize. Then what have you got? CHAPTER 5. PUNCTUATION Missing a period really can be a big deal. CHAPTER 6. THINGS OF TEARS, THINGS OF LAUGHTER
Essay: Getting to things that matter.
______________________________________________________
Barry B.
Longyear
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