 Drama: December 11, 2012 Issue [#5394] |
  Drama
This week: He Did What? But Why? Edited by: Joy  
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"We have to continually be jumping off cliffs and developing our wings on the way down."
Kurt Vonnegut
"For want of a nail the shoe was lost,
For want of a shoe the horse was lost,
For want of a horse the rider was lost,
For want of a rider the message was lost,
For want of the message the battle was lost,
For want of the battle the war was lost,
For want of the war the kingdom was lost,
And all for the want of a horse shoe nail."
Madeleine L'engle
"A page without drama is like a strawberry without cream - it can be tart and refreshing, but it'll never give as much delight."
Frank Delaney - Fdbytheword
"The essence of drama is that man cannot walk away from the consequences of his own deeds."
Harold Hayes
Hello, I am Joy , this week's drama editor. Our discussion in this issue is on using the cause and effect tool in story building.
Note: In the editorial, I refer to third person singular as he, to also mean the female gender, because I don't like to use they or he/she.
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Welcome to the Drama newsletter
Have you every considered why the cause-and-effect tool is such an important device for a writer? The answer is: Because it helps create and shape the writing to make sense on a fundamental level, without forcing the piece to become formulaic.
Cause and effect in story building takes place from the sentence level to the scene and plot levels.
Cause and effect on sentence level is the arrangement of ideas in a logical order. If you ever received a review with a sentence organization suggestion, the reviewer was probably hinting at the cause and effect sequence on the sentence level. That is, what happens first, and then, what happens next.
For example:
He turned around and saw her running toward him, after he heard the sound of leaves rustling.
Better: After he heard the sound of leaves rustling, he turned around and saw her running toward him.
In addition to the what-happened-first and what-happened-next idea, the cause-and-effect device uses the question why and its answer because to build a believable plot, since what draws readers to a story most of the time is a well-planned, coherent plot.
As we accept the scenes to be the building blocks of the plot, when the first scene asks or wonders about the question why, the second scene needs to give the answer to that question while creating another question for the third scene's answer, forming a chain until the climax. That is, each scene in some way needs to be caused by the scene preceding it, while every scene moves the story forward through the character's reaction.
A capable writer makes the scenes that follow inevitable, which means, if one scene is cut out, the plot will have a hole. For example, if a criminal shoots the detective, someone will hear the sound of the gun going off, or see the blood, or find the body, or the criminal running away from the scene. This is inevitable. Also, each scene has to provide an insight into the characters for the motives behind their actions. For example, why did the criminal shoot? Was he panicked? Why? Why was the detective there?Why was the person who saw the criminal in the building? Etc. etc.
Just telling what happened without showing or hinting at why it happened will not satisfy the reader.
While building the structure of a story, we find the premise by asking the question, "What if?" We let the story progress by asking why and answering because repeatedly, because in each story between the setup and the conclusion, there must be a journey that the reader has to see unfold. This journey cannot take place off the page.
A caveat: While following the cause and effect plot structure, we need to keep in mind not to lose the vision of the story. Some writers make sure that the cause and effect points make sense and that they provide meaningful moments of insight in a story, but they lose the answer to the central question "What does this story add up to?" or, in other words, "What is this story's theme or moral?"
Especially when the plot revolves around the protagonist's quest, the story will need to follow a cause and effect trajectory. If we are writing a true life story or a travelogue, it is, usually, one event after another. Even in sequential narratives like these, how our characters act in certain situations still depends on cause and effect. Yes, Odysseus went on his Odyssey, but why did he embark on such a trek, and how and why did each leg of the journey made him act? Without answers to these questions, the fantastic dialogue and exquisite descriptions of places and actions would not be enough.
So, why is cause and effect so elemental in writing? Because it gives tangible proof that our writing has sequence and a worthy thought or lesson to keep the reader's undivided attention.
Until next time... 
And Happy Holidays!
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A Few Contests and Activities
And a Celebration:
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Your Drama Newsletter Editors: NickiD89  kittiara Joy
Thank you for reading our newsletters and for supplying the editors with feedback and encouragement.
 This Issue's Tip:
Character bios should relate and concentrate solely on the information relevant to the story. If a trait has nothing to do with the story, it is mention is unnecessary and should be taken out during the revision
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 Reading Recommendation: A book with drama
If you have a recommendation, a few words on a book or a product review, send it to me or to this newsletter. I'll highlight it here.
StephBee 
Joy - You nailed! Hannibal Lector is a revolting character, but he's interesting and that's why I want to read more.
Thanks, Steph.
Yes, he's some character for sure.
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audaciousgg
Hi Joy,
Today was a challenge. Thank you for your work on the newsletter and sharing. The quote at the bottom from Louis Lamour made me smile. I have almost all of his stories and novels. It was his characters that showed me how to move my characters around the page. I mean how many times can a character, stride, walk, etc. Peace, Ava
Peace to you, too, Ava.
I like Louis Lamour because I think he doesn't beat around the bush, and still, he doesn't miss any relevant action or mimic.
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Quick-Quill 
I draw my "opposite" characteristics from books, movies and people I know. I can't make them up as good as people that are there in front of me. This is my hardest part in writing. I am all action and getting to the end! Spending time to create characters that are in one story (I don't write series no do I read many of them) is one of my challenges. I found that this NaNo I have an outstanding character, and hope that the readers will connect with her and see the raw deal she was subjected to was just as hard on her as her children.....I want my readers to cry at the end!
It doesn't matter how we come up with our characters as long as they can carry the story. A well-drawn main character can shoulder most any plot. I bet your NaNo novel turned out very well.
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BIG BAD WOLF Feeling Thankful 
Submitted Item: "The Hunt" [18+]
Sometimes the traits of the characters are inner traits of the writer.
Yes, probably most of the time, too, but a capable writer can write a character who isn't like himself at all.
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