It's so helpful to read this book while being in the middle of all of the processes Franklin talks about. There were so many tips and suggestions that I feel I've been hearing throughout my whole life, but that I can never be reminded of too many times: show don't tell, use action words and strong language, create a structure, foreshadow, include dialogue, identify and develop conflict, pace the story. Reading about each of these processes and aspects of telling a story after having just written our personal narratives was helpful in reflecting back on that process and feeling validated or encouraged about things I did well, or the same as he suggests in the book, and things I could have done differently.
One segment that was unfamiliar to me was the concept of an "outline" (and maybe this is why Marin wanted us to pay particular attention to it). I feel as though with my personal narrative I did things a little backwards: I definitely had a rough draft and then "polished" it as he suggests, and I think eventually my "woodwork" and conflicts emerged, but it took a while to get there. Instead I could have identified the conflicts and intermediate conflicts from the very beginning as he suggests. I also don't know how this will play out in this next piece though, because I'm pretty sure my subject doesn't have a whole lot of conflict... his life seems pretty great. But I could be wrong. That is a questions I would like to pose in class: because conflict seems to be so central to writing, what is another way we can navigate woodwork, pacing and developmental focus? I found it very helpful to project the stages of conflict and resolution on the the story "Mrs. Kelley's Monster" as that was a story that contained many little bits of action, all amounting to a dramatic pacing that kept the reader attentive to the story line.
I also love the segments where Franklin is describing what is going through a writer's head as he deliberates about a piece, confronts writers block, and "polishes" his work. Particularly in the chapter The Nature of Art and Artists, he is transparent about the writers thinking and process, and also acknowledges the writer as the primary agent of the story, even when receiving feedback. These are all a part of the writer's process peeling back the onion and confronting the characters. Though the part about telling a story of "reality" was rather dramatic, it shed light on the importance of, well, telling true stories, and the importance of maintaining that integrity to character development and reality. It's just a matter of finding the details of the story and of the character to extract, and then shaping them cleverly.
Howdy Charlotte,
ReplyDeleteGreat observations. I also chose to focus on outline and was pretty unhappy with what I submitted. I revised it a couple times and to know avail. Whatever, I posted it. Point being, you perfectly encapsulated my thoughts and presented them in a much more eloquent fashion. Well done.
I also didn't consider the fact that we are literally in the process of everything in this book. That's kind of wild to think about.
What did you think of the elements of his own narratives he included? Did you think they were necessary?
It's reaffirming that somebody else feels, and writes (at least in process) similarly to myself.
See you in class.
Hi there Charlotte,
ReplyDeleteLike Woody said, your thoughts definitely resonate with mine. I think Franklin has a way of framing old rules of writing and making them seem new.
I especially agree with your question of the importance of conflict. I worry that I'll be focusing so much on finding THE conflict that I'll miss out on the actual story. And, for our profiles, what if there isn't a conflict? What if the person is just 100% resolved? Case closed? How do you know if other people will relate to the conflict?
I don't know man, lots of questions. I guess we shall see in class today!
Interesting questions posed here about conflict. I just read over your final piece from a couple weeks ago which seems somewhat centered around conflict (internal and external, perhaps), so it was nice to see you continue on this vein. I had some questions about Franklin's outline frame as well, and was going to try to bring them up in class because I couldn't quite figure out how to explain them. But the general idea was about his outline structure being a bit less than inclusive, which you brought up. What other ways are there to create this type of outline? What happens if the story doesn't have this epic conflict, as you mention? Multiple conflicts?
ReplyDeleteI would like to discuss with the class some of the areas of his outline format that might be difficult or not perfect!
Thanks
Trust the outline. Yes, it's difficult. But it's difficult because it forces you to do the hard work of thinking through story.
ReplyDeleteThere is no story without conflict. It doesn't have to be epic. Sometimes it's psychological. But if you're writing for story, there's conflict.
If there is no conflict or tension in your profile, you don't have a story. And you're better off seeking another story idea. Fact. As my grandmother says, "You can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear."