Previously on The Writing Shift...
“Now we're getting to the hard part.”
“The biggest structural issue? I killed a character that I shouldn't have.”
“Once the structure is solid, everything else gets easier.”
It turns out I was way too optimistic about my story structure two weeks ago.
Killing that character was nowhere near my biggest plot problem. It was simply the biggest symptom of an even bigger problem. In fact, there were three huge fault lines in my story that split open under the scrutiny of editorial review.
The first was a villain problem. That aforementioned extra death? Yeah, the corpse pointed me right to the villain's weak motivations. Their reasons for killing the victim never rose to the point of believability.
As a reader, you would have said, "He killed this her over that? Come on, man. Let it go." But a villain with a credibility issue was just the start.
The second problem was the method of the murder. The original killing was done with a sci-fi flavored hit-and-run. On its own, it's not a totally terrible way for the villain to kill off the victim. But the evidence trail I used for the hero to follow was lame and lacked credibility. Again, as a reader, you would have yelled at the book that a first-year law student could get the case against my villain tossed out of court.
Without a realistic motive, and a questionable method, it didn’t matter if the villain had the final piece of the murder trilogy, opportunity. He just wasn’t believable as a killer. Not good for a story based on him murdering someone.
The third problem I had was how my hero got to be the hero in the first place. The book is about her transformation from a rookie to a full member of the Cascadia Police Department homicide squad. But her inciting event comes about as the result of the squad’s detective sergeant making a decision no unit commander would ever make. And his bad decision is never challenged. The rest of the squad, his superiors up the chain-of-command, even the hero herself never offer anything more than a single line of pushback. As a result, she lacks the credibility to be the hero of her own story.
Three different problems, one common thread: credibility. I had a villain with no good reason to kill someone, a chain of evidence that couldn't hold together under even casual review, and a hero who had no business being in the role.
I suppose, under the right circumstances, there's still a story to be told with those elements. But that isn't the one I set out to write. And that's a problem.
There's hope to be had
After tearing down the Jenga tower of my plot and finding that some of the blocks were Lincoln Logs, I've sifted through the mess to find what's still usable.
The good news is there's a lot to salvage.
My hero - The character herself is solid. Her voice is distinct, I know her goals and motivations, and she's still a solid anchor for the story.
My sidekick - He's almost too easy to write. Again, his voice and interactions are locked in. He'll adapt to new plot like he was made for it.
Some key scenes - While some of the details will need to change, the emotional components of some important scenes are still valid. Those can come over to the next draft without a lot of work.
The world building - I have a pretty good idea about Cascadia in my head, so I don't have to spend a lot of time in the next draft trying to come up with place names, relative geography, and such.
The core idea - The book's main concept is still sound. No need to take the story in a totally different direction.
Now what?
Much like the Six Million Dollar Man, this story can be rebuilt. It's not a total loss. I've already fixed the plot problems in a new outline and slotted in some of the salvaged elements from the previous draft. With a clearer understanding of not just where I'm going, but also the way I have to go to get there, I'm back to drafting chapters.
I've got about three weeks of heavy writing ahead of me to get back to where I was a month ago. And when I get there, I'll have a lot more confidence in the story's structure.
Time for a fresh pot of coffee and more words.
"Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently."
Bonus content!
While contemplating what I was going to do about some of my story problems, I engaged in a bit of worldbuilding; which is writer speak for procrastination.
My book takes place in the fictional Pacific Northwest city of Cascadia in the year 2080. It’s an amalgam of Portland, Seattle, Vancouver and my imagination.
While I was busy not solving one of my plot problems, I wondered if Cascadia had any sports teams. Sure they do! And I bet they’re pretty fun to watch.
Before I knew it, I was deciding on team names and venues for all the major sports teams in the city. If I’m going to make my own city, then I’m absolutely going to have the NFL, NBA, MLB, MLS, and the NHL all represented.
Here you go sports fans. These are the Cascadia teams you should be rooting for!
Team name | Sport | Home Venue |
|---|---|---|
Cascadia Breakwater | NFL Football | Breakwater Field |
Cascadia Timberjacks | MBL Baseball | Ironpine Park |
Cascadia Sasquatch | NBA Basketball | Summit Hall |
Cascadia Beacon FC | MLS Soccer | Lantern Field |
Cascadia Blackfrost | NHL Ice Hockey | Coldreach Arena |
Extra bonus content!
There was no way I could come this far with my collection of Cascadia’s sports teams and not create their logos too. With the help of some robot friends to turn my descriptions into visuals. I present you with the iconic images of Cascadia’s athletic franchises.
I might have to get myself a few custom jerseys.