Ah, the fun of writing a novel.
You, the writer, get to wreak havoc on your characters – all the while ignoring any and all havoc in your life. (At least for a little while. You must return to reality at some point.)
Wreaking havoc – that’s just another term for “the Ds”: the events that distance your hero or heroine from their goals. Let me be more specific:
What: The Ds
Think Distancing, Denial, Disappointments and Devastation. Yes, there are Dreams and Delights too – even a dream-come-true, like your heroine getting offered that job she’s always wanted – can wreak havoc in her life. Ds distance a character from what they want, deny them something – a relationship, maybe – and create a Y in the road, forcing her to make a choice. Most often when we think of the Ds, we think of Disappointments that get worse and worse with each turn of the page until there’s a devastating event that brings your character to their knees.
Why:
Because your character doesn’t live on Easy Street. If she does, then pack her stuff up and move her out. A book with no conflict is … well, it’s boring. Not to mention, it’s unrealistic. Do you know anyone with no conflict in their life? That person is either lying to you or they are clueless.
Sorry. I call it like I see it.
Think of the Ds as literary roadblocks. They stop your main character from going forward and getting where she wants to be. By creating a Y in the road, the Ds force your character to ask, “What do I do now? Quit? Try again? Try something else?”
When you’re stopped by a real roadblock, you can either:
- Quit. If your character does this, your book ends – and you don’t want this unless you are truly at the end of your book. (Trust me, if you’re plotting the Ds, you’re not ready to write “The End.”)
- Try again. Have you ever watched a movie when someone blasts right through a roadblock? It’s dangerous – and all kinds of crazy things happen.
- Change direction. Think “detour.” If your character can’t do the planned thing, what can she do? And then … what D does that action lead to?
There’s always another D, right?
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MBT’s Skills Coach, Beth K. Vogt provides her readers with a happily ever after woven through with humor, reality, and God’s lavish grace. Her inspirational contemporary romance novel, Wish You Were Here, debuted May 2012 (Howard Books.) Her second novel, Catch a Falling Star, releases May 2013. Beth is an established magazine writer and former editor of Connections, the leadership magazine for MOPS International. Visit with Beth at her website bethvogt.com.