Yesterday we talked about incorporating the first couple beats of your story into the first Act, and especially the first scene. Today, we’re going to continue the conversation by show how we might use Why/Why Nots to help move our character forward in his journey toward Act 2.
ACT 1 Review:
Life
Inciting Incident
The Big Debate
(Romantic) Quest
You’ve already established your character’s home world and had them meet in a way that helps the reader to feel sympathy for your characters. You’ve also shown that they have an interest/need for something more, namely, a romance. Finally, you’ve hinted at the stakes of the story, and perhaps even woven that in with the Why Not (or obstacles) between your characters. E.g., having your character say, “The last person she wanted in her life was a know-it-all redneck,” right before her car breaks down in the middle of the northern Minnesotan woods, where a very buff logger redneck walks out of the forest to help her get back on the road. J
So, let’s move the romance thread a bit further along, using our why/why nots to help us.
Let’s refresh:
The Why Not are the Obstacles between the hero and heroine, the True Love that conspire to separate them. Remember, you MUST have why not’s in a romance. Because without the WHY NOT, there is no conflict and the story is… boring. Or not a story.
The WHYs tell us why are these two perfect for each other? We must know this by the end of the story because the core reason they belong together saves the day and brings them back together at the end.
We talked about the Why elements earlier this year, but there are three elements that draw people together:
1. Their essential values. We like people who hold our values dear to their hearts. At the end of the day, they need to see the core values of each other and have that draw them to each other.
2. Their vacancies. We like people who “complete” us – who can do the things we can’t do. What can they do for each other that the other can’t do?
3. They make each other better people. We like people who can see the best in us and draw it out. What do they see in each other that they draw out, and how do they become better people when they are together?
The inciting incident should cause a need to arise in the hoer/heroine so much so that they are “invited” by either an external or internal force to go on a “journey” or Noble Quest. Although this is a plot element, likewise, they are going on a romantic journey as well. They may not decide to pursue the object of their affection at the moment, but you are going to feed the internal interest or needs by giving them a glimpse of one of the whys. By doing this, you will lowering their defenses for a second meeting.
For example, in Return to Me, the hero sees the heroine filling up the water bottle of the crabby patron in the sink. This act feeds his internal values – he likes down to earth people. When he doesn’t rat her out to his date, this ignites her interest/need for a man who might accept her (which, ultimately, is her hope). Thus, she writes him a little note in his take-out meal. Likewise, he hopes to see her when he goes back for his phone…and the story continues from there.
Pick one of the Why elements and insert a hint of it in Act 1, as a sort of “pull” toward each other. Can they observe the other doing something that speaks to their values? Can the hero do something for the heroine that she can’t do, or vice versa? Or, are they briefly working together, or challenging each other to become better people?
Think about the first Act of your favorite romances: What Why do the hero/heroine hint at even before they begin their relationship/wooing?
Of course, there must also be something holding them apart, or it would be love at first sight. Which means we need to return to the Why Nots. What obstacles have you put before your hero/heroine? If you are constructing a Why Not/Why romance structure, then the Why Nots at the beginning should be looming. There should not be a doubt in the hero/heroine’s mind that this is NOT the one. Which makes that hint of Why ever more important. They have to have at smidge of an impulse to connect with the other again.
If you are constructing a Why/Why Not romance, then the whys will be large and beautiful, and you’ll need to hint at the Why Not, a blip of why things might go wrong. You also must hint at the EMOTIONAL Why Nots. We might understand why they can’t be together on an external level, but now you have to hint at what holds them apart internally. Because it is our deepest fears and wounds that ultimately hold us back from true love.
Return to Me is a Why/Why Not romance because from the hero/heroine’s POV, they have no obstacles until the big Why Not at the end. So, the Whys seems glorious and beautiful until they begin to get closer and she might have to tell him about her surgery. And then, they are devastating when she has to tell him the truth about the origin of her heart. But, the first hints are when she is walking with her best friend, and she is carrying the envelope to the donor heart’s loved one, which she’s never mailed. She says…how could anyone ever live with knowing someone else has their loved one’s heart? It’s what drives her fear – that the hero wouldn’t be able to see her, but instead by always blinded by the fact she has his wife’s heart.
The author has hinted at the internal Why Not to come.
Have you hinted at the Why Not in the first Act?
Now, here’s the key: Do this before you get to Act 2 by having your character include the Why/Why Nots in the Big Debate.
What is the Big Debate? This is when your character realizes that they must change their world, do something different, go on a journey of emotions, or even physically, they will have a moment/scene where they “debate” their options. Should they or shouldn’t they? This is where the concept of a Push-Pull motivation equation is essential.
Something (usually as a result of the inciting incident) should PUSH them out of the situation they are in, and a glimpse of the Happy Ending should PULL them toward the journey. If you are writing a romance, then the equation works like this:
Emotional Push + HEA Pull = Romantic Quest
(Push: I have a need/interest/vacancy in my romantic life, brought to life because of the inciting incident.
Pull: I see a potential of the Happily Ever After out there, and the other person has ignited that hope.)
Do you have a Push/Pull? This equation is also the key to avoiding the “These people are too stupid to live” ailment. Now, you’ve given them a good reason for their actions, both in plot, and in romance.
Once you have your Why/Why Nots hinted at, and you’ve waged the great debate, then you’re off into Act 2…and we’ll see you next week!
If you have questions about how to build a great romance, check out the romance discussion at www.mybooktherapy.ning.com
And, although the story crafting retreat is full, ACFW Denver is having a one-day intensive seminar on story crafting – I’ll also be introducing my new “Managing the Muddle” class on how to strengthen the middle of your novel. J http://www.acfwcolorado.com/events.html
Susie May