Yesterday, I addressed Scene Flow, and how in a romance scene, you might decide to develop it a bit more, making it longer. In a suspense, sometimes it’s nice to develop that before you jumpstart the action again.
Today, we’re going to jump back into the suspense, drawing that element forward.
Just to make sure I’m on the right track, I want to go back to my synopsis. It’s still my roadmap, even though I’ve been taking a few day trips…
Luke wants his sister, who is a giant MacKenzie Grace fan to meet her, and the dinner out at the roadhouse seemed to go without a hitch…maybe no one will recognize her. But what Luke doesn’t know is that someone has recognized Kenzie – the reporter from the Nashville paper, and she’s hanging around town to get the inside scoop.
A scoop she plans on selling to a national gossip magazine – MacKenzie Grace, hiding from her fans, in torrid love affair with man accused of being a fraud.
While buying Kenzie ice cream, Luke sees the reporter…and intercepts her. Unfortunately, she is the snake Kenzie predicted…she’ll trade the truth about Kenzie for an exclusive from Luke.
Kenzie revels in the feeling of being a normal person, instead of a celebrity, diving into the simple pleasures of backyard barbeque, and playing croquet. Maybe this is what she really wants – a home, a family…a man like Luke, who seems to enjoy her company…without the trappings of what her fame and money can bring to him. He seems to care for her – Kenzie Grace Guinn, the girl who grew up in a trailer in the backhills of North Carolina. The girl she’s nearly forgotten, and is starting to discover again. If only she could hide here forever.
Okay, so I’m on the right track.
*****
As I break the scene down, here are my goals:
Action Objective: To put Luke and Candy together with an ultimatum. I’ll start him at the park, and then he’ll go to the office and find Ruthann, and possibly even Kenzie waiting for him (maybe Ruthann went to his cabin and found her there!) And Ruthann invites him to the picnic…and Kenzie says yes for him. Somewhere in there, Candy will show up with her ultimatum…
Romance Thread: Luke is regretting losing his focus and possibly jeopardizing the safety of everyone he cares about. However, he can’t get Kenzie out of his head and it’s driving him crazy. He is really angry at Greg for sending her here.
Suspense Thread: Luke calls an army buddy and asks if they know anything about Lorezno’s gang, and movement? He even goes back to the park to investigate, finds some smashed bushes. He knows someone was watching them. Then, Candy shows up with pictures…or maybe she even emails them to him? Maybe it even brings up a memory of right before he and Darrin were captured.
Lie Journey: We haven’t dived much into the spiritual element of this story, so bringing this lie up – that he can never escape his mistakes, that the happy feeling he had was just to pour salt into the wounds…that he is better off alone or he will hurt people.
Character Change: We are into the second half of Act 2, so we want him to want a change, but not know how to get there. He needs to start yearning to want something different, but have it still be out of his reach because he can’t quite figure out how to get it.
Now, I’ll use my Scene Starter:
Stakes – he has let down his guard and there IS someone after her.
Hero ID – he hates people getting the drop on him. Hates the taste of regret.
Anchoring – it rained this morning, and the forest is wet and gloomy.
Run – he is already at the park, checking out the parking lot.
Problem – He is better off alone…but he doesn’t want it.
And the first line?
They weren’t alone last night under the stars, and the broken rhododendron proved it.
See how I did. Chapter 7 Luke
If you’re writing a novel, and this process seems cumbersome to you, here’s a summary:
- Interview your next POV character (I do this right after I finish the last scene – it just feels easier)
- Take notes on what should happen next.
- Determine if your next scene is an Action/Reaction/Combo scene.
- Check in with your synopsis/roadmap to see if you are still heading the right direction.
- Figure out the Action Objectives and the Story Thread goals.
- Use the SHARP Scene starter to get a feel of the scene and land your first line.
- WRITE!
Again, this is all in the Create stage of your writing process. There will be an edit stage later.
See you next week when we get Kenzie’s Reaction scene!
Happy Writing!
Susie May