The online diary of a dreamer creating Contemporary Romantic Fiction - because Every Woman needs Love and Laughter in her Life.

Wednesday 9 January 2008

Black Moment Scene, Wednesday




Danger/Black Moment; where the inner conflicts clash in a devastating way, driven by an external event. The whole book has been moving toward this moment, the darkest hour when all seems lost.

This is the scene when the Plan Fails. Some major revelation through the external conflict threatens their relationship, which directly challenges the internal conflict and fears of one of them. Or both.

John Truby* teaches screenwriting, but the story structure is very similar to that described by Jenny Crusie** and other story coaches. With perhaps one exception.


John advises that the author look VERY hard at the battle and self-revelation storylines and THEN look backwards to see how the writer has built up the detail on the internal conflict so that this scene is the most powerful in the book.
In effect, creating the storyline from the self-revelation moment.

So today I am focusing on what I want this scene/chapter to achieve, before working my way backwards to see if the turning points support the conflicts and this scene is both inevitable and necessary.

My heroine has been through the grinder. Time for her to break through and find happiness with the man who has come to love her.


Then all I have to do is revise the scene to make it the most powerful and fundamental life changeing event in her life.

That's all... Sigh. I need Josh.




No YouTube today - Mozart on Radio 3. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/breakfast/pip/i75iy/

2 comments:

Deborah Carr (Debs) said...

Sounds like you're doing well and reminds me how much I'll have to think about when doing my redraft.

Ray-Anne said...

I am probably being far too analytical Debs, but I am determined to fix this scene today.
Two chapters depend on getting it JUST right.
Hence the panic.
YIKES!