tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5115759973832197426.post703760687098447813..comments2023-05-07T03:47:02.348-04:00Comments on The Rockville 8: Creatures of Story: Hardwired for Story - Part IIThe Eighthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03966202602120800766noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5115759973832197426.post-87768299575937850042013-05-23T18:30:05.571-04:002013-05-23T18:30:05.571-04:00Shellie ~ Great insights. You're right good st...Shellie ~ Great insights. You're right good story-telling is a must. Often we'll follow great characters or a compelling plot, but if the story-telling is sub-par, we might be loathe to buy the next book. Thanks for sharing!Mackenzie Lucashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00508204115833993481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5115759973832197426.post-52023640591257925962013-05-23T18:28:59.437-04:002013-05-23T18:28:59.437-04:00Keely ~ LOL. Yes, even as toddlers we're looki...Keely ~ LOL. Yes, even as toddlers we're looking for pattern. Love the anecdotal story. Thanks for sharing.Mackenzie Lucashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00508204115833993481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5115759973832197426.post-45279733712802049672013-05-23T18:10:37.467-04:002013-05-23T18:10:37.467-04:00Candy,
I love your blog and Lisa Cron. I found a ...Candy,<br /><br />I love your blog and Lisa Cron. I found a review of her book at thecreativepenn.com and a few things caught my eye.<br /><br />Story Vs Writing: "Great language is fantastic but it’s not what pulls us into a story. Writing is taught as if the goal is to write ‘well’ but it should be about how to tell a great story." <br /><br />Now, I'm not advocating for schlocky writing, but I happen to agree that I will plow through a poorly written novel, if the plot and characters are compelling.<br /><br />Conversely, my eyes glaze over when I read beautiful writing lacking a strong storyline. I felt that way about "Past Imperfect," by Julian Fellowes, creator of "Downtown Abbey."<br /><br />How, I wondered, could the author of dramatic--perhaps even melodramtic costumed soap opera--write such a boring book? <br /><br />Don't know, but he did and it was a hard read for my book club. I skipped pages of lovely prose to get to "the good stuff"-- the high emotion scenes, the reveals, information I needed to understand the story.<br /><br />Thanks for spotlighting Cron's book. Can't wait to read it.Shellie Williamshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14597975902316586870noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5115759973832197426.post-2648974043070867802013-05-22T17:17:44.392-04:002013-05-22T17:17:44.392-04:00"...they’ll walk away unsatisfied."
Ain..."...they’ll walk away unsatisfied."<br /><br />Ain't that the truth! I still remember 20 years later reading a murder mystery where the bad guy gets off scot free. Are you kidding me? I never read another book by that author because I couldn't trust her to deliver the pattern goods. <br /><br />My mom tells a story of when I was a toddler. We were in the grocery store and I said, "Look, Mom, two sixes." It took her forever to realize I was referring to a couple of six packs, lol. Guess pattern recognition really IS hardwired into the brain! Keely Thrallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05656529091898492453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5115759973832197426.post-34799987943113809882013-05-22T11:11:09.017-04:002013-05-22T11:11:09.017-04:00Nichole ~ I'll have to look for Gibson's P...Nichole ~ I'll have to look for Gibson's Pattern Recognition. Ha. Yes, readers want a pattern, but one where they can't necessarily see the framework. Their subconscious brain looks for it, they just don't want their conscious brain to always "see" it. That's what genre conventions are . . . those patterns or reader expectations built into a genre. Not a formula, because that implies all we have to do is insert names and places and a story spits out of our computers. <br /><br />And I agree, long live the pattern. The subconscious one is the most satisfactory!Mackenzie Lucashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00508204115833993481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5115759973832197426.post-10973944788140268592013-05-22T11:09:54.167-04:002013-05-22T11:09:54.167-04:00This comment has been removed by the author.Mackenzie Lucashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00508204115833993481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5115759973832197426.post-17577566852354484692013-05-22T11:06:18.563-04:002013-05-22T11:06:18.563-04:00Lisa ~ Me, too. I love to think about the brain an...Lisa ~ Me, too. I love to think about the brain and our personal psychology surrounding story. It's all fascinating. And, yes, it is you looking for a pattern in your world. Keep looking. We all find it, whether we're totally conscious of it or not! LOL.Mackenzie Lucashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00508204115833993481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5115759973832197426.post-13128488773234280742013-05-21T16:40:16.730-04:002013-05-21T16:40:16.730-04:00I love it when you talk about this stuff, Candy!
...I love it when you talk about this stuff, Candy!<br /><br />The phrase "readers look for patterns" calls to mindthe title of one of my favorite books, PATTERN RECOGNITION by William Gibson.<br /><br />That book is awesome on a lot of levels because, hey, it's Bill Gibson, but one of the things I love about it is that the protagonist, Cayce, is sucked into a situation and stumbles along that line of Whose story is this, What's happening here, and What's at stake--just like the reader. We suss out the pattern with her. And what that pattern reveals is profound.<br /><br />Gibson sticks to the more basic pattern of beginning, rising action complete with twists and reversals, climax, and denouement so we never get lost. But because he sticks to that--and we're wired to understand it--he can weave more pattern into his novel. It's a thing of beauty.<br /><br />Sometimes, when folks find out I'm a writer, they say they hope I don't stick to a pattern or "formula." They go on and on about how boring it is. And there's all sorts of folks who blog and brag about being pattern breakers in their own work. That just tells me they can't see the forest for the trees when it comes to pattern. After all, those folks who want to tell me all writers should avoid pattern walked up to me and began the conversation with "Hello." They introduced themselves. And they said goodbye when they left. That's pattern and all communication is pattern, from conversation to the novel.<br /><br />So I say long live pattern! Let's learn about it and use it to full advantage in our writing. As you say, that's what readers deserve, expect, and need. And if we as writers want to communicate our stories, we need it, too.Nichole Christoffhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09799006710672537142noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5115759973832197426.post-5618231459414001702013-05-21T15:55:26.825-04:002013-05-21T15:55:26.825-04:00Great post, Candy. I love the list of three thing...Great post, Candy. I love the list of three things that readers look for on the first page. I will definitely look at my wips and future projects to make sure that they include these. I'll have to look for that book as well. I love to learn about the science behind why the brain does what it does. I guess that's me (a reader) looking for order in my world. LOLLisa McQuayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08261421741139099750noreply@blogger.com