Stepping into the forest of my mind

Stepping into the forest of my mind
Just as every journey begins with a first step, every story begins with the first word.

Tuesday, March 20, 2018

The Transformational Arc of the Protagonist in Fiction or Memoir #AuthorToolboxBlogHop


In fiction or memoir, the story needs to be about the protagonist taking the reader through an arc of change and letting the reader feel that experience, feel that change within the protagonist. Writers need to remember that the internal story arc of change for the protagonist, the transformational arc, needs to unfold slowly, scene by scene, and it needs to be interpreted for the reader through the protagonist’s thoughts.  
http://victoriamarielees.blogspot.com


But in order for the writer to construct a story to change the protagonist, the writer needs to understand how the protagonist interprets her story world. That’s where the origin scene comes in. Remember the origin scene from a prior blog post? The origin scene is where the protagonist’s misbelief about the world is born. This is a misbelief about how the world works according to the protagonist. This guides the protagonist’s life from the moment it happens—the actual origin scene—according to Lisa Cron in her Story Genius course.

In memoir, the protagonist is you the writer. You need to think:
How am I going to show one explicit arc of change in the protagonist’s memoir story?
Think what particularly is Victoria’s arc of change in her college memoir?

            Victoria begins the memoir believing that if you struggled in school, you’re not smart enough for college because her father said as much in the origin scene when she attempted to sign up for college prep courses in high school.

As a writer, I need to show the protagonist’s change from someone who doesn’t believe that she can handle college—because she’s unprepared and inadequate—to someone who does in fact graduate from an Ivy League university. I need to show the daily struggles with fear and doubt—and what they mean to the protagonist—through scenes in the memoir.

In order to do this, writers need to set the place, the time, and the context of each scene moving forward. Scenes need to be specific. Writers can’t simply focus on what happens externally in the story. We’ve got to let the reader know what our protagonist is thinking as she reacts, internally, to everything that happens in the story according to Cron. And we need to help the reader understand why our characters are thinking and believing what they do. We need to put the character’s inner struggle right on the page so readers can experience her internal conflict themselves.

The misbelief needs to be at the forefront of the internal struggle in the story. Backstory scenes need to reinforce Victoria’s misbelief; scenes that show her feelings of fear and doubt and inadequacy that if she went to college she would surely fail. My blogpost about backstory can be found here

            A few backstory scenes to reinforce Victoria’s misbelief could be:

A scene with a college-bound high school friend where the friend tries to explain her science classwork to Victoria and Victoria is completely lost, believing her father correct. She could never understand the subject material.
Note: Victoria comes to realize, as she struggles through college herself, that she needs to be taught the subject matter visually to be able to understand.

After the birth of her first baby, Victoria discovers that a fellow secretarial student friend from high school graduates from community college. Victoria interprets this as her friend probably didn’t struggle in school. She was simply smarter than Victoria.

Victoria fails the math portion of the College Entrance Exam.

However, to chip away at her struggle to believe she can succeed at college, Victoria learns that the college offers basic skills math courses to help her build a math foundation.  
           
            Another scene that chips away at Victoria’s misbelief is when the Phi Theta Kappa advisor informs her that she should apply for All U.S.A. and All New Jersey Community and Junior College Academic Team awards. The professor believes in Victoria, but Victoria is more worried about what would happen if she won the awards.

Fear, doubt, and inadequacy in my particular memoir story can manifest themselves as inferiority or even feeling like an imposter. When I attended the University of Pennsylvania, I didn’t feel like a real Ivy Leaguer. I felt like I didn’t belong.

*As before, please offer any insight or comments you may have about my college memoir. Thank you! * 

Lisa Cron states that the protagonist’s “aha moment” comes near the end of the novel. It is when she finally overcomes her misbelief. This is where your novel makes its point. I’ll talk about the “aha moment” in the next post.

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47 comments:

  1. Everything you are saying about fictionalize memoirs also would apply to any work of fiction. It's so important to show the causes for a character's wound as well as the transformation. Thanks for sharing.

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  2. It's not so much that you are fictionalizing memoir here. You are using fiction techniques to create a true story about one transformative arc in your life. I agree that it is imperative that writers show the "causes for a character's" actions in story. This helps readers from jumping to the wrong conclusions in your story.

    Thanks so much for visiting Adventures in Writing. Enjoy your week!

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  3. Great tips. I agree with M. L. Keller showing cause for the wound is also true in characterization in fiction. Great post.

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    1. Thanks for your kind words, Juneta! Yes as writers, we always need to show the cause for any wound or misbelief our characters have, in both fiction AND non-fiction or memoir.

      It's always a pleasure seeing you here at Adventures in Writing. Thanks so much for your note. Enjoy your week!

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  4. I'm going through this now with my protagonist. She's 6'2" in a quasi-medieval world of ribbons and ruffles and the sole reason for existence is to find a husband. Because she's been told she's awkward and doesn't fit in society, she believes it and must overcome her thoughts by the end of the story.

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    1. I so believe that words can wound just as severely as physical abuse, Cheryl. A character’s misbelief must be chipped away little by little, scene by scene, throughout the story. It is NOT easy. Okay, so it might be slightly easier in fiction because you can make up what’s necessary to move the plot in that direction. All the luck with your story.

      Thanks so much for visiting Adventures in Writing. Enjoy your week!

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  5. Story Genius is excellent! It's a great way of understanding the essential character journey. Thanks for sharing!

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    1. Story Genius is amazing, Iola. But attaining all the parts to story can be tricky with memoir. I need to force myself to move forward in this college memoir journey.

      Thanks so much for all you do to assist your fellow writer, Iola. It's appreciated more than you realize. Thanks for your note here at Adventures in Writing. Enjoy your day!

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  6. I love the idea of the protagonist's misbelief in the world. I'm going to use this in my latest WIP. I think it will really help.

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  7. I think it will too, Kristina. As I've said above, in both fiction and memoir, the protagonist needs a misbelief and the writer needs to be sure the reader understands how this misbelief came to fruition in the protagonist.

    Thanks so much for your note on Adventures in Writing. Enjoy your week!

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  8. I have so much trouble working out the goal/motivation for my characters sometimes. Story Genius sounds like a valuable resource! And good luck to you with the memoir. It takes a lot of bravery to cut yourself open that way.

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  9. Yes it does, S.E.! It's tremendously scary. Story Genius is truly a valuable book and course to assist with writing. Thanks so much for your kind words here at Adventures in Writing. I truly appreciate them. Enjoy your day!

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  10. I remember my grade nine high-school math teacher telling me he would pass me if I promised to never take another math course again. It took until my twenties to try math again and I excelled in math and physics. I don't understand what changed, but there it is. :-)

    Anna from elements of emaginette

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    1. Wow that's great, Anna! I could never say I "excelled in math" at college. If I was taught the subject matter and could ask countless questions if I didn't understand a concept, I received an A for my troubles. Never took physics. Bravo to you, Anna!

      Thanks so much for your note on Adventures in Writing. Enjoy your week!

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    1. Thanks. I have a place in my current work in progress to expand my protagonist's disbelief. I'll give it a go. As far as your memoir, I think all college students suffer with some feeling of inadequacy or displacement. It's been a while, but I'm sure I felt like a duck in a desert.

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    2. I think that is true, D.R. Thanks so much for this insight. I greatly appreciate it. As far as the protagonist's misbelief is concerned, it's very important that the reader know why he feels the way he does.

      I truly appreciate your insight offered here on Adventures in Writing. Enjoy your week!

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  12. Hi Victoria Marie - it's amazing what you're doing with Writing your Memoir ... I think I'd just write and not try to diagnose, or worry about what others thought - just my writing though. I also understand you're doing it from a professional point of view - good luck ... but great responses you've got here = cheers Hilary

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    1. Thank you for your kind words, Hilary. I truly appreciate them. The first draft of my college memoir was more or less a "this happened and then this happened" type of manuscript. Then I took the Story Genius course and am trying to add depth and cause and effect to the writing. That's why I'm struggling.

      It's always a pleasure seeing you here at Adventures in Writing, Hilary. Thanks so much for your note. Enjoy your week!

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  13. I think you've convinced me to pick up a copy of Story Genius myself :)

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    1. The Story Genius book is a concrete source for all writers, for as Lisa Cron always says:
      “Story is story no matter if it’s memoir or fiction.” Cron has two books out explaining her method of how to create a story readers will get lost in: Wired for Story and Story Genius.

      Thanks for your note here at Adventures in Writing, Dianna. Enjoy your day!

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  14. Great advice! Thanks for sharing. :)

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    1. My pleasure, Charity. Thanks for your kind words. And thanks so much for your note on Adventures in Writing. Enjoy your week!

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  15. To get out of my writer's burnout I've been writing a memoir of sorts. For me, it's more like a collection of essays about my past than an actual story. But there is a project I have in mind that's part memoir and part fiction. I'm not sure if I'd be good at writing a real memoir, but I know this "fictionalized non-fiction" story will have a character arc. :)

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    1. You are right, Chrys. All stories need a character arc. Just as a note: as soon as you change any true event or person in a memoir or non-fiction manuscript, it becomes fiction. I don't believe you can blend fiction and non-fiction together. If you make it up, it's fiction. Now fiction can be "based" on a true story, but it's still fiction because you've made up the situations or settings or characters to serve a story.

      Your collection of essays about your past sounds like a wonderful idea. At first, I thought maybe my college memoir would be a collection of essays instead of one continuous story. This is a difficult decision to make, trust me.

      Thanks for your note here at Adventures in Writing, Chrys. Enjoy your day!

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  16. I do love watching a character grow through the story--in my opinion, it's one of the most engaging parts of storytelling!

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    1. Yes it is, Megan. Even in genre fiction the character should change ever so slightly. We want our readers to engage with our memorable protagonist.

      Thanks so much for your note on Adventures in Writing. Enjoy your week!

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  17. I really like Victoria’s memoire. I think it’s a common fear. If one can’t make it in high school what happens at that next level. I am intrigued with the fear based on winning the award. Is it public speaking events? Would she have to accept it in public. Thank you for this lovely post :)

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    1. Yes, Victoria does need to do some public speaking for these awards. But what she was truly concerned with was the fact that she might be offered a prestigious college scholarship that she couldn't take because she is that mother of five children who still needed her. Plus she had a job and house and husband to consider. In other words, she was not some young, unattached person who could take offers to attend a university far away.

      Thanks for your kind words, Erika. And thanks for your note on Adventures in Writing. Enjoy your week!

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  18. Great advice!! Thank you so much for sharing!!

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    1. My pleasure, Vanessa. Thanks for your kind words. And thanks so much for your note on Adventures in Writing. Enjoy your week!

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  19. Great post! As I was reading it, I went through it as a checklist for my current, and by gosh, I think I'm nailing it. :)

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    1. Bravo to you, Raimey! This is wonderful. Thanks for your kind words. And thanks so much for your note on Adventures in Writing. Enjoy your week!

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    1. Sorry, Raimey. I'm not sure what this means. Do you mean that you "scheduled" or rather shared my Adventures in Writing blog post about the transformational arc of the protagonist on facebook?

      Thanks for all you do to assist writers.

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  21. I am always amazed with the application of fiction techniques to memoir, and the clarity and insight the memoir author needs to have about their own life. Thanks for another insightful breakdown.

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    1. Thank you so much for your kind words, Erika. They mean the world to me. This is the difficult part: finding the insight to offer readers about the memoir author's experiences.

      It's always a pleasure seeing you here at Adventures in Writing. Thanks so much for your note. Enjoy your week!

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  22. I like this idea of rooting the character in "misbelief". I think there's something very interesting about that.
    The fact that we, the author, already establish these opinions/ideas as "wrong" really changes how we interact with the character, I think.

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    1. I think that's true, Adam Michael. As writers, we need to be sure the reader understands how the "misbelief" comes about in the protagonist's life and why the character acts the way she does in the story.

      Thanks so much for your note on Adventures in Writing. Enjoy your week!

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  23. I like the way you describe the protagonist's misbelief and how everything must deal with that for the arc to happen. My one caution is overkill. I've read so many books where the writer shares the character's misbelief so many times, I want to scream "I already know!!" An occasional reminder works so much better or perhaps another character pointing out the common misbelief.

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  24. This is sound advice, Joan. Thank you so much. I truly appreciate your insight offered here on Adventures in Writing. And thanks for your kind words. Enjoy your week!

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  25. The more I read your wise words about memoir, origin scene, back story and the protagonist's struggles, the more I think that the book I'm currently writing is not really a memoir. It is the "story of my life" during my thirties. There is so much going on, that the protagonist's arc is a bit hidden. I go from being naive to understanding the world better, from wanting to be free to realizing there is more to life... But, the stories that make up my unique life, seem to make up the book a well. The first draft, anyway.

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  26. Boy do I understand this, Liesbet. Your trials writing a memoir are mine, too! My first draft and revisions were a collection of anecdotes of my journey through college. It sounds like you may have a few memoirs in you. I think I do, too. We need to focus on one thing for each memoir.

    Sometimes it's easier for others to see the main thread in our writing and find the things that MAY not belong. This is why we need beta readers. You have good points here. I also feel that I went from being naive beginning college to understanding the system and what it means to have a college degree. I just need to get it down in scenes. I have a real difficulty in overthinking things.

    It's always a pleasure seeing you here at Adventures in Writing. Thanks so much for your note. Enjoy your week!

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  27. This is a very comprehensive examination of this subject. Nicely done. When I'm writing I will look at my characters to use people I've known as a basis and then try to put myself into the character as much as I can. It can be a magical experience to read a three dimensional character who comes so much to life that I feel like I've actually met them and got to know them.

    Arlee Bird
    Tossing It Out

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  28. This is so true, Lee! The best characters feel as though they are real people. The writer's job is to be INSIDE the head of their character to know why the character does what he does and how it makes him feel to do it.

    I truly appreciate your insight offered here on Adventures in Writing. And thanks for your kind words. I truly appreciate them. Enjoy your week!

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  29. Thanks so much for sharing this post Victoria. I'm thinking of writing about one specific aspect of our lives and this post is really helpful.

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  30. My pleasure, Nas. I hope all is well. Thanks for your kind words. They are greatly appreciated. It's always a pleasure seeing you here at Adventures in Writing. All best to you, my dear!

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