Try Again: The Dissection of a Plot
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| Title: | Try Again: The Dissection of a Plot |
| Creator: | Tefnut |
| Date(s): | March 14, 2005 |
| Medium: | online |
| Fandom: | Stargate SG-1 |
| Topic: | |
| External Links: | Try Again: The Dissection of a Plot, Archived version |
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Try Again: The Dissection of a Plot is a 2005 essay by Tefnut.
It is part of the Fanfic Symposium series.
The author discusses the fanfic writing process using a Stargate SG-1 story of her own.
Excerpts
I have always been intrigued by the processes involved in the creation of a story. How do writers find their ideas? Do they really have a magical muse that send plot bunnies running into their bedrooms? Or is there a scientific method to come up with stories? What is, in fact, inspiration?
I'm afraid I'm not educated enough to start discussing this subject from scratch. What I can do, though, is analyse one of my own stories and track the steps I've taken to develop a plot bunny into a full-blown narrative. I'll then try to generalise the processes I've used.
Conclusion The plot of "Try Again", as straightforward as it may seem, has a complicated origin.
It started with an idea turned wrong. It was saved by an original character who refused to die. Some parts of the story originated from research or from general knowledge (some of which I had forgotten about). Others from sentences that just sounded right, and on which I lingered a bit longer to hear what they had to tell me. Others again from pretty images in my head, of men hugging, a punching bag and a creepy temple. An important part of the plot came from the careful consideration of what were my aliens' motivations. I knew their voices and their general personality already; all I had to do was a bit of logical thinking.
There's more in this story than what I planned to put into it. It's the constant interaction between the narrative, the reflection on what I wanted to say, and the stumbling upon huge difficulties that made this story what it is. I didn't get the idea of petrifaction until very late during the writing stage.
The core of this fanfic, senility, went unnoticed by me during the whole process. So much for the importance of author's intent. Sometimes the author is too stupid (OK, let's say, too involved) to understand what his story is really about!
I'm going to try and generalise a bit.
I think that a story is a living, evolving monster. The author needs to give it time and room to grow. He has to learn about its quirks, about what "makes its life worth living", to paraphrase Grey. It's a time for speculation, preliminary researches, pretty pictures in the author's head, and whatever help he can get.
Plotting is often a trial-and-error process. Writers make mistakes that are part of the creative act. They can disregard them -- thus creating plot holes, or try to correct them -- thus steaming new ideas.
The control the author has on his story is not always conscious. That's when you'll hear the author say things like: "Teal'c told me to do that," or "Grey didn't want to die." It would be more accurate to say: "I studied Teal'c's behaviour on the show and thought he would act that way," or "Grey was a character with potential, and I decided to explore it further." That's also when the author ends up looking into the details. Sentences, words and grasshoppers that his subconscious made him write often have a bigger purpose. If a sentence sticks to the mind to the point that it itches, it's time to let it grow.
In the end, it's always the author who comes up with the story. Not a muse. I don't believe in divine inspiration. It all comes down to hard work, reflection, and a fair amount of lateral thinking. That some or all of it takes place on a subconscious level doesn't make it magical.
It only makes the act of creation extremely mysterious, just like the minds that give it birth.