Dead Heroes . . . or What Distinguishes the Anti-Hero

Your protagonist can be the vilest person imaginable so long as empathy exists. But there's a big difference between Hero and Anti-Hero, as well Anti-Hero and Villain.

Here we'll focus on the latter two because Anti-Heroes walk that fine line between Hero and Villain as the complicated conglomeration of both, neither black nor white but shades of gray.

The Anti-Hero can lie, cheat, steal, and be unpleasant to everyone they interact with, same as the Villain, but we root for the Anti-Hero while condemning the Villain.

Why so?

Two simple words containing a whole planet's worth of gravity: potential redemption.

As well the lovable quality of the stubborn Anti-Hero is telling them they cannot or shouldn’t do something feeds their tenacious drive for doing it all the more if only out of spite.

Anti-Heroes are flawed same as us. Their moral complexities mirror our own. And just like us they learn and grow while moving upon their tortured path of life. Their mistakes make us think of our mistakes, and the reason why we root for their redemption is the reflection of ourselves rooting for our own.

The contrast between Anti-Hero and Villain is simple. We embrace and relate to the Anti-Hero, while we despise and detach from the Villain. Both are driven by selfish motivations, but our emotional response differs between them because the Anti-Hero possesses two distinct traits the Villain lacks:

1. a glimmer of humanity

2. a noticeable vulnerability

These two distinct traits allow us to truly connect with the Anti-Hero so that we forgive them when they are unethical and admire them when they are noble. This allows them to be angry, cowardly, and greedy, but also cheerful, brave, and empathetic.

Unlike the clean-cut, golden-haired virtuous Hero of mainstream culture, as well the unshaven, mustache-twirling sinister Villain, the Anti-Hero is not only more realistic but far more likely to resonate with the reader despite often being abrasive, rude, and miserable grumps. They resemble ourselves, and not only remind us of the ambiguous morality of existence but also the possibility of redemptive change.

With Anti-Heroes, we may not have walked the same tortured story in their shoes through first-hand experience (murder, addiction, physical abuse and/or psychological torment, etc ...), but we can relate to the adversity that comes with it.

Considering the incredible magnitude of their individual story's plight, the Anti-Hero reaches a crossroad moment in life where one side offers the possibility of hope and redemption, the other side the outright guarantee of despair and forfeiture.

Much like the Villain, the central component of the Anti-Hero is that they possess the singular desire to accomplish their goal to which the end justifies all means. Yet this desire stems from their scars of vulnerability they carry round as their defensive antisocial shield.

Most often the Anti-Hero displays rare acts of selflessness to the benefit of vulnerable others while at the detriment to themselves, declaring they care nothing for the vulnerable other yet showing they actually do, proving this conflict of paradoxical truth harbored within them through their sacrificial Glimmer of Humanity.

As example, they may spend most of their story arguing with and saying outright that they hate a specific ally they're forced to work with, but when this ally becomes trapped inside a burning building the Anti-Hero rushes to the rescue without care or consequence to him/herself and drags the hated ally outside to safety—then punches them in the face after saving their life after no others dared risk their own life in such a brave manner.

Also the Anti-Hero displays rare acts of kindness to animals or nature over the people they have disassociated themselves from through antisocial defense, perhaps burning an entire forest down while fighting the Villain yet risking their life during their harrowing escape from the raging inferno to rescue a baby bunny (reminding them of their childhood pet) or a rare flower (reminding them of a dead loved one lost during childhood) from the encroaching flames while their stunned allies look on in surprised though also admiring wonder at this fleeting reveal of the Anti-Hero's usually guarded interior tenderness hidden beneath their rough protective exterior.

An Anti-Hero's actions throughout the course of their life are so drastic and single-minded that they only ever lead to salvation or destruction. Their final decision is always dictated by what they've learned and how they've changed throughout the course of their story same as any good protagonist, but its conclusion hides nestled in mystery until the climactic reveal because the Anti-Hero is a living paradox of extremes, whereas presented with a same dire situation one can accurately predict the conventional Hero's or Villain's response.

I’ll use the ‘bare bones basics’ of my Master Plot Formula as example:

-ACT 1-

Old World Stasis: (protagonist living their ordinary life until it’s disrupted by the Inciting Incident that presents them their main story goal; the miserable antisocial Anti-Hero perceives the Inciting Incident as a Major Problem though it’s really a Big Opportunity for them to begin their potential redemption)

New World Flux: (protagonist debating then acting on what to do about the Inciting Incident disrupter of their ordinary life; the Anti-Hero rejects, ignores, debates then decides to do something about the permanent disrupter of the Inciting Incident)

-ACT 2A-

Things Come Together: (protagonist striving to achieve their main story goal, earning more successes than failures while gaining and learning from new allies of the new world; the Anti-Hero rejects then reluctantly accepts help from new allies in the new world though views them more hindrance than help)

False Victory: (protagonist achieving a big success toward resolving their main story goal though not the actual goal itself, while gaining the full attentions of the antagonist; same here, as well the Anti-Hero admits to him/herself they are actually beginning to care about the others involved and hates admitting it)

-ACT 2B-

Things Fall Apart: (protagonist’s continuing plans and team of allies fall apart through more failures than successes while internal dissensions surmount and antagonist external enemies close in; the Anti-Hero regresses behind their defensive antisocial shield, removing from their potential redemption)

False Defeat: (protagonist at their lowest point thus far, a.k.a. the Villain’s False Victory, while tools are stolen or broken and allies are captured or killed; the Anti-Hero further retreats behind their defensive antisocial shield . . . though now they recognize its heavy burden because they actually care about others)

-ACT 3-

False Solution: (protagonist’s final try against the antagonist while all subplots outside of protagonist are resolved; the Anti-Hero reaches an ultimatum fork in the road of either forfeiture or redemption)

True Resolution: (protagonist vs. antagonist showdown; *)

*NOTE that the True Resolution is where Hero, Anti-Hero, and Villain plots differ the most. Typically the Hero survives while earning their triumphant victory over the Villain, whereas the Anti-Hero dies while or shortly after defeating the Villain, completing their redemption while their ultimate sacrifice ensures a better future for those they’ve grown to care about.

Most often the antisocial Anti-Hero's moral epiphany of story is learning to care about another person then committing some great personal sacrifice for the betterment of that person at story's end while at story's contrasting beginning they wouldn't have spat on them if they were on fire.

A perfect example is the movie 'Logan' starring Hugh Jackman. The grumpy ex-X-Man and notorious Wolverine is a bundle of irritable misery throughout most of the movie. His diseased body is failing him through the waning of his healing factor, almost all of his friends are dead, he hates his life . . . and yet he spends his days taking care of the feeble-minded Charles Xavier instead of putting his only remaining friend out of both their miseries. This hard-hitting combo of Logan's Glimmer of Humanity and Noticeable Vulnerability tugs at our feels while excusing all of his contemptible behavior.

Then Logan discovers a little girl needs his help. He wants nothing to do with her, of course, because the Anti-Hero's initial natural response is selfish rejection, but outside circumstances as well his discovery of her being his female genetic clone and thus essentially his daughter instigates him into action. And there between them blossoms a relationship he wanted no part of though cannot deny while providing Logan his potential redemption, the hopeful closure to his otherwise miserable life we the audience crave most for him.

Ultimately Logan sacrifices his life to ensure a bunch of innocent mutant children into safer living across the Canadian border, because sacrifice defines the Anti-Hero, and often at the cost of their own life. This selfless sacrifice earns the Anti-Hero their redemption despite being a reluctant curmudgeon throughout most of their story. And we admire them for it because their sacrifice cuts us deep and makes us care.

But too late.

Because they died for the cause they spurned then eventually took up.

And that makes us grieve all the more.

Because, sadly, the dead hero is the remembered hero.

Happy writing!

Defining Your Protagonist . . . or Keep It Simple, Stupid!

It's common practice for writers to begin their story world and all it entails with protagonist design: how tall or short they are, how fat or thin, young or old, the color of their hair and eyes, their gender, and such and such.

But all that fancy window dressing is just meaningless physical description if it doesn't affect the plot.

Or if asked of their story (and this is prevalent with beginning writers) they'll present a loquacious description of the protagonist's physical world: its exotic flora and fauna, its various native races and alien species, its contesting political intrigues as well how the ruling classes have divided the countries, and such and such.

Which also doesn't matter if it doesn't affect the plot.

Nobody cares how interesting your world, be it a water planet where everyone lives under the sea and eats seaweed farts, or a desert planet where humans have wings and drink tears from the crying sentient clouds, or whatever else floats your imaginary boat, if your protagonist is ill-defined because you've spent too much time world-building (you know who you are: making colorful maps, and endless lists of family trees, blah blah blah . . . 99% of which no readers will ever even see) and not enough effort creating a great protagonist with a clear goal and defined consequences.

This is called Procrastination, the sinister bane of amateur writers, and though you may feel as if you're being productive spending countless hours drawing your protagonist until you sketch then color their perfect coiffure and precise drape of clothes, what you're really doing is falling victim to your subconscious tricking you into believing you're being productive when you're not.

World-building is not writing.

Tallying endless lists of perfect protagonist names is not writing.

Drawing and coloring beautiful maps of their fantastic world is not writing.

Writing is writing because writing produces results.

And when it comes to designing your next great protagonist, the best place to start is with the recipe of two simple steps:

1. pick the best adjective which describes your protagonist's personality.

2. pick the best noun which describes your protagonist's occupation or profession.

Take your time and choose the best two, as these two descriptors are the core of your protagonist, because your protagonist is the core of your story. Strip everything else of them away and these two basic qualities remain intact. They provide the foundation upon which everything else of your character and their story is built.

When considering your protagonist's personality, imagine their flaws and virtues then pick the dominant quality that sets them apart from the rest of your cast. Choose wisely as per how it affects the main conflict of the story as well their character growth arc, be it virtue or vice.

And when considering their occupation or profession, limit yourself to what they do for a living or how they earn that which sustains them. Think: job. Don't complicate it by trying to over-explain everything about your complex protagonist; that's what your story is for to reveal. Trim the fat and be concise. Yes, we are so much more than just how we earn our means of financial sustentation, and our job is only a small part of who we really are, but if I stopped you on the street and asked you what you do for a living your instinctual response is your job and not that soul-smiling butterfly-flutter passion ruling your heart of hearts. Same too your protagonist.

For both core qualities it's best to adhere to the law of K.I.S.S.: Keep It Simple, Stupid.

The K.I.S.S. method breeds simplicity, and beginning with the bare bones basics allows that everything you add afterwards only complements their character.

Think of yourself the baker and this process as making a delicious cake because everybody likes cake. A cake has three parts: the sponge, the icing, and the toppings.

Let's start with the sponge, or the two core descriptors of your protagonist. First a personal adjective and an occupational noun:

A plucky farmboy . . .

A hapless boxer . . .

An aquaphobic sheriff . . .

Second, add to your protagonist sponge the icing gist of the main conflict of their story, your protagonist's primary story goal, beginning with Must:

. . . must prove his worth against the world heavyweight champion in a once in a lifetime bout . . .

. . . must overcome his fear of water and kill a man-eating shark terrorizing the local swimmers . . .

. . . must join the Rebel Alliance and master the mysterious ways of the Jedi Force . . .

The third ingredient is the death stakes toppings involved if your protagonist fails to achieve their main story goal, beginning with Or Else:

. . . or else the man-eating shark will continue its voracious slaughter of innocents without end.

. . . or else the evil Empire will use its planet-destroying Death Star to eradicate the Rebel Alliance and rule the galaxy through uncontested militant tyranny.

. . . or else he'll live the rest of his miserable life a disrespected failure.

Then you join the ingredients into what is called a logline, a one sentence description of your overall story minus everything unimportant (ergo anything that doesn't affect the plot):

An aquaphobic sheriff . . . must join the Rebel Alliance and master the mysterious ways of the Jedi Force . . . or else he'll live the rest of his miserable life a disrespected failure.

A hapless boxer . . . must overcome his fear of water and kill a man-eating shark terrorizing the local swimmers . . . or else the evil Empire will use its planet-destroying Death Star to eradicate the Rebel Alliance and rule the galaxy through uncontested militant tyranny.

A plucky farmboy . . . must prove his worth against the world heavyweight champion in a once in a lifetime bout . . . or else the man-eating shark will continue its voracious slaughter of innocents without end.

Now I don't know about you but something doesn't taste quite right with these story cakes. We've combined the proper ingredients though perhaps to the wrong recipe, you say? And I concur. So let's whip up another batch and bake three more:

A plucky farmboy . . . must join the Rebel Alliance and master the mysterious ways of the Jedi Force . . . or else the evil Empire will use its planet-destroying Death Star to eradicate the Rebel Alliance and rule the galaxy through uncontested militant tyranny. (Star Wars: A New Hope)

A hapless boxer . . . must prove his worth against the world heavyweight champion in a once in a lifetime bout . . . or else he'll live the rest of his miserable life a disrespected failure. (Rocky)

An aquaphobic sheriff . . . must overcome his fear of water and kill a man-eating shark terrorizing the local swimmers . . . or else the man-eating shark will continue its voracious slaughter of innocents without end. (Jaws)

Ahh, there we go. Each bite is scrumptious in our tummies since we've followed the appropriate recipe with tender loving care.

Because we've kept it simple, stupid.

Everything else you add to this basic recipe only complements your protagonist and their tasty story.

Happy writing!

The Third Act Solution . . . or the Most Important Moment in your story

The Third Act Solution.

Not every story has one, but every great story does.

So what is the Third Act Solution and why is it so darned special?

It’s the “the power is in you and always has been” moment.

It’s the pathological liar finally applying their hard-learned lesson of “the truth shall set you free” as the changed character they’ve become.

Or the poster of Rita Hayworth revealed as an escape tunnel’s cover through which Andy Dufrense finally achieves his freedom from Shawshank prison along with the little worn nub of the rock hammer he bought from Red and left behind in his cell just to stick it to the evil warden.

Or the loyal General betrayed and turned slave then gladiator finally confronting and killing their betrayer in front of all of Rome as did Maximus Decimus Meridius the usurping Emperor Lucius Aurelius Commodus in Gladiator.

Or terrified Peter Parker, trapped under tons of rubble moments from crushing him to death, remembering Tony Stark’s words, “If you’re nothing without this suit then you shouldn’t have it” then summoning his full Spidey courage and shoving free from the rubble then chasing after the Vulture with his full Spider-Man potential realized and without the unnecessary aid of his Stark-tech suit.

The Third Act Solution is the writer’s promise to the audience paid in full near story’s end, because everything before it leads up to this one defining moment that makes the rest of your story worth reading.

Star Wars: A New Hope is probably the most famous example. Its Third Act Solution is the “Use the Force” moment quoted by millions of fans. All of Luke’s Jedi training and all of Obi Wan’s sage advice during Act 2 finally meld together during Act 3 when Luke, piloting his X-Wing and moments from being shot to smithereens, let’s go of his inhibitions, trusts in the mysterious Force to guide his impossible shot, and blows up the evil Empire’s Death Star. And we the audience get that satisfying butterfly-flutter in our happy guts as the Death Star goes BOOM! because we reflect on Luke’s Act 2 training with an insightful smile.

The Third Act Solution is put into active motion during Act 3 when the protagonist faces the antagonist one-on-one as only the protagonist can and either achieves victory or dies trying. We catch a glimpse of its powerful potential sometime during the beginning of Act 2 when the protagonist undergoes their training for change, and we are reminded of its necessity sometime during the end of Act 2 when the protagonist experiences their spiritual epiphany of inspiration after their All is Lost depression and they decide on one last try against the antagonist regardless the impossible odds. Though an introductory hint of its untapped potential is provided earlier in the story sometime during the beginning of Act 1, but at this point the protagonist has zero idea of its true value otherwise they would have used it to resolve the Inciting Incident. At the time, the specialness of it doesn’t catch our ignorant eye, and that’s the entire magician’s trick of its point. It seems like nothing more than ordinary advice or a particular protagonist idiosyncrasy overlooked or an ordinary gift bestowed . . . then later its true importance is revealed through a surprising though logical display of protagonist potential finally realized and applied as the changed character they’ve become through all the adversity they’ve endured and thus grown wiser because of.

The Third Act Solution is the most important moment in your entire story because it is what completes the protagonist’s character growth arc. Everything before its implementation is the imminent set-up to its spectacular pay-off.

And it’s best summed up in three words: protagonist potential realized.

You see, up till the Third Act Solution actually happens, all the story before it is a promise, and when it’s finally implemented the Third Act Solution is that promise paid in full. It’s the reason your story exists. And introducing it early in the story makes its later implementation a surprising though logical reveal instead of an irritating and illogical deus ex machina. If it’s introduced too late (any time after the Midpoint) then it feels forced and contrived. Introducing it earlier allows the subtle memory of it to linger in our minds as just another part of the whole story.

And the protagonist accomplishes their Third Act Solution in one of five ways:

1. By means of courage: the protagonist uses their courage to solve their problem and achieve their purpose.

2. By means of ingenuity: the protagonist uses their brains and creativity to solve their problem.

3. By means of a special ability: the protagonist has a special ability or acquires a new skill.

4. By means of a special weapon: the protagonist has a special weapon to bring about the antagonist’s defeat.

5. By means of self-sacrifice: the protagonist endures anything in order to achieve their goal, even at the cost of themselves, for the betterment of others.

There are four and only four essential parts to a Third Act Solution for good reason. The first is the subtle Hint of its dormant potential inside the protagonist during Act 1, so disguised as unimportant we take no notice of it; we'll call this ignoring the seed. The second is the fleeting Glimpse of its potential sometime during the beginning of Act 2; we’ll call this planting the seed. The third is the overt Reminder of its potential to both protagonist and the audience later on at the end of Act 2; we’ll call this watering the seed. And the fourth is the brazen Proof of its potential through implementation by the protagonist after realizing its true importance during Act 3; we’ll call this sprouting the seed.

Beating your reader over their head with the Obvious Stick because you’re afraid they won’t remember its earlier introduction when the Third Act Solution pays off later is why you apply the Rule of Four. Mention it too much throughout the story and the payoff will lack its satisfying surprise. Mention it too little and it’ll seem like it came out of nowhere. Mention it four and only four times (Act 1 subtle hint of potential, beginning of Act 2 fleeting glimpse of potential, end of Act 2 overt reminder of potential, and Act 3 brazen proof of potential) and your Third Act Solution will be like Goldilocks’ third bowl of porridge: just right, and yummy in our tummies.

Happy writing!

Georgie Porgie . . . or Thirty-Six Dramatic Reasons of Conflict

Georges Polti is most well-known for creating the Thirst-Six Dramatic Situations, which categorize what he believed are every dramatic situation that may occur in a story. He analyzed classical Greek texts, classical and contemporaneous French works, and a handful of non-French authors, all while claiming to be continuing the work of Carlo Gozzi who also identified thirty-six dramatic situations.

Writers can use Polti’s Thirty-Six Dramatic Situations however they see fit: by fleshing out their story with minor events, creating whole subplots, or even weaving their entire novel round one main situation while peppering the rest throughout for spice.

Pick your dramatic poisons and prick your characters then stand back and watch them bleed . . . though just make sure to write it all down as it happens, for tragedy is the unwritten story and mourning the unread novel.

Below is Polti’s Thirty-Six Dramatic Situations, though understand this: they do not comprise the whole of all dramatic situations of story, as well some of them are so similar they are basically repeated but with a few minor twists of character purpose. I’ve separated their arcs into ‘Acts’ only for your ease of reference and perusability (yup, 'peruse' and 'ability' just had some hot, sweaty, unprotected wordsex). And I’ve kept Polti’s Dramatic Situations to how he wrote and suggested them, for good and for worse as you’ll soon see. Some are so vague I literally cringed while typing them because I’m a stickler for detail and structure when it comes to anything plot.

But what the heck, they’re interesting to read over and tinker with while plotting that next great story so let’s have at it while having some fun!

1. SUPPLICATION

essential elements: a persecutor; a petitioner; a power in authority, whose decision is doubtful.

arc: the petitioner appeals to the power in authority for deliverance from the persecutor.

Act 1: A Petitioner, who has had a tough time of it, asks a Persecutor for help.

Act 2: The Petitioner receives or is denied help and responds accordingly.

Act 3: The Petitioner seals his own fate by his response to the events.

2. DELIVERANCE

essential elements: an unfortunate; a threatener; a rescuer.

arc: the unfortunate has caused a conflict, and the threatener is to carry out justice, but the rescuer saves the unfortunate.

Act 1: An Unfortunate is in trouble.

Act 2: The Rescuer knows someone is in trouble and rushes to help.

Act 3: The Rescuer stops the Threatener and may or may not have saved the Unfortunate.

3. CRIME PURSUED BY VENGEANCE

essential elements: a victim; a criminal; an avenger.

arc: the criminal commits a crime that will not see justice, so the avenger seeks justice by punishing the criminal.

Act 1: A Victim is harmed.

Act 2: The Avenger seeks the Criminal to wield vengeance.

Act 3: The Avenger wields justice upon the Criminal.

4. VENGEANCE TAKEN FOR KIN UPON KIN

essential elements: a guilty kinsman; an avenging kinsman; a victim or remembrance of the victim, a relative of both.

arc: two entities, the guilty and the avenging kinsmen, are put into conflict over wrongdoing to the victim, who is allied to both.

Act 1: A Victim is slain by the Guilty Kinsman and the Avenging Kinsman grieves.

Act 2: The Avenging Kinsman has accepted the situation and vows to hunt down the Guilty Kinsman for vengeance. The Guilty Kinsman reacts.

Act 3: The Avenging Kinsman defeats the Guilty Kinsman.

5. PURSUIT

essential elements: a punishment; a fugitive.

arc: the fugitive flees punishment for a misunderstood conflict.

Act 1: A crime or injustice occurs and the potential Fugitive is present. He is either guilty or innocent of the act and may just be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Act 2: The Fugitive is on the run. Punishment follows right behind him.

Act 3: The Fugitive faces the Punishing Force and gets away.

6. DISASTER

essential elements: a vanquished power; a victorious enemy or a messenger.

arc: the vanquished power falls from their place after being defeated by the victorious enemy or being informed of such a defeat by the messenger.

Act 1: A Disaster is about to happen, heralded by the Messenger.

Act 2: The Disaster happens, instigated by the Victorious Enemy.

Act 3: The Vanquished Power is vanquished, or endured (in the case of a natural power).

7. FALLING PREY TO CRUELTY OR MISFORTUNE

essential elements: an unfortunate; a master or a misfortune.

arc: the unfortunate suffers from misfortune and/or at the hands of the master.

Act 1: An Unfortunate has a really rough time of it, and things get tougher as a Cruelty or Misfortune comes her way.

Act 2: The Unfortunate deals with the Cruelty or Misfortune.

Act 3: The Unfortunate succeeds or fails in putting herself back together.

8. REVOLT

essential elements: a tyrant; a conspirator.

arc: the tyrant, a cruel power, is plotted against by the conspirator.

Act 1: The Tyrant exercises his power and therefore gives a reason for Revolt. The Conspirator cannot take any more abuse.

Act 2: The Conspirator gathers some forces. Mystery and secrets abound.

Act 3: The Revolt takes place, and we see where the chips fall.

9. DARING ENTERPRISE

essential elements: a bold leader; an object; an adversary.

arc: the bold leader takes the object from the adversary by overpowering the adversary.

Act 1: A Bold Leader realizes there is an Object he desires. After careful investigation he thinks he knows where it is.

Act 2: The Bold Leader overcomes obstacles as he goes after the Object while contending against the Adversary.

Act 3: The Bold Leader finds the Object despite the Adversary. It was everything he dreamed it would be, or the victory is bittersweet as he realizes it doesn’t bring him what he wanted.

10. ABDUCTION

essential elements: an abductor; a victim; a guardian.

arc: the abductor takes the abducted from the guardian.

Act 1: The Abductor selects a Victim and kidnaps her.

Act 2: The Guardian moves full force to rescue the Victim. He faces many obstacles and surprises.

Act 3: The Guardian finds the Victim and Abductor.

11. THE ENIGMA

essential elements: a problem/riddle; an interrogator; a seeker.

arc: the interrogator poses a problem/riddle to the seeker and gives the seeker better ability to reach the seeker’s goals.

Act 1: Something happens that causes the Seeker to approach an Interrogator. The Interrogator presents a problem/riddle of some sort.

Act 2: The Seeker must overcome several obstacles and twists. He may think he has the answers but finds out he is wrong. The Interrogator makes things more difficult for him.

Act 3: The Seeker solves the problem/riddle and the Interrogator must pay up.

12. OBTAINING

essential elements: (a solicitor, and an adversary who is refusing), or (an arbitrator, and opposing parties).

arc: the solicitor is at odds with the adversary who refuses to give the solicitor an object in the possession of the adversary, or an arbitrator decides who gets the object desired by opposing parties (the solicitor and the adversary).

Act 1: The Solicitor/Arbitrator realizes his desired objective or object and gets close to it. He has to approach either an Adversary who refuses or an Opposing Party.

Act 2: The Solicitor meets with the Adversary again.

Act 3: The Solicitor gets his way.

13. ENMITY OF KIN

essential elements: a malevolent kinsman; a hated or a reciprocally-hating kinsman.

arc: the malevolent kinsman and the hated or a second malevolent kinsman conspire together.

Act 1: Something happens that turns one Kinsman against another.

Act 2: The Hated Kinsman either tries to resolve the situation or attacks the Malevolent Kinsman.

Act 3: One or both of the Kinsman are defeated.

14. RIVALRY OF KIN

essential elements: the preferred kinsman; the rejected kinsman; the object of rivalry.

arc: the object of rivalry chooses the preferred kinsman over the rejected kinsman.

Act 1: The Preferred Kinsman seems to obtain the Object or Rivalry.

Act 2: The Rejected Kinsman carries out his plan to win the Object of Rivalry and get back at the Preferred kinsman.

Act 3: The Preferred Kinsman and Rejected Kinsman have a “showdown” of sorts over the Object of Rivalry.

15. MURDEROUS ADULTRY

essential elements: two adulterers; a betrayed spouse.

arc: two adulterers conspire to kill the betrayed spouse.

Act 1: Two Adulterers meet, though the cheating spouse may not act on but cannot deny their shared carnal desires just yet.

Act 2: The Adulterers have the secret affair then contemplate murdering the ignorant Betrayed Spouse.

Act 3: The Betrayed Spouse, having learned of the indiscretion, retaliates and someone may die.

16. MADNESS

essential elements: a madman; a victim.

arc: the madman goes insane and wrongs the victim.

Act 1: The Madman snaps and selects his victim, while the dependent Victim is just going about her normal everyday routine.

Act 2: The Victim tries to escape, tries to get help, failing multiple tries and suffering multiple punishments while learning new fervor through survival.

Act 3: The Victim defends herself, and though she can also receive outside help at the last moment, the Victim’s independence usually wins the day alongside her freedom.

17. FATAL IMPRUDENCE

essential elements: the imprudent; a victim or an object lost.

arc: the imprudent, by neglect or ignorance, loses the object lost or wrongs the victim.

Act 1: The Imprudent receives a motivating force (curiosity, for example). He may be warned away.

Act 2: The Imprudent makes a hasty decision, wronging the Victim, and has to live with it.

Act 3: The Imprudent is punished for his haste. The Victim gets justice or the Lost Object is found.

18. INVOLUNTARY CRIMES OF LOVE

essential elements: a lover; a beloved; a revealer.

arc: the lover and the beloved have unknowingly broken a taboo through their romantic relationship, and the revealer reveals this to them.

Act 1: The Lover meets his Beloved and pursues her.

Act 2: The Lover meets many obstacles but finally gets the Beloved.

Act 3: The Lover and Beloved are “caught” by the Revealer who ousts them and they face the consequences of their actions.

19. SLAYING OF KIN UNRECOGNIZED/RECOGNIZED

essential elements: a slayer; an unrecognized/recognized victim.

arc: the slayer saves/kills the unrecognized/recognized victim.

Act 1: The Slayer learns that he must slay someone and he agrees to do his duty, or the Slayer attempts to slay someone out of hatred.

Act 2: The Slayer finds the Unrecognized Victim and is about to slay her when he realizes the Victim is a relative and he stops . . . or the Slayer prepares for the slaying of the Recognized Victim while others may try to get in his way.

Act 3: The Slayer saves the Unrecognized Victim and faces the consequences of his actions, possibly on the run himself now alone or together . . . or the Slayer does his duty and slays the Recognized Victim while facing his own conscience, possibly driven to suicide thereafter.

20. SELF-SACRIFICE FOR AN IDEAL

essential elements: a hero; an ideal; a creditor; a person/thing sacrificed.

arc: the hero sacrifices the person or thing for their ideal, which is then taken by the creditor.

Act 1: The Hero is placed in a position to sacrifice something for their Ideal by the Creditor.

Act 2: The Hero decides to make the sacrifice and takes a chance.

Act 3: The Hero faces the consequences of his actions to the Creditor.

21. SELF-SACRIFICE FOR KIN

essential elements: a hero; a kinsman; a creditor; a person/thing sacrificed.

arc: the hero sacrifices a person or thing for their kinsman, which is then taken by the creditor.

Act 1: The Hero is placed in a position to sacrifice something for their Kinsman by the Creditor.

Act 2: The Hero makes the sacrifice to appease the Creditor and spare the Kinsman.

Act 3: The Hero deals with the unexpected consequences of saving the Kinsman while battling their conscience over the inequitable sacrifice.

22. ALL SACRIFICED FOR PASSION

essential elements: a lover; an object of fatal passion; the person/thing sacrificed.

arc: a lover sacrifices a person or thing for the object of their passion, which is then lost forever.

Act 1: The Lover is placed in a position to sacrifice something for the Object of their Fatal Passion.

Act 2: The Lover makes the sacrifice for the Object of Fatal Passion.

Act 3: The Lover loses the Object of Fatal Passion and has less than when he started.

23. NECESSITY OF SACRIFICING LOVED ONES

essential elements: a hero; a beloved victim; a necessity for the sacrifice.

arc: the hero wrongs the beloved victim because of the necessity for their sacrifice.

Act 1: The Hero learns of the Necessity as well its cost against the Beloved Victim.

Act 2: The Hero makes the sacrifice, harming the Beloved Victim while obtaining the “prize.”

Act 3: The Hero’s “prize” loses all value without the Beloved Victim.

24. RIVALRY OF SUPERIOR VS. INFERIOR

essential elements: a superior rival; an inferior rival; the object of rivalry.

arc: a superior rival bests an inferior rival and wins the object of rivalry.

Act 1: Both Rivals learn of the Object of Rivalry.

Act 2: Both Rivals compete for the Object of Rivalry, the Superior Rival using cunning and bravery, the Inferior Rival using deception and trickery.

Act 3: The Inferior Rival almost obtains the Object of Rival before the Superior Rival, but the Superior Rival snatches the Object of Rivalry away from the Inferior Rival’s clutches and wins their competition.

25. ADULTERY

essential elements: two adulterers; a deceived spouse.

arc: two adulterers conspire against the deceived spouse.

Act 1: Two Adulterers meet, though the cheating spouse may not act just yet.

Act 2: The Adulterers have the secret affair then conspire against the Deceived Spouse.

Act 3: Before the Adulterers’ plans bloom fruition, the Deceived Spouse learns of then retaliates against both Adulterers.

26. CRIMES OF LOVE

essential elements: a Lover; the Beloved.

arc: a lover and the beloved break a taboo by initiating a romantic relationship.

Act 1: The Lover meets her Beloved and pursues him.

Act 2: The Lover meets many obstacles but finally gets the Beloved.

Act 3: The Lover and Beloved are “caught” and face the consequences of their actions, but they survive it stronger together.

27. DISCOVERY OF THE DISHONOR OF A LOVED ONE

essential elements: a discoverer; the guilty one.

arc: the discoverer discovers the wrongdoing committed by the guilty one.

Act 1: The Discoverer gets a hint about the Guilty One’s act. She decides to look into it further.

Act 2: The Discoverer confronts the Guilty One.

Act 3: The Discoverer deals with the consequences of the Guilty One’s actions whether she wants to or not. The Guilty One either cooperates or doesn’t.

28. OBSTACLES TO LOVE

essential elements: two lovers; an obstacle(s) to love.

arc: two lovers face an obstacle(s) to their love together.

Act 1: A Lover finds his Beloved.

Act 2: The Lovers announce their plans, and Obstacles to Love are thrown their way.

Act 3: The Lovers either conquer the Obstacles to Love or face defeat together.

29. AN ENEMY LOVED

essential elements: a lover; a beloved enemy; a hater.

arc: the allied lover and hater have diametrically opposed attitudes towards the beloved enemy.

Act 1: The Beloved Enemy does something to embitter the Hater while endearing the Lover, who are inseparable friends (or kin or lovers).

Act 2: The Lover and Hater argue through opposing conflict about the Beloved Enemy, leading to their separation after amiable years of friendship.

Act 3: The Hater attacks while the Lover defends the Beloved Enemy, resulting in one of their deaths.

30. AMBITION

essential elements: an ambitious person; a thing coveted; an adversary.

arc: the ambitious person seeks the thing coveted and is opposed by the adversary.

Act 1: The Ambitious Person learns of the Thing Coveted as does the Adversary.

Act 2: The Ambitious Person strives to obtain the Thing Coveted as the Adversary attempts to thwart them while also attempting the same goal.

Act 3: The Ambitious Person and the Adversary have a showdown over the Thing Coveted.

31. CONFLICT WITH A GOD

essential elements: a mortal; a god; a conflict.

arc: a mortal and a god enter a conflict.

Act 1: A Mortal comes into Conflict with a God; either can instigate.

Act 2: The Mortal voices his Conflict and gets himself into supernatural trouble.

Act 3: The Mortal resolves his Conflict with the God by mastering a gift or succumbing to a curse and reaps the reward or pays the price.

32. MISTAKEN JEALOUSY

essential elements: a jealous one; an object of whose possession he is jealous; a supposed accomplice; a cause or an author of the mistake.

arc: the jealous one falls victim to the cause or the author of the mistake and becomes jealous of the object while conflicted with the supposed accomplice.

Act 1: The Jealous One learns of an Object of Jealousy and mistakenly places suspicions.

Act 2: The Jealous One acts in secret against the Author of the Cause and the Supposed Accomplice.

Act 3: The Jealous One acts in the open against the Supposed Accomplice and the Author of the Cause, harming them, and learns of their Mistaken Jealousy.

33. ERRONEOUS JUDGMENT

essential elements: a mistaken one; a victim of the mistake; a cause or author of the mistake; a guilty one.

arc: the mistaken one falls victim to the cause or the author of the mistake and passes judgment against the victim of the mistake when it should be passed against the guilty one instead.

Act 1: The Mistaken One comes to believe the Victim is the guilty one.

Act 2: The Victim lashes back at the Mistaken One and tries to gather others on her side.

Act 3: The Mistaken One learns that he is wrong and together they punish the Guilty One.

34. REMORSE

essential elements: a culprit; a victim or the sin; an interrogator.

arc: the culprit wrongs the victim or commits the sin, and is at odds with the interrogator who seeks to understand the situation.

Act 1: A Culprit commits a Sin of some sort that she knows is wrong.

Act 2: The Interrogator comes and pesters the Culprit.

Act 3: The Culprit ends things with confession and surrender or lies and aggression.

35. RECOVERY OF A LOST ONE

essential elements: a seeker; a one found.

arc: the seeker finds the stolen one found.

Act 1: The Seeker learns of or witnesses the One Found threatened then taken.

Act 2: The Seeker puts a plan of rescue together.

Act 3: The Seeker rescues the One Found.

36. LOSS OF LOVED ONES

essential elements: a slain kinsman; a kinsman spectator; a justified executioner.

arc: the justified killing of the slain kinsman by the executioner is witnessed by the kinsman.

Act 1: A Kinsman is slain justifiably.

Act 2: The Kinsman Spectator reacts to the slaying in “wrong” ways to deal with their emotional turmoil.

Act 3: The Kinsman Spectator finally comes to terms with the justified slaying and moves on with life.

And there you have it, Georges Polit’s Thirty-Six Dramatic Situations!

Pick your favorite conflict and wrap your main story round it while injecting the rest as subplots or even just minor happenstances taking place along your protagonist’s bumpy road of adversity.

Or just use them to spark new ideas of character conflict inside your musing brain.

Want something minor for your characters to argue over or contend with while they make their way from point A to B down their story path to the Evil Overlord's foreboding Castle of Doom?

Well have at it, Hoss, because now you have thirty-six reasons to spark that dramatic fire of conflict along the way.

Happy plotting and happy writing!

Irritating Pricks . . . or How to Improve Your Writing with a Single Word

WAS is a hell of a word, an irritating prick potent in its venomous strike, cunning in its assassin’s delivery, its uncouth presence a tenacious plague of passive mediocrity.

And it can make or break your writing same as it makes or breaks entire novels.

I believe every writer’s writing would improve a thousand fold if the only fault they mend is deleting Was from their writing vocabulary in all its poisonous forms and restructure their sentences.

But we all live in sin.

I spent over 25 years of my writing life ignorant of the Was poison infecting my written musings. Only a handful of years ago did I realize the error of my ways, and boy the epiphany shocked me something fierce.

Ever get a tattoo during which the jabbing needle pierces a little too deep and pokes the bone, jolting you into the roots of your snapping teeth?

Yup, that’s the feeling, that bone-buzzing startlement you never forget because your vibrating marrow won’t let you.

Now, though, after years of habitual penance, I recognize Was for what it is: the asymptomatic carrier of the disease that is bad writing.

And I guarantee if you apply my advice your writing will improve immeasurably.

(*take note of this rare case of the -ly adverb, a plague in its own right that clumps while festering into awful ‘Purple Prose’ ((read anything Patrick Rothfuss; his wonderful poetic writing is rampant with awful -ly adverbs)), trumping better description . . . or perhaps I’m just lazy).

The commandment of excellent writing is Show Don’t Tell, and it’s always best to lead by example.

Sometimes the fix is simple:

1. He was standing in the middle of the courtyard.

-versus

2. He stood in the middle of the courtyard.

Or:

1. She was watching the startled rooks burst from the copse.

-versus

2. She watched the startled rooks burst from the copse.

Simple considering all you do is remove Was and change the tense of the verb without losing any meaning.

But sometimes you need to fix it with a little more pep in your descriptive step:

1. Marci looked at the recliner. She was tired. She yawned and stretched.

-versus

2. Marci stretched into a yawning Y while eyeballing the comfy recliner awaiting her nap.

Or:

1. Dennis was wearing . . . (insert passive description of clothes) a straw hat and a white button-down shirt.

-versus

2. Dennis wore . . . (insert active description of clothes) a tilted straw hat one strong breeze from blowing off his balding head, and a tight white shirt gripping round the girth of his impressive paunch, its buttons protesting containment.

And same goes for nature as with people:

1. It was a dark and stormy night.

-versus

2. Staccatos of lightning knifed the gloom between rumbles of thunder.

Or:

1. The rain was pouring down.

-versus

2. The rain poured in thick white sheets.

    *we also removed ‘down’ because how else would it pour, up? Unless it did so or sideways while riding tumultuous gusts of whipping winds.

Successful writers are not immune to the passive Was infection either.

Terry Goodkind, author of the Sword of Truth fantasy series. This is taken from his novel Siege of Stone (paperback), Chapter 16, page 133, last sentence of first paragraph:

But the new heart was strong, his gift was restored, and Nathan was a wizard again.

-That’s 3 Was’s (Wases? Wasai?) in one friggin sentence! And heck with that, because just performing the simple operation of two Was deletions spruces this sentence:

But the new heart was strong, his gift restored, and Nathan a wizard again.

Not the best fix, mind, but much better. And we’re unfinished with Mr. Yeard because on same page, first sentence of fourth paragraph:

Elsa wore a purple silk robe, which was comfortable rather than extravagant.

-Here we’ll perform Was deletion with a little restructuring while omitting needless words:

Elsa wore a purple silk robe, more comfortable than extravagant.

Stephen King, his every book a best-seller, author of you name it. This is taken from his novel 11.22.63 (hardback), Chapter 7, page 155, third paragraph, second sentence:

Groundfog was rising up from the dips and valleys, and the drizzle was thickening into rain.

-Seriously? Come on, King, you’re . . . well, you!

Groundfog fermented from the dips and valleys. The drizzle thickened into rain.

Here’s another faux pas from Mr. King, same novel, page 134, paragraph 8, end of first sentence:

I began to hear laughter.

-Hey, Stevie, not for nothing but you either hear something or you don’t. I’ve never in all my 40 years of hearing ever ‘began’ hearing anything. Began standing? Sure. Began running? Why not. Because these are physical actions that can be interrupted. But began hearing? I. Don’t. Think. So. Bub. Because hearing doesn’t work like that.

And here’s one more of King’s writing slips, same novel, page 347, paragraph 10 and first two sentences of 11:

Above us, the thudding stopped abruptly.

She took hold of my arm and began to shake it. Her eyes were eating up her face.

-I hate abruptly (also its suddenly cousin). Not only is it a needless word (everything stops ‘abruptly’ because that’s the definition of stop. If it doesn’t then it’s slowing, not stopping), but it’s also a poisonous -ly adverb. I’ll cut Stevieboi some slack on the ‘began to shake it’ bit because although it’s a poor choice of words, shaking something can be a physical action interrupted. But ‘Her eyes were eating up her face’? That’s where the slack ends for better writing:

Above us, the thudding stopped.

She gripped my arm and shook it, her eyes startled blooms of panic.

Don’t get me wrong, Stephen King knows a thing or two about a thing or two when it comes to writing. If a publisher told him his next novel must take place in a closed room with nothing in it but he could populate it with as few or many people as he wants, Stevieboi would pen another best-seller: because he’s a master crafter of character.

Even when his plots suck and are full of holes, his characters putty those gaps because they’re always interesting and well developed. No one-dimensional stereotypes live in King’s imaginary worlds, and it’s this gift that has elevated him into legendary status as a writer despite sometimes lacking in other story areas (he doesn’t plot so much as propose a What if? scenario then writes around it; he explains as much in his book On Writing, the latter half of which is disappointing for its vague writing advice though it’s first half—basically an autobiography—provides a compelling read and is well worth the buy and time despite his writing advice being pared down to: read and write a lot. And: bad writers can become good writers but never great writers.). Though his gift of character creation doesn’t make him infallible. He’s a writing machine but he’s also only human.

I advise you to read Terry Goodkind’s Siege of Stone, and Stephen King’s 11.22.63, not because they’re good (King’s story is there and very entertaining, Terry’s not so much to the point of awful; seriously, Siege of Stone reads like the first draft of a fifth grader, and the poor dialogue is so plot-direct obvious it’s laugh out loud on top of cringe. Mr. Yeard’s two-dimensional characters recite backstory and plot points to each other for the sake of his ‘dumb’ readers like most people exchange Hello’s and Goodbye’s, making Siege of Stone a perfect lesson on how not to write good dialogue, while King’s 11.22.63 is quite the opposite when it comes to writing natural dialogue despite Was and passive voice infecting every other sentence) but because both novels are chock full of the irritating Was plague as well a plethora of other writing no-no’s, and you learn a great deal by reading bad novels more than you do good ones. Others’ mistakes become glares to your reading scrutiny, and this helps ensure you don’t repeat them in your own writing because they irritate the crap out of you while you suffer through them over and again in another’s work you’re trying to enjoy.

Imagine watching your favorite movie . . . but with someone sitting beside you and pricking you with a needle every five minutes. Sure you may still enjoy the movie, but you won’t forget those irritating pricks. Reading bad novels is similar, but with the author sitting beside you and pricking you with their bad writing needle every few pages—or worse, every few paragraphs.

If you do nothing else but remove the irritating prick of Was from your writing vocabulary, it may not pen you a best-seller but you’ll achieve multiple rungs higher on the long ladder of writing success because removing Was isn’t just the deletion of a single word but a valuable lesson teaching you to restructure your sentences while tightening your writing.

My opinion holds at 99% when it comes to removing Was, because there are rare times when there’s no better way for conveying sound writing.

Sometimes a despondent character soliloquies: I was wrong about her.

Or through dialogue: “I was hungry,” Elmer said, shrugging, “so I stole me a sammich.”

Or just plain ol’ because you want to: Staring across the littered battlefield, Gavin understood one of the truest pains in life was knowing most men never got to choose how they died no matter what they planned or how well they planned it.

And here’s a bonus treat for all you good doggies: Had is the second foul banana to Was.

1. Mark had a lopsided beret.

 -versus

2. Mark wore a lopsided beret.

Or:

1. Sally had long black hair.

-versus

2. Long black hair framed Sally’s face made all the paler by contrast.

But just as with Was, Had also has its place: I had to do it. “I had to do it!” He had to do it.

Start with the Law of Never, not because you should never use Was but because this will develop in you the novice habit of striving for better writing by instinct. Soon your discerning eye will spot Was in every novel you read and every story you write. You’ll grow to loathe its poisonous presence, you’ll question how such awful writing ever made it to publishing, and confidence in your own writing will soar because you’ll know your improved writing is better by comparison to those already in print.

I guarantee it.

And if you’re a sadist, or just a slow learner, then keep a needle in your hand while reading. Every time Was poisons a sentence, give yourself a prick courtesy of the author’s bad writing. Then remember those irritating pricks while you write so you don’t repeat them, and your potential readers will thank you for it.

Happy writing!