Character and Structure: An Unholy Alliance by Chris Andrews

Author:Chris Andrews [Andrews, Chris]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Creative Manuscript Services
Published: 2019-09-26T20:00:00+00:00

18

Explores New World

Your protagonist has made the decision to have an adventure and now they've landed in a world they're unfamiliar with. That means they're a long way from being equipped to deal with the main story problem.

If they're already equipped to deal with the problem, then you'd better rethink your story. If it's not a struggle, it's not interesting. The greater the struggle and the more your protagonist has to fight to attain it, the better the audience engagement.

By this stage of the story your protagonist may have allies or friends they can rely on, and perhaps even someone holding their hand during these first few baby steps, but how much support you give them is entirely up to you.

Make them figure everything out on their own if circumstances dictate, but without a support cast you'll need to become inventive - Wilson the volleyball from Cast Away comes to mind.

Whatever your protagonist's new situation, for you as the writer this means fun (and if it doesn't, reassess). This is where you get to show off your story world at its best and worst.

Demonstrations (as opposed to explanations) are in order.

It's a perfect place to give your support cast free rein so your audience can see what they're made of, and perhaps an inkling of what your protagonist could become.

The story's main threat isn't serious at this point. The problem is still a long way from being your protagonist's main concern. Surviving and learning are their main priorities at this point. This is true even for stories that don't rely on action, such as a romance. For example:

A kid at a new school needs to learn the ropes.

A medical practitioner may need to sort out a new bureaucracy or research an illness they've never seen before.

A castaway needs to learn how to survive.

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