MC SNAPSHOT 1- MEET & GREET
Meet and Greet! Pose for the camera- let us see your MC. Who is this protagonist we are about to follow for the next 75-100,000 words? Maybe we won't know their specific eye color right away, but we are going to know if we are following a seventeen-year-old angsty teen or a forty-year-old single mom working two jobs just to feed her kids.
In Chapter 1 of The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman, we see the MC is a baby. A child that has recently learned how to crawl and climb out of his crib. He's just being a baby. The baby doesn't know a murderer is in the house. He meanders out of the house, up the hill, and into the graveyard. We don't know all the details about the baby. There's not even a name. The ghosts in the graveyard later named him "Nobody Owens" and call him Bod, for short.
A Curse So Dark And Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer had one of the most gripping openings I've ever read. Every line left me thirsty for the next. Our first snapshot of the MC is blood under his fingernails, and yet he has a conscience. We learn the MC is a prince and his kingdom is a shadow of what it once was. We see him change from monster to human. And learn he is turning 18 for the 327th time. We don't know everything about the MC's appearance yet, but we've had an introduction. And it's a great start.
MC SNAPSHOT 2- SHOW ME THE PEEPS!
Show the peeps! Who are your characters people? No one has a perfect family. Who is there? Who is not? Is family physically or emotionally absent? Where are the gaps? This will play a huge role in your MC's journey. The initial connections and losses will give us an outlook for how these relationships will work for and against your MC. Typically, work against.
Consider every Disney princess and her missing parent or parents. Belle and Ariel don't have a mother. Belle's father is constantly working to provide for her and Ariel's father is running a kingdom with six daughters other than Ariel. He has little time to give her the attention she needs. Cinderella and Snow White both have lost their parents and have an evil step parent. Both of Merida's parents are alive, but her relationship with her mother is on life support. It appears that Tiana's father died at war. Similar to Merida, Moana has both of her parents alive, but it's not all sunshine and roses. She wants to go beyond the reef and her father forbids. Thank goodness for Grandma!
It's not just Disney movies. In The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman, Bod has lost his entire family. Same for Rhen in A Curse So Dark And Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer. And Harry Potter lost his parents and is stuck with the Dursleys. Katniss lost her dad, but her relationship with her mom is rocky. Whether physically or emotionally absent, there must be family gaps for your MC to overcome.
MC SNAPSHOT 3- WHATCHA DOING?
Give us a taste of your MC's life. Think of this as a day in the life. What's the status quo for your MC? Things are about to change, but we need to get inside your MC's head, know their daily pain or glimpse at their simple life before they go on an adventure.
Bilbo was minding his own business when along came a wizard. We needed to see his happy, safe, albeit boring life to feel the impact of the invitation to go on an adventure. And though he said no, that rapscallion crew lit a match in him. Thankfully, the flame grew enough to send him running after them to accept the call to be a burglar.
In Divergent, by Veronica Roth, the book opens with Beatrice's mother cutting her hair. We get to sneak a peek at her normal life. Though it seems outrageous to consider only looking in a mirror a few times a year, we learn this is normal for her faction. It's details like this that puts the reader in the MC's shoes and provoke emotion as we consider how we might feel in that day-to-day life.
MC SNAPSHOT 4- STIR IT UP!
After we pull back the curtains and take in your MC's state of affairs, we're ready for what's next? Is Gandalf popping up? What about Hagrid with a birthday cake? It's time for the inciting incident and we expect to see your MC's contrasting emotions.
In Divergent, Beatrice heads off to the choosing ceremony. It's a monumental day for her. This is her invitation to adventure. We feel the turmoil as she struggles to choose her faction.
But wait, DM, you're mentioning a lot of Young Adult Books. What about other books? Do these snapshots work for all genres? Yes! Sometimes the call to adventure might be a loss. It's the moment your character accepts the invitation for a new journey or one is thrust upon them without their consent.
In The Last Mrs. Parrish by Liv Constantine, this happens when Amber forces a connection with Daphne at the gym resulting in a planned coffee date.
In Where The Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens, it's when Kya's Ma abandons her at only six years old.
In In Five Years by Rebecca Serle, Dannie sees a vision of herself five years in the future with a man she's never met, in an apartment she's never seen. It's the moment everything in the MC's status quo gets a snowball shake.
MC SNAPSHOT 5- WHATCHA WANT?
We must quickly learn what your MC wants and what obstacles are keeping her from it. More obstacles are going to come up along the way, but we need a sincere understanding of your character's deepest desires. What your MC wants and why he can't have it gives us the internal struggle. We have to care about your MC and to do that, we have to feel something.
Along with finding out what your MC wants, we see why they can't have it. What are the obstacles?
Whatcha want and why can't you have it?
Katniss wants to survive, but she has to win the games, which includes killing other kids. As the games progress, the Gamemaker throws more obstacles in her path. Tracker Jackers. Mutts. Poisonous berries.
Rhen wants to be free of the curse, but who could love a hideous beast? To make things worse, the enchantress tells him this is his last chance for someone to fall in love with him and break the spell or remain a beast forever. And the girl his Guard Commander chose is anything but a hopeful candidate.
There you have it. Five snapshots of your MC. Now go write that story in your heart and introduce us to your MC. Did you think up some other great examples while reading through the snapshots?
Study the craft. Write your story. Live life with no regrets. :) Donna Marie Tyree
Komentáře