Weekend Writer: Save the Cat! Writes a Novel Chapters Eleven and Twelve by Jessica Brody

Hey all, Sam here.

Whew…we made it to Friday. I can absolutely admit that I am struggling a little bit to find my new rhythm now that I’m going to work five days a week…although after my 4-6 weeks of training, there’s a chance that everyone will get a schedule change and we’ll work four ten-ish hour shifts instead of five eight-ish hour shifts. I say -ish on the hours because my job has to wait on other people to finish their jobs at the end of the night before we can finish our job, so sometimes that takes a little longer.

Anyway, Friday means it is time for Weekend Writer. We only have a couple more weeks worth of material for Save the Cat! Writes a Novel: The Last Book on Novel Writing You’ll Ever Need by Jessica Brody. But the good news is that I’ve already selected the book I’m going to dive into next…and I’ll probably talk about that a little more at the end of this post.

Okay, are we ready for our next writing craft book deep dive? How about those June writing prompts? Have you been working on them (spoiler alert: I haven’t and I really need to get started)?

Fine, fine, it’s time to get started. Let’s go.

SAVE THE CAT!® by Blake Snyder is a popular screenwriting book series and storytelling methodology used by screenwriters, directors, and studio execs across Hollywood. Now, for the first time ever, bestselling author and writing teacher, Jessica Brody, takes the beloved Save the Cat! plotting principals and applies them to the craft of novel writing in this exciting new “workshop style” guide, featuring over 20 full beat sheets from popular novels throughout time.

Whether you’re writing your first novel or your seventeenth, Save the Cat! breaks down plot in an easy-to-follow, step-by-step method so you can write stories that resonate! This book can help you with any of the following:

Outlining a new novel
Revising an existing novel
Breaking out of the dreaded “writer’s block”
Fixing a “broken” novel
Reviewing a completed novel
Fleshing out/test driving a new idea to see if it “has legs”
Implementing feedback from agents and/or editors
Helping give constructive feedback to other writers

But above all else, SAVE THE CAT! WRITES A NOVEL will help you better understand the fundamentals and mechanics of plot, character transformation, and what makes a story work!

Chapter Eleven: Out of the Bottle – A Little Bit of Magic Goes a Long Way

Here we go…as with all previous chapters, this one opens with a block that tells us what books will be discussed/spoiled in the chapter. This Out of the Bottle story genre is all about the hero wishing for something that will make their problems go away and then that wish coming true.

But this magical genre isn’t just about granting wishes. It’s also about bestowing curses, sending guardian angels, swapping bodies, and even transporting your hero into strange dimensions and parallel universes.

Regardless of the type of nature-bending you choose to do, all of the stories in the Out of the Bottle genre boil down to the same thing: a guy or gal is bestowed with some sort of magic, realizes that “reality” isn’t all that bad, and comes out in the end a changed person.

page 210

Basically this genre uses the magic as a way to illustrate the fact that we are pretty great ourselves, without magic. In these stories, while the hero is bestowed magic (whether that is a blessing or a curse), they’ll discover through their journey that they didn’t actually need the magic after all.

Brody points out that this particular genre doesn’t have a lot of fantasy or sci-fi that is “other world.” The Out of the Bottle genre isn’t about exploring a new fantastical world. Instead it is about people from our world temporarily gifted or cursed with magic, and because they are like us, we relate to them, and they are fun to read about.

To make a successful Out of the Bottle story, there are three elements to include: 1) a hero deserving of the magic, 2) a spell or touch of magic, and 3) a lesson.

First off: your hero. This could be a desperate underdog in need of some magical intervention or a massive jerk who needs to be taught a magical lesson. What really matters is that the reader needs to understand quickly why this hero is getting this particular magic.

There are basically two different basic stories here: an empowerment story or a comeuppance story. An empowerment story would be something like Cinderella, a tread-upon type who just can’t catch a break until there is a magical intervention (the fairy godmother). We can see a comeuppance story in the same tale, with the stepsisters, who are in need of a reality check.

Brody notes here that comeuppance stories are harder to pull off…because it’s easier for a reader to get turned off from the hero/story if they don’t find something to connect with. So you need to give the hero something redeemable that the reader can connect with, something that shows that the hero is worth saving. This is your save-the-cat moment.

The next element is the bit of magic. This can come in many different forms: a spell, a potion, a ghost, a magic telephone or mailbox or typewriter. Whatever it is, the bit of magic needs to be front and center in Act 2 of your story.

Whether your hero wishes for the magic themselves or the magic is thrust upon them, make sure the spell itself is unique! Make it interesting, and fun, and exciting. This will be your novel’s hook.

page 213

As an important note, Brody points out that you do not need to spend a lot of time explaining how the magic works. That isn’t the point of the story. The magic just works. Because more important than the how are the rules of the magic. You need to keep the rules consistent so the reader can ignore that it is impossible and instead think that it’s magic and it’s an interesting good read, so keep reading.

The final element is the lesson, or how the hero is transformed by the magic. Because in the end the hero will realize that it isn’t the magic that will fix their life. They will have to fix their life themselves. So the magic in Cinderella gives her the dress and the glass slippers and the carriage and all of that to get to the ball…but in the end Cinderella has to take her future into her own hands and call out to the prince herself so she can leave behind her life of servitude.

To beat Act 3 of the story, the hero needs to have a story beat they do without the magic, a moment where they prove once and for all that they didn’t need magic to change. In the end, the true magic is within ourselves.

Page 215 has a list of popular Out of the Bottle books, and then pages 215-223 is a story beat breakdown of one of the novels.

Chapter Twelve: Golden Fleece – Road Trips and Quests and Heists, Oh My!

Again we begin this chapter with the block including books that will be spoiled within the chapter.

Here we are, at the story genre that is all about the journey instead of the destination, because cliche or not, it’s true.

Because we all know road trips aren’t about the final destination, whether that be a landmark, prize, trophy, or other physical thing. No, the road trip is about the great adventure! The quest! The pit stops, the detours, the drama!

But most of all, road trips are about what we discover along the way…about ourselves. At least that’s what any great road trip novel should be about.

page 227

Heist stories, quest stories, road trip stories…they all fit in this story genre. And like all the other genre chapters we’ve gone over so far, there are three story features needed to create a successful Golden Fleece story: 1) a road, 2) a team, and 3) a prize.

First up: the road. This doesn’t have to mean a literal road. It is merely the setting for the journey. So, it could be a road, or an ocean, or a fantasy realm, or another dimension, or a virtual world. What matters is that by adventuring down this “road” there is growth. You need to be able to chart your hero’s transformation throughout the journey.

A common element in Golden Fleece stories, according to Brody, is a road apple. This is something that stops the journey cold, usually right when the victory is in sight. It is a literal or figurative roadblock for the hero and their companions, which forces them to look at their plans and strategies, repair bridges, and dig deep to find their true strengths and skills

Element number two is the team that joins the hero on the quest. It could be a two person team, three members, or even a large group. Or it could even be a Solo Fleece, where the team is one person who meets several helpers along the journey.

The team size doesn’t matter, but most of these Golden Fleece stories have a B story that is about friendship or love. The rest of the team plays a role in this story and also brings necessary skills and talents to the journey.

Brody notes that if you are setting up a large team, and this is especially true of heist type stories, each team member should be introduced in a unique and interesting way. If you can do that well then your readers are in for a treat.

Finally, there is the prize. What waits at the end of this quest/journey? The prize needs to be compelling and appealing to start the journey and bring the reader along on the ride, even though in the end, it doesn’t matter as much. The journey itself is what is important.

Even so, the prize should be something primal. Something we can all relate to. Like going home (The Wizard of Oz, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland), securing a treasure (Ready Player One, Six of Crows), a crown (The Selection by Keira Cass), reaching an important destination (Amy and Roger’s Epic Detour, As I Lay Dying), or gaining a birthright (A Game of Thrones).

The primal prize is what sets the story in motion–often tied in with the Catalyst beat–but it often has less value and meaning once it’s actually achieved (or not achieved!). It’s more of a device to get your team on the road and the story into action. In the end, your hero or heroes may not even get the prize, and that’s OK! Because that’s not what the story is really about.

pages 230-231

Because the real treasure is what the hero gained along the journey, whether that is love or friendship or teamwork or whatever theme your B Story focuses on. Brody also comments that this makes these types of stories difficult to plot, because there needs to be milestones to meet along the journey. This can be people or situations the team encounters on the journey, and they might seem unconnected at first, but in the overall arc of the story, they are connected.

The true end goal is the weaving of the A Story and the B Story to reach something like Internal growth, Transformation, Real Change, and finding a satisfying and transformational conclusion.

Page 232 has a list of popular Golden Fleece novels, and then pages 233-243 have a beat by beat breakdown of one of these types of novels.

As promised, here’s a sneak peek at the next book I’ll be focusing on for Weekend Writer, and this book’s breakdown will begin in July.

The next book to be featured in Weekend Writer is: The Emotional Craft of Fiction: How to Write the Story Beneath the Surface by Donald Maass.

Well, that is all from me for today. Thank you so much for stopping by, and I’ll be back soon with more geeky content.