Author’s Log: Saving The Cat (& #ROW80)

So I finally broke down and bought a copy of Blake Snyder’s Save The Cat. And, like many others, I am SO glad I did. I wasn’t two chapters in before it hit me between the eyes that I needed a new opening scene for FALLEN ANGEL.

I ended up with a new opening chapter. In a matter of hours.

So, yeah. That happened.

It occured to me, during my week-long thinky think last week that what had me stymied was the fact that what my heroine thought she wanted wasn’t what she REALLY she wanted.

This is not the character motivation you are looking for.

It all kind of came together for me in a rush, and all because I was lacking a scene Snyder refers to as the Save The Cat scene, wherein you show your main character doing something Pretty Damn Cool. Something that attaches your audience to them like a toddler with a ginormous rainbow lollipop on a hot day. In other words you make them sticky.

Ew.

Anyway, I think of it as the scene where you show they have a heart as well as a spine. I write a lot of Action & Adventure (Keepers of the Flame is, basically, Highlander in an apocalyptic setting, starring female action heroes). But the same holds true for romance.

I’m not starting over entirely on FALLEN ANGEL–I can still use quite a lot of what I’ve already got–but now my heroine is more sympathetic, and has an added layer of wanting to shoot for. This also solves my issue with how she can possibly fall in love with my hero, despite him being something of a criminal (no matter how gorgeous).

And yet, I still managed to add an extra layer of complication between them as well. So things seem to be solidifying nicely on that front. The haze is clearing, and I’m back to the typeity-typeity.

Oh, hey, look–goals!

1. Finish Drafting FALLEN ANGEL (Waking Muse #3): In Progress.

Working on mid-draft reorganization and rewrites. I should have a better idea of what I’ve got in a few days, and then it’s off to the finish line.

2. Complete Post-Production on Keepers of the Flame #4: In Progress.

My final, almost-submission draft is with Team BETA. I’ve got coverycopy and a 2-3 page synopsis to work on yet, but it should be done by the end of the month, once drafting of FALLEN ANGEL is complete.

Okay, fellow ROWers–how’s your typeity-typeity coming along?