I am the kind of person who thrives with speed and efficiency.
I like to plan lean but have the outcome beefy and structured.
I’ve read about almost every book there is on screenwriting and novel writing and I’ve found a way that personally works for me when I need to write a scene and write it fast.
Like, I can’t do the whole plot till my eyes bleed to death kind of thing.
It’s similar to Motivation Reaction Units, but a bit better. It’s called… DUN DUN DUNNNN (just kidding)
Attack and React!
You’re thinking, “Wow, that’s it? Psssht, next!”
But there’s a tad more. Promise. Follow along!
So when you write a scene you need to make sure its a scene that pertains to your novel’s ultimate story question/goal.
One way to figure that out is to plan what is called a Reveal or Revelation. This is something the reader and Main Character of the scene learns.
Each scene NEEDS this revelation. This is what causes the character to make choices, new scenes and ultimately find what they are looking for.
So when you go to write your scene.
Ask yourself…
Setting- where is it taking place?
Time- What time of day is it taking place? You can be detailed as you want here with dates and timing if you want.
Beginning Hook- What happens in the beginning of the scene that sets things off.
Revelation- What’s learned by the MC of the scene?
You might say to yourself, “Where’s the Goal of the scene?” For me personally, my characters have many goals, sometimes none. But what needs to happen is that revelation which creates goals. Sometimes we can get lost thinking about a goal when it needs to come organically through the scene. So I skip that part since revelations keep the story on track.
Mind you, this works for me and may or may not work for you, but if it does? W00T! ❤
Now the fun part. Attack and React. Yeahhhhh! I see you over there getting happy!
Let me show you an example scene…
Setting- Dining area of Restaurant
Time- 7pm night, Sunday
Beginning Hook- Mathilda asks for some whiskey, but she’s 17 and her father scolds her and says just some apple juice.( Her, her father Eric and his girlfriend are all seated in a fancy restaurant. Eric wants Matilda and girlfriend Sarah to get along, but Sara is a huge gold digger and her father refuses to see it.)
Revelation (You can insert anywhere in between Attacks and Reacts, you’ll see)- Her father is moving his girlfriend in.
Attack- Eric tells Matilda to tell Sarah what she’s currently doing in school
React- Mathilda refuses to speak to her, she feels angry and unheard.
A- Waiter brings drinks, Sarah (on purpose) knocks one over on Matilda
R- Matilda throws a glass of wine in Sarah’s face and yells at her about being a gold digger
A- Eric jumps up and gently grabs Mathilda’s shoulder, scolding her and making her sit down
R- She snatches away and tells him that she found Sarah in an Escort Magazine!
REVEAL- Eric tells her to stop lying and that she’s moving into the mansion with them, and that they need to get along.
A- Sarah is shady, tells Matilda to let her father be happy or maybe it’s time she had her OWN room?
R- Matilda lunges out to strangle Sarah, she’s lost all her patience, but her Father holds her back! Sarah gives Mathilda this slick look
Oh SNAP!- A huge man comes over to the table and pulls Sarah by the hair out of her seat!
***
Okay, now you tell me, did that keep the tension? Didn’t you want to know what happened next?
Yep! Now you may also be wondering, ‘What’s that last part? Oh Snap?”
That’s how I create hooks for the end of my scenes. OH SNAP makes you think in a way that creates good cliffhangers for each scene.
OH SNAP! Her husband walked in on her cheating!
OH SNAP He won the lottery!
OH SNAP I opened a book and let spirits out!
See?
Though the revelation part is slotted at the top, its only there for you to visually see so you can decide where to slot that in amongst the Attack and React.
Now more about Attack and React.
Attack is something that is done TO your Main Character (or the scene’s MC).
However Attacks can go to other side characters in a scene. The secret is to making the Reaction come from the MC of the scene rather than the attacked character. Not to say that the attacked side character isn’t going to react. But you want to make sure your character is interacting with the scene at all times.
I keep my A/R beats in pairs of 4 (8 all together). That’s a good base. Sometimes you’ll need more or less, but that 8 usually gets the gist of the scene without running it too long unless you need a long or shorter scene!
Now you might be wondering, why isn’t there a slot to list the characters in the scene? Because with this, the characters that SHOULD or NEED to be in the scene will ORGANICALLY be listed below! ❤
Isn’t that freaking cool?
Now here, you amazing writer you, here’s a template for you below! CRANK OUT those scenes and happy writing!
A.Jones OUT!
Setting-
Time-
Beginning Hook-
Revelation-
Attack-
React-
A-
R-
A-
R-
A-
R-
Oh SNAP!-
