Author Skype with Matthew J. Kirby

Thanks to everyone who came out for our final Laie Young Writers Club meeting for the year, including author Matthew J. Kirby, who joined us by skype. Mr. Kirby is the author of The Clockwork Three and Icefall, plus several upcoming titles like The Lost Kingdom, Infinity Ring Book 5: Cave of Wonders, and a new series called Quantum League. He wins the LYW Author Medal of Honor for pulling over and finding an internet cafe when he realized that we'd made a mistake about what time zone he was in! We are eternally grateful.

Here are some of the thoughts Matt Kirby shared with us:

• His favorite part of being a writer is the writing process, but his favorite part of being an author is traveling.
• Plot is very important, but you don't need to use a formulaic plot structure. A story needs form, not formula.
• The beginning of a story creates a contract with the reader. If you promise the reader something, you have to deliver.
• The way to get emotional power into a story is to get yourself into a place where you can feel what the characters are feeling. If you can't feel it, how can you write it?
• The most important thing you can do to be a successful writer is to write. So many people would like to be writers, but they're not really working on anything. Get in the habit of writing something every day.  

After a fun and motivational visit with Mr. Kirby, we had chocolate cake and said good-bye to one of our founding members, Amber Carlson, who will be leaving for college next fall.

The Laie Young Writers Club will be signing off for the summer, but we'll be back again next fall. Until then...

Keep writing!

Falling Action

No, we're not having a lesson about action scenes where characters take falls. We're talking about a very important part of basic plot structure:

The falling action in a story is everything that happens between the climax and the return to a stable, resting state. A good falling action gives the reader a sense that the story is over, and also hints at what life will be like for the characters in the future.

Whether you're revising a story you've written or outlining something new, take stock of your falling action. Make a list of your plot lines, both major and minor. How do you want each one to resolve? Do you want things to have changed for the better, changed for the worse, or stayed the same? Remember, it's good to have a mix. Once you've decided how each plot line resolves, be sure you convey those changes to the reader in the falling action.

A good way to do this is by using ending beats, which we will talk more about next week. For now, an ending beat is a snapshot of the new life as usual. To really finish off a major plot line, use at least three ending beats. Minor plot lines probably only need one.

Last of all, make sure the falling action in your story is short but sufficient. Go on too long, and you're writing into the sequel. The new life as usual only needs to be hinted at, not experienced in scene for pages and pages. As with all writing, the goal is to guide the reader's imagination. Find a balance between dictating everything and leaving too much open.

Happy writing!