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GMC: Looking at the C

Posted on by Katie Ganshert

Let’s pretend for a second that a story is the same thing as a car. Let’s say our creative mind concocts an idea that might as well be a beautiful, cherry-red, brand-spankin’ new Ford Mustang. Do you know what we need to get the vehicle moving? Literally, gasoline. Figuratively, conflict! Conflict is the gasoline that drives our stories forward. Every story needs conflict, because without it, our fancy ideas are just going to sit in the garage.

In Goal, Motivation, and Conflict, Debra Dixon says the goal is the what (to learn more, check out the G in GMC), the motivation is the why (to learn more, check out the M in GMC), and the conflict is the why not. Let’s reacquaint ourself with Jimmy John.

Goal: to win a pie eating contest
Motivation: because he wants to prove he’s a man

What kind of story would this be if Jimmy John has a great two months of training, enters the contest, and wins? Talk about boring. We need something. And that something is the Why Not? Why can’t Jimmy John win the pie eating contest? What stands in his way? There could be any number of things. Maybe he’s competing against his big brother, who’s appetite is bigger than a horse. Maybe Jimmy John is super poor and can’t buy the pies he needs to practice. Or maybe he’s got a horrible case of IBS. I could keep going. The point is, every story needs a why not. Because without a why not, why should your reader care? Without a why not, how is your character going to grow?

Debra Dixon says: The strength of your book is your conflict.

Wow, that’s a big statement. However, it’s important to keep in mind that all the conflict in the world won’t mean a thing if we don’t establish an important goal and a compelling motivation. If Jimmy John doesn’t really care all the much about winning the pie eating contest, or he only wants to win because it would be fun, it won’t matter how many obstacles I throw in Jimmy John’s path, because if Jimmy John doesn’t care that much about the outcome, why should my readers?

Some things to know about conflict:
-It can be anything, as long as it prevents your character from reaching his/her goal
– Every page needs it
-Villains make excellent conflicts (Jimmy John’s older brother)
– Internal conflict brings out emotion
– Be careful not to go overboard with the conflict. You don’t want to numb your readers
– Bickering is not conflict
– Misunderstanding is not conflict

Ways to establish conflict:
– Raise the stakes: take your conflict, and kick it up a notch. Imagine the worst case scenario and run with it for a page or two
– Setting can increase conflict. How many horror films take place in creepy settings?
– Fish out of the water: Throw your MC in a situation that is so far out of his/her comfort zone that conflict is inevitable 
-And the ever famous, two dogs, one bone. Pit your characters against each other. They both want the same thing. Automatic conflict. (in Beneath a Velvet Sky, I do this. The bone is the farm, and the two dogs are Evan and Bethany)
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Question to ponder: How do you come up with your conflict? Do you have a hard or easy time establishing the conflict? Are you an anti-conflict type of person in every day life?

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3 C’s – It’s Friday!

Posted on by Katie Ganshert

Celebrations:

I’m taking the Brog-man to Madison this weekend to visit friends. I love Madison. My husband, sans wife and son, will probably golf from noon to night on Saturday. No joke.

Cares:
So You Think You Can Dance is the best show known to man. The top eighteen are SICK this year.

I’m really hoping to finish the first round of revisions for Beneath a Velvet Sky by Father’s Day. We shall see!

Concerns:
Brogan has been having a heck of a time falling asleep lately. He cries for at least a half hour before bedtime and don’t even get me started on naps. How long can I let the boy cry before his lungs will combust….or before he develops serious attachment disorders?

I have zero control when it comes to all things sugar.

Yesterday, I felt like Alexander, because I had a Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. I was incredibly grumpy and irritable. Poor hubby. Is it a coincidence that I didn’t have my morning time with God? I think not.

Brogan keeps going BOOM-BOOM. Along with crawling, he now pulls himself up to standing. Imagine my surprise when I found him standing in his crib on Thursday. He’s also learned to climb steps. The steps infatuate him. The steps to Brogan are like Edmund’s Turkish Delight. I’m constantly picking him up and putting him on the opposite side of the living room, and he’s constantly crawling back to the steps.

Bubba has an ear infection. His right ear reeks! Poor Bubba.

Question to Ponder: What are your cares, concerns, and celebrations on this lovely Friday?removetweetmeme

GMC: Looking at the M

Posted on by Katie Ganshert

A few days ago, I blogged about the G in GMC. The G is the goal, or the what. What is my character working toward throughout the course of the book? In Getting into Character, Brandilyn Collins calls the G the action objective. The action objective is the character’s desire and it should be stated as an action verb.

Instead of: Jimmy John wants to be successful. You make it: Jimmy John wants to win first prize in the pie eating contest. The more specific, the better. So now that we’ve established the need for every good book to have a G, let’s look at the M.

If G is the what. M is the why.
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M stands for Motivation. For every goal we give a character, we better have a reason, a motivation, a why, for giving this character that goal. What motivates Jimmy John to want to win a pie eating contest? Why does getting first prize matter to him? If we want this story to be believable, there better be a good reason. And this reason better be strong enough to drive Jimmy John through the course of the story.
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There are a whole number of reasons why Jimmy John might want to win first prize in a pie eating contest. Maybe he’s really skinny and his dad’s a big man who always took pride in his girth and the amount of food he could eat. Maybe Jimmy John grew up teased by his equally big brother who said real men have big appetites. Maybe winning that pie eating contest is Jimmy John’s way of proving to his father and his brother that he’s just as much a man as either of them. Even though this idea is absurd, it’s believable.
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Because the motivation is there.
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Debra Dixon says motivation is one of the most important elements in writing fiction. Because without a plausible and strong why, the story falls apart. There are no limits in fiction. We can do anything we want. If we want Jimmy John’s goal to be growing his toenails out until they curl under his feet, we can do it. If we want Jimmy John’s goal to be cloning his dead uncle Bob, then we can do that too. We can make these stories believable as long as we establish the WHY. Motivation is key. Every character needs a goal, and every character needs a motivation for that goal.
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Debra Dixon’s advice as far as finding the motivation?
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Keep it simple. Keep it strong. Keep it focused.
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God has brought a person into my life recently. And this person gave me advice that has lined up very nicely with what I’ve been reading in Goal, Motivation, and Conflict. She says, “Every time you have your character do something, always ask WHY?” A strong WHY is what suspends disbelief and engages our readers in the story.
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Questions to Ponder: Do your characters have motivation? How do you go about finding the reasons that drive your characters to act the way they do?
On a side note, I apologize if my use of the name Jimmy John made any of you hungry for a sandwich.

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