Not her, but she wore a similar expression.
Last weekend, I was lovin’ on an adorable Chihuahua/Fox Terrier when I spotted an abscess under her left eye. She’s a little furball. The abscess hid under a mess of blonde curls.
When I brought the problem to her human’s attention, we discussed possible reasons for it. Did she scratch herself? Why was she scratching? Do her eyes itch? If so, why? Or did she accidentally catch the skin with her nail while cleaning her face?
Over the years, I’ve treated many abscesses on friends’ animals. For some reason, they all call me when something’s wrong with their furbabies. I’m not a vet, but some problems are easy fixes that don’t require dishing out hundreds of dollars and leaving the furbaby in distress while they wait for an appointment.
Like we did with the dog, if a scene in the WIP feels off in some way, we need to acknowledge there’s a problem. Only then can we gain enough clarity to fix it.
The first step in treating an abscess is to find the root cause. When we examined her eye, we found a dead tick attached to the inside rim of her lower eyelid. The rubbing of the tick against her eyeball caused her to scratch while her human was at work. We also found a small red mark in the corner of the abscess from her nail(s).
The first step to fix a scene is to find the root cause. Why doesn’t the scene work? Is the pacing off? Does it lack tension/conflict? Are there no obstacles to overcome? Does each character have a scene goal? If so, what are they? How does the scene advance the plot?
Once we removed the tick, we treated the abscess by applying hot compresses. Heat loosens the pocket of infection and relaxes the skin. The goal is to let the existing wound open on its own.
When examining a scene, go slow and sniff out the problem. First, look at the structure. Does it follow the micro-beats of scene and sequel?
SCENE
Goal: What does the POV character want? If you don’t know, that could be the problem. The character’s goal must be clear from the start, even to the reader.
Conflict: What are the obstacles standing in the way of the character reaching their goal? Obstacles can be external or internal. If there aren’t any, you’ve identified the problem.
Disaster: Even if your character overcomes the conflict, your job is to make things worse. Ideally, the scene should roll into the sequel with the feeling of, “Oh, no! Now what?”
SEQUEL
Reaction: How does your character react to the scene disaster?
A well-crafted sequel clues the reader into the character’s internal journey, presents a compelling dilemma, and ends with the character setting a new goal. Sequels are where major decisions, reversals, and growth happens. They set up the character’s next move.
Dilemma: The dilemma is the problem your character faces because of the scene disaster. Make sure your character has no good options, or at least they can’t see a way out of the tricky situation they’re in. If the sequel lacks a dilemma, it’ll destroy the structure because the choice they make leads to the next micro-story beat.
Decision: How will they deal with the new dilemma? The decision often becomes the goal of the next scene. If they have no idea what to do, you at least need some sort of decision here, even if they choose to retreat.
Also not her, but same happy mood.
After a few rounds of hot compresses, blood and puss drained from the abscess. The inner lid where we removed the dead tick stopped bleeding, the skin relaxed into place, and the wound under her eye sealed closed.
No one was more relieved than the sweet, little furbaby. We accepted payment in the form of kisses, tail wags, and happy prances.
The next time a scene in the WIP doesn’t work, search for the tick. It’s hiding in there somewhere.
Good advice, Sue. Just got my editorial feedback for Double Intrigue. We’ll see what my editor has to say about the manuscript. Will keep these tips in mind as I go through her comments.
Love the title, Terry. Happy editing!
Nicely done, Sue! Very slightly “Eww!” but only slightly, and that mainly because I had to deal with a pupper-related problem myself this past Saturday, so I can relate.
We noticed an elderly relative’s lap dog was doing a lot of amusing (we thought) rolling and wriggling on her back to satisfy an itch.
Until we looked more closely and discovered fleas! Exclamations, dismay, excitement … and a very thorough bath and treatment later, the crisis was resolved.
Disaster, Reaction, Dilemma, Decision. I think we ran the gamut there! Haha!
And this line really jumped out at me:
“If the sequel lacks a dilemma, it’ll destroy the structure because the choice they make leads to the next micro-story beat.”
That’s a critical plot movement that many new writers miss, leading to wandering characters, wandering plot (I’m certain there’s an industry term for that!)
Haha! Sounds like you hit all the micro-beats. Fleas & ticks are little buggers. Glad the furbaby is all set now. Great job! 😁
Dr. Sue to the rescue! Thanks for these great diagnostic tips. I just finished doing major surgery on my WIP. Next it will go in for a followup visit to remove the stitches and hope the scars heal nicely.
Jack Bickham’s scene and sequel system always works well. Thanks for reminding me about the dilemma in the sequel.
I appreciate this happy ending to start the new week.
Haha! Nailed it with the surgery analogy, Debbie. Hope the stitches slide out smoothly. 😂
Thanks, Sue…this is a copy-and-paste-worthy post for sure!
Love the analogy to ticks, something we religiously look for on our Smartest-Dog-In-The-Universe GS, Hoka. They love lurking in her 3 layers of fur. She has very sensitive skin, so we don’t put any flea & tick stuff on her. But those pesky blood-suckers don’t often survive our search and destroy missions.
Maybe the scene/sequel blood-suckers won’t survive MY search and destroy missions either! 🙂
Haha! Can’t let the blood suckers infect your WIP. 😁
Great advice, Sue. I’m another big fan of Jack Bickham’s scene and sequel and always appreciate a discussion about it. Today’s is excellent, with an unexpected analogy that works perfectly 🙂
Scene and sequel scale well to fit a novel’s narrative and genre, too, be it intense thriller, gritty procedural, or lighter cozy. Of course, even cozy mysteries have intense moments, but even scenes that aren’t filled with physical danger need a disaster. I’ve got a few doozies in mind as I write Meg Booker #3.
Thanks for today’s post! A great resource on a fundamental fiction writing concept.
Have a wonderful week, my friend!
Thank you, Dale! You raise a great point. We need scene & sequel regardless of genre. Thanks for adding to the discussion.
Hope you have a fabulous day!
Good rundown on the fundamentals, Sue. Scene and Sequel (via Bickham) was my first major epiphany on the craft. It never fails. Once you’re grounded in it, you can play around with the elements and where they go.
I had the same epiphany when I first learned it as well, Jim. Absolutely! Like with most “rules” we have leeway once the structure is imbedded.
Great analogy, Sue. And I bet your furry little friend is grateful.
I’m also a fan of Jack Bickham’s scene and sequel approach. It reminds me of the melodies in a symphony – the cymbals are great, but you can’t keep banging them constantly. The audience needs to rest their ears now and then.
Everyone’s got such great analogies today! Constant cymbals would be annoying after a while. Thanks for adding to the discussion, Kay!