Conference season

Oh, to be in New York City right now. The annual SCBWI winter conference is in full swing and I would love to be there, too. Utah’s own James Dashner is giving the keynote on Sunday.

It is the kick off to the 2015 writing conference season. The SCBWI is the biggie, attracting a large national level

LTUE - Feb 12-14

Life, the Universe, and Everything. That about covers it. The conference moniker is borrowed from a Douglas Adams book with the same title. Running now for thirty years, LTUE bills itself as a “three-day academic symposium on all aspects of science fiction and fantasy.” Of course, it deals with “everything” so there’s bound to be something for most any writer. It meets at the Provo Marriott Hotel and Conference Center. For complete information, go to LTUE.net.

Writing for Charity - March 21

This one day event features presenters, many of whom are Utah authors, panel discussions and a chance to have your work discussed with an agent, either Ammi-Joan Paquette or Minju Chang. They have four options for registration, each with varying levels of exposure to the two agents in attendance. Oh, and your registration fees are charitable. Writers for Charity chooses different organizations to donate to with a goal of getting books into the hands of children. They’ll also meet in Provo and more information is available at WritingforCharity.blogspot.com.

LDStorymakers - May 15 & 16

Agents galore and more Utah writers presenting on various aspects of the craft. Martine Leavitt delivers the keynote. Prices vary depending on the degree of involvement you choose. This conference also happens in Provo and their site, LDStorymakers.com provides details. 

WIFYR - June 15-19

My personal favorite is Carol Lynch William’s Writing and Illustrating For Young Readers. Like the others, this conference offers agents and Utah authors, and pricing varies. This is a week-long conference and differs from the others in that writers in the morning workshops are more active participants. Listening to a lecturer tends to be a more passive role. The workshops are interactive and intense. Their purpose is to critique and improve your manuscript. The afternoons have presenters and Jennifer Nielsen is the keynote speaker. This conference meets in Sandy and the WIFYR.com website offers details.

It’s winter in NYC, balmy in SLC. I would love to do SCBWI’s conference one of these days. But why spend the money on airfare and lodging when we’ve got some excellent opportunities for writers right here in Utah.

(This article also posted at http://utahchildrenswriters.blogspot.com)

Antagonists

The basic formula for a story goes something like this: a main character wants something; MC sets out to achieve that thing; MC meets with obstacles; MC overcomes obstacles. Simple, right? Everyone can write a novel. No big deal

Quiet often the conflict the MC faces is generated by an antagonist. Antagonists can be the demons floating around in the protagonist's head or they can be the classic arch-villain, the schoolyard bully, Darth Vader, or Lord Voldemort. We will stick to the human, physical antagonist for our purposes here. The writer needs to understand their antagonist.

Antagonists are not just bad guys wearing black hats. They are complex people with their own histories and goals. It is not that they oppose the protagonist. They have their own agenda that they are trying to accomplish. In a reversal of roles, your MC is the obstacle the antagonist encounters in reaching their goal. The school bully wants money to buy cigarettes. Vader tries to bring Luke to the dark side. He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named wants power and immortality. And they all have histories that rationalize their behaviors

John Truby in his Anatomy of Story says that “the trick to defining your hero and figuring out your story is to figure out your opponent.” He says writers should love their antagonist because he will aid the writer in so many ways. The opponent is important structurally. Antagonists attack the MC’s weakness, forcing the hero to deal with them and grow. Thus, the MC learns through the antagonist.

The repeated theme at WIFYR this summer was to torture your characters. A session by agent, Ammi-Joan Paquette, touched on the subject. Your role as a writer, she said, is to be the evil overlord, not the hero’s mother. Make your antagonists bigger, stronger, and smarter than the MC. Let them throw up the roadblocks and thwart your hero at every turn.

Antagonists, you’ve got to love them.

(This article also posted at http://utahchildrenswriters.blogspot.com)

Character motivation

Afternoon sessions at WIFYR were incredible and J Scott Savage's was no exception. It was well received in my workshop group.

Jeff, Scott, whatever - he goes by either, looks at what drives a character. You have to know their history to  understand their motivations. Should a life-altering event occur that precipitates the story, their motivations change. Seems quite simple, yet it's good to be reminded of it. The writer must know where their MC is coming from, where they're going to, and how they'll get there. He says that is true of all the characters, though the minor ones to a lesser degree.

The word at this WIFYR was antagonist. (One of the words - the other was torture your MC.) Ammi-Joan Paquette and Jennifer Nielsen expressed the importance of a good antagonist. Your antagonist is a person, too, with a history and a goal. They respond to events and sets a new course for you main guy or girl. It doesn't have to be a person. It could be the elements or something else, as in Gary Paulsen's Hatchet.

Jeff also mentioned that the complexity of motivations grows as your audience ages. In chapter books, the motivation is me, me, me. Think Ramona the Pest.  For the MG Percy Jackson, his concerns include me, but expand to family and friends. The stakes are the same yet raised in YA to more global, societal issues. The MC must prioritize their goals. One takes on more importance than the other motives and the character's actions will reflect that. Your early reader character has motivation for their actions. It's more complicated for the YA MC.

Think of various characters in literature. Who are they and what are they're motivations?