Books to Movies

The process of writing a book is very similar to the idea of creating a magical scroll. The words on the page are inert until a reader pronounces them (either verbally or in their mind), and then suddenly the conjuration begins. The words form pictures and images unbidden in the reader's mind. The dismal planetscape or lush jungle stake out immovable claims in the reader's psyche, crowding out space that might be better used for other more intellectual endeavors. The symbol and spell is complete and the reader now bows in some little part to the mind control of the writer. Ooh, I think I just spooked myself out a little bit.

What does this have to do with movies? Well, I'll tell you.

Movies based on books are often panned as poor attempts to cash in on an intellectual property rather than holding any artistic merit of their own. Though things have changed a bit over time, I often heard the phrase, "The book is better than the movie." It wasn't until I was in 9th grade that I heard someone say of then popular Jurassic Park, "What? No way. The movie was way better than the book." I disagreed, but instead of dismissing my friend's comment as the ramblings of an unintelligent mind lacking creativity I had a thought. Someone could think that a movie was better than a book. This was a world shattering revelation to me.

Some time later the Harry Potter books came out, followed by the films of the same designation. Talk about public outcry (though not enough to stem the ebullient flow of cold hard cash to deserving series creator Joanne K. Rowling). I knew many people who watched the movie numerous times (see cash statement above) to point out how poorly the movie had been adapted. How the very core of the book had been torn apart and lost in the film. The writer's mind control had been challenged in the faithful readers, and the readers gathered their pitchforks in defense of the images and ideas now firmly rooted in their souls.

The revelation that these two experiences gave to me was quite simple, and you may even laugh: movies and books are not the same. They are two separate mediums that have two very different powers. In the same way that a story may be told by two different storytellers, a film and a book have disparate and distinct voices.

I have since experienced movies that I enjoyed more than their books (2007's Stardust based on the novel by inordinately talented Neil Gaiman) and books that I have enjoyed in a completely different way from their movies. I still get chills every time I think of the Miyazaki film Howl's Moving Castle. And I gush for different reasons for the source novel by Diana Wynne Jones (Actually you should read many of her books. Her ability to entrance and entertain borders on the mystical. Seriously, look her stuff up.). Both of these adaptations had one thing in common. They were very different stories at the core from their source novels.

I wrote this post specifically so that I could gush about Howl's Moving Castle, because I loved both the book and the movie so much and for very different reasons. The artistry involved in either project just blows me away. The magical whimsy and visual style of Miyazaki's work compliments Jones' literary style in a way that I never would have taken from a simple reading of the book.

So what's my point? Perhaps as readers we can loosen up a bit. Movies are not books. We should expect different things from them. We should expect quality art from both mediums (unabashed cash ins should not be permitted), and enjoy them both for what they can add to the spell the author wove by simply placing letters together  on a page.

**Oh, and I would be remiss to mention the Lord of The Rings trilogy which I also enjoyed very much both as books and films. Those are also great.

How I write a book

Here's my take on writing. If you want to write a book, then you should practice writing. Listen to all the advice you can and try it out. If you think you already know how, then try it your way. Plot it out, revise, don't revise, rewrite, explore, but whatever you do, create. All of these methods above have some merit to them, and perhaps there really is one way to write that, if we were only to learn it, we could all write amazing stories. But I haven't found it, and I think that the most we can say about these other authors is that they've found one way that works. Most of the time if you find a method that works for you, some or all of it will work for someone else, but not for everyone. So in light of this, I'm going to give you my method.

I tried out a few of the above methods and I came to the conclusion that I can't really hold an entire plot in my head. But if I don't have some goal that I am writing to then I get lost.

I found out early on that I can write from a spark without planning if I'm writing a short story. Even then it gets dicey if the story is longer than a few thousand words. And I really do have a plan, but with a short story there is little enough happening (one or two characters, one scene, one specific conflict) that I can get it all down before I forget.

But when I have a longer work it starts like this:

• I have an idea
• I start to write a few scenes or scraps of dialogue. Perhaps I even get down a theme or overarching concept.
• I look at my ideas and figure out the story that they tell. This is the stage where I decide on my basic plot. I have a beginning and an ending and a few events in between.
• Next I fill in the blanks. I start to ask questions about how I get from the beginning to the end. I talk to my characters and see what they do.
• Then I write my outline. I usually write this by scenes, but I have started to give myself broader leeway and work down to the details. I read a few books and listened to some podcasts about outlining. The two outlining methods I used in my most recent book are the try fail cycle that David Farland writes about here, and the structure that Dan Wells talks about here. I take the big events and then break them down into chapters, scenes, and sometimes even beats.
• When I have a solid idea of where I'm going for the first few scenes then I start to write.
• As I am writing I continue to work on my outline. I've already got the big points down, I'm just working on the details at this point.
• I come up to problems and I brainstorm with someone I trust. I say, "I've got this problem, what are some possible solutions?" Sometimes I just brainstorm on my own.
• The outline evolves as I go, and sometimes I make changes. Sometimes I am driving in my car and I think of something awesome so I put it in. Usually it was already in the story I just didn't know.
• A few times along the way I will go back and rewrite a scene because it's taking me somewhere that I don't think fits the story. Other events will work as far as the story goes, but they are weak. I usually leave these and come back at the end.
• As I write I have my wife read and give me her initial responses to the story, though not grammar or spelling corrections.
• When I am finished I sit back and celebrate. I have a party and then I realize that I've still got a long way to go.
• I send my story out to some readers. I call them alpha readers because they are giving me only a basic response, similar to what my wife gave me as I wrote.
• While I'm waiting for one of my readers to finish, I don't think about the book. On my most recent project I waited two weeks before going back to the book. 
• I listen to the gist of the feedback. If the plot works for my readers then I start on my revisions. I make a list of things that didn't work for my readers and attack them first.
• I read my novel for the first time and destroy it. I make my English teacher envious with the amount of red I spill onto my pages.
• Then I go back and address all of my own notes.
• At this point I look for new readers and start the revisions again. I repeat this until I feel like the book is ready. Each time I look for readers that are less and less connected with me because the have less reason to like the book.
• Now here is where I stop, because I haven't published anything. So far I just keep revising until my readers aren't giving me things to change. Eventually there are some things that my readers will point out and I'll just say, "I'm not changing that." But I like to keep a mostly open mind.

One last thing...at some point there must be a new step which is this: I start another book. If this book never gets to be publishable, then I'll need to move on. I've set a goal for the middle of this year. I already have plenty of ideas to pursue. Once I've taken one idea as far as I can, then I need to start another one.

Writing is a very personal thing. Start writing something you can finish. Write a sentence, then a paragraph. Perhaps a short story. If you feel up to it, write a novel. Whatever you do, finish something. And then start something new.

Enjoy your writing, and then let others enjoy it too.

How to write a book

In order to write a book you should choose a basic topic, theme, setting, characters, etc. When you have mulled over the basics, you should then figure out what the ending to your story will be. Write that ending down because that's your end goal. You can jot down a few notes, but when you start writing be ready to discard anything except the ending. Make sure that whatever you write leads to the ending you have already written. Don't worry about drafts though, because you are going to do it right the first time. If you write a book that stinks, then don't go back to fix it. Write a new book using everything you've learned. While you are writing you might have some ideas about revision. Forget them. If you have an idea that changes your book, go back to the earliest point affected by the change and start writing again from there. You'll remember all of the important details as you rewrite (as opposed to revising) and the new material will keep the natural energy that comes from the first draft.

That's what I learned from attending a writing conference with Orson Scott Card. He's an author that I respect very much, but bwuh....Huh?
But wait, let's try something else.

In order to write a book you should outline like crazy. Work out the entire plot and then stick to it. The characters you are creating should never lead you away from what you've set down. You're the author, you tell what they do, not the other way around. If you come to a problem during the story just note it and come back in the revisions. Fix it in post, as they say in the movie business.

This is what I've gathered by listening to Brandon Sanderson, another author I respect very much. But wait...

 In order to write a book you should sit down at the keyboard, or a pad of paper and just write. Create your characters as you go. You might have some idea of where the story is going, but don't be disappointed if it goes somewhere else entirely. That's the fun of writing a book. If you know what is going to happen then why write? That's boring. The characters, setting, anything in the book will inspire you to move forward. Just keep pushing through until you discover the end. When you are finished go back and revise. You'll be revising for a while. It's the worst part, but just push through and people will love what you give them.

This is a paraphrasing of advice that I've hear from a few other authors. But wait...

In order to write a book you have to look at basic structure and conflict. Structure comes from the natural experience that we all have in life. We encounter an idea, struggle with it, and then resolve it. Conflict comes from these new ideas or events and is strengthened by involving various characters, settings, themes, events, or ideas. Start with the basics by choosing a setting (this includes politics, religion, social mores, or anything that affects the characters) When you are plotting out your book there is a basic structure you should follow....

HOLD IT!

Ok. I can't go into all of the ways that people write books. Kevin J. Anderson dictates his books onto a tape recorder while he's hiking (lucky!). Some people start with the end in mind, some people just write. Some authors say that revising is key, while others say to throw away the original and rewrite. And here's the thing that gets me. I like the outcome from lots of them. The bottom line is that I don't care how a book is written, or how a short story manages to eke its way out of your brain and onto the page. I will only see the end result. I will not often judge you on how you write, but I will judge your work because as a reader that is the point in the process that I get to take part in.

Now, that doesn't help you as a writer. Or does it? I think that you can take something from all of these writers. But you have to start taking things first.

This post is getting long, so I'll tell you about my method tomorrow.