Objective Correlatives and a White Belt

Last fall I wrote several blog posts about the Plot & Structure class I took with the Center for Writing Excellence. You may remember the concept of objective correlatives which enables authors to "show, not tell."

I have fallen in love with the idea. 

In her lesson about objective correlatives, my instructor Bethany Nuckolls, wrote: 

"This is an object in the scene, which correlates with the narrative subtext, thus displacing the need for a narrator's explanation. Sometimes referred to as 'reading between the lines,' subtext is everything that is not being said or shown, but is nonetheless present such as a husband and wife sitting down to a silent dinner. Neither one says, 'I am angry at you,' but that anger can be felt nonetheless….Just as actors need props to hold on stage, scenes need objective correlatives for characters to channel their thoughts and emotions through."

Now as I read, I'm on the lookout for phrases and objects that might be objective correlatives; words which provide the reader with subtext about the scene. As Nuckolls concludes in this section, "Rarely does the author need to spell things out for the reader via explanation."

For your instruction (and mine!) here are some examples.

From Prisoner of Night and Fog by Anne Blankman:

Blankman first describes Gretchen's brother as "a column of darkness." (p.8) This image foreshadows his character and the troubles he will bring in to Gretchen's life. 

Later, the reader sees Gretchen as she leaves her school, "As she walked down the narrow hallway, she wished life could be simple and straightforward. She wanted to be so many different puzzle pieces--Uncle Dolf's sunshine, the martyr's daughter, the serious student, the future physician." (p. 30)  Blankman shows how Gretchen is trying to figure out where and how she fits in by using the objective correlative of a puzzle piece. 

Here's an example from Madman's Daughter by Megan Shepherd. 
The protagonist, Juliet, is on board a ship traveling to a Pacific island hoping to determine if her father is a monster or a misunderstood genius. Shepherd writes, "I wasn't sure I was ready to learn what types of boundaries my father might have crossed out there in the dark, silent sea." (p. 61)  The play on the word "boundaries" hints at what Juliet is truly thinking. The "dark, silent sea" symbolizes the unknown. 

In Lisa Williams Kline's book, Summer of the Wolves, stepsisters Stephanie and Diana are having a hard time getting used to their new family. In a dramatic moment, they must climb a steep path in order to free the penned-up wolves. Although she is reluctant to help her ill-prepared sister, Diana succeeds in pulling her sister up the rock face. This is a turning point in their relationship; the scene echoes the struggles they have had to gain equal footing.  

Here is an example from my WIP, Half-Truths. After I wrote it I realized I'd successfully used several objective correlatives. In this scene Kate, who has just moved from  Cheraw, SC, is getting reacquainted with her Myers Park friends. 

"A funny look twisted Shirley’s face. She laughed nervously. 'Well, you have to admit, Kate, a Cheraw hoedown is a far cry from a Myers Park cotillion.'

Kate almost choked on her sandwich. She loved square dancing with her 4-H buddies, but she still dreamt of pink tulle dresses and open toe high heels. Did Shirley think she was just a yokel?"

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So what do all these objective correlatives have to do with a white belt?

Here's how. A month ago I impulsively decided to enroll in a Tae Kwon Do class. It is fun, great exercise, and challenging to both body and mind. 

I found myself possessively proud of the white belt I received. As I thought about it, I realized that the belt is not only a symbol of my beginner's status. 

The subtext goes deeper. 

I turned 60 last December. I'd been dreading that birthday; fearing the approach of "older" age.  But tying that belt around my waist has proven to me that life is not over. I can and will do new things.

I have a book that I hope to finish this year.

I have travels and adventures I plan to take. 

And, now I have a white belt too. 

Watch out. You never know what objective correlative is just around the bend. 

My 2014 Objective Correlative

How about you? Found any interesting objective correlatives in a book you are reading? Written one you want to share? Or have one of your own you want to boast about?

Bring them on!

Tackling Tension, Horizontality, and Verticality

In this series about my online writing class, Plot and Structure, through the Center for Writing Excellence, I last posted definitions and examples of horizontality and verticality in What Happened to Goodbye. Our next assignment was to play around with creating tension in our own work. Here are some samples from Chapter 2 of Half-Truths.

In the lesson on tension, Bethany Nuckolls said, “Tension is simply a byproduct of pacing and manipulating time.  Conflict in a story can be heightened or diminished by how fast or slowly you narrate it.  Slowing a scene down and writing longer sentences builds tension… Speeding a scene up and writing shorter sentences gives the reader a sense of movement.  This is particularly effective in action scenes where the character is reacting instead of preparing to react.  This kind of tension is less suspenseful and more shocking.”

In this writing sample I created tension by using short sentences:

"Kate felt a tightness in her chest, like a band pulled taut so she could hardly breathe. No way was there enough space here for Eileen. Or for Speckles. Or for her. How could she ever feel like this was home?"

Bethany commented: “Choppy sounds great.  It's closer to the rhythm of her nervous heartbeat, or her thoughts jumping from one worry to the next.”

In this second sample, I created tension by using verticality (multiple events or times present in the same narrative moment). In this passage Kate jumps backward and forward again in her mind:

"Brave. She tried the idea on as if it was a new pair of riding boots. Took some breaking in, but would fit if she stomped around in the notion long enough. Kate kissed Eileen on the snout and squared her shoulders.  If she’d been brave enough to help birth Eileen in the middle of a hailstorm that threatened to flatten the whole county, she was brave enough to face Grandmother Dinsmore and all her rules and plans.  And hopefully brave enough to walk into Alexander Graham Junior High and make friends with a bunch of snobby, rich girls."

Bethany agreed that the hailstorm was an example of verticality.

In this third sample I created tension by using horizontality (narrative that moves chronologically):

 "Grandmother crossed her arms and scowled. Her eyes traveled from the wisps of hair that had escaped Kate’s braid all the way down to her mud-covered loafers."

Playing with sentence length helped me realize that I tend to write run-on sentences. Breaking them up added oomph and made the narrative more present to the reader.

Bethany summarized this to another student when she said: “There is no ONE rule to apply to all situations.  Rather, this is about realizing how sentence length can change the mood in a scene, and be willing to exploit that fact to your advantage.”  

Horizontal or Vertical: which appeals to you?

Discovering Tension in "What Happened to Goodbye"- Part II

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In my ongoing blog series about the writing class I'm taking through the Center for Writing Excellence, I learned two new ways to produce tension: Horizontality and Verticality. 

Horizontality, as Bethany Nuckolls instructed,  "refers to narrative that moves chronologically."

Verticality "happens when multiple events or times are present in the same narrative moment."

Our assignment was to find examples of tension in our reading novel.  McLean, the protagnoist in What Happened to Goodbye? is both drawn to her next-door neighbor, David, but also afraid of getting involved in any type of lasting relationship because she and her father always leave town. This passage comes immediately after a scene in which he is close enough to kiss her but doesn’t; the talk and action subsequently turns to basketball.   

Here is the passage I chose; my analysis follows.   

  He sat up, choosing to ignore this. “You know, you talk this tough game and everything. But I know the truth about you.”

     “And what’s that again?” I said, getting to my feet.

     “Secretly,” he said, “you want to play with me. In fact, you need to play with me. Because deep down, you love basketball as much as I do.”

     “Loved,” I said. “Past tense.”

      “Not true.” He walked around my deck, grabbing a broom there and using the handle to fish around beneath.” (Horizontality) “I saw how you squared up. There was love there.”

     “You saw love in my shot,” I said, clarifying.

     “Yeah.” He banged the broomstick again, and the ball came rolling out slowly, toward me. “I mean it’s not surprising, really. Once you love something, you always love it in some way. You have to. It’s, like, part of you for good.”

     I wondered what he meant by this, and in the next beat, found myself surprised by the image that suddenly popped into my head: me and my mom, on a windy beach in winter, searching for shells as the wave crashed in front of us. (Verticality) I picked up the ball and threw it to him.

     “You ready to play?” Dave asked, bouncing it.

     “I don’t know,” I said. “Are you going to cheat?”

      “It’s street ball!” he said, checking it to me. “Show me that love.”

       So cheesy, I thought. But as I felt it, solid against my hands, I did feel something. I wasn’t sure it was love. Maybe what remained of it, though, whatever that might be. “All right,” I said.
“Let’s play.” (p. 273)

  

I think this is the original cover; I like it best!

Analysis: Dessen probably used the verb “fishing” purposefully to describe David’s action of getting the ball out from under the deck. This fits in nicely with McLean’s flashback of her and her mother at the beach, searching for shells.  Horizontality is shown in his three chronological actions of retrieving the ball.

I think verticality is achieved when there is something about David’s words about love that trigger her memory of her mother. Although McLean is trying hard to distance herself from her mother, memories of pleasant and loving times keep popping up. Her mother, like it or not, “is with her for good,” as the rest of the novel attests to.

Tension is created because it takes McLean the entire page to decide if she will play basketball with David. Her slow deliberation over what he has said to her intensifies the conflict for the reader (who of course wants her to say “yes!”).

The chapter ends with a cliff-hanger letting the reader know that McLean is indeed, allowing herself to “play” and get involved with David.

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Now you try it. Has an author you have read included tension in her novel? How have you included it in your own work?

Plot Elements and What Happened to Goodbye: Part I

Congratulations to Ann Eisenstein who received a copy of Odette's Secrets in last week's giveaway.

In this ongoing mini-series of blog posts, I share more nuggets from my online writing class, Plot and Structure, with instructor Bethany Nuckolls.  

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As our class proceeded into analyzing Act II of our novels, Bethany explained the concept of Shock: “Shock is the moment when the protagonist’s world comes crashing down, their ideals prove to have a fatal flaw, their companions betray them, or their desire proves to be short of expectations.  This is the darkest moment in their journey thus far.  For the first time, success will seem impossible.  Doubt becomes certainty, bringing about the third point of Act II: the Critical Choice.” 

Since I had just finished listening to What Happened to Goodbye? by Sarah Dessen, I decided to use that to discuss this concept and  explore why I felt the book was emotionally compelling. I have included some of the previously discussed plot elements as well. 

McLean, the 17-year-old protagonist, chooses to live with her father after he and her mother divorce. Her father’s job is helping faltering restaurants to either survive or close.  In the last two years, McLean has gone into each new school and established a new identity for herself along with a new name.  At one school she is a drama diva, at another a cheerleader, and most recently the student council secretary. Along with new names, McLean makes sure she never got attached to any of her friends since she knows she will be leaving soon.  This is her Stasis (original state).

She moves to a new school (Trigger)  and her pattern changes when she “accidentally” introduces herself as McLean and allows herself to develop new friends and a special friendship with the boy next door, Dave. As Dave and her group of friends work on putting together a model of the town (a superb example of an objective correlative of McLean’s life) she builds relationships and enjoys eating at one of the girl’s homes (Food, and the lack of eating together with her father is another objective correlative). When her friends look on a popular social media website, and discover that her email address is associated with four different names, they question who McLean really is--a question she is already asking herself. They react with distrust and she sinks into self-doubt.

I don’t remember if I cried at this point (although something in this book triggered tears); Dessen built up to this Shock point very cleverly and logically, but it still took me by surprise. McLean’s sense of loss when she realizes she has betrayed her friends by not revealing these past “selves” totally makes sense. It is definitely her "Point of No Return." After this, the book moves into the end of Act II when McLean faces her Critical Choice: Will she join her father when his next job takes him to Hawaii, or will she find a way to finish her senior year with her friends? 

After I posted my analysis, Bethany commented, “Indeed, the Shock is not necessarily supposed to shock the reader (via the definition of "surprise"). Rather it shocks the lead character, and if the reader has drawn close enough to that character in the meantime, it should emotionally affect the reader as well.

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Next week I'll continue my review of this beautifully-written young adult novel and will share examples of the tension elements which Dessen employed.