Plot Devices: Deus Ex Machina or Chekhov's Gun?

Plot Devices:
Deus Ex Machina
or
Chekhov's Gun?

----Original Message----
"What are your thoughts on Good Deus Ex Machinas? I find them hard to pull off realistically in a plot." -- Puzzled Writer
~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A Deus Ex Machina is when the Hero doesn't find the solution to the story's problem. The solution is handed to them, or taken care of, by someone or something far more powerful.

From TV Tropes:

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A Deus Ex Machina is an outside force that solves a seemingly unsolvable problem in an extremely unlikely (and, usually, anticlimactic) way. If the secret documents are in Russian, one of the spies suddenly reveals that they learned the language. If the writers have just lost funding, a millionaire suddenly arrives, announces an interest in their movie, and offers all the finances they need to make it. If The Hero is dangling at the edge of a cliff with a villain stepping on his fingers, a flying robot suddenly appears to save him.

The term is Latin for god out of the machine, and has its origins in Greek theater. It refers to situations in which a crane (machine) was used to lower actors or statues playing a god or gods (deus) onto the stage to set things right. It has since come to be used as a general term for any event in which a seemingly fatal plot twist is resolved by an event never foreshadowed or set up.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Good Deus Ex Machina only happen when they've been set up to happen all along and were simply overlooked--which means they're not really Deus Ex Machina...

--They're actually a Chekhov's Gun.

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"If you say in the first chapter that there is a rifle hanging on the wall, in the second or third chapter it absolutely must go off. If it's not going to be fired, it shouldn't be hanging there."
— Playwright Anton Chekhov (From S. Shchukin, Memoirs. 1911.)

"Honestly, what kind of situation would require the use of a pair of fake arms and a remote-controlled wheelchair? Only, I imagine, a completely ludicrous one!"
— Father Ted
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Example:

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The story opens with the sheriff saying that he's gonna cruise by the local huge creepy mansion later that night because the teenager that's watching over it is known for painting rude Graffiti. A house that big and that empty is clearly far too much of a temptation for a kid like that to resist.

meanwhile in the huge empty mansion, the radio and the TV blast out "Crazed Killer on the Loose in our area! Be on the look out...! News at Eleven."

Creeped out, the kid calls a few of his friends over to keep him company.

After a few forbidden cigarettes and a twelve-pack of beer, his friends start encouraging him to paint graffiti on one of the walls in the house.

Eventually, the kid gives in. "Why the hell not?" He goes to get his spray paint.

Right at that moment the monster strikes! It chases the troubled teen though the house and kills off his friends one by one. Blood! Guts! Mayhem! Screaming...!

Finally, the monster corners the kid on the roof with no place else to go.

Out of nowhere, a police helicopter shows up to rescue the kid 

-- Deus Ex Machina? 

The copter door swings open and it's the sheriff. He wasn't just keeping an eye on the kid, he was also watching out for the crazed killer that had been all over the news for days. 

-- NOT a Deus Ex Machina -- a Chekhov's Gun! The cop showing up was set to happen from the beginning. However, this works even better if... 

Before the kid can get up on the copter the monster finds a way to drag the helicopter down from the sky.

With the judicious use of a can of spray paint and a lighter, the monster's eyeballs are fried goo. The kid makes his escape straight into the REST of the cops heading up the road.

The cops shoot down the crazed killer and the kid goes on National Television saying how Graffiti saved his life.

The End~~~~~~~~~~~~~

An example of a Chekhov's Gun that LOOKS like a Deus Ex Machina can be found in the closing scene to the game Final Fantasy VII where the heroes tried everything to save the world, but failed. Suddenly, the world saved itself using the Life-stream--the power that had been the focus of the story's main problem since the story's opening. This Deus Ex Machina power had been there from the very beginning, yet had been overlooked making it in fact, a Chekhov's Gun.

However, an even better ending came in the sequel game Dirge of Cerberus, where one of the least understood characters in the Final Fantasy VII cast proved to have had a monumental power sleeping inside him all along--that was again, overlooked.

Getting it on Paper...
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If you really want to use a Chekhov's Gun, it helps to think of a story as a Circle. It should End where it Began with the main problem at the beginning of the story being the last problem solved. This means you need to have the Solution to that main problem present at the beginning of the story--preferably in the opening scene, but discounted, or not thought of as anything special.

By the way, most Fairy Tales and Fables tend to have a Circular plot pattern -- ending where they began.

Enjoy!

Plotting: The Murphy's Law Method

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Is your Special Character TOO Special?

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Yaoi Writers: Are your Male characters MASCULINE?

Dear Female Yaoi Writers:

Are Your Male Characters MASCULINE?

 

Is your favorite Yaoi character YOU as a guy -- only BETTER?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Are you committing a MARY-SUE/Gary Stu?

According to Aestheticism.com:

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“The Mary Sue ... is the highest form of fannish devotion to a series. You like it so much you want to come play in it yourself. Most fan writers are content to do this by sneaking in under cover of one of the canon characters.

Slipping on my Hakkai mask, I jump in the jeep and set out for the west with Sanzou and the guyz, pretending all along that it's Hakkai telling the story I'm writing and not me at all..."

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Except for one BIG problem...

 

 -- Hakkai shows Female Behavior -- not Male.

A common error that every beginning Female writer makes is that they assume that their male character will feel and react in the same way they would. They show them talking, thinking and behaving not as guys, but as they would react if facing the same situation -- as females.

Unfortunately, while the female writer may miss this, their Readers won't -- especially if those readers are Guys.

When a female writer’s male characters think, act, and talk in a feminine way, her audience will get annoyed - even if they don’t understand why. The same is true if a male writer’s female characters don’t think or act or talk like real women. (And I know you've all seen examples of that!)

So how do you keep this from happening to your characters?

The Check-List:
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A convincing masculine character WILL:

Be direct

Be issue-oriented

Be analytical

Act casual even in serious discussions

Interrupt

Make statements

Use short sentences

State his preferences clearly

Talk about concrete issues

Verbalize only things that he sees as important

Give advice

Ask specific questions

Choose to sit at angles from the person he’s talking to

A convincing masculine character will NOT:

Ask lots of questions

Ask leading questions

Turn statements into questions

Invite a "just talk” situation

Speak in euphemisms

Use understatement

Downplay his ideas

Let his sentences trail off

Make agreeing noises

Volunteer his reasons

Hold eye contact for significant periods (unless they're trying to intimidate.)

Say “I’m sorry” unless he really means it

Tell stories about his failings

Use personal anecdote to make a point, especially in a professional setting

Get bogged down in introspection or self-doubt

Ask for help, especially with emotional issues

Volunteer information about his feelings

Ask about others’ feelings

Ask for validation

Now that you have your answers, here are the reasons behind them.

The Differences between 

Males & Females:

Before anyone starts screaming about this essay being sexist--IT IS. I'm showing the differences between the genders, not their similarities. 

 

Also, this is not a check list you should compare yourself to! This is merely a list of Traits for the Adult Male ARCHETYPE intended for Fictional Characters -- NOT real people. NO man or woman acts 100% this way. Teen-aged boys in particular are are considerably more emotional.

 

As for where this information came from, the Bibliography is at the bottom. 

Men see life in competitive terms.
Women see it in cooperative terms.

-- Men see compliance (going along with what someone else wants) as submission; women see compliance (going along with what someone else wants) as cooperation.

Men focus on action.
Women focus on emotion.

-- Men don’t like to ‘just talk.’ They see conversation as a way to relay information, to show independence, and to illustrate status. Their conversations tend to be brief, episodic, and focused on concrete issues and events.

Men make decisions.
Women form a consensus.

-- Men state what they want; women make their preferences known and often add reasons for their requests in an attempt to convince the other party. Men don’t volunteer reasons, and when asked for reasons, they often feel they’re being challenged or checked up on. They feel as if the other party doesn’t trust them.

Men try to solve problems.
Women talk about problems.

-- Women listen to other people in order to give support. Men listen to other people in order to give advice.

Men are direct.
Women are indirect.

-- Men tend to make statements; women make suggestions. Women use understatement and speak in euphemisms; men are blunt.

Men’s actions and body language often Do Not reflect their feelings.
Women’s body language usually does.

-- Men are direct when talking about concrete things, but indirect in talking about emotional issues. This is because being affected by one’s emotions is not considered masculine. When forced to discuss emotions, men may attempt to distance themselves by avoiding eye contact, slouching, or turning away.

Men see themselves as protectors of women.
Men see Women as protectors of children.

-- When a man is protective toward a woman, it is to show that he feels responsible for her safety; he’s taking care of her. When a woman is protective toward a man, it is to show that she cares about him. Unfortunately, he’s likely to interpret a protective act as condescending, as though he’s a child.

Men see eye contact as challenge.

Women see eye contact as concern.

-- Women sit closer and look at people directly while talking to them, especially about serious subjects. Men sit at angles to each other and look at other things, almost never directly into each other’s faces.

Men interrupt.
Women wait their turn.

-- Men interrupt in order to change the subject or to express their opinion; women interrupt with supporting noises or to avert conflict.

Men ask questions to get information.
Women ask questions to further the conversation.

-- Men see talk as information; women see talk as interaction. Women are more likely to make a telephone call just to talk; men make a telephone call to accomplish a specific purpose.

Women make agreeing noises when they’re listening.
Men listen in silence.

-- “I know”, “I understand”, “Really?”, “Yes,”, “Uh-huh” are all feminine mannerisms. Women nod and smile and make agreeing noises to show that they’re listening and to invite further conversation, not necessarily to indicate agreement. Men don’t nod or smile or make agreeing noises unless they actually agree.

Men avoid discussion of emotional information.
Women invite it.

-- Women express emotion relatively easily, even in public - - except for anger, which they tend to repress at all times. Men generally do not express any emotion other than anger in public.

----- Original Message -----

"Men have no less need to deal with emotions just because they're not allowed to admit they exist, and so men have interactions that are ostensibly about something else but really about that. A casual observer won't notice, and even an insightful observer would not notice because that singular interaction/conversation ... will appear as one of the other allowed competitive (safe) interactions. But viewed in the wider context of how those two men interact previously and after ... the interaction will seem off-topic, unusual, almost as if one (or both) men isn't the same person as in the other encounters."
-- Literary Guy

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Men figure out how they feel - by thinking about it.

Women figure out how they feel - by talking about it.

-- Women are more likely to sit down and think through the whole history of a problem. Men are more action oriented, thinking what he’s going to do about the problem.

Men say “I apologize.”
Women say “I’m sorry.”

-- “I’m sorry” implies taking responsibility, while “I apologize” indicates regret that there’s a problem without necessarily accepting responsibility for causing it.

Men are more approving of their self image.
Women are more critical.

-- Men tend to boast publicly; women to boast privately, if at all. Women tell stories about their failures; men tell stories that make them look good.

Women are more specific with information.
Men generalize.

-- She'll tell you a dress is robin’s egg or teal or aqua or periwinkle. He'll say it’s blue.

Women are most comfortable talking when they feel safe and close.
Men are most comfortable talking when they need to establish and maintain status.

-- She tells him everything. He tells her what is important to him.

Men are more able to compartmentalize and separate issues.
Women are more likely to let feelings in one area spill over into another area.

-- A man can go from angry to amorous much faster and more believably than a woman. An argument or a bad day will be more difficult for a woman to set aside when getting into bed.

Men hide secrets to maintain status.
Women share secrets to build rapport.

-- Women see talking to outsiders about their relationships as part of friendship. Men see talking to outsiders about their relationships as disloyalty.

Men see challenge as constructive.
Women see challenge as destructive.

-- Women see disagreement as threatening; men do not. Women find raised voices and arguments upsetting; men see the ability to fight as a sign of intimacy, because only those who are intimately involved with each other argue.

Men react literally--word for word--to the message.
Women interpret the meaning.

-- Both men and women have a tendency not to answer the question that was actually asked, but they have different justifications for doing so. Men see it as a protective measure to get to the real point of the question. Women intend it as a helpful and caring measure to get to the real point of his question.

In Conclusion...

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Consider this a basic model to build upon. What you add to that base -- motives, dreams, fears, likes and dislikes -- is what will make your characters unique.

Enjoy!

Bibliography:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Men are from Mars Women are from Venus" - by John Gray, Ph.D

"Straight Talk to Men and Their Wives" - James Dobson

"Men, Women and Sex" - Margaret Paul, Ph.D

"Yes, Biologically Speaking, Sex Does Matter" - Karen Young Kreeger

"Gender Differences Are Real" - Frank York

~ * ~

BASIC Plotting

Art by Ayame Kojima
BASIC Plotting

A plot is the pattern a story follows, the most common being:

-- Beginning
-- Middle
-- End

All successful (read: popular) stories have patterns. Sometimes it’s simple, sometimes it’s complex, but all of the stories read or told often enough to remain in the popular mind of any culture have a pattern, a plot.

Here are some examples of simple plot patterns…

Traditional:
• He came.
• He saw.
• He conquered.

American Dream Version:
• He came.
• He conquered.
• He became very rich.

The Heroic version:
• He conquered.
• He became the leader of his people.
• He died in the middle of a glorious battle to defend his land, and became a legendary figure that would never be forgotten.

Erotic Version:
• He saw.
• He conquered.
• He came.

Aristotle’s Elements of a Greek Tragedy - simplified:
• Act One: He rose to glory.
• Act Two: His pride drove him to make a foolish but costly mistake.
• Act Three: He crashed and burned.

Aristotle’s Elements - American version:
• Act One: He rose to glory.
• Act Two: His pride drove him to make a foolish but costly mistake.
• Act Three: He crashed and burned.
• Act Four: He fixed his mistake and rose again.

Your basic Romance plot:
• The lovers are thrown together.
• The lovers are forced apart.
• The lovers go against the odds to get back together.

Your basic Yaoi Romance plot:
• One lover seduces the other.
• A misunderstanding drives one lover away.
• The lover that misunderstood chases the other lover down to beg for forgiveness.

Your basic Adventure plot:
• Hero meets Villain.
• They fight and the Villain wins.
• The hero rises from his defeat to battle the Villain again, and wins the war.

Your basic Manga Adventure plot:
• A group of friends meet a Villain.
• The villain corners them individually and defeats each one.
• The friends rise from their individual defeats to team up on the Villain and win the war.


I can already hear the whining…

“But that’s so…formulaic!
Where’s the creativity?”

 

Watch this Video, seriously!
 
Creativity is Overrated.

Ever hear the phrase: “It’s not what you have, it’s what you do with it,”? 

 

This is especially true when writing stories. It’s not the plot, but what you do with the plot that makes it creative.

No matter what those Creative Writing classes teach, for a story to be enjoyed by the widest possible audience, it needs to have some sort of structure, a pattern -- a plot.

Why?

Because a story without some sort of plot pattern reads…wrong. 

 

 

The COMPLETE Hero's Journey

Everyone, in every culture, has been trained from childhood to EXPECT a story to follow some sort of pattern to take it from the story's beginning to The End, and make some sort of point too. 

 

In fact, some of the hottest blockbuster movies including ‘Star Wars’ follow one of the oldest plot patterns in human history -- The Heroic Cycle, as codified by William Campbell.

 

 

The Heroic Mythic Cycle:
(Paraphrased to avoid copyright issues.)

Act One - Chosen

Humble Beginnings
Destiny Comes Knocking
Shoved into Adventure
Sagely Advice ~ Paramours & Sidekicks

Act Two - Challenge

Leaving the Known World behind
Challenges, Friends & Foes
Battle at the Crossroads

Act Three – Crisis

Into the Labyrinth
Temptation & Betrayal
Anger ~ Despair ~ Sacrifice
Inheritance / Blessing / Curse
Treasure & Celebration

Act Four – Climax

Escape / Expelled from the Labyrinth
The Hunter becomes the Hunted
Rescue & Loss of Paramour / Side-kick
Battle at the Crossroads to Home
Death / Rebirth
Delivery of Treasure & Just Rewards

Note: If you look at the full Heroic cycle, this is only Three Quarters of the cycle. 

 

A great many people who write quite successfully ‘by the seat of their pants,’ may tell you that they don’t need to plot, they just…write it from beginning to end. That doesn’t mean their stories don’t follow a pattern. It’s merely that the plotting pattern they use is so ingrained into their subconscious they follow it instinctively -- without even knowing they’re doing it.

Unfortunately, that’s not a talent I possess. I have to work everything out on paper or I get lost in a hurry.

How to Use a Plot
“What is plotting good for anyway?”

Well, the best use of a plotting pattern is so you don’t get lost in the story. 

 

Think of the plot outline as a road map marking out the most direct route from Here to There. This doesn’t mean you can’t take side trips to sight-see or visit friends along the way. It’s merely a way of keeping track of where you are, and where you should go next, by knowing where you intend to end up. 

 

Knowing your basic route ahead of time also makes it much more difficult to get lost on a back road or trapped in a cul-de-sac.

In short, if you know where you’re going when you start out, sooner or later, you’ll actually get there.

 

From Bakemonogitari

 A note on Japanese stories…

From:
‘Eight Ways to say You ~ The Challenges of Translation’
By Cathy Hirano

The most obvious differences between Japanese and English writing styles are organization and tone.

My English composition classes in high school taught me that English is supposed to flow in a linear fashion, from introduction to body to conclusion, and that a statement should be supported by a logical explanation. Even in literature, a book works toward a climax and then a conclusion. In contrast, Japanese composition appears almost circular, and although it has its own logic and organization, it is very different from how I learned to write in school.

In English, we stress clarity.

In Japanese subtlety is preferred. 

 

The Japanese writer dances around his theme, implying rather than directly stating what he wants to say, leaving it up to readers to discern that for themselves. He or she appeals to the reader’s emotions rather than to the intellect, and tries to create a rapport rather than to convince. The Japanese reader, in turn, is quite capable of taking great leaps of imagination to follow the story line.

Cathy Hirano is the translator of The Friends, winner, for Farrar, Straus & Giroux, of the 1997 Batchelder Award. 

 
Go HERE to read the whole article.

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In Conclusion…
-- By using even the most basic of plot patterns, the writer can keep track of not only where they are in their story, but where they intend to end up. This makes it very easy to avoid the most common pitfall of fiction writing: “The story’s halfway done and I have no idea how to end it!”

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Morgan Hawke
www.DarkErotica.Net

DISCLAIMER: As with all advice, take what you can use and throw out the rest. As a multi-published author, I have been taught some fairly rigid rules on what is publishable and what is not. If my rather straight-laced (and occasionally snotty,) advice does not suit your creative style, by all means, IGNORE IT.

The Secret to BOOK PROMOTION

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Writing FETISH Fiction

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