Do You Have a Strange Attractor?
By Guest | October 25, 2010 |
Kath here. Today’s guest is bestselling novelist Amanda Stevens. Author of acclaimed paranormal thrillers, Amanda has been writing and publishing since 1989, so she knows a thing or two about the craft of fiction. Her new series, THE GRAVEYARD QUEEN, kicks off in May 2011 with the debut title THE RESTORER. Set in the gracious South and infused with the supernatural, Amanda’s books deliver a hefty dose of tingles along with a gripping plot and characters that stay with you long after you close the book.
“Basically, I love anything creepy and gothic—old houses with hidden stairwells, forgotten graveyards, deserted insane asylums,” Amanda says. “I’m more drawn to the South of Hush, Hush, Sweet Charlotte than to that of Steel Magnolias.”
Oh yeah.
We’re thrilled to welcome Amanda Stevens to Writer Unboxed today.
I’m not talking sex appeal or pheromones here, but the aspect of your story that provides a built-in pitch, a wow factor, an aha! element that packs a visceral punch.
It’s like high concept only different.
At its most basic, the definition of high concept is a premise or idea that can be summed up in one sentence. But screenwriter Terry Russio (Pirates of the Caribbean) says an idea must be more than just clear and simple, it must also attract an audience AND professionals to your project. It must have what he calls a STRANGE ATTRACTOR. “Strange meaning unique and attractor meaning compelling. Something unique that is also compelling.” An element that is so clever, so ingenious, so kick-ass it turns other writers pea green with envy. And who doesn’t love that? (By the way, if you haven’t been to Rossio’s website, www.wordplayer.com, OMG, run, don’t walk and prepare to spend hours because each essay there is a gem.)
A strange attractor is more precise than high concept because it zeroes in on the most compelling aspect of the premise. A good attractor defines the characters, shapes the plot and drives the action. Conversely, even the most innovative concept can fail if the writer mistakes what element of the story is going to hold the reader.
Let’s explore some examples. And since I’m in the Halloween spirit, let’s make them appropriate to the season. (Full disclosure—I haven’t seen these movies so my thanks to Fangoria—A Celebration of the World’s Most Unheralded Fright Flicks and IMDB for providing the synopses.)
The Borrower
Concept: An alien has behaved badly in his home world and is sentenced to the worst punishment imaginable—he is banished to planet Earth.
Not a bad premise and it can easily be summed up in one sentence. The potential of the setup is obvious and instantly conjures all kinds of scenarios for conflict and whacky hijinks. It’s the old stranger in a strange land concept that strikes a universal chord. I’m intrigued and heading to Netflix.
But wait. What about the…
Strange Attractor: Arriving on our world, the alien immediately finds he has a problem—his head explodes easily and frequently.
Yes! Now this movie is going straight to the top of my queue. Admittedly, the attractor is a little over the top, but it’s fresh and fun, the most unique and compelling aspect of the premise. How the alien deals with the problem of borrowing human heads will define his character, shape the plot, and drive the action.
Daybreakers
Concept: In the year 2019, vampires rule the world.
Excellent idea. I’m envisioning Underworld meets The Matrix. Twilight meets Blade Runner.
And now we stir in a little…
Strange Attractor: The vampires are running out of blood.
Suddenly it becomes Thirty Days of Night meets Marie Antoinette. Nothing wreaks havoc like a hungry mob—especially a mob of vampires—and I’m salivating at the prospect.
Cherry Falls
Concept: In the small town of Cherry Falls, there is a sexually bewildered serial killer on the hunt for virgins.
Strange Attractor: The best way to stay alive is to lose your cherry!
Enough said, I think.
So in summary, a good attractor can flip your high concept on its head, spin it, twist it, and then knock it on its backside, generating all sorts of interesting situations and conflict. It captivates the reader and elevates the premise. It attracts and compels. It thrills, chills, and excites.
The strange attractor…take one along on your next writer’s journey and see where it leads you.
Many thanks to today’s guest.
You can read more WU guest posts by visiting this link.
I love this. I think taking a logline to this level would be the difference between a “thanks but no thanks” and a sale. I’m already working on Strange Attracting my current concept. Thank you, Amanda!
Great post. This reminds me of a recent workshop by Bob Mayer where he talked about the “shiver” — where’s the excitement, that emotional connection?
Terry
Terry’s Place
Romance with a Twist–of Mystery
Thanks for a great post!
All those examples sounded like books I’d love to read.
I’ve got six paranormal thrillers published in the Kindle store and as far as I can tell, most of them have the “Strange Attractor” theory.
What a refreshing post.
Thanks!
Great article. It seems like one has to be careful with this idea, however — there’s a difference between a “strange” attractor and a totally bizarre, WTH attractor. I’m actually thinking of Pirates of the Caribbean — it was a bit of “strange attractor” overload, since after the first one I had no idea what was going on.
[…] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Daryl Sedore and Kathleen Bolton, SFWA authors. SFWA authors said: Juliet Marillier: Do You Have a Strange Attractor? https://bit.ly/dbXOIx […]
Verrry interesting. It’s basically taking high concept, or the quick hook, to the next level. Definitely something to think about. Thanks!
Game changing twist on high concept. Thank you so much for sharing this!
Martina
Entirely new take on high concept. Thanks for sharing!
Ooh, very neat and tidy explanation. Thank you!
This blog made me realize I needed to take my w-i-p to a totally different level and when I applied the idea to my story–BAM–something seemed to go off inside my head. After doing so serious thinking now I believe I’ve got that missing element an editor wants, as well as–and perhaps even more importantly–the marketing people can leverage.
Also, I see this theory as offering universal help to all writers. The strange attractor of, say, vampires taking over the world (which isn’t strange anymore) is fine but what if you want to write a cozy mystery? This concept would help both writers.
One last thing and then I’ll shut up! I appreciate the point about bizarre ideas being overdone but in the current market, nothing seems too bizarre to me. The more outlandish the better.
Really interesting idea. In fact, after reading this, I came up with a great title for my new novel. It’s always good to stretch the ideas in a few different directions and see if we can come up with something out of the ordinary. No one wants to read a premise they’ve seen a thousand times. But give them a strange attractor and there’s almost no one who won’t at least pick up the book and take a peek.
Thanks for the nudge in the right direction. :)
Thanks for all the great comments! The ‘strange attractor’ was a revelation to me when I first read Rossio’s essay so I hope it’ll be of help to others, too. For some reason, it was much easier for me to grasp than the whole ‘high concept’ thing, which I’ve had a love/hate relationship with for years, lol.