Friday at SDCC is more intense than Thursday. More people attend, more people dress up, and more people stand in lines to get into not only the convention center, but in the two largest rooms, Hall H and Ballroom, 20.

Friday morning I attended part two of Maxwell A Drake’s writing course: The Tools of Plotting. In this session Drake went into more detail on the invisible layer and its importance in creating satisfying stories.

Every story ever written or told is identical to every other story ever written or told as far as the invisible layer is concerned. Readers unknowingly expect a certain emotional journey from the stories they consume, whether it’s movies, television, novels, or video games. The writers job is to make sure the reader gets these emotional beats with a unique exterior. Take Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone and Star Wars: A New Hope. On the exterior or physical layer, they are different. But when you dig into the invisible layer, both stories follow the Hero’s Journey.

And that’s what the invisible layer is. It’s an arc or a journey all humans are familiar with. There are only so many story structures one can follow, and to deviate from that can spell disaster for a fan’s expectations. And a writer needs to remember not only the two layers, but the way those two layers interact and competent each other to create a familiar story with a unique feel.

Drake also touched on theme. A theme is the critical belief or idea the writer tries to convey to the reader. Theme has two purposes. For the reader, it gives fulfillment through the emotional journey. For the writer, it helps develop a tighter story. Understanding theme from a writer’s perspective will not only create a good story, it will enhance every element of said story. One way to do that is to turn the theme question into two mutually exclusive answers. If the theme is good versus evil, the two questions would be:

  1. Will good defeat evil?
  2. Will evil defeat good?

Even if the answer is usually good will triumph over evil, actively trying to prove the losing side will win creates tension and develops a tighter story for the writer. Developing the theme can also provide insight into how to write the story. The theme question can rage either inside the protagonist or in the world itself. And the theme is answered by the point of view character through the transformation of the story journey.

FXhibition

FX set up an exhibition in front of the Hilton Bayfront hotel featuring American Horror Story, The Strain, It’s Always Sunny in Philedelphia, among others. There were busts you could take pictures with from the various shows, an infected Statue of Liberty from The Strain, and an American Horror Story

Ending a YA series

I also attended a panel about ending a YA series with Alexandra Bracken (Darkest Minds Series), Marissa Meyer (The Lunar Chronicles), Mary Pearson (The Remnant Chronicles), with Kami Garcia (Beautiful Creatures Series, The Legion Series) moderating. It was a fun conversation about how to end a series, what it was like working on two, three, or four books within the series, and how they felt about ending their beloved series. I enjoyed listening to their witty banter back and forth, and also their answers to questions from the audience. I definitely need to pick up some of Alex Bracken’s books!

That was the end of my Friday. Between panels I wandered around the floor and got swag from books to pins and postcards. It was hectic and yet so exhilarating! Definitely a good second day at the convention.

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