An Allegorical View Depicting the Writer's Life
(Based on the movie, The Wizard of Oz)
In honor of Fantasy month, I continue with the classic, The Wizard of Oz. I urge you to read the other two articles if you haven't already: Hook, and our feature presentation, Tuck Everlasting.
The Wizard of Oz is a great study of the Plot Skeleton, created by Angela Hunt. You can find this skeleton in three parts here, here, and here. It's also wonderful for Dorothy's character arc. In the beginning, she only wants to leave Kansas but ends up in the final act realizing that "there's no place like home."
However, I'm not going to approach this story by talking about craft. Rather, I'm going to talk about the writer's journey down the yellow brick road.
Let's believe, just for the sake of allegory, that Dorothy symbolizes you, the writer. Perhaps you're stuck in "Kansas," your ordinary world. Because of your day to day routine -- either dullness as in Dorothy's case or the busyness that most of us endure -- your story idea is still in the flat stages, as colorless as Dorothy's greyscaped surroundings. What you need is an instigator.
Enter Miss Gulch.
The bicycle riding hag pushes all of Dorothy's buttons. Take away her dog? No way, she'd run away first. That's passion. Where does your passion lie? What would it take to spark that lifeless story line? What pushes your buttons? When I wrote Merely Players, (now available in the 3-1 compilation, Florida Weddings,) my Miss Gulch was realized in the lost souls of Hollywood. I invented a secondary character, a well respected actor, whose mission was to minister to those in the business. That's what fueled my story.
Now, with your passion driving you to write, you may still need a catalyst to separate you from your ordinary world. Dishes need to be washed, your boss is demanding more hours of your day, perhaps school is your ordinary world. It's going to take a lot to get you to write that story.
How about a cyclone?
The rush of adrenaline as you think about your Miss Gulch is just the ticket out of town. Let it swirl around you. No matter how little time you may have to write, or if the dullness of your life overwhelms your imagination. Seek that funnel cloud and stand under it. Let it transport you to where you need to be in order to write the story. And when you land, you will step out into a colorful world, limited only by your own imagination.
Oz.
Don't forget to grab the ruby slippers. These will be important later.
You may need some mentors to help you on your way through this new world. Find a writer's group. Join American Christian Fiction Writers, a national organization. Pull together a critique group locally. Find an accountability partner, someone who will set you on the right path.
We will call these mentors Munchkins.
Okay, focus here. I know you're singing "We represent the Lollipop Guild" in your head.
Now, I'm going to take a wild leap into allegorical land here. Please stay with me. As a writer in this strange new world you've created, you are going to need an Overseer, someone to turn to for help. Someone who lets you learn and grow, even through your mistakes. Could it be possible to think of Glenda, the good witch, as a God figure in your writing journey? I know the term "witch" is off-putting to a Christian, but I wonder if L. Frank Baum had this in mind. In the book, chapter 12, the winged monkeys are decimating the Tin Man and the Scarecrow. But they refuse to harm Dorothy because of a mark on her forehead where Glenda kissed her. At the risk of sounding theological, I'd like to highlight Revelation 7:3 where a command is set forth to not harm the earth until a seal is placed on the foreheads of the servants of God. That's my thought, anyway. Take it or leave it.
As in every good story, there must be conflict. We seek it out to keep the reader turning pages. However in the writer's life, we'd just as soon avoid any conflict that will keep us from writing.
Enter the Wicked Witch of the West. Glenda's nemesis -- further argument for my Overseer theory. By the way, in the book, Wicked, by Gregory Maguire, we learn that the Wicked Witch has a name, Elfaba. This is, of course, a tribute to L. Frank Baum, using his initials.
The Wicked Witch throws everything she has at Dorothy to keep her from her goal. In the real world, we know these conflicts as: illness that keeps the brain fuzzy; financial stress causing the writer to set aside her story and find a paying job; or more pleasant things, yet just as time consuming: grandchildren visiting; holiday preparations; television's new fall season. Elfaba throws roadblock after roadblock to keep words off the page. If you recognize her or her winged monkeys just itching to snatch you from your task, cry out to your Overseer. Whenever you spot the menacing wretches gliding overhead, you will be able to find those occasions of writing time.
There will be a moment, (okay, maybe a few moments,) when the writer will question herself. She will sit at her computer, drugged, if you will, with thoughts of inadequacy. Beware, as this stage in your writing journey stands directly between you and your goal. It's yet another technique that the enemy uses to drag you down. . .down. . .down. . .until you can think of nothing else but blessed sleep.
This, my friend, is your poppy field.
Overseer to the rescue! A sprinkling of snow, and you're good to go. Now, march on toward your goal. Dorothy's goal was the Emerald City where the Wizard could grant her wish. For the writer, this is your temporary goal, or maybe sub-goal. The city itself was not Dorothy's ultimate target, but a means to get where she needed to be. Your Emerald City could be a daily word count or a first draft -- something tangible for you to work toward.
Within that city, the writer needs a task-master. This need not be a man behind the curtain, it could be the writer herself. Whatever the case, no one reaches a goal without a plan. Now, let's forget for the moment that the wizard's plan was faulty and purely selfish. He'd hoped by sending Dorothy and her three friends on a quest for the witch's broom, they wouldn't come back. The writer's plan must be concrete, positive steps. How do you reach that daily word count? By setting aside a certain amount of time a day and "clocking in" as if you were working at real job. Here's an eye-opener. THIS IS A REAL JOB. The sooner you understand that, the sooner you'll take yourself seriously.
I haven't forgotten Dorothy's companions. I suggest to you that each one is symbolic of the writer's virtues.
The Scarecrow, who longs for a brain, helps us understand that the writer must use her good sense. Even though you're making up a world, logic must rule. For instance, in a contemporary romance, don't have a widower of two weeks fall head over heels for a pretty woman.
The Tin Man wants a heart, suggesting that the writer must use compassion in telling her story. A good writer empathizes with her characters, thus drawing the reader in also.
The Cowardly Lion only wants courage. Remember Miss Gulch, our instigator who fueled our passion? The writer must have courage to stand up for her convictions. If you're writing about a heavy subject, be brave enough to bring the point home.
And Toto? I dunno. If you can think of an allegory for Dorothy's whiskered pet, please write a comment.
So, Dorothy has defeated the witch, she's reached her sub-goal, and is now ready to hop into the hot air balloon that will help her complete her journey. But, oh no! Toto jumps out of her arms to chase a cat. (And was that cat the only one in the entire city? We never saw one before it was needed to launch the bleakest moment. . .I'm just saying.) The writer must not let anything distract her from reaching her ultimate goal. I want a show of hands. How many of you have an unfinished manuscript -- or more -- in a desk drawer? Yeah. That's what I thought.
But all is not lost. You still have the ruby slippers, right? Click your heels and repeat three times, "There's no place like publication." Come back to Kansas and get that story into the right hands.
The moral? There's no place like home. But if it weren't for Oz, where would the writer play?
The Wizard of Oz is a great study of the Plot Skeleton, created by Angela Hunt. You can find this skeleton in three parts here, here, and here. It's also wonderful for Dorothy's character arc. In the beginning, she only wants to leave Kansas but ends up in the final act realizing that "there's no place like home."
However, I'm not going to approach this story by talking about craft. Rather, I'm going to talk about the writer's journey down the yellow brick road.
Let's believe, just for the sake of allegory, that Dorothy symbolizes you, the writer. Perhaps you're stuck in "Kansas," your ordinary world. Because of your day to day routine -- either dullness as in Dorothy's case or the busyness that most of us endure -- your story idea is still in the flat stages, as colorless as Dorothy's greyscaped surroundings. What you need is an instigator.
Enter Miss Gulch.
The bicycle riding hag pushes all of Dorothy's buttons. Take away her dog? No way, she'd run away first. That's passion. Where does your passion lie? What would it take to spark that lifeless story line? What pushes your buttons? When I wrote Merely Players, (now available in the 3-1 compilation, Florida Weddings,) my Miss Gulch was realized in the lost souls of Hollywood. I invented a secondary character, a well respected actor, whose mission was to minister to those in the business. That's what fueled my story.
Now, with your passion driving you to write, you may still need a catalyst to separate you from your ordinary world. Dishes need to be washed, your boss is demanding more hours of your day, perhaps school is your ordinary world. It's going to take a lot to get you to write that story.
How about a cyclone?
The rush of adrenaline as you think about your Miss Gulch is just the ticket out of town. Let it swirl around you. No matter how little time you may have to write, or if the dullness of your life overwhelms your imagination. Seek that funnel cloud and stand under it. Let it transport you to where you need to be in order to write the story. And when you land, you will step out into a colorful world, limited only by your own imagination.
Oz.
Don't forget to grab the ruby slippers. These will be important later.
You may need some mentors to help you on your way through this new world. Find a writer's group. Join American Christian Fiction Writers, a national organization. Pull together a critique group locally. Find an accountability partner, someone who will set you on the right path.
We will call these mentors Munchkins.
Okay, focus here. I know you're singing "We represent the Lollipop Guild" in your head.
Now, I'm going to take a wild leap into allegorical land here. Please stay with me. As a writer in this strange new world you've created, you are going to need an Overseer, someone to turn to for help. Someone who lets you learn and grow, even through your mistakes. Could it be possible to think of Glenda, the good witch, as a God figure in your writing journey? I know the term "witch" is off-putting to a Christian, but I wonder if L. Frank Baum had this in mind. In the book, chapter 12, the winged monkeys are decimating the Tin Man and the Scarecrow. But they refuse to harm Dorothy because of a mark on her forehead where Glenda kissed her. At the risk of sounding theological, I'd like to highlight Revelation 7:3 where a command is set forth to not harm the earth until a seal is placed on the foreheads of the servants of God. That's my thought, anyway. Take it or leave it.
As in every good story, there must be conflict. We seek it out to keep the reader turning pages. However in the writer's life, we'd just as soon avoid any conflict that will keep us from writing.
Enter the Wicked Witch of the West. Glenda's nemesis -- further argument for my Overseer theory. By the way, in the book, Wicked, by Gregory Maguire, we learn that the Wicked Witch has a name, Elfaba. This is, of course, a tribute to L. Frank Baum, using his initials.
The Wicked Witch throws everything she has at Dorothy to keep her from her goal. In the real world, we know these conflicts as: illness that keeps the brain fuzzy; financial stress causing the writer to set aside her story and find a paying job; or more pleasant things, yet just as time consuming: grandchildren visiting; holiday preparations; television's new fall season. Elfaba throws roadblock after roadblock to keep words off the page. If you recognize her or her winged monkeys just itching to snatch you from your task, cry out to your Overseer. Whenever you spot the menacing wretches gliding overhead, you will be able to find those occasions of writing time.
There will be a moment, (okay, maybe a few moments,) when the writer will question herself. She will sit at her computer, drugged, if you will, with thoughts of inadequacy. Beware, as this stage in your writing journey stands directly between you and your goal. It's yet another technique that the enemy uses to drag you down. . .down. . .down. . .until you can think of nothing else but blessed sleep.
This, my friend, is your poppy field.
Overseer to the rescue! A sprinkling of snow, and you're good to go. Now, march on toward your goal. Dorothy's goal was the Emerald City where the Wizard could grant her wish. For the writer, this is your temporary goal, or maybe sub-goal. The city itself was not Dorothy's ultimate target, but a means to get where she needed to be. Your Emerald City could be a daily word count or a first draft -- something tangible for you to work toward.
Within that city, the writer needs a task-master. This need not be a man behind the curtain, it could be the writer herself. Whatever the case, no one reaches a goal without a plan. Now, let's forget for the moment that the wizard's plan was faulty and purely selfish. He'd hoped by sending Dorothy and her three friends on a quest for the witch's broom, they wouldn't come back. The writer's plan must be concrete, positive steps. How do you reach that daily word count? By setting aside a certain amount of time a day and "clocking in" as if you were working at real job. Here's an eye-opener. THIS IS A REAL JOB. The sooner you understand that, the sooner you'll take yourself seriously.
I haven't forgotten Dorothy's companions. I suggest to you that each one is symbolic of the writer's virtues.
The Scarecrow, who longs for a brain, helps us understand that the writer must use her good sense. Even though you're making up a world, logic must rule. For instance, in a contemporary romance, don't have a widower of two weeks fall head over heels for a pretty woman.
The Tin Man wants a heart, suggesting that the writer must use compassion in telling her story. A good writer empathizes with her characters, thus drawing the reader in also.
The Cowardly Lion only wants courage. Remember Miss Gulch, our instigator who fueled our passion? The writer must have courage to stand up for her convictions. If you're writing about a heavy subject, be brave enough to bring the point home.
And Toto? I dunno. If you can think of an allegory for Dorothy's whiskered pet, please write a comment.
So, Dorothy has defeated the witch, she's reached her sub-goal, and is now ready to hop into the hot air balloon that will help her complete her journey. But, oh no! Toto jumps out of her arms to chase a cat. (And was that cat the only one in the entire city? We never saw one before it was needed to launch the bleakest moment. . .I'm just saying.) The writer must not let anything distract her from reaching her ultimate goal. I want a show of hands. How many of you have an unfinished manuscript -- or more -- in a desk drawer? Yeah. That's what I thought.
But all is not lost. You still have the ruby slippers, right? Click your heels and repeat three times, "There's no place like publication." Come back to Kansas and get that story into the right hands.
The moral? There's no place like home. But if it weren't for Oz, where would the writer play?
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