Using the Save the Cat! Beat Sheet

Editing Joss is not as much fun as writing him was, but it’s still been pretty fun. (I’m getting back to that tonight, I swear!) I’m using Blake Snyder’s Beat Sheet among other tools to figure out what’s missing that needs to be in the book, or what is there that shouldn’t be. It’s not as easy as Blake tends to make it sound in Save the Cat!, but it’s working.

The thing is that I don’t tend to write straightforward plots. Yeah, Knight Errant centers around a love story, but the book is really about Taro standing up to Eve to be himself and to live his own life. In another book I was reading recently (was it Techniques of the Selling Writer? I’m not sure) the writer explains that the B story is hero’s reward for doing what he should in the A story. So the love interest often is “the reward.” This makes both me and Rafe grin.

When I look at it that way, maybe I do write straightforward plots. XD

His Faithful Squire, by the way, was nearly impossible to fit into the BS2. The rambly structure necessitated by Rafe’s rambly mind made it quite the hassle. It’s a far different book from all the others, and sometimes when I feel like worrying on things I can’t do much about, I worry that I’m closing doors for myself by learning about structure because there will always be books that don’t fit.

Then I smack myself with a squid and remind myself that I’m really terrible at following rules, so if/when I feel the need to write another such book, I will. Then I get back to work.

With Joss–different again. Yes, he spends half the book on the run with Zeke, the hot rich guy who wants to marry him, but the book isn’t about their relationship. It’s about Paige, and Joss’ odd friendship/protectorship with her. So I was trying to fit her into the A story and make Zeke the B story, and it wasn’t working. Then I reversed it, trying to make her the B story, but that didn’t work either. Then I figured out that Paige is “the mentor.” She even “dies” right when she should!

If you haven’t read Save the Cat! you aren’t going to know what I’m talking about, and I’m sorry. You should go read it. Blake (he comes across so friendly in the book I can’t call him by his last name) was great at getting his ideas across, and I find them general enough to apply to most things, yet specific enough to actually be helpful. It doesn’t hurt at all that despite the subtitle “the last book on screenwriting you’ll ever need!” there are a couple sequels, in which he breaks things down even further. I found a lot of gems in Save the Cat! Strikes Back, and Save the Cat! Goes to the Movies looks at about five movies in each of Blake’s genres (Mine all seem to be “Buddy Love” stories, surprise surprise) to show exactly how other screenwriters tackled the structure. I’ve never had an easy time grasping structure–my plots tend to be so organic that picking out elements is very hard–but Blake makes it…not easy, but fun. And do-able.

And I’m all for do-able.

Sorry, not sure how this turned from a discussion to a ringing endorsement, but I’ll let it stand. Anything that helps me with structure has to be good. If you’ve read all the other books and only gotten more confused, try Save the Cat! For me, after STC! the other books finally made sense.