Writing a Blockbuster - The Formula!

UberScribbler · Feb 26, 2010

I stumbled upon this on a blog http://easywaytowrite.blogspot.com/2008/07/writing-blockbuster-formula.html by Rob Parnell and found it interesting, and thought others might as well. Perhaps it's up here somewhere in the cornucopia of posts that make up AW, if so -- please forgive me.

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The Formula

1. Come up with a scenario whereby two or three central characters are engaged in a life or death struggle to overcome a huge problem, the bigger the better.

2. Think through the scenario and its setting, the characters and their dilemma, and ask yourself, has this been done before? If so, discard the idea and go back to 1.

3. Write down 5 to 10 bullet points that will comprise the 'meat' of the story.

4. Expand on the bullet points until you have a 25 to 40 page outline of your story told in the present tense, introducing all of your characters and all of the story in the right sequence. Each paragraph should represent a significant plot point.

5. Show this outline to anyone and everyone who will read it and make comments. This might be friends, agents, publishers, the man who collects the trash, anyone. Make note of their comments and adjust the story accordingly. Ken Follett suggests this process of creating the ultimate novel outline might take anything up to a year to complete.

6. Write the first draft. Make sure you have a significant 'story turn' every four to six pages. (I told you it was a formula!) Adhere to this rule - too many story turns too often will confuse the reader, too few and they will get bored.

7. Repeat the process mentioned in 5. with the first draft. Make adjustments accordingly. This should take between 6 months and a year to get right. The first draft may take a month or two but the rest of the time is spent re-writing to make the novel perfect.

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Noah Body · Feb 26, 2010

And then there's the Lester Dent formula, brought to us by the revered hack who gave us Doc Savage...

M.R.J. Le Blanc · Feb 26, 2010

I think if there really was a 'formula', one could use it with the same result everytime. And even Stephen King has had his books that weren't really blockbusters. Not saying that this couldn't work for some writers, but I can't see this working for every writer in every genre. There are a few good tips in this though. Plus I think you'd be hard pressed to find something that hasn't already been done

CEtchison · Feb 26, 2010

I must live under a rock. I had to google Ken Follett.

Phaeal · Feb 26, 2010

Hmmm, interesting, with some points applicable to fiction in general. However, on the whole, I'd say this is the formula for a very specific genre, namely, the blockbuster thriller. It doesn't even apply to Follett's own historical bestsellers, which are far less lean and mean.

UberScribbler · Feb 26, 2010

I did check out Ken Follett's masterclass section on his website. I found it inspiring and thought provoking -- if nothing else. Any tip you can pick up is better than no tip at all -- to me, anyways.

Most bestselling authors these days don't take the time to walk you through their process step-by-step with excerpts from their drafts showing their mistakes and corrections and notes from editors and so on. I find it helpful to get inside their head, see what they do, hear their thoughts, how they plan and pound it out, etc.

For anyone interested to see Ken's process, here's his masterclass http://www.ken-follett.com/masterclass/index.html

IceCreamEmpress · Feb 26, 2010

UberScribbler said:
I stumbled upon this on a blog

Whose blog? Whose words are these?

CaoPaux · Feb 26, 2010

http://easywaytowrite.blogspot.com/2008/07/writing-blockbuster-formula.html

BTW, UberScribbler, it's not cool to copy wholesale, much less do it without attribution. Please edit your post.

maestrowork · Feb 26, 2010

"Formula" is a hyperbole -- or else everyone who follows this will become a best seller. But there are still snippets of good advice in there. I particularly like this one, and it's something I personally practice:

Your text should [be] 'transparent', totally clear and focussed on telling a story. There should be no barrier between the reader and the story. There should be no author intruding on the text - and the writing should never 'get in the way' of the characters, their actions and the ultimate resolution of their agendas.

... the ability to re-write, edit, alter and change everything from the tiniest bit of punctuation to the overall theme of a novel without so much as a sigh is the sign of a true blockbuster novelist.

UberScribbler · Feb 26, 2010

CaoPaux said:
http://easywaytowrite.blogspot.com/2008/07/writing-blockbuster-formula.html

BTW, UberScribbler, it's not cool to copy wholesale, much less do it without attribution. Please edit your post.

I'm not sure what "copying wholesale" means, so you'll pardon my ignorance. I've edited the post.
PS - I've never been one of the 'cool' kids anyways.

LostInReality · Feb 26, 2010

SummerSpring said:
I must live under a rock. I had to google Ken Follett.

We must live under the same boulder...or at least neighboring ones. I had no clue either!

lucidzfl · Feb 26, 2010

I'm trying a new methodology with every book, trying to learn with each new MS what works best for me. Maybe after I finish the book after the one I'm writing now, I'll try this method.

I will never try the snowflake method though lol

Jamesaritchie · Feb 26, 2010

That's a formula that may work for one writer, but that may not work for any other writer out there. Everytime something like this makes the rounds I'd guess that thousands and thousands and thousands of writers sit down and write a book according to whatever happens to be the formula of the day. Slush piles get no better.

Bufty · Feb 26, 2010

At the end of the day it all comes down to constructing sentences in such a way that folk want to read the first, then the next and the next, and so on for 300 odd pages.

Unfortunately, following the formula -or any other formula- does not automatically give one that ability.

Maxinquaye · Feb 26, 2010

There's only one surefire recipe for a good novel:

300 pages of good, clear, rythmic, grammatical prose
1-10 interesting characters that do stuff
A goal for at least one, or all, of the characters.
A fistful of setbacks and opposition in reaching that goal

Shake well, let sit for 3 months, and then trim and garnish.

Serve cold.

cindystubbs · Feb 26, 2010

A Really good Novel

It's when you forget you're reading fiction. That's good writing. I read somewhere that when you watch a good movie there is this "suspension of belief".
I guess it means you're drawn in.
I mean, a good book to one person isn't a good book to another is it? So I guess you can only say it's well-written.

Jamesaritchie · Feb 26, 2010

cindystubbs said:
It's when you forget you're reading fiction. That's good writing. I read somewhere that when you watch a good movie there is this "suspension of belief".
I guess it means you're drawn in.
I mean, a good book to one person isn't a good book to another is it? So I guess you can only say it's well-written.

It should be "suspension of disbelief." But you're point is right.

Silver King · Feb 26, 2010

UberScribbler said:
I'm not sure what "copying wholesale" means, so you'll pardon my ignorance.

There's another word for it: plagiarism. Most of us here know better than to copy the works of others and paste them into our posts without attribution. Even if we don't mean to take credit for the lifted piece, it's still, as CP noted, very uncool to copy entire articles, and to do so without citing your sources.

The accepted way to share what someone else wrote is to offer a link to the work, and highlight one or two snippets in your post that you find interesting or that coincides with your topic. Then readers can decide for themselves whether to pursue the rest of the article and join in the discussion.

CaoPaux · Feb 26, 2010

UberScribbler said:
I'm not sure what "copying wholesale" means, so you'll pardon my ignorance. I've edited the post.
PS - I've never been one of the 'cool' kids anyways.

The link is appreciated, but the larger concern is the copyright violation. I've edited your post to bring it within the realm of Fair Use.

Birol · Feb 26, 2010

Thank you SK and CaoPaux.

Uber, if you truly did this out of ignorance, I suggest you learn about plagiarism and copyright law now, before you move any further with your writing career. It will save you a ton of heartache later on.

Stunted · Feb 26, 2010

I cannot even imagine anything I that would be less effective. Like...maybe number 1 is true, but I think that most novels become pretty boring when reduced to an outline. A lay person, especially, would have a hard time imagining it as an actual book. I mean can you imagine, "Hey, trash man. Do you want to read a book about a young wizard trying to defeat the Dark Lord? 3/4 of the way in, they put a giant dog to sleep!"? I don't think this is the way to go.

lucidzfl · Feb 27, 2010

Stunted said:
I cannot even imagine anything I that would be less effective. Like...maybe number 1 is true, but I think that most novels become pretty boring when reduced to an outline. A lay person, especially, would have a hard time imagining it as an actual book. I mean can you imagine, "Hey, trash man. Do you want to read a book about a young wizard trying to defeat the Dark Lord? 3/4 of the way in, they put a giant dog to sleep!"? I don't think this is the way to go.

Interesting. My current WIP is following an outline.

I started with a 1 line summary of the book. (Harder than it sounds)

Then a 3 line breakdown of the acts.

Then a 5 line section breakdown.

Then a 10.

Then 20.

Then 40.

The 40 lines each represent a chapter, yet are only comprised of one line. I knew who the players were, I know what has to happen to get to chapter 40, but I didn't over-outline. There's still plenty of room for intrigue and discovery.

Hell, in my very first chapter, one of the guys who doesn't appear until chapter 10 (the bad guy), holds the elevator for my MC when he's trying to escape from some other bad guys. That shit is neat

I set out this outline and decided I wanted to write one chapter a day, no less, maybe more, of these 40 lines. So far, day 5, (its 7 am) and I've done a chapter a night. At this rate, I'll be done April 1.

I'm going to stick pretty closely to the outline this time around. My goal for the next book (Yes, I am planning on writing 8 books this year) is to outline, but every 3 chapters, revise the outline. Its all about trial and error, AMIRITE?

maestrowork · Feb 27, 2010

lucidzfl said:
Interesting. My current WIP is following an outline.

I started with a 1 line summary of the book. (Harder than it sounds)

Then a 3 line breakdown of the acts.

Then a 5 line section breakdown.

Then a 10.

Then 20.

Then 40.

Mine is the opposite... it's a deconstruction.

I keep writing, then I come out with a shorter "synopsis" of what's going on... then shorter, then down to a three line concept, then down to a log line....

I may try the other way, though, when I start on my next project (which is lighter, more commercial).

lucidzfl · Feb 27, 2010

maestrowork said:
Mine is the opposite... it's a deconstruction. I keep writing, then I come out with a shorter "synopsis" of what's going on... then shorter, then down to a three line concept, then down to a log line....

I may try the other way, though, when I start on my next project (which is lighter, more commercial).

Yeah, this book is VERY light, and VERY commercial. Basically this is my 6th book. At this point, I'm just trying out new ideas, and seeing how fast I can crank things out. The more I write, the better I get right? (fingers crossed)

kaitie · Feb 27, 2010

Wow, I don't think I could do that. I'm just not that structured, and I'm pretty structured. I don't really believe in the whole "If it's been done before scrap it" thing. I think most of us agree that most stories have already been told. What I do instead is say, "What did those books do, and how can I change the story to make it something new?" I actively build plot points and characters around things that I know I don't want to do. I tend to take a somewhat cliche concept, and then look for things that can be changed and done differently until it becomes something original and interesting.

I also think I'd go crazy asking so many people for advice. So many people think they understand the way everything should go. I'd rather work the story out on my own, and then when I'm uncertain on something I find a trusted friend to discuss it with and then try to talk it out. I dunno, I don't really go into a story trying to write a blockbuster, either, though. Maybe that's why I'm not famous! :tongue

Writing a Blockbuster - The Formula!

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