Words With Impact: Discern Typology as Commitment

Workshop: Discover Words That Sing

“Of course the first thing to do was to make a grand survey of the country she was going to travel through. ‘It’s something very like learning geography,’ thought Alice,…” Lewis Carroll

Last week we looked at the image concept of a threshold as a decision of choice. But a Threshold can also be used as a typology for a crossing, which can include walking away from a place, or a relationship, or choosing to no longer be who we were a few minutes earlier. Often that moment of decision become a life metaphor or signpost. A threshold can also be developed as a Commitment.

Just as we plot out a map to a new location, this category requires taking a deliberate step of faith. We are not forced. We choose with as much insight as possible, even with an unknown outcome. Sometimes the decision is plotted out ahead of time, and sometimes it’s spur of the moment.  But we accept the potential consequences before we act.

 Alice follows the rabbit down the hole even though the crossing feels as if she’s in a dream. Her curiosity overrides the penalty she fully expects for wandering away.

Consider a character’s rationalization in a space movie when someone who has never traveled through a time warp has to choose to get "beamed up.” Their career is in the line and that desire to be a part of exploration and discovery is strong enough to squash legitimate concerns.

Do you know anyone who manages to get into an airplane when terrified of flying? What makes the person choose--commit to this action?

Or go backwards. A person refuses to cross the threshold and is held in her immediate sphere, much like phobias trap people, such as agoraphobia. How does a life get mapped out that is restricted by fear?

And yet sometimes choosing a restricted boundary line can be freeing creatively. Emily Dickinson lived a reclusive life. The majority of her poems only became know after her death when her sister discovered the extensive works.

Action Steps:

1. Make a list of your character’s fears from childhood.  Then put her in a situation where she has the opportunity to change it.

2. What steps does she take?

3. When does she hesitate?

4. What gives her the ability to push ahead?

Share: Which question was the most difficult to develop? Why?

Read deep, marcy

Write with Impact Definition: Courage/Comfort

Mythic Impact

As writers we are all familiar with the hero’s journey, whether we choose to use that concept in our novels or not. And sometimes the criteria for what we first consider to be heroic characteristics can be multi-layered and even opposite.

One of the most interesting assignments I gave my college students was an essay assignment where they compared and contrasted definitions and interpretations re heroes and celebrities and everyday people. An article on Rosa Parks stated, “Perhaps the most interesting thing about her was how ordinary she was.” Almost every essay submitted included this quote.

And almost every essay came down to an opinion that courage defined a hero. The courage to act in a difficult situation that might be considered life threatening, as well as the sheer courageous action of a parent getting up every morning and taking care of the family. Most defined courage as commitment in action.

That perception of courage also became a comfort, because these young college students recognized that, while celebrities might rise and fall, commitment was a choice open to everyone—every day. And that often the courage may go ignored or unappreciated yet the ‘hero’ persevered regardless. It gave others hope to face their difficult circumstances.

Some stories require the celebrated hero, but for impact the core commitment needs to be grounded in everyday reality. There is a trust that this hero would be just as faithful day in and day out. Impact recognizes the courage of an extremely shy character speaking up in a public meeting, or an energetic rather loud extravert sitting quietly so as not to frighten a young child.

Our stories can resonate more deeply when we recognize and sustain the heart courage in action of our characters, especially the ordinary ones.

Share: What attributes define your heroes?

Read deep, marcy

Maps

Thresholds as Commitment

Just as we plot out a map to a new location, this category requires taking a deliberate step of faith. We are not forced. We choose with as much insight as possible, even with an unknown outcome. Sometimes the decision is plotted out ahead of time, and sometimes it’s spur of the moment. But we accept the potential consequences before we act.

Alice follows the rabbit down the hole even though the crossing feels as if she’s in a dream. Her curiosity overrides the penalty she fully expects for wandering away.

Consider a character’s rationalization in a space movie when someone who has never traveled through a time warp has to choose to get "beamed up.” Their career is in the line and that desire to be a part of exploration and discovery is strong enough to squash legitimate concerns.

Do you know anyone who manages to get into an airplane when terrified of flying? What makes the person choose--commit to this action?

Or go backwards. A person refuses to cross the threshold and is held in her immediate sphere, much like phobias trap people, such as agoraphobia. How does a life get mapped out that is restricted by fear?

And yet sometimes choosing a restricted boundary line can be freeing creatively. Emily Dickinson lived a reclusive life. The majority of her poems only became know after her death when her sister discovered the extensive works.

Journal Prompt:

Make a list of your character’s fears from childhood. Then put her in a situation where she has the opportunity to change it. What steps does she take? When does she hesitate? What gives her the ability to push ahead?