What Do You Want?

This question is the beginning of dramatic possibility.

As a writer, I spend a lot of time thinking about this from all of my characters' perspective.

✬ What do they want?

✬ Who or what is stopping them from getting what they want?

✬ How can I make what they want mean everything to them - and to the reader?

✬ How can I make their struggle to get what they want as interesting as possible?

✬ What can I do to break a character's heart?

Or as Mr. Vonnegut put it, "Be a sadist. No matter how sweet and innocent your leading characters, make awful things happen to them in order that the reader may see what they are made of."

Triple bingo, Kurt.

I especially like how David Mamet* put it:

QUESTION:WHAT IS DRAMA? 

DRAMA, AGAIN, IS THE QUEST OF THE HERO TO OVERCOME THOSE THINGS WHICH PREVENT HIM FROM ACHIEVING A SPECIFIC, ACUTE GOAL. 

SO: WE, THE WRITERS, MUST ASK OURSELVES OF EVERY SCENE THESE THREE QUESTIONS. 

1) WHO WANTS WHAT? 

2) WHAT HAPPENS IF SHE DOESN'T GET IT? 

3) WHY NOW?

(*If you read the whole story, which you should, be forewarned that Mamet is a bit of a potty mouth.)

And I ran into this the other day, in a photograph at the Orem Public Library of all places:

1. I WANT...
2. BUT...
3. SO I...

Take it away, Leonardo: Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication. Leonardo DaVinci

So before beginning any story, long or short, I first ask myself these questions on behalf of all my story critical characters. Over and over and over.

Once they refuse to let me change their answers, I know we're ready to go to work.