Why?

Why is the only word you’ll need to write fiction and sometimes it won’t show up on the page. If you don’t have a why for the story and the characters, you have nothing.

I attended a Zoom meeting of my fellow writers put on by RWASD. Famous author and great person, Lisa Kessler, spoke of the art of writing. Specifically, she addressed how every drama is driven by a black moment when all seems lost. She spoke of our characters’ deepest fears, how change must come, of their secrets, and what would happen if the secrets were exposed.

Then she asked if anybody would like to talk about his or her WIP (work in progress). I’ll use my response as an example.

Bob: I’m at 50 pages so far. My heroine is an FBI Special Agent.

Lisa: Why?

Bob: [Boiled down to] She was raped at age twelve. (Of course, there are many reasons why a person chooses a career in law enforcement.)

Lisa found that compelling. What about the hero?

Bob: The hero is an investigative reporter for the NY Times. He likes notching his bedpost.

Lisa: Why?

Bob: Does a guy need a reason?

Lisa: There’s always a reason. [Me: In life and fiction our characters, and us are always driven by reasons. What I had not yet done in my story was dig into what made the hero act and feel that way.]

So we discussed.

Conclusion: the hero’s mother left him and his father while he was growing up.

We discussed how the hero and heroine would have mutual black moment, how they’d change throughout the story, and how that would affect their relationship. We talked more about how the black moment could be mutual and that, that would be perfect for the story.

The why of the story and the characters is critical to any compelling, memorable fiction.

What is your why?