tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post1758452582338539056..comments2023-10-11T09:22:33.136-04:00Comments on Paperback Writer: PropsUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-85667971108440502162011-06-18T12:12:45.874-04:002011-06-18T12:12:45.874-04:00Another thing to consider is that props don't ...Another thing to consider is that props don't have to be used in order to be relevant to the story. What is in the room, or around the person, tells something about their personality, their choices, their character, their attitudes, etc. The rifle on the wall may not fire, but if it's a beat-up pre-American Civil War rifle, that says one thing. If it's a Vietnam era rifle, that says another. So on. <br /><br />And I'll add my weight behind the Chekov being a playwright thing. He's got a different onus than prose writers.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-82340608080084176112011-06-17T09:30:07.878-04:002011-06-17T09:30:07.878-04:00Love that scene! Nick and Gabriel are always fun.
...Love that scene! Nick and Gabriel are always fun.<br /><br />I like a mix of active and just-for-setting props. I also have a mad love for MacGuffins and never feel right without an object that does something in a story.Charlene Tegliahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01483186891214783397noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-78859371811492329192011-06-17T09:07:51.437-04:002011-06-17T09:07:51.437-04:00Lynn,
I do not believe every rifle used as a pro...Lynn,<br /> I do not believe every rifle used as a prop has to go off. Sometimes props provide background information on a character. For example, a room described as very utilitarian except for one colorful picture could mean the character has beauty hidden within. I look at how an author describes the space as a portrayal of the protagonists character. If the protagonist has a rifle on the wall, it may mean the protag. values the rifle (maybe as a family heirloom), the protag. believes in defending themselves or it could just mean the protag. has a decorator who's also a member of the NRA! Sometimes the rifle on the wall is just a decoration!<br />Tami<br />Jacksonville<br /><br />P.S. As a lover of all things Mickey (it is the happiest place on Earth, dangit!) I love Nicola and how she defends the mouse. Can't wait to read the new series!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-53152289823229989412011-06-16T16:00:24.947-04:002011-06-16T16:00:24.947-04:00I think active props are much more important in sh...I think active props are much more important in short stories because there isn't room to waste on words unless they really matter. I think without some set-dressing in a novel, a reader is left with no sense of place to put the characters in. I think the trick is how much description an item gets. If it's a rifle over hte mantle, it may not need fired. If's it's a Kentucky Long Rifle that's a prized family heirloom since great grand-daddy Henry used it in the war against those redcoats, then by gum, somebody <i> ought </i> to take it down and try to reuse it again.Bethany K. Warnerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06679355745067316748noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-52739180066221536732011-06-16T15:11:12.234-04:002011-06-16T15:11:12.234-04:00I like props that twist reader expectation and dee...I like props that twist reader expectation and deepen the story-like using sweet Micky Mouse ears for a violent purpose, for example.<br />Loretta Chase's Lord of Scoundrels has a great example of this. In it the heroine discovers a fabulous Madonna and child icon and the hero wants it badly. Ms Chase threads that prop through the entire book, but its significance changes when she uses it to reveal the hero's sad backstory to the heroine later in the book.<br />Thanks for posting on a great topic.<br />FaithFaith Renfieldhttp://faithrenfield. comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-48943055478466340902011-06-16T14:00:26.910-04:002011-06-16T14:00:26.910-04:00Haha loved the excerpt. I love Nicola and Gabriel....Haha loved the excerpt. I love Nicola and Gabriel. My favorite active props are the ones that foreshadow things to come, like the baseball trophy in Stephen King's 'The Dome'. As soon as it turned up in the book I found myself thinking "That loon is gonna do something freaky with it". :-)Tom, Emily, Brennahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14169487650302581652noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-9831670618491800072011-06-16T12:26:54.378-04:002011-06-16T12:26:54.378-04:00Great insightful post, Lynn. I personally don'...Great insightful post, Lynn. I personally don't think every prop needs to have an active role in a story or novel. Sometimes, props are mentioned or described simply to give more dimension to the setting and time/place. It helps the readers "get into" the environment and imagine the type of vicinity that the characters are living in. <br /><br />~TRA<br /><br />http://xtheredangelx.blogspot.comWendy Luhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08048944852796207898noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-73384604063024370702011-06-16T11:32:24.189-04:002011-06-16T11:32:24.189-04:00Something important to remember is that Chekhov wa...Something important to remember is that Chekhov was primarily a playwright and in scriptwriting you can only mention things that are important to the story. <br /><br />In novel writing you have to describe what's on the walls. The floral wallpaper probably has nothing to do with the story, but it tells us about the person that lives there.<br /><br />In playwriting the set is created by the scenic designer, in other words, if the characters do not interact with it you have no say in it.<br /><br />In screenwriting they do basic budgeting based on page count and describing every room in detail throws that count off. You can only mention floral wallpaper if it's important, you only mention the gun if it's used, or someone tries to use it, or someone mentions it.<br /><br />Me? Study this stuff? Nonsense.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10516037982700403175noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-83704229927893898132011-06-16T11:25:35.352-04:002011-06-16T11:25:35.352-04:00"...you heartless Mickey Mouse-hating bastard..."...you heartless Mickey Mouse-hating bastard."<br /><br />Too funny. I loved this scene, and the prop, and how you used it.terleehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13953328625206810683noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-53841048277710455482011-06-16T10:44:07.049-04:002011-06-16T10:44:07.049-04:00I don't think the rifle always has to go off, ...I don't think the rifle always has to go off, but for novice writers using the prop should be pretty important-otherwise we suffer through lots of "authentic description!".Anne V.noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-4582455146834693362011-06-16T09:35:35.891-04:002011-06-16T09:35:35.891-04:00I think my favorite active prop is the kind that i...I think my favorite active prop is the kind that isn't OBVIOUSLY a prop from the beginning, so I can reach a certain point, when realization sinks in, and think, "Ahhh..."<br /><br />I'll agree with the active/benign theory (good one). Some props are just setting, and thank goodness. They add much needed color and depth to the work.rainehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04258822737734173873noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-41813603598035935732011-06-16T08:49:20.989-04:002011-06-16T08:49:20.989-04:00Ohhhh, going back to look at my WIP now, seeing ho...Ohhhh, going back to look at my WIP now, seeing how I can add some energy to my props.<br /><br />Great post. Thanks!Margaret Yanghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06464624057491288244noreply@blogger.com