Welcome to...
The Novel Carnival
Five days of lessons, prizes, and invention. By the time the funfair departs, your novel may never be the same.
(in a good way)
This is day three of the Novel Carnival.
Today's dare: give away the ending
Today's video: why plot twists are over-rated
Today's bonus: how to move your twists and reveals earlier in your story
Day Three: The Mirror-Maze Keeper
By day three, the circus appears to be doing well. At the front gates, a small crowd of writers are awkwardly trying to pay in cash to get in, or thrusting their phones at the goblin-like attendants in the ticket booth.
Now that the carnival is up and running, one of the most popular attractions is its "mirror maze." This is a small building, seemingly made from two trailers slotted together, where writers emerge blinking into the sunlight, proud of how they navigated the maze. Almost everyone shares, out loud, a brilliant strategy they used to escape the mirrors.
You begin a slow conversation with the young woman who is responsible for keeping the mirrors clean. Strangely, although the maze is clearly a hit with the visitors to the circus, she seems withdrawn, even forlorn.
The Dare... are you ready?
You ask her how difficult the maze really is. Is it hard to escape?
She seems to chew on the question. "It used to be. When we first built this, I designed the mirrors to trick humans and have them turning and turning, lost, always coming back to the same small room. They hated it. They smashed the glass and tried to shove their way through the walls."
You are surprised. Didn't visitors enjoy the challenge?
She says, "Eventually, I just put a big sign up pointing at the exit. Almost everyone missed it, though. So I made a smaller sign showing people how to get to that bigger sign. But they mostly missed that second sign, too. So then I put up signs and clues all over the maze, guiding you through step by step, door by door. Every spot where your eye could possibly fall shows you where to look next. And now I get no complaints."
- Maze keeper Mauri
The dare for day three: give away the ending
Add this to your story: think of a reveal or twist you've been holding back for later, or which is supposed to come in the final 1/3 or so of your novel. Now drop a big hint early on, one that is so big that you worry you are "giving it away."
This could be a prologue that presents a climactic moment; it could be a prophetic dream; it could be a wise friend saying a strangely accurate insight.
Example:
Prologue: I unlocked the dusty library. Finally, I would learn the truth. I searched in the stacks for the missing book. Then I heard a step behind me. 'Don't turn around,' a familiar voice said. 'I have a gun.'
Wise friend: "You will never be happy until you stop punishing yourself for not getting into Oxford! Let it go!"
Dream: She dreamed that night of vampires taking over her town. [vampires are, in fact, taking over her town]
Why do this? Very likely, what you think of as "giving it away" is just the framework and support the reader needs to make sense of the story.
Excellent!
Now watch your craft lesson and download your bonus for the day:
"If you want someone to put two and two together, you've got to place one two in their left hand, and the other two in their right. Then you've gotta say like wow those guys look cold, can you make them hug or kiss or something?"
- MAZE KEEPER MAURI
Craft lesson: Late plot twists are overrated
Now get your handout for this craft concept:
Handout: Give the twist away early
Okay! That was day three of the Carnival!
Have you tried out the dare, watched the video, and downloaded the handout?
A new lesson will appear on this page tomorrow.
Ready to join the leaderboard, and share your dare?
All you need is a one-sentence description of how you might apply the dare to your story: