Monday dramatics
Which of these sources of drama and tension can you see in your own character's story? Tell us about them, illustrate away with examples!
Since the link wasn't working, I found this: http://www.digitalcinemapictures.com/writing/plots.htm#thirtysix
Whoa. Marce has way too much drama in her life, specifically these:
Disaster: Marce survives nearly being drowned in a storm, some pandemics, as well as some man-made disasters such as civil unrest.
Falling Prey To Cruelty Of Misfortune: Where do I start? Marce was *born* into misfortune, and spent much of her childhood trying to get into a better situation. When she does manage to get to school, she loses her mentor, and at some points nearly has her best friends killed. She sees her family fall apart, and ends up having to commit her baby sister to a mental hospital. Marce herself nearly dies on several occasions, gives birth prematurely at some point, and lives through no end of political persecution. In fact, in the RP-verse, she's had to bail Emil out of jail, save her child from being shot, and deal with a threat to her life.
Revolt: More like aborted revolt in Marce's case. This is an eternal source of frustration for her and her friends.
Daring Enterprise: Reform Manila's second worst slum? Check. Expose the poor management of a convent school? Check. Go to university and join the debate team? Check. Become an activist? Check. Become a political blogger? Check. Go to law school? Check. Become one of Manila's youngest prosecutors? Check.
Abduction: Happens to Marce's mentor, who is never seen again. And it happens to Marce herself, but she somehow manages to survive and escape.
Obtaining: Pretty much a core element of her life. Usually what she isn't trying to obtain is money: it's opportunities for her family and friends, credentials for herself, and eventually peace of mind.
Enmity of Kinsmen: Begins the day that Marce refuses to cover up her dad's affair. Her dad cuts her off. This strife eventually spills over to enmity between Marce and her younger sister Anne---which manifests in more comedic proportions such as Anne sabotaging her sister's wedding.
Madness: Ida's depression, Josh's near suicide, Anne's bout with bipolar depression with psychotic features, and Marce's own PTSD.
Self-Sacrificing For An Ideal: Probably the core conflict of Marce's life as a whole. It's why she writes, becomes a lawyer, and just does everything she is into. She wants a better world, she wants to help her friends achieve equity in society, she wants to prove something good can come out of the slum she was born into. She also tries to prove to her fellow feminists that her being a mother will not hinder her work of being a prosecutor.
Self-Sacrifice For Kindred: If kindred also includes friends, then Marce comes across this earlier when she's willing to risk reputation and her parents' ire by helping out Ida and Josh in the deepest throes of their problems. If kindred only means blood family and marriage, then it comes much later when Marce risks her life for Emil, Andrei, and Alix on multiple occasions.
Rivalry Of Superior And Inferior: Marce has a lot of 'superiors' in terms of the socioeconomic strata, and she tends to be pitted against them in a class rivalry of sorts. But her only true 'rival' as a superior was Emil during his debate captain days.
Adultery: Not her own adultery, but her father's adultery. It's the reason the Benitez family breaks down.
Obstacles To Love: Marce realizes that she has feelings for Emil by the time she's about twenty, but she cannot confess it to him out of her own pride. Emil does not dare court her till he graduates, for fear of being accused of taking advantage of his position. Then when they do get together, they have to put up with vicious rumors to the effect that Marce is only with Emil for his money, as well as with pressures from their families. They nearly break up at some point but they eventually end up married.
Ambition: Marce has big dreams: to become a topnotch prosecutor, to get her former neighborhood out of its slump, and to maybe change the system. Problem is that she's a girl from a relatively low class background, with no connections in a country where everything relies on patronage.
Erroneous Judgement: Marce is wrong about so many things: people's intentions, the possibility of redemption, and even her own capacities. Her biggest mistake is with Emil, when she writes him off as being pompous and arrogant. It takes a while till she gets over herself and actually strives to befriend him.
Remorse: One recurring theme is Marce always second guessing her past choices. Some of this is warranted, such as her wondering if she could have done more for Ida and Josh, or for her neighborhood. But she beats herself up over what has happened to her family, or even her own close brushes with death. Emil shakes her out of this thankfully.
Loss Of Loved Ones: The disappearance of Marce's mentor Yvette is a case in point. I also imply that Marce felt deeply connected to her maternal grandmother, and that the latter's death really marked her to some degree.