Re: RARA-AVIS: how to write noir

From: Jeff Vorzimmer (jvorzimmer@austin.rr.com)
Date: 04 Mar 2009

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    I love it, but as David Allen Coe said about the perfect country song, it leaves out some essential elements:

    1. A crime (can precede the timeline of the narrative) 2. Tough wise-cracking dialogue 3. An unsympathetic protagonist (with whom you none-the-less identify) 4. A femme fatale 5. Sexual tension 6. A tough brutal thug (the nemesis of the main character) 7. Ironic plot twists 8. A double-cross 9. A sense though out that all the characters are doomed

    Sorry, but you gotta work all that into the formula.

    Jeff

    ---- davezeltserman <davezelt@rcn.com> wrote:
    > okay, here's my simple algorithm for writing a thriller
    >
    > while (Page_count < 350) {
    >
    > write 3-4 page chapter
    > if (rand() > .75) {
    > add plot twist to end of chapter
    > } else {
    > put hero in danger
    > }
    > }
    >
    > --Dave



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