That’s Good! That’s Bad!

While driving to a recent event featuring pro writers talking to baby writers about writing, my friend told me about another screenwriting event she had just attended.  At it, one writer (she said it was the writer of Air Force One, which means it was Andrew W. Marlowe) talked about what my friend called, “his favorite book,” a children’s book called That’s Good!  That’s Bad!

I guess there’s a whole series of these books set in different locales, but the original goes something like: A boy’s balloon carries him up in the air (that’s good), but the balloon pops and he falls (that’s bad), but he lands safely in a stream (that’s good), but the stream leads to a scary jungle with mean baboons (that’s bad), but he grabs a vine and swings away (that’s good), but the vine turns out to be a snake (that’s bad)...you get the idea. 

Anyway, I loved this and I wanted to share it because I think the whole that’s good/that’s bad thing is great to keep in mind and even apply when you’re trying to write an exciting action scene or just…any scene.  What I think I like best is that it makes you aware of the fact that when you're telling a story you need to get right into the conflict and twists and turns.  I, like many baby writers, am guilty of forgetting this sometimes.  You get so caught up in your amazing protagonist, Joe Schmoe, and the way he wakes up in the morning and brushes his teeth, that you forget a character waking up and brushing their teeth is boring.  Joe wakes up and brushes his teeth.  So what?  Joe wakes up next to a beautiful woman (that's good) but has no clue who she is (that’s bad)...now that's a situation that could be interesting.

Now, I’m not saying every scene in a movie/show should have a that’s good/that’s bad rhythm...sometimes it’s important that characters make tons of mistakes in a row or be totally tortured and torn apart so the stakes to change their situation are high, but, I think a nice see-saw of that’s good/that’s bad moments or at least the surprise of bad turning into good turning into bad can really keep your reader guessing and turning pages (that's good).  Plus, I think it’s just plain fun to brainstorm with that’s good/that’s bad.  Stuck in a writing rut?  Start with something simple like "Joe wakes up" and go off on a that’s good/that’s bad tangent…you might find you have the start of something good (or bad…kidding).