Save the Cat! Writes a Novel

by Jessica Brody

  DEBATE/AIBILEEN: Will Aibileen do it? At first, no way. But the racial issues in Jackson are heating up, and Hilly Holbrook is more insufferable than ever, eventually pushing Aibileen to change her mind.

  BREAK INTO 2/AIBILEEN AND SKEETER: Aibileen agrees to do the interview.

  FUN AND GAMES/AIBILEEN AND SKEETER: At first, Aibileen is nervous and stiff in the interview. She finally decides she wants to write her story herself. The more time Skeeter spends with Aibileen, working on the story, the more her eyes are opened. Elaine Stein likes the story and wants twelve more stories from other maids—by January. Aibileen gets Minny to share next.

  B STORY/AIBILEEN AND SKEETER: Aibileen and Skeeter are each other’s B Story characters. Aibileen opens Skeeter’s eyes about the other side of the institution, while Skeeter helps Aibileen find her voice.

  MIDPOINT/ALL: One of the maids in the community gets arrested because of Hilly Holbrook. In a false victory moment, tons of maids volunteer to share their stories for the book, as a show of solidarity against Hilly. The goal of finding enough stories has been reached, but the stakes are raised as all three heroes realize what would happen if they are ever revealed as the authors.

  BAD GUYS CLOSE IN/ALL: Skeeter, Aibileen, and Minny collect the maids’ stories. Meanwhile, Skeeter’s mom is getting sicker from a mysterious illness, and tensions heat up between Hilly and Skeeter, leading to a falling out. Also, Hilly finds out Minny has been working for Celia Foote and is not happy about it.

  ALL IS LOST/MINNY: Minny’s husband beats her badly. Celia sees the bruises and comforts her.

  DARK NIGHT OF THE SOUL/MINNY: Aibileen points out to Minny that it seems like she really cares about Celia.

  BREAK INTO 3/MINNY: Minny proves she’s learned her theme and, in a gesture of true friendship, tells Celia all that happened between Hilly and her: after Hilly wrongfully accused Minny of stealing, Minny baked her a chocolate pie with her own feces in it, and Hilly unwittingly ate it.

  ALL IS LOST/SKEETER: Aibileen finally tells Skeeter the truth about what happened to her maid Constantine: her mother fired her, and Constantine died shortly thereafter (whiff of death).

  DARK NIGHT OF THE SOUL/SKEETER: Their book is now finished, and Skeeter sends it to Elaine Stein. Now they have to wait. In the meantime, Skeeter learns that her mother has stomach cancer (another whiff of death) and gets back together with her ex-boyfriend (return to the familiar).

  BREAK INTO 3/SKEETER: When her boyfriend proposes, Skeeter proves she’s learned her theme by telling him the truth about the book she wrote. Stuart is appalled that she would knowingly stir up trouble. He breaks up with her.

  BREAK INTO 3 /ALL: Elaine Stein wants to publish the book. It’s a cause for celebration and anxiety. Their stories and truths will be out there. The Institutionalized sacrifice for all three heroes is to burn it down.

  FINALE/ALL: The book is published anonymously and becomes a success. Hilly (whose embarrassing story about the chocolate pie is in the book) spreads the word that the book is not about Jackson in order to save her own reputation. Skeeter gets a job offer in New York and gives her housekeeping column job to Aibileen.

  FINAL IMAGE/AIBILEEN: As revenge for the book, Hilly accuses Aibileen of stealing and threatens to send her to jail. Aibileen finally stands up to Hilly, threatening to tell everyone that she is the woman in the book who ate the chocolate pie. Hilly backs down.

  Superhero

  Being Extraordinary in an Ordinary World

  WARNING! THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR THE FOLLOWING BOOKS:

  The White Queen by Philippa Gregory, Cinder by Marissa Meyer, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J. K. Rowling

  In every era of human history, in every culture, in every mythology, there can be found a story of a “chosen one.” This is an individual who is, in some way, superior to the rest of us, whose job (and destiny) it is to rise up, overcome great obstacles, defeat the greatest evil, and maybe even save the world!

  From Jesus to the Buddha to Hercules to Harry Potter, these are the heroes who are the least like the rest of us, but who still inspire us to become better versions of ourselves.

  The stories that fall into the Save the Cat! genre called Superhero are about an extraordinary person who finds themselves in an ordinary world, among us mortals.

  Now, before your mind starts to wander to men and women in capes and tights, let me just say that Superhero stories are not just about comic book superheroes (although those are certainly in there as well!). This genre embraces any hero who finds themselves destined for greatness—whether they like it or not.

  But it’s not easy being special, as all the great Superhero novels show us. Being different and bestowed with greatness often comes with a price. And that price is usually some variation of being misunderstood by the rest of the world. Because, let’s face it, we don’t always revere those who are different.

  And that is what makes this genre relatable. Even if we ourselves haven’t been endowed with magical powers, special abilities, an unrivaled mind, steadfast ambition, or even an unwavering faith in a certain mission or destiny, we’ve all experienced the curse of being different, feeling different, or being misunderstood.

  The (super) heroes of this genre come in all shapes and sizes, and with all different kinds of “abilities.” From the real-life superheroes of history, like Elizabeth of York in Philippa Gregory’s massively successful historical fiction novel The White Queen, to the magically inclined superheroes of fantasy novels, like the Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling and the Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan, to the heroes who, by their very nature, break the accepted “mold” of society, as in the Divergent series by Veronica Roth, or even beloved children’s novels like Matilda by Roald Dahl.

  All of these stories are essentially the same. They all tell the tale of a chosen one who is misunderstood by the rest of society, gets very little respect (at least at first!), and ultimately is different from the rest of us.

  That’s why most Superhero stories are stories of triumph and sacrifice. These are characters destined for greatness, but greatness isn’t always easy to achieve. These heroes must rise up and face great challenges and obstacles in order to fulfill their destinies. That is, after all, what makes them super. How many of us would simply give up when faced with those same odds? But not these heroes. On some level, they know in their hearts and souls that this is their path, and they will not stray.

  Our three ingredients for mastering this genre are (1) a hero with a special power, (2) a nemesis who stands opposed to our hero, and (3) a curse that our hero must suffer as the price for their greatness.

  Now, don’t be fooled by the word power. Not all superheroes are magically inclined. A superhero’s power can simply be a mission to do good or be great. Or possibly even an undying faith in a cause. It’s either magic or feels like magic because the hero’s faith and/or embedded destiny are so unnaturally strong.

  Tris, the hero of Divergent, for example, has no magic to speak of, but her very nature of being “divergent” (fitting between the established factions of society) makes her special and therefore a danger to the status quo. And Day, one of the two superheroes in Legend by Marie Lu, is super in his ability to consistently evade the authorities, steal from the Republic, and generally make the government look foolish in their failed attempts to apprehend him.

  On the other hand, you also have heroes like Harry Potter who are endowed with actual magic. But note, Harry’s power is not that he has magic—everyone in his world has magic! Rather, it’s that he’s the chosen one to defeat Voldemort, because he’s the only one, so far, who has faced Voldemort and lived to tell about it.

  Regardless of your hero
’s mission or ability, this power is the thing that makes the hero more than human, more than the rest of us.

  But with great power come great…enemies.

  Enter the nemesis. This is the character directly opposing the hero. They have abilities that match the hero’s, or sometimes even greater abilities, but the big difference is that their abilities are self-made. The nemesis lacks the one quality that makes for every great superhero:

  Faith.

  The superhero doesn’t have to wonder if they are special. They know it (maybe not at first, but eventually). The nemesis, on the other hand, has to rely on themselves, their plots, and whoever else they’ve manipulated to their side. They must build a façade of being special and do whatever it takes to keep that façade from falling. Because the nemesis secretly knows (whether they accept it or not!) that they are the false hero. Otherwise they wouldn’t have to try so dang hard!

  Think about Lord Voldemort in Harry Potter and how much work he has to put in to be the evil villain that he is—creating Horcruxes, recruiting wizards, mastering dark magic.

  Man, that guy must be tired!

  Harry, on the other hand, doesn’t really have to try to be special. He just is. Because he’s the true chosen one. It’s been his destiny since he was a baby. Does he always want that? No way! But that’s the burden you bear when you’re a superhero.

  And what about Lord Warwick in The White Queen or Queen Levana in Cinder by Marissa Meyer? Those two nemeses are doing everything in their power to keep the world from realizing who the true superhero is. Fighting battles, sending in armies, brainwashing, and strategizing political marriages. It’s a lot of work keeping up a façade of superiority.

  It’s that lack of faith in the mind of the nemesis that drives their need to kill the hero. This is what will prove (to themselves and the world!) that the nemesis is the “chosen one.” Once Harry Potter is dead, Voldemort can stop trying. Once Cinder is “dealt with,” Queen Levana will stand undisputed. Once Queen Elizabeth of York is knocked off her throne, Lord Warwick can finally rule the kingdom the way he wants to.

  And there, in that very rationality, lies the nemesis’s problem.

  If they really were the rightful “chosen one,” they wouldn’t need to kill or prove it. The world would already know—just as they (usually) know with the superhero.

  I must note, superheroes don’t always survive the story. There’s usually an ultimate showdown at the end of each Superhero novel (or series) in which the superhero and the nemesis finally have it out—mano a mano. And often, particularly when it comes to real-life superhero stories, the hero is destroyed. But that doesn’t really matter, because we, the mortals—the readers—we have been changed by the journey. We have been touched by the universal lesson that the hero ultimately learned. We believe, and that is what makes the hero victorious…and immortal.

  Finally, the third ingredient of every great Superhero story is a curse. And it might be the most important ingredient of all. Because the curse is what balances out the superhero’s power so we don’t completely despise the novel’s protagonist.

  Matilda would not have been as successful as a character had she not been born into a family of dimwits, constantly being picked on and ridiculed by her shortsighted parents and brother. Imagine if she had started out at the top of her game, living with a family who adored and worshiped her for the “genius” that she is. Yeah, kind of hard to get behind that Matilda. Most likely, we’d just end up wrinkling our noses at her, because doesn’t she think she’s all that!?

  Taking our heroes down a peg—giving them a handicap, so to speak (especially at the beginning of the novel or series)—is what makes these stories work.

  Remember, after all, this hero isn’t like you or me. So it’s naturally going to be harder for us to relate to them. That’s why we must show the down side of being special: the curse.

  It turns out being special is not always all it’s cracked up to be. It comes with its fair share of headaches and problems. The curse is usually some variation of being misunderstood. We mere mortals have a hard time accepting those who are inherently different from (and better than!) us.

  Cinder is a cyborg, and clever Marissa Meyer created a world in which cyborgs are considered inferior to the rest of society. Percy Jackson has been kicked out of every boarding school he’s ever attended. Day in Marie Lu’s Legend is a wanted criminal being hunted down by the Republic.

  This is storytelling manipulation at its finest. All the greats have done it, and you have to do it too. Getting the reader on your superhero’s side is a constant balancing act. We can’t pity them to the point where we just give up. And we can’t dislike them to the point where we roll our eyes, shut the book, and go searching for something we can relate to. In the end, most of us will never truly understand what it’s like to be a superhero, but we can understand what it’s like to be singled out, ridiculed, and misunderstood. It’s a curse that all human beings must overcome at some point in their lives. So make sure your superhero has to overcome it too.

  In addition to the three essential ingredients of a Superhero story, there are also some other popular components that we often see in these types of novels.

  First, a common “beat” that many Superhero novels contain (usually found in Act 2) is a name change. This is either for the superhero to disguise themselves or to fit in as they assume their new role in the Act 2 world. Elizabeth Woodville becomes Queen Elizabeth in The White Queen. Beatrice becomes Tris in Divergent. And June, a prodigy and the other superhero character in Legend, goes undercover in Act 2, dressed as a street beggar.

  There’s also a character type we see often in Superhero stories called the mascot. The mascot is usually a companion or sidekick to the hero, someone (or something!) that is always loyal to the superhero, despite the turmoil going on around them. In the Harry Potter series it’s Harry’s owl, Hedwig. In Cinder it’s her quirky android, Iko. In The White Queen, it’s Elizabeth’s mother, Jacquetta. In Legend it’s Tess (for Day) and Ollie, the dog (for June). These characters are not normally “super” themselves, not destined for the same exalted fate, but instead serve to show us just how different the superhero really is from the rest of us. Because these are the characters who have understood the superhero’s greatness from the very start.

  The Superhero genre is definitely popular among readers and moviegoers, but nowhere will you find it more prevalent than among books for teens and tweens. Just look at the list of Superhero novels that follows and count how many of them are best-selling young adult and children’s books. Many of us have fantasies of being special, rising up and proving we are better than our peers, better than those who put us down. But at no time in our lives is this feeling more intoxicating than during our adolescent years. These are the years when we’re figuring out who we are, what we’re made of, how we can stand up without standing out too much. Which is why the lesson of the Superhero story resonates so well with us during this tumultuous time in our lives: See, even superheroes have problems. And those problems aren’t much different from yours.

  To recap: If you’re thinking of writing a Superhero novel, make sure your story includes these three essential ingredients:

  A POWER: bestowed on your hero, even if it’s just a mission to be or do good.

  A NEMESIS: who directly opposes your hero and who possesses equal (or even greater!) force, but who is the self-made version of the hero and lacks the faith to truly be “the one.”

  A CURSE: for the hero to overcome (or succumb to) as the price for who they are, and which makes your hero relatable to us mere mortals.

  Popular Superhero Novels Through Time:

  Dracula by Bram Stoker

  Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie

  Dune by Frank Herbert

  The Bourne Identity by Robert Ludlum

  The Lion, the Witch, and the
Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis

  Matilda by Roald Dahl

  Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler

  Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J. K. Rowling (beat sheet following)

  The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

  Eragon by Christopher Paolini

  City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

  Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

  Divergent by Veronica Roth

  Legend by Marie Lu

  Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

  Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo

  Cinder by Marissa Meyer

  Origin by Jessica Khoury

  Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi

  Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone

  BY: J. K. Rowling

  STC GENRE: Superhero

  BOOK GENRE: Children’s fiction/Fantasy

  TOTAL PAGES: 309 (Scholastic US Paperback, 1997)

  Spawning a box-office record-breaking film franchise, a stage play, merchandise, and even multiple theme parks, this first installment in the epic fantasy series by J. K. Rowling truly needs no introduction. But it’s worth mentioning that it has one of the more perfect novel beat sheets I’ve found out there. Coincidence? I think not. Brilliant creativity, flawless worldbuilding, memorable characters, and a rock-solid story structure clearly contributes to this novel’s astounding success. Harry’s struggle (throughout the series) to come to terms with the fact that he is the “chosen one” to defeat Voldemort (a power and a curse in one) makes this novel a winning example of a Superhero story.