The Protagonist's Misbelief

 

My Windows 365 subscription offers some nice extras, such as online classes in a variety of subjects. (Check it out -- you may find something interesting). I chose Creative Live and migrated immediately to the writing classes. There is one called Wired For Story: How To Become A Story Genius, taught by Lisa Cron, who is an engaging instructor and a former literary agent. Be advised, the class is five hours long (!) There is no way I could sit through a five hour class, so I've been watching it whenever I have an hour or so to spare.

The class consists of seventeen lessons, and Ms. Cron doesn't even get to the opening scene until lesson 14. She posits that the plot is not the important part of a novel, but rather the protagonist's misbelief, and the "a-ha moment" is when the protagonist is forced to confront that misbelief.  (An example -- the protagonist has felt since childhood that if someone is nice to her, they are using her, and she carries that misbelief throughout the novel until finally being forced to realize that this is not necessarily true.)

While I absorbed a lot of worthwhile information through her lecture, I'm not entirely convinced that every novel must have a main character with a misbelief. As Ms. Cron was speaking I mentally scanned my novel in progress for a long-standing misbelief, and truly, I can't find one. My protagonist has a belief, yes; but it's actually a true one, one that plays out in the subtext of the story. 

Every time I view a writing video, either on YouTube or in a class like this, I begin to question my abilities as a writer. Some tips are very worthwhile and I have incorporated them. Others just make me depressed, as if I've spent all these months writing and my novel is crap because it doesn't have a certain element that all novels must have. If I don't do all these things, will every agent reject me? They probably will anyway, even if I follow every instruction to the letter (!) Or do I just continue to plug along and write this thing the best I can and stop questioning myself every time I add an unnecessary adjective or my flashback is too long? A lot of things will be fixed in the editing process, but if I'm worried about all the do's and don'ts, writing will become a chore I no longer want to face.

I'm a firm believer in seeking knowledge to improve one's craft, but ultimately we have to be who we are; and as music producers are wont to say, "We'll fix it in the mix." Right now, I just want to tell the story.

What's the most valuable piece of writing advice you've gotten, and conversely, what is the worst? Let me know.