M*A*S*H-a-maniac: What the show taught me about writing

Those of you who know me, know that I am totally and completely addicted to M*A*S*H. Yes, I know the final season was nearly thirty years ago. And yes, I know it's a bit over the top to use the theme song as the ring tone on my cell phone. But I can't help it. M*A*S*H is simply the best.

Beginning in March 2010, I watched the entire series, in order, from start to finish. It took three months. Although I'd seen most of the episodes over the years, I wanted to watch the entire series so that I could see the arc of each main character as well as the arc of the war.

I wanted to share some of those lessons with you because I think they apply to writing.

1.  Be careful with the back story. The writers were very crafty at only inserting back story as it was needed and pertinent to the scene or episode. The Pilot doesn't begin with a list of characters, followed by each life story. We get it piece by piece, episode by episode. It makes the characters more compelling because the viewer thinks they might find out something new about a character at any time. For instance, even though we know Houlihan's dad was career Army, we don't know how tough he was on her until we he comes to the 4077th. It explains a lot about her constant need to fit in and her desire to be praised.

2. Keep a balance between humor and drama. Even though the front is only three miles from the 4077th, the characters are constantly playing pranks and getting off stinging one liners. If the show had only been gloom and doom, it wouldn't have had an eleven year run. Viewers learned little about the nuts and bolts of the Korean War. Instead, we learned how people cope with a reality that's so overwhelming. The show was about the people, not the war.

3. Know the difference between internal and external conflict. Even though the Korean War is the whole reason the characters are together, it's really a small part of the show. It's the driving EXTERNAL conflict of the entire show. However, the real cog is INTERNAL conflict. Hawkeye's pacifist viewpoint clashing with the need to carry a gun, Frank's struggle with his love for Margaret when he's got a wife and kids at home, BJ's conflict with his wife taking an evening waitress job because they need the extra money while he's in Korea. The EXTERNAL conflict is easy and constant. The INTERNAL conflicts are subtle and are brought about, in many ways, by the character's individual reaction to the external conflict.

While the above lessons are all about craft, I learned one important lesson about the business of writing.

4.  You've got to start somewhere. Lots of super-soon-to-be-famous people got bit parts on M*A*S*H. Patrick Swayze, Blythe Danner, Lawrence Fishburne. Thirty years later, these are all household names, but not so when M*A*S*H began. So hang in there. It just takes a while to get noticed.

If any one's hosting a M*A*S*H trivia party, call me. I'll bring the martinis.

Hurricanes and Terrified of Peanut Butter

I've heard a lot lately, from those in the know, about inner conflict versus exterior conflict. A lot of rejection letters are posted every day because writers have a difficult time figuring out the right balance. First let's start with the basics.

An exterior conflict is something your characters have no control over.
Examples: hurricanes, plagues, pestilence of any kind, being hit by a bus, getting mugged.

An internal conflict is more subtle. In this type, it's something your character is trying to overcome that is not readily apparent to everyone else. Or, if the character is not trying to overcome it, it's still a motivating factor for their actions. And you may not catch it immediately.
Examples: can't trust men, paranoid, overachiever, sexist, racist, scared of Peanut Butter.

Carrie, our Conference Chair, and I are HUGE, HUGE Monk fans. Discussion of the show often adds an hour or two to conference "meetings". Tony Shaloub's character is a great example of well-balanced conflict.

The homicides---external. OCD---internal. Blackout due to an earthquake---external. Germophobe---internal.

The writers of the TV series do a great job balancing these. It's a detective show but the internal conflict(s) of Monk keep you tuning into USA Network.

You have to keep these elements in mind when you're writing. It's vital that your characters have enough internal conflict to make them interesting and engaging. If your characters are flat, it may be because they don't have enough internal conflict to keep the reader engaged. You also need external conflict to keep the plot active and well-paced. Every story has to go somewhere. Both elements define character, but in different ways.

Here's an example from a hypothetical romance I just made up---
A hot firefighter (pun totally intended), named ACE, rescues a nurse, BUFFY, who looks like Heidi Klum, from a burning building. They are instantly attracted to each other. But she won't go on a date with him---her father, also a firefighter, was a deadbeat and left her and her mother with only one pack of Ramen noodles and two weeks until her mother's next paycheck. ACE won't take no for an answer. No woman has ever turned him down. When a flaming building collapses on ACE and he ends up in BUFFY'S ER, she sees that not all firefighters are alike. (*CUE HAPPILY EVER AFTER MUSIC*)

External---BUFFY'S apartment fire, building collapse and ACE's injury
Internal--BUFFY: all firefighters are deadbeats ACE: no woman will refuse him

Think about some of your favorite books. How did the author keep you up late? What made the characters so engaging? What percentage is external conflict and what percentage is internal?

A note of caution---Don't confuse internal conflict with baggage. There is an overlap, but I'm not suggesting you take a serviceable character and turn him into a boozing, womanizing fool just for the sake of internal conflict. Some emotional baggage may be okay, but too much may kill your manuscript. Most of us read to escape, remember?