A Pattern Story: August Book Club

 "...every story is a pattern story."  ~~ A Swim in a Pond in the Rain, George Saunders

According to George Saunders, no writer begins his or her great work of fiction with the idea, "I think I'll write a pattern story" or "What this story needs is pattern." And yet, no matter how funny, beautiful, complicated, or bizarre, every story is a pattern story.

Life, in itself, is a pattern story, though we rarely recognize repetition as part of the process. The same is true with stories. For example, all rags to riches stories follow the same pattern. The protagonist starts out with hard times, then an opportunity presents itself which leads to a change of fortune or the ability to overcome the original adversity. The characters and/or circumstances might be different, but the pattern is the same. The same is true for rebirth. The lead in the story is experiencing darkness - physical, spiritual, or maybe even other-worldly. He succumbs to the torture that is his life until an unexpected intervention breaks through the bondage. Once free, the main character begins to live life with peace and happiness. 

A pattern story can also be compared to the acts of a play. In comedy, the protagonist is characterized as pretty normal - the pizza guy, the beat cop, the lawyer, the dogwalker, or the loafer. Their life is upended by an unusual and unexpected conflict, which is perpetuated by their self-deluded desire to find a solution. The involvement of the main character usually results in even greater chaos, until he or she returns to normal life. In drama, the story follows an opposite pattern. Maybe everything is okay or great or even perfect in the beginning. Then a problem arises that usually descends from bad to worse. Finally, the story hits rock bottom. All hope is lost - or maybe not! Could there be a way out? A way to rise above the waves and make it to the shore? At the very end, once the main character finds salvation, he learns a lesson he never forgets - a gift that came out of the darkness.

As with the other exercises, once a reader begins to recognize pattern, it becomes difficult to overlook. Tragedy, mystery, adventure, romance - every story is a pattern story. If the main character is overcoming a monster (real or imagined), he restores peace and calm by facing down the foe that seeks to wreak havoc upon his society, his family, or himself. If the protagonist is beginning a quest, he answers a call to act, sets out on a journey, encounters troubles that threaten and overwhelm, and finally, by whatever means necessary, finds the inner strength or outside help to restore peace - usually accompanied by a new perspective of life or greater responsibility. 

When you strip a story down to its barest bones, similarities of pattern exist. Even the most original ideas for fiction follow a pattern, which is sometimes described as formulaic or predictable; however, readers are often creatures of habit when it comes to genre fiction. If readers prefer romance, they have general expectations of pattern. The protagonists meet, experience an attraction, reject the relationship on one or both sides, face a midpoint crisis, confess their deepest secrets and fears, break up completely, recognize their misery and loss, and complete the pattern with a declaration of love and a happy ending.

Pattern is expected in all genres; it is why readers read what they do. In fantasy, the pattern involves a hero's journey. In horror, the reader waits for the unexpected horrifying twist that is totally expected. If the reader is bored, he or she might choose adventure which provides an adrenaline high. Or maybe they want to read fiction that shocks the senses with its graphic realism. These novels still follow a definite arc with internal struggles laid bare for all to see. Armed with preexisting prejudices and judgments, realistic fiction combines the main characters' layers of motivations, fears, and desires with adverse external circumstances and internal conflict - creating what is known as the framed narrative, or the story within the story.

Saunders is correct in his statement: "every story is a pattern story." The best writers master the art of a pattern story, and readers return to their favorite genres and authors time and again to find that formula they crave. From Agatha Christie's crime fiction to Julia Quinn's regency romance to Michael Farris Smith's gothic Southern realism, pattern is what readers expect. The difficult task for the writer is to create an addiction to pattern from which the reader never recovers.

Please make plans to attend the Forest Public Library adult book club on Tuesday, August 24, at 6:00 p.m. as members discuss pattern in the books they are currently reading and in their favorite genres. Pre-packaged snacks, bottled water, and canned drinks will be provided.