Tracy Ballinger

Late one evening in October, Robin paced around her wee Edinburgh flat, phone in hand, gathering courage to message a friend. She needed courage because the friend was not a close friend, nor one-hundred-percent pure friend, but also a man who, despite efforts not to, she'd developed a crush on. He'd been thwarting her efforts not only by being exceedingly handsome, warm, and affable, but also by sending her flirtatious messages and kissy-face emojis. The emojis had lost their charm after a couple weeks when they never evolved to a phone call or more substantial messages, and when the kissy-face messages had died off, she'd written him off. He was in Iceland, anyway, while she was in Scotland. That was summer a year ago. Then, that spring, she'd gotten in touch with him again on the pretense of needing travel advice for Italy, his native land, and he'd responded by sending her a half-naked photo of himself in addition to the travel advice. A few of her friends had received half-naked photos of men before. One had even received an unprovoked dick pick, which she'd promptly scolded the man for. A photo of a man's bare chest and face was a different thing, however, and Robin had found his photo particularly charming. At first it had shocked her; she'd only expected a bit of travel advice and more kissy-face emojis. Was this his attempt to up the ante? Do kissy-face emojis evolve to naked pictures and then a phone call? Or were phone calls out of the picture and this was his way of making clear he just wanted sex? An old fear crept up whispering if she wasn't up for sex she wasn't wanted, but she brushed the stifling fear aside, reminding herself the notion she was desirable to men only for sex came from her sex-obsessed culture but was fundamentally a lie. Most men, like most human beings, actually wanted intimacy and, like many women, used sex because they didn't know how to get it otherwise. The half-naked photo had only brought the lie to her mind again because it had made her think of sex and how she herself would like to have it with the man in the photo. It wasn't the naked body per say that made her want it, but the vulnerability of the nakedness and playfulness of the pose. He held his fists up like a body builder flexing his biceps and made a goofy face, puckering his lips together, bulging his eyes out, and raising his eyebrows. He'd sent it with the self-deprecating caption, "I got stuck in a random Italian city and miss my flight lovely Robin! I pretended I was a tourist and tomorrow I'll be back to Iceland.. and I'll collect my ideas and write or call u sweety!! This is me now a bit drunk sending love to you after weeks of hard working out."

Act of Story Statement Robin cannot find a good hiking partner, let alone a good romantic partner, so she wanders across Iceland alone, trying to quench her restlessness and keep hope in love. In 200 words or less, sketch the antagonist or antagonistic force in your story. Keep in mind their goals, their background, and the ways they react to the world about them. The antagonist in this story is Alonzo, an Italian glacier guide working in Iceland, who, like many men, both desires and rejects the protagonist. He shamelessly flirts and leads her on while also railing against her and flaking out, leaving her confused and conflicted. He inflames her hope for love and connection, but ultimately fails to fulfill those hopes, leaving her disappointed and alone. Like the main character, he desires romance, but, having experienced devastating heartbreak in the past, he holds himself back from forming truly intimate relationships. For him, love seeks to enslave and destroy him and, hence, is a dangerous force he must resist and fight against. Hence, while drawn to the protagonist, he also treats her as an enemy, and in turn makes himself her enemy. He represents the larger antagonist force of the comfort zone: the conformity of people to safe, predictable, and superficial things and their fear of the divine unknown. The protagonist, on the other hand, is driven to seek God and adventure, no matter the cost. Create a breakout title (3 options) Robin Walks Across Iceland The Viking, the Glacier Guide, and the Man from Kentucky Prudence and Passion Develop two smart comparables for your novel. This is a good opportunity to immerse yourself in your chosen genre. Who compares to you? And why? Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert - Gilbert’s book is like a travel blog and diary, weaving her travel experiences with her larger personal story. It also involves some romance and self-discovery. My book is also about a person traveling and seeking inner and outer change and has a bit of romance. The protagonists are similar demographically, as well, though they are very different characters. Wild by Cheryl Strayed - Like, Eat, Pray, Love, Strayed’s book is her memoir of a journey during a transitional period in her life. Like my story, the action takes place in the wilderness, with the main character having to battle the elements and experiencing growth and transformation through nature and solitude. My story is more of an adventure story, like Wild, than a travel story, like Eat, Pray, Love, but, as in both, the story involves an expose of the heart of the character, her interpersonal relationships, and her pursuit for meaning and a new way of being in the world. Write your own hook line (logline) with conflict and core wound. A woman rejected by adventurous men for being too religious and by religious men for being too adventurous, struggles to find love while keeping true to her faith and herself. Primary dramatic conflict which drives through the work from beginning to end Her desire to give and receive love, to be in an intimate committed relationship where she is seen and accepted for who she is, including being able to pursue her other loves: God and His wilderness. Secondary conflicts or complications that take various social forms Conflict with Alberto - does he want her or not? Will he commit or not? Is he a good man or not? Conflict trying to find a hiking partner to go across Iceland with. Should she go by herself or not? Who should she ask? Will she be able to successfully traverse Iceland? Various physical challenges will present themselves such as bad weather, long distances to walk, lack of water, changing terrain, and difficult river fords. A relationship evolves with a new character she meets on her trek. Does she have feelings for him? Does he have feelings for her? Could a relationship work between them? Inner conflicts and core wounds She is unwanted, unimportant, and forgotten. Sketch out the conditions for the inner conflict your protagonist will have. Why will they feel in turmoil? Conflicted? Anxious? Sketch out one hypothetical scenario in the story wherein this would be the case–consider the trigger and the reaction. Alberto flirting with Robin and sending her a half naked photo of himself will cause her turmoil. She’ll be torn between hoping something real could happen between them, because she does like him, and between giving up on him as a romantic prospect because he is too flaky and seems to only want something superficial. This will manifest as her flirting back, trying to direct the relationship into something more, and then reaching an impasse or a block with him and letting the relationship go for a time, as she experiences disappointment and disillusionment in him. This pattern of anxiety and turmoil will repeat as she vacillates between hope and despair with him and other men that enter her life. Sketch a hypothetical scenario for the “secondary conflict” involving the social environment. Will this involve family? Friends? Associates? What is the nature of it? The secondary conflict will involve friends as she tries to find someone to hike across Iceland with her. She will struggle to convince anyone to join her on her adventure, a metaphor for how she struggles to connect with others in general, due to her fearlessness and contempt for things that are safe and comfortable. Sketch out your setting in detail. What makes it interesting enough, scene by scene, to allow for uniqueness and cinema in your narrative and story? The setting is Iceland, a barren land covered in grey sand, plains of black rock piles, the remains of old lava flows, and pock-marked by cone and plateau formations. These dry desert regions are broken up by glaciers and huge waterfalls, where silty glacial runoff carves canyons through the land. The glaciers themselves provide an amazing backdrop as they dominate the horizon at times and provide a sense of awe. Their movement and melt change the landscape around them, sometimes flooding the plains, forming lakes and rivers where there previously were none. The setting is both astoundingly beautiful as much as it is dangerous and intimidating. The glaciers and other natural features give a sense of wonder, but are also ominous in their power and indifference to those who dare to explore them. Iceland is mostly uninhabited, so in the story, the main character encounters few other people and must battle Iceland’s challenges on her own. Though, when she does find others in these remote regions, they tend to share kindred spirits and form a quick bond.